*Is it possible to have incredible clarity while still retaining some of the smoothness? *
Yes.
*When does clarity cross the line to brightness?*
When you screw up putting a system together. :-D
Many trial and error and a balancing act. I appreciate greater resolution and clarity but a high resolution system does not have to sound bright. That's some distortion and dynamic compresion you are hearing.
Even the not so pristine discs do not have to sound head inducing and you can still get a plenty of insights in the right system.
*If the recipe, ingredients and technique are high quality, how could the soup turn out less than stellar?*
Personal sonic bias and everyone hears differently assuming all the *ingredients* are working properly together from electrical pov.
Yes.
*When does clarity cross the line to brightness?*
When you screw up putting a system together. :-D
Many trial and error and a balancing act. I appreciate greater resolution and clarity but a high resolution system does not have to sound bright. That's some distortion and dynamic compresion you are hearing.
Even the not so pristine discs do not have to sound head inducing and you can still get a plenty of insights in the right system.
*If the recipe, ingredients and technique are high quality, how could the soup turn out less than stellar?*
Personal sonic bias and everyone hears differently assuming all the *ingredients* are working properly together from electrical pov.