Please help--my ears are hurting

I had heard of the synergy phenomonem, but being a relative newbie I had always thought it an audio myth. I now know it is no myth. I had started building a system and like many, I bought some equip. before I knew what I was doing. Not that I bought anything necessarily bad, I had not bought anything necessarily good. I have 2 Polk floorstanders & center speaker, an HK 325 receiver, and a cheap JVC dvd player. I went the receiver route because of the WAF and FAF(family aproval factor). I am interested in mostly music, but the family is interested in mostly movies. Well, the sound was just OK. My first step was to add a new CD player--the highly reviewed Music Hall CD25 w/ Level 1+ Mod. At first I was amazed at all the sound I had been missing. What detail, what clarity, and finally what brightness-- especially in the upper mids/lower highs. I now cannot listen for more that an few minutes without getting a headache. At times my ears literally "prickle", especially at certain frequencies. The cd25 apparently is synergistically out of sync with the rest of the system. I have actually gone back to listening mostly to the DVD player. I contacted the seller and he thinks the problem is most likely in the HK and suggested that I buy a Jolida integrated amp w/ a tube preamp ($600) to warm things up a bit.
1. What do you guys think about this?
2. I would like something that I could incorporate into the HT system. I don't think this is possible with the Jolida.
3. Is there an ss amp that might warm this player/system up?
4. I am using Blue Jeans Cables which get high ratings as a budget ic. Opinions?????
5. Could the speakers be the culprit? I have been looking into some Spendors.
6. Could the new player somehow be defective? It has been broken in according to the recommendation.
7. Should I scrap/sell the HK and start over in the amp section of the system?
Guys, I am at an impasse here. I don't have dealers nearby to audition, so I have to go mostly on what I read. Being a high school teacher I don't have a lot of discretionary income, but I do love good music, and now that I am nearing retirement want a decent system. I was thinking of spending $8-1000 for each new upgrade---source, speakers, amp section. Where should I go from here? Thanks in advance. Ouch.