Orchestral brass and fanfare - analysis of system


The question is - where do the elements of great brass reproduction reside in a system? In the story below, I think performance is limited by either my amp or tweeter. What do you think?

And now my story ...
My system at present:

Electrocompaniet EMC1 CDP with MKII upgrade
Pass Labs X-1 Pre
Krell KAV250a amp
B&W Nautilus 805s
Audioquest interconnect
Discovery speaker cable.

What I hear from individual solo brass instruments:
Lyrical sound with good harmonics and good "Pratt".
Equally good with coronets, flugels, trombones, baritones;
french horns may be a little compressed - but then that is their natural sound. Works equally well on loud and soft passages.

What I hear from symphonic brass in fanfare is different:
[e.g. Copland - new world symphony ]The "Pratt" is still there, mids and lows are good, however the highs become compressed at LOUD volumes. On low volume passages the system relaxes into my comfort zone again.

My own thoughts:

1. Is this the sound of clipping?
2. Is this the metal tweeter on the 805s?
3. Is this amp unable to open up the speakers enough?
(Krell generally has plenty of headroom - even the KAVs)
4. Have I hit the wall with what my speakers can do?
judit

Showing 2 responses by judit

I forgot to mention that I also have a REL stadium III sub-woofer in the system. This is an important omission since it makes a REAL BIG difference in my system's overall sound on orchestral and brass music. Sub-woofer frequencies are an intrinsic part of the spectral presentation of trumpets (e.g.), as surprising as this was for me to realize.
I hear some very strong arguments here suggesting a link of this problem to amplifier performance. I do not know what the performance curves of the Krell look like, so I am not sure what happens at the high end. It is the weak link in my system, without doubt-it is a hometheater product.

Krell is supposed to be a good match for B&W, but perhaps the unit I own is a notch too low in the performance chain. I own a pair of Vandersteen model 3s upstairs that I will swap in, for diagnostic purposes. I am thinking I would like to try an amp like the Pass X-350, a class A design like the Krell [if I have my facts straight], but in another league entirely.

By the way, I appreciate the thought that went into many of these responses.