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Likely culprit for harshness at higher volumes?

Hi,

I'm a newbie to higher end audio. I have a very modest system:
1) Pre-amp: Anthem AVM2
2) Amp: Adcom GFA-5400
3) Source: Sony CDP-X111ES CD player
4) Speakers: KEF C75
5) Toslink between source and pre-amp; cheap RCA cables from pre-amp to amp; 16 or 18 gauge speaker wire (Radio Shack?)

Room setup (10-ish feet x 20-ish feet rectangle):
1) 2 foot deep cabinets along one wall (20-ish foot)
2) Components stacked on top of small end table against rear wall (10 foot); centered between cabinets and opposite wall.
3) Speakers slightly in front of end table and about 2 feet from side walls and 4 feet from rear wall

Sounds good at about -45 to -25db; but higher frequencies get harsh at higher than -25db.

Appreciate your thoughts.
saru

Showing 1 response by jedinite24

jedinite24's avatar
jedinite24
1,503 posts
 
My experience is similar to Rockadanny's post.

I had metal dome tweeters that were toed in with cheap poorly made ICs but my SCs were budget 12 AWG wire. I had made incremental changes with ICs and SCs but the biggest change was going to soft dome tweeters.

Also I think another cause was lack of room treatment. I had lots of bare walls and minimal furntiure in my room at the time.
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