Brilliant Pebbles, a new tweak, cheaper than high end cables.

It made Bob Dylan sound like Frank Sinatra / Bummer 

tobor,
" You are correct. I feel kind of embarrassed to say I have a brand that has had a history of shabby engineering and poor sound quality"
Just so we're on the same page, it's not your terrible taste in high end electronics that I've found unnecessary (your choice), but your choice in starting this thread.

BTW, that shabby engineering (your words / I don't necessarily think their engineering is shabby, just their sound quality) is highlighted in this recent thread, if you're interested

"DC Offset Blocker/Killer - where to buy in the USA"

tobor,
This thread was really unnecessary dude. That stated, It would not matter what you did with that McIntosh equipment, it will still sound like the sub-par over priced McIntosh equipment it is. The best thing you could do is start over.