I would like to throw the room into the mix too. Speaker placement can sometimes correct deficiencies but a room that is hard will take some work to warm up. Some experimentation with the room can usually yield good results.
I use cables like tone controls, as do many other folks & don't forget PC's & receptacles when looking into cables.
I use cables like tone controls, as do many other folks & don't forget PC's & receptacles when looking into cables.