Tough crowd. The guy hopes to get a big lift from securing a second hand system of high end gear and is not impressed. Then he's chastised for not knowing ahead of time. A great way to get more newbies into the High End...
I can understand why Gonglee3 would be disappointed. If you've never dropped more than $1-2K for some gear and poured out several $K for a rig, but it didn't do it for you, wouldn't you be put out?
Regarding him knowing better, you have to hear the respective brands of gear to know enough that it will potentially sound poor with other associated gear. If you've never visited for years as a guest of a high end shop or been to a show how would you know that? I did cringe when I saw the equipment listing of the rig, especially if it's older gear. Perhaps it was at one time $60k of stuff, but now is worth about $10K? That's still a lot of money to most people to dole out for a rig. If it doesn't perceptually sound two or three times better then he'd have some reason to be upset.
Anyway, if the sound is harsh and unforgiving at least one or two component changes are in order. The system obviously is so deficient that tweaking will not resolve it. I would experiment with different cabling, even used much less costly cables to attempt to soften the sound. If aftermarket power cords are not being used I'd snag some from the classifieds here. I would check every piece of equipment to ensure that I've tried every feasible setting in an attempt to moderate the problems. I would get some tubes or, as a distant second option, a very warm sounding SS component into the rig asap. If the bass was boomy I'd try stuffing the speaker port with a sock or foam to turn it into a quasi-sealed cabinet design; it may make it much more pleasant. Maybe a home made sound panel or two would help. It doesn't have to take a lot of money to spiff it up.
Do not be afraid to swap components from your other rig into the new one to see what it does! Get a feel for as many component combinations as you can. I would double check to see if the Quad amp can drive the speakers, then put it into the mix and see what it does to the sound. I would try the Parasound player with the new rig. I would probably try the NAD/Onkyo combo if deemed sufficient to drive the B&W. You may love the rig a lot more with just one or two changes. In any given rig the synergy between components may more than offset the removal of a slightly higher quality component. All things equal you want the highest quality stuff in the rig. But, if you can't stand the sound of those components, switch things around! I have made many systems with mostly higher end components and just one, and definitely no more than two, moderately priced components and gotten good results. No, not SOTA sound, but very nice sound.
Think in a fluid way about forming systems; don't compartmentalize your rigs. You don't like the main rig's sound now, so mix it up. Putting one different component into the rig may have profound influence for the better. You have enough gear that moving cables, amps etc. might get you a lot closer to something you like on the big rig. No matter the result you will learn a lot about how incredibly variable the sound can be with different gear. My guess is that you'll stumble onto a combo that you like a lot more than the current one.
Keep at it, Gonglee, because that rig has potential - a lot more potential than you think, perhaps a lot of potential. But it will take time and effort to coax the best out of it. You invest the time and an perhaps a bit more money and it might become a dream rig for you. If that happens you won't be so quick to sell it back. :)
I can understand why Gonglee3 would be disappointed. If you've never dropped more than $1-2K for some gear and poured out several $K for a rig, but it didn't do it for you, wouldn't you be put out?
Regarding him knowing better, you have to hear the respective brands of gear to know enough that it will potentially sound poor with other associated gear. If you've never visited for years as a guest of a high end shop or been to a show how would you know that? I did cringe when I saw the equipment listing of the rig, especially if it's older gear. Perhaps it was at one time $60k of stuff, but now is worth about $10K? That's still a lot of money to most people to dole out for a rig. If it doesn't perceptually sound two or three times better then he'd have some reason to be upset.
Anyway, if the sound is harsh and unforgiving at least one or two component changes are in order. The system obviously is so deficient that tweaking will not resolve it. I would experiment with different cabling, even used much less costly cables to attempt to soften the sound. If aftermarket power cords are not being used I'd snag some from the classifieds here. I would check every piece of equipment to ensure that I've tried every feasible setting in an attempt to moderate the problems. I would get some tubes or, as a distant second option, a very warm sounding SS component into the rig asap. If the bass was boomy I'd try stuffing the speaker port with a sock or foam to turn it into a quasi-sealed cabinet design; it may make it much more pleasant. Maybe a home made sound panel or two would help. It doesn't have to take a lot of money to spiff it up.
Do not be afraid to swap components from your other rig into the new one to see what it does! Get a feel for as many component combinations as you can. I would double check to see if the Quad amp can drive the speakers, then put it into the mix and see what it does to the sound. I would try the Parasound player with the new rig. I would probably try the NAD/Onkyo combo if deemed sufficient to drive the B&W. You may love the rig a lot more with just one or two changes. In any given rig the synergy between components may more than offset the removal of a slightly higher quality component. All things equal you want the highest quality stuff in the rig. But, if you can't stand the sound of those components, switch things around! I have made many systems with mostly higher end components and just one, and definitely no more than two, moderately priced components and gotten good results. No, not SOTA sound, but very nice sound.
Think in a fluid way about forming systems; don't compartmentalize your rigs. You don't like the main rig's sound now, so mix it up. Putting one different component into the rig may have profound influence for the better. You have enough gear that moving cables, amps etc. might get you a lot closer to something you like on the big rig. No matter the result you will learn a lot about how incredibly variable the sound can be with different gear. My guess is that you'll stumble onto a combo that you like a lot more than the current one.
Keep at it, Gonglee, because that rig has potential - a lot more potential than you think, perhaps a lot of potential. But it will take time and effort to coax the best out of it. You invest the time and an perhaps a bit more money and it might become a dream rig for you. If that happens you won't be so quick to sell it back. :)