wanderingmoo,
No, room treatments may help, but you will still find that the sound is clearer and more focused at lower volumes. Even in my dead room due to clutter, this is the case. The ear is less sensitive to bass, so it takes higher volumes to give a sense of loudness in the bass. The whole spectrum of freq is downshifted to give more emphasis to the bass than higher freq. More bass does give more fullness, but with sacrifices to clarity and focus. Even with live unamplified classical music, these statements apply. In audio systems, the lower volume you listen at, the more you have to listen carefully, so that is also a factor in your perceptions. There is a tradeoff at what volume you choose to listen--too low, you hear less of everything but it is all focused, and too high, you hear bloat and lack of focus. Also, since all audio systems are veiled and distorted compared to live unamplified music, trying to get live volumes out of an audio system will doom you to mushy sound. It is better to accept the facts of reality, and get more clarity and focus from your system at lower volumes.
No, room treatments may help, but you will still find that the sound is clearer and more focused at lower volumes. Even in my dead room due to clutter, this is the case. The ear is less sensitive to bass, so it takes higher volumes to give a sense of loudness in the bass. The whole spectrum of freq is downshifted to give more emphasis to the bass than higher freq. More bass does give more fullness, but with sacrifices to clarity and focus. Even with live unamplified classical music, these statements apply. In audio systems, the lower volume you listen at, the more you have to listen carefully, so that is also a factor in your perceptions. There is a tradeoff at what volume you choose to listen--too low, you hear less of everything but it is all focused, and too high, you hear bloat and lack of focus. Also, since all audio systems are veiled and distorted compared to live unamplified music, trying to get live volumes out of an audio system will doom you to mushy sound. It is better to accept the facts of reality, and get more clarity and focus from your system at lower volumes.