Should I Get a DAC ?

03-07-14: Lowrider57
I can hear up to 19kHz, but it's actually a small range of high frequencies that bother me.

Some promising suggestions have been offered above. It seems to me, though, that what would be an ideal solution for the issue you have described is a notch filter/bandstop filter operating in the digital domain, which would allow arbitrary adjustment of the center frequency and the width of the notch, and also of the amount of attenuation introduced within that notch. You would adjust all of those parameters so as to attenuate or filter out just the bothersome frequencies.

There is one device I am aware of which provides that capability and is generally well regarded among audiophiles and sells for a relatively modest price ($1099, which happens to be exactly the same amount as the cost of a Synchro-Mesh + your stated $500 DAC budget). That is the DSPeaker Anti-Mode 2.0 Dual Core, available within the USA here. As you'll see, return privileges are offered, but not without some cost and other conditions.

The Dual Core includes a DAC function, and I believe its design would make an external re-clocker unnecessary, even if the source had relatively high jitter. However its only digital input is optical, which your CD3 does not provide. So an approach to consider would be selling the CD3 and replacing it with a much less expensive transport having an optical output. Perhaps that would even net out at a total cost of less than zero.

Or, if you were to try the Synchro-Mesh + DAC approach first and it doesn't prove to be an adequate solution you could then try the Dual Core with the CD3, using the Synchro-Mesh in between as a coax to optical converter as well as a reclocker.

Best regards,
-- Al

Why don't you try taping a couple of sheets of toilet paper over the tweeters. You would probably not believe how many records were recorded with Yamaha NS10m speakers with toilet paper over the tweeters. Google it and you'll see. If you use grills it doesn't matter, but even if you don't, you can probably do a nice enough job that you won't mind looking at it.

PS - you should have bought the Doge6 instead of that ARC, but you got caught up in the name-recognition thing.

Thanks for weighing in, Al. A notch filter is an interesting concept; if we were mixing in an analogue studio (which is part of my work experience), that would have been an option that would have been explored when dealing with some problem frequencies. I've never seen one for home use except in an EQ.
I really love this ARC CDP and would hate to give up on it. For the most part, classical music is sounding so smooth and sweet to me. BTW, it's not only my HiFi from which I experience my hearing issue; it's also every day sounds and the worst offender is hearing applause on a talk-show thru TV speakers. (it's all mids and highs compressed). I should pursue my problem with an audiologist and isolate the frequencies, but when tested they considered it a minor problem.
As good as the CD3 mk2 is, it is the entry level model and possibly could use a reclocking device.

Chayro; I've seen that. It will be interesting to try at home. In the days when I was mixing audio for television, we always had Auratone's for the final mix.

http://www.bobhodas.com/examining-the-yamaha-ns-10m.php

Lowrider,

My symptoms are exactly the same as yours: live music and canned laughter are killers. I would add that when the harmonic distortion from tube gear comes together at the high end, the effect is ear-piercing to me, but that is apparently not an issue with your ARC.

I did some auditioning of my own system last night and apparently the pre pro and Steve's cable have achieved full break-in because I was quite comfortable with the experience in general. So I'm catching up with myself.

But it requires for me the use of Dolby Volume which I realize will be an unpopular choice for audiophiles. I'm just saying that if all else fails, there is Dolby Volume. It is better than no music. I still plan to try reclocking.

BTW, I think Daedaleus (sp) speakers still use a cloth tweeter. Would be interesting.