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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.
papertrail

Showing 1 response by pabelson

pabelson
344 posts
 
Papertrail: I think the problem is that you're "listening too hard" to your new CD player. I suspect that the actual differences between your CD and DVD players are less dramatic than you think. Sometimes our frame of mind can be more important than the components we are listening to. That said, if you're now happier listening to the DVD player, stick with it.

There's also nothing particularly wrong with the rest of your system. If you want a real improvement, it makes the most sense to concentrate on upgrading those speakers. To Rich's suggestions, I would add Paradigm.
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