Your statement that the music became more focused and detailed but forward/harsh/etc. sounds like your getting closer to the sound of real music which has a lot of energy. You may be on the right track and just need to fine tune what you are doing. When you say you put sand bags under your player do you mean that the bottom of your player was resting on the top of the bags and the bags resting on the shelf of your rack? If so, try putting the sand bags on the shelf of your rack then cone (Black Diamond cones works well) your component to the rack of your shelf and then damp the top of your component with your sand bags to the type of voicing you prefer. I have found that #9 lead shot is more effective for damping shelves and compnents then sand, but is also more expensive. Good luck!
Sand bags under a cdp - didn't work well
Last night I started the process of vibration control with the use of sand bags (3) under my Arcam cdp. What I found was that while everything became more focused/detailed it also became more sharp/harsh/forward/aggressive. I didn't know what to expect but it certaintly wasn't this. Van Morrison's voice on trk #5 on Sailing to Philadelphia was abnormally aggressive and in the end I preferred the sound without the bags. Any thoughts as to why things became too sharp & aggressive????