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Dreadnaught a Bit Bright?

I recently acquired a Theta Dreadnaught to drive my Aerials 8b's. Originally I was driving them with a Proceed HPA-2. Sold the HPA-2 with intentions of buying a HPA-3 to drive the front three channels in my HT. To make a long story short, I bought a Dreadnaught based on it's universally high praise. Don't get me wrong I am enjoying the music, but there are recordings that sound bright to me now. Could be my imagination since it's been almost a year (I used the Amp5 temporarily.) since I sold the HPA-2. Thought I'd check to see if anyone else shared this perception or had the chance to go side by side with the two units? Originally, I did side by side comparisons between the Proceed and a Bryson. The Proceed was clearly warmer.
quicke
tdavism3
46 posts
 
I have used a Dread in the past with B&W speakers and agree that the amp has a somewhat laid back character and would not characterize the amp as being bright in any way. However, the Dread is revealing and if your cables tend towards the bright side (e.g., Nordost Red Dawn) the amp will reflect that. Try Synergistic Res. Ref. X2 cables. Just a thougth. Good luck!
agaffer
256 posts
 
You don't mention if it is a Dreadnaught or a Dreadnaught II. I had a Dreadnaught for years and then brought home a Dread II for a possible upgrade. It went right back to the dealer. It wasn't as musical as the original Dreadnaught and I would consider it bright, almost as bright as the Krell amps were in the 90's.
reb1208
518 posts
 
Tvad- Are you saying the Synergistic X2 cables lean to the dark side. I have these cables and IMO they will not hide brightness. What they do is lower distortion in the highs and bring out fullness/harmonics.
quicke OP
35 posts
 
Thanks for the comments. I'll look into different IC options.
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
No worries! You're an audiophile. All audiophiles come to suspect their _____ of perhaps being a bit "bright" after a while.
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