Looking to add warmth


I'm looking for a solution to add warmth/richness or "emotion" to my rig. Currently the sound is what I would describe as dry/uninvolving, very accurate, but not pulling me in per say.

At the moment I'm using a HTPC running high bitdepth tracks via USB into a Wyred DAC2 being used as a pre to directly feed an Aragon 8008BB driving Philharmonic Audio 2's.

I would be spending money on room treatments, but my room is not very permitting. I live in a geodesic home and the living/listening room is very odd: there are few straight walls, its very open to the rest of the house, and there is a steel spiral staircase directly behind the listening position.

I've debated switching out the DAC to a PS Audio Perfectwave MkII w/bridge and foregoing USB altogether.

Or keeping the DAC2 and selling the 8008BB to switch to a warmer amp, or possibly go the tube route.

Or adding a USB converter of sorts to feed the AES/EBU input instead of the USB on the DAC2.

Tube buffer?

Adding a tube pre-amp? Or is adding another link in the chain only going to make matters worse?

Thanks in advance for any and all replies.
koenigr

Showing 4 responses by davide256

"Warmth" is a curious thing, to me I equate it to richness and vibrancy in mid range tone color. My experience was that it took synergy to get it and that you don't have a prayer if its not supported by the DAC. You would think an all tube solution would do it yet I would not call the pre section of my Prima Luna warm compared to my CJ preamp. And I was never able to get a consistently warm sound with digital until I changed from asynch USB to DLNA. I think either the Perfect Wave or a Naim Media Player would guarantee good results for the digital signal to analog output section and then the thread originator would have to judge if the amplification is capable of passing good tone color from what the source feeds it
+1 to the Pre. I've tried DAC to amp twice and both times found input through pre amp was better.
Altering the tonal balance doesn't create warmth.... boy how I hated all those equalizers they tried to sell audiophiles in the 80's. What creates warmth is a system that in the midrange reproduces cleanly all the harmonic overtones for an instrument in the correct volume relationship for each pitch. To me the classic symptom of a "cold" system is that whatever is loudest in mid range is clearly heard and whatever is next loudest is bleached and apologetic vs. robust and saucy.