I'm not sure if it's been suggested to you, but how about- considering analog? A good Rega P3 or similar table,e.g., a Music Hall, perhaps used; a cheap but effective cartridge, and a good affordable phono stage (all possible for 1K or not much more) plus some good ebay used lps, locally-found used ones, etc., could be a wonderful shift. Reasonably good condition lp's can often be found for substantially less than lp's
I have Thiel 2.3's w/ Ayre electronics, and while some problems I've had w/ brightness are due to the limitations of my listening/living room (under-damped), the bulk of my dissatisfaction w/ the tonal balance disappears when I play analog (which in the price range you're discussing, should kill cd sound in most respects). Much of the problem, I think, is due to the nature of the cd medium, which I hasten to add, I do frequently use as well (30-40% of listening), so I'm not simply an "analog partisan." If you go to the high-end shows nowadays, you'll see that vinyl often predominates, but most high-end folks agree that vinyl is in most (emotional) ways still a superior medium.
Check it out, if you haven't already. Acoustic sounds is one of the best sites for a comprehensive analog source- though their heavy vinyl is expensive, there's plenty of good, used, cheap vintage vinyl out there (speak w/ Clark or Stelley, their analog experts, for affordable solutions); also Music Direct, also excellent, though I'm slightly less fond of them. Seriously, analog can do some amazing things for your system, and moreover, your listening pleasure and passion about music.
I have Thiel 2.3's w/ Ayre electronics, and while some problems I've had w/ brightness are due to the limitations of my listening/living room (under-damped), the bulk of my dissatisfaction w/ the tonal balance disappears when I play analog (which in the price range you're discussing, should kill cd sound in most respects). Much of the problem, I think, is due to the nature of the cd medium, which I hasten to add, I do frequently use as well (30-40% of listening), so I'm not simply an "analog partisan." If you go to the high-end shows nowadays, you'll see that vinyl often predominates, but most high-end folks agree that vinyl is in most (emotional) ways still a superior medium.
Check it out, if you haven't already. Acoustic sounds is one of the best sites for a comprehensive analog source- though their heavy vinyl is expensive, there's plenty of good, used, cheap vintage vinyl out there (speak w/ Clark or Stelley, their analog experts, for affordable solutions); also Music Direct, also excellent, though I'm slightly less fond of them. Seriously, analog can do some amazing things for your system, and moreover, your listening pleasure and passion about music.