Advice on whether speaker upgrade is in order

I also can see what people mean about Bryston gear sounding a little tinny or bright at times.

If I were to evolve the system, would speakers be high on the list, and recommendations given this hardware?

So the one thing you know for sure is the Bryston amps sound tinny and bright, but the one thing you want to try is new speakers? Just want to make sure I understand the question.

The One Rule that has served me well over 50 years is always work on upgrading the weakest link. Your One Job is to find the weakest link. Could be anything from power cords to speaker cables to the cones under the components to the lowly fuses inside them. Yes even the room is fair game. Anything and everything.

Now out of all those things you could be looking to upgrade, there is one and only one component you take the time to tell us you know is flawed, and another one you take the time to tell us you don't think is flawed. So which one is it again you think you should be upgrading?

While you're mulling that one over, here's a freebie you can try that will probably help a lot.

Swap connections to run the B&W direct and full range. Do not use the sub crossover, except to adjust the sub. Right now you have your mains being driven by a signal you're sending through two extra God knows what interconnects, the assuredly crap crossover network in the subs, and then back to drive your speakers. Every one of those steps involves wires and circuits each one of which is adding a veil of grain and glare, which is also the problem with the Brystons. So you've unwittingly made a bad situation worse. 

Running the B&W full range will also improve bass response, probably by quite a bit, because the more bass drivers the better. 

But hey, don't take my word for it. Try it and see. Go and listen.

Thanks,will play around with getting the sub out of the way.  My recollection from years ago was that the bass was uninspiring, but this is an old memory, and without much attention to room treatments

In terms of my general inconsistency and speculation, my reading led me to hypothesize that speakers could be a weak link, and I had never heard B&Ws criticized for being too bright.  So I added my only sonic criticism of the system (a little bright), which is sometimes thrown at Bryston - just trying to provide info for the more knowledgeable to opine.  Who knew what you folks might say (e.g., yes, it will always be slightly bright, but you will get a huge lift out of xyz speaker....) :-)

Following and reading as this is interesting to me as I have old but very reliable 804Matrix fronts from early nineties I think and 805 N rear surrounds (sound anchor on both make dramatic positive impact to low end ) some unknown but ok sounding ceiling and in wall speakers that were in when I bought house.  The BW’s are my weakest links aside from wall ceiling believe but I’m not unhappy with overall sound.  Just upgraded a Krell HTS 5.1 avp to McIntosh MX 123.  Krell Kav 2  and 3 channel amps plus a sweet sounding MC275 mkV  powering fronts.  Kubala Sosna ics and speaker cable.  No sub yet until new speakers.   Thinking of maybe used Sony’s Faber Olympic III? Or more bw 803/4 D2/3.   

A few years ago my Plinius pre/power setup was sounding bright.
Did some research (before the internet had information and reviews as accessible as it is now) and bought cable that made a huge difference.
Was so effective I moved up their line by three models.

So although not ideal, careful cable choice can help tame a bright system.

Big question is are the current speakers meeting expectation. Is there a certain flavour no matter how much you tweek. Make sure your room and speaker placement is up to snuff first . Experiment and take your time listening.