How to fix my detailed, accurate but BRIGHT system


Hi everyone, I need help. I like my system in that the base is tight, it has good detail, it's dead quiet and it plays well at higher volumes. What I don't like is the mids and highs are way to forward and the system is lacking warmth. I don't feel my system is very musical or engaging. I'd rather not replace my amp and speakers as I think they are a good match and I don't think I can use a tube amp as these speakers are hungry. I have a large room 22'x38' with a 17' ceiling. I have a lot of glass and all tile floors. Room treatment is not an option as this is our main living space. Should I try a tube DAC, Tube Pre., tube Buffer? How do I warm up the sound I'm getting? My system consists of the following.

Rowland Capri Pre.
Butler 2250 SS/Tube amp
PS Audio Digilink 3 Dac with stage 3 mod.
Aerial 7B speakers
Integra DPS-6.7 DVD/SACD
Wadia 170i (files in lossless)

Thank You in advance for your input!
gregfisk

Showing 2 responses by wireless200

I have several pairs of Aerials including the 7Bs. I've run a lot of different amps on the them. I found they sounded all sorts of different depending on the amp. I'm sensitive to highs in recorded music so it was an especially important point to me that they sound right. I also had a number of other speakers and can't say that the highs really change all that much from speaker to speaker. Also, the Aerials are so well built that's it's very easy to have them up too loud and that ends up being painful. I settled on McInitosh and also Bel Canto. You can't beat Mcintosh for smooth pleasing highs IME. I've got the 7Bs in the bedroom now running off Bel Canto's S500. The BC has stronger highs and dynamics than the McIntosh but I would say the highs sound good. Surely the room has something to do with it but if I were you I'd be in the market for a different amp. The Aerials absolutely sound different depending on the amp. I would even go so far as to say that in a blind test with the 8 or 10 amps I've tried with them I could dicern which amp was being used with them.
Another thing to remember about the so-called doubling down amps. Some of the manufacturers' amps don't exactly double down. The simply make the 8 ohm output higher than the advertised power. For example a 200/400 watt amp can have 300 watts at 8 ohms instead of 200 and the 4 ohm output is 400 wpc. In this way they get to claim it doubles down (all amps that double down must be better!) when in fact it doesn't. Nobody complains because the 8 ohm power is higher than rated but in this case it's a marketing choice - double down is better than the value of 8 ohm power. In the audiophile market this marketing technique is likely to hold more weight with buyers.

The Krell 400xi is a great example of this although they seem to take both marketing routes - advertising doubling down of power and not quite truthful specifications. Adverstised 200wpc 400 wpc. Actual: 290 wpc 350 wpc. It's a good amp if you like that sort of forward sound and have great sources.

Just realize that all this talk of doubling down the power to drive speakers has wrinkles. And frankly I don't see how it affects the speaker output as long as the amp isn't being driven hard. If the amp can deliver the current that's drawn across the impedance across the frequency range then what's the problem? Of course an amp has to deliver more at 4 ohms but up until the limit of the amp is reached it should do that without affecting the sound.