The brightness is probably just musical soup in the high-frequencies. Once these are in focus, the perceived brightness will go away. I would try different CD players first and then replace your IC's with better ones (low-capacitance). I recommend the Sony DVP-S7700 or the DVP-S9000ES. The ES in particular has incredibly good DAC's foro CD's and plays DVD's extremely well too.
Biwire / Speaker / Amp Combo Question
I am running an ATI 1505 amp for stereo and HT with Paradigm Reference 100's and audiquest slate wire. This combination seems somewhat bright for stereo but is fine for HT. Can anyone recommend / suggest any improvements? Can I use bi-wiring with this amp and how? I mainly listen to classic rock using a Denon 307 CD player. Thanks.