Suggested upgrade paths

Definitely a subwoofer/s would be in order. 
https://rel.net/products/classic-98?variant=50204774039768

No mention of acoustic treatments. Definitely look into it. Remember having a similar experience with turning up the volume. After installing 12, 2’ by 4’ 703 owin/corning rigid fiberglass panels, life became easier on the ears 👂. 

This stereo is in the living room. The wife wont want room treatments. I brought it up. The Rel Classic 98/99 is on my radar. Had also thought of a tube pre-amp. 

the treble is shrill

The quickest and easiest route would be to replace the speakers.

Adding a Sub would improve the bass, but it may make the treble more shrill.

If you dont want to replace the speakers, you may be able to improve the treble with either a tubed preamp, or a tubed dac, but there is no certainty there will be an improvement 

"shrill"

I'd nail down the source before I made any move.

It’s all a compromise. Show her this. 
https://www.gikacoustics.com/product-category/acoustic-art-panels/

don't forget about these 

https://cityshadecompany.com/products/atacama?srsltid=AfmBOorDejll2y8m5tjlROi3p-DdhoLGJl_60WB05CyZ-TSjPNBR54oV

The treble shrillness isn’t present at lower volumes. I was thinking it was a combination of the Rotel, Eversolo and Wharfedales all when at higher volumes. When using the Eversolo internal DAC, it was more pronounced. 
 

Wasn’t sure if using a R2R DAC with a DDC would help tame it or if a tubed pre-amp might be a better solution. Using a sub i thought i could listen at a lower volume.

Just thought about my statement. If it's not the room, you're going to find the source by starting to change out the equipment. @pmm is most likely right. i had Klipschs Heresy IV, and I found the highs were fatiguing. After about an hour, that was enough listening. I was relieved when I sold them.

. The Wharfedales I had thought of replacing. Im happy with them at lower volumes. Not so much of a fan of the tweeter. The Rotel can be neutral to bright. Depending on what music is played. Any recommendations on replacement speakers? I like a warm sound. It may be a combination of everything and may require an extended budget, over a series of years.I would like to stay within a 5k budget for now.

Used Harbeth Super HL5+ XD. Be careful on model number easy to mess up for they has updated over the years. $5k plus or minus. Audiogon, The Music Room and US Audio Mart has them.  I bought a used pair of Rosewood and I’m very happy with them.

They are called “Bookshelf” speakers. I do not no of any bookshelf that is large enough for the Harbeths to fit.

Note: The Ton Trager Stands are not California certified. Just joking but they will not hold up to some earthquakes. 

Buy a better pair of speakers! Go to ASR (Audio Science Review) and check out the reviews.

You will always eventually need a better DAC. IMHO all internal DACs are a compromise in lower end components.  Bite the bullet and check out a Denafrips Venus 15th. I am sure it will smooth things out. Start at your source and work your way out. @audioman58 sells them for a discount.  Run the A6 into it. Get a good quality USB cable too. Next consider speaker upgrade down the road. Good luck.

I'd be looking at the Mofi 888 or maybe the Kef R7 Meta. 

I am not familiar with these speakers, and I am sure they are part of the problem. However, there is a good chance that updating the amplification, in particular the preamp, will remove what might be distortion/noise at higher volumes, and give you  improved bass definition. I went through this with my NAD integrated, which luckily allowed me to bypass the pre, and try an outboard pre. It made a big difference. 

For $4200 you can have Totem Twin Bison Towers. 
I love them. They will play anything and deliver a soundstage such you hear music not the speakers, they disappear. Best value out there for a premium speaker 

You've posted under "what's playing on your turntable".  Do you have the same issues with bass and sibilance with vinyl? 

if not mistaken, tweeters on those speakers are not exactly in the center.  Maybe swap left speaker to right, and vice versa, just to see if that makes any difference first.

Looking at the specs of all your equipment, you should have no issues unless something is defective, even in an 80+dB territory. You should cruise in the 70s with no problems. Your speakers not sure. The amp should be good for 10-20+ years. Rotel is a respectable brand.

This gets me thinking. I brought out my PS Audio Sprout, which is 3 lbs, has Bluetooth,  built-in DAC and headphone output. Price is about $700. Pushed it into the 70s with peaks of 85 dB, and it produced no sound characteristic that you described in your system. While off the wall comparisons, I do not see your equipment being a problem. One could say I can not distinguish the difference between a low resolution and a high one. See my virtual system. The Sprout may be a little squirt, but it puts out some good tunes.  I can not imagine your equipment sounds any less. I'm sure more.

What's the sequence for implementing your system?  What came first and so on? At what point did you experience the sound issue? 

Note: Doing my Sprout testing at high volume has my tennisus loud. Perhaps peaking at 85 dB did the trick.

+1 on the Totems.   I like mine!

I have a pair of Super Lintons driven my Marantz KI Ruby CD/Integrated.  In my system I do not find these shrill or edgy at all.  I find them to be a great speaker that excels in real world systems.  They can be placed a foot or two off the front wall and have deep extended bass without any boom.  They image beautifully. And while the tweeter is revealing, it in no way crosses the line where I feel the need to reduce the volume. Quite the contrary.  Different rooms, different ears, different systems, YMMV.

oh, and assume you’ve played with toe-in (e.g., less and no toe-in)?

I don't think that a sub will help the problem you describe. I am a Harbeth fan at this price point for the quality and balance of the timbers. Owned monitor 30.2 with Ton Trager stands. It was an outstanding combo. The 30.2 is known for its mid-range and voices and the HL5+ are not as good in that range but have better bass and are more forward.it depends on musical presentation taste. You have to look at replacing the Rotel 1592 down the road however IMHO. Good luck and keep us posted.

A couple of easy things you can do to address the situation - "the treble is shrill to my ears and the bass not as clear/punchy as I prefer".

1.  Move the speakers farther apart and toe them out a little.  This can reduce the treble shrill, and has worked for me. 

2.  Check your speaker cables.   I have found that low gauge copper speaker cables improve the bass, thus, reducing the emphasis on Treble...  Try "WORLDS BEST CABLES  - 7 AWG - Ultra-Pure OFC" on amazon.  You can very easily return them for your money back if they do not help your situation.  I got a lot more bass out of my speakers with these exact cables.  

Hi , not much room info. I had similar problems but I mitigated most of mine with tube rolling and cables. However in regards to YOUR room, is there a TV in the middle, carpet or bare floor, cloth furniture or drapes ? When you do a simple hand clap , how is the sound ? I was able to again mitigate some of my issues due to carpet and adding cloth drapes and a large cloth sectional. Gik sells some pretty attractive panels including sculptured and the ability to print your photos. Recently I added Townsend Isolation platforms for a HUGE improvement. They definitely won’t pass the wife test , but maybe some less expensive/ intrusive isolation like Herbies. Cheers , Mike B. 

With my Harbeth Super HL5+ XD, the singer is close to live. Voice clear. Mid range I do not see an issue. Of course it's system dependent but they are capable of putting out a full range. Having a well produced recordings helps to evaluate. Helps a lot. 

Changing out speaker cables makes sense. I doubt it will help but it does not hurt to try. Speaker cables do matter.

Please stay away from changing cables to correct this problem, too subtle and subjective. 

The most cost-effective way, as stated above, is speaker placement. Try toeing in, or out

That's a classic symptom of too live of a room. Whatever you can do to absorb some higher frequencies would help. Carpet, drapes, artistic acoustic panels, etc. are what will help most. 

Not being familiar with your gear, I would start by reading reviews on my gear to see if the issue with sibilance or bass is common to any of my gear.

I would guess that the bass issue is speaker related.  Either placement, the speaker itself, or both. 

Sibilance drove me nuts for years. I tried different cables which kinda helped by rolling off the top end a bit, but it didn't solve my problem.  I just blamed it on poor recordings. Thinking my gear is now so revealing that all of the crap recordings are more noticeable. 

My problem turned out to be a well regarded tube preamp.  Replacing it pretty much fixed the problem.  Upgrading my dac also improved things. Now, I have a revealing system and I don't even think of sibilance. At one point, I had almost concluded that sibilance was just something that I'd have to live with.  I was wrong. 

since your complaint is about the sound quality when it’s louder, I would upgrade the amplifier to a seperate. You could still use the rotel as a preamp.

You’re getting distortion, and I assume “65” is out of 100, which sounds like you operate at max gas. So far its been my experience that amps distort before speakers do, assuming decent speakers which you have.

Next would be a speaker upgrade if the amp doesn’t help. Try a few.

I owned the Lintons. Both the Super Linton and the OG are terrific speakers, but they need careful setup to really shine. The A6 and the Rotel’s internal DAC are the weak links. I recommend replacing them with a good streamer and an R2R DAC, since you don’t like delta-sigma designs.

The Node ICON ($1,200 new) with the Teddy Pardo LPS mod ($485) is a highly regarded streamer option, and the Bluesound app runs smoothly. The ICON is even being praised by TAS as an easy alternative to a $35k Aurender N200 and a $28k DAC combo, though I think pairing it with an external R2R DAC would do it more justice.

A Harmony DAC ($2,700) with the Micro DDC ($850) would make a terrific combination. Altogether, the upgrade would run you just over $5k.

Is it your system or your brain & ears?  I hope it is a system component problem.

I have relatively mild tinnitus (I am 81 years old and a couple of years ago I was exposed to a lunatic DJ at a wedding, I had my -30dB ear plugs in but the spl was insane - the plates on the table bounced - I left, unfed, but the damage was done).

As a result of this the brain can develop a condition, hyperacusis, where it overcompensates for loss in the upper treble and overreacts, making certain frequencies, above a certain volume, become shrill, harsh and even painful.

This has happened to me and has changed my listening habits. Certain high treble frequencies, above 60dB or so, fire up the harshness.  All sound sources do this so it is not an artifact of my "entry level very high end" system (Esoteric K-01XDSE, Rockport Atria II etc.).

I am affected mainly by orchestral crescendos where the violins are going fff, Violins have a very large harmonic component to their sound, but the effect is still there with an a7 sin wave at 3520 Hz.

I wish you good fortune in the search for an answer whatever the cause.

I have owned the last series Lintons & I do not suspect that the tweeters are your problem. Unless there is a mechanical issue with them which would be rare for both speakers to have the problem..unless you damaged them with loud volume. 

I would start at the source. Do you use any PEQ or EQ on your Eversolo? Any boosted frequencies? How do you have the voltage output set up? Fixed output or Variable Gain (volume control)?

If you use any extra features on the streamer turn them off. Set the output to fixed. If still a shrill volume problem set the output on the streamer to volume control & set it around 75% of full volume. You want to rule out that maybe your streamer is sending a distorted or clipped signal to the dac. Or maybe the streamers output is too strong/hot & it's clipping the dac. I have encountered both of these problems in the past. Some of these devices have very poor DSP implementation...adding distortion that outweighs any tonal correction they may impart. 

Your integrated has plenty of power & low enough distortion that it should not be the culprit. The internal dac is no prize winner but it as well should not be causing any issues from a modest streamer like the A6. But if I was wanting to upgrade then the Dac is where I would start if digital streaming is my go-to source. You could go all out with a Venus 15th or a notch lower at the Pontus 15th & a new streamer. 

I am now a strong believer in the R2R topology. I find them to take a bigger step away from digital artifacts than the chip based dacs I've personally used. Laiv audio makes some quality R2R dacs as well. Halo audio is another popular choice. 

It would be nice to figure out your current issues first though. I just suspect some form of distortion or noise getting into what should be a clean enough signal from the components you have. Just for giggles throw a large sheet of tin foil over your streamer..your device may be picking some noise up that when it is really amplified you are hearing it. I can think of a few times I've covered my tube equipment with tin foil making me realize it's too close to a router or transformer component. 

I had issues with some type of distortion a few years ago & couldn't figure it out. I finally figured it out by covering this Elac class D amp I was using at the time. The Elac DPA-2. Covering it with tin foil made the light fuzz go away. Looking for answers I had found a review on the unit where the guy mentioned he had an issue with the amp picking up noise from a FM radio or something. I would have my TV on with the volume off lots of times when listening to music. This amp was picking up hash from the TV. Crazy. Tin foil is my friend though. 

The Eversolo DMP A8 has a pretty good DAC, and streamer.  You could try one of those for an in-home audition.  This DAC is completely different from the A6's.

I have an A8 in my 2nd system with an Elekit 8600 and Harbeth P3ESR speakers and it is rather nice.

There is also an even better A10.

If you bought the A8 you could be out-of-pocket only about $1,500 as there is a market for a used A6s at about $500.

OP

@nucleardog61 

When you wrote that as the volume increases, the Treble starts to sound shrill. I have encountered this, and the culprit is that the AMP cannot give the power to the speakers. when we replace the amp, problem solved. I have owned a couple of Rotel Power amps, and they do sound good, but they all seemed to run out of steam as the volume comes up. even driving horn speakers

Being cost sensitive, I suggest used. a Used Pass or Luxman may be the fix. 

I have seen good reviews of the Litton so that is ok for now. I truly suggest a powered sub like the RELs and SVS line. BUT I truly believe that the possible culprit is that your amp is running out of steam as you punch in the power

@joeycastillo that was my 1st thought to.. especially when he mentioned he didn't think the bass was punchy or good with volume up either. Like when you are really taxing an amp & the bass actually starts getting quieter as you turn up the volume. Clipping the amp would cause high frequency distortion. 

I assumed that the amp couldn't be the issue as I believe it's rated at 200 watts x 2. I've had a couple Rotel amps in the 90's & a 1582mkii I picked up awhile ago. I never noticed an issue but I probably never pushed them hard. Maybe the Super Lintons are tougher to drive or that amp just doesn't have the guts to provide it's specified wattage. 

Your assessment makes more sense but that's a shame if a 400 watt amp can't push a pair of bookshelves to loud volumes. 

@mattw73 

I agree with you as I believe that the amp being 200W has the drive capability. Not owning the Litton's BUT owning a few Rotel, I can only speculate at the power amp as a possible culprit. My Experience with the Rotels (Lacking power) was when I played large ensembles and when music that is being played has a lot of drums and low frequency Organ music, I did notice that vocals and treble became shrill BUT when I lower the volume, the shrillness disappears. The speakers I notice this anomaly where on LRS and ATC speakers. However, it does not seem to be apparent on B&W 

I stumble into the Fix when I got my Pass. All of the above speakers had NOT manifested the shrillness at all. it just plays LOUD and Clear. (a bit of disclosure, I don't listen loud unless I am doing some testing)

That is why I posted my observations on this thread. The OP may benefit on what I have encountered. a Sub is a good add on, so it makes the music bigger, fuller not needing to raise the volume, but it's not the fix

I also assume that the OP has the correct Power sources to supply the amps (good size power cords and clean power outlets) as that too can restrict power to the amps

@joeycastillo yeah after you shared your similar experiences I don't doubt that thé amp is the weak link in this situation. I think you hit the nail on the head. I was just initially surprised due to specs & their decent reputation. But that really means nothing lol. 

Can Op record the shrill sound and post it on YT?  It might make the remote diagnosis easier.

an amplifier change will do it, the unison research are hybrids with a tube front end, combined with a very punchy solid state amplifier. section.

also the subwoofer idea is also a good solution as the room is large and bass augmentation is always a nice improvement.

Dave and Troy

Audio Intellect NJ

Unison Research dealers

💥 what @lanx0003 said about replacing your source.  His specific suggestions for streamer/DAC combo are excellent choices.

2. fool around a bit more with the placement of the speakers in your room.

3.  What power cable are you using on your Rotel?  A better cable here could make a big difference - something like Anticable Level 3 is a good place to start.

4.  The suggestion to examine what you are using for speaker cables is also relevant, but not until you sort out the rest above in order suggested.

kn

Sounds like you need to get speakers you actually like. 

Included here are set up tips for the Super Lintons…if you set them up carefully and you still are experiencing problems, maybe the problem is in the amp or preamp / streamer.   https://youtu.be/kIf6677oMTA?si=hwOd91fXWdlN4vLk

Good luck!

@nucleardog61 I looked into your gear, and your Rotel amp and Wharfedale speakers are both highly regarded, and a little unforgiving.  This supports the value of upping your source game, and perhaps reviewing your cable loom.

Also, the Super Lintons are designed to operate with the grills on to avoid diffraction from the bevels on the front cabinet edges. Failing to operate as advised by the manufacturer could contribute to what you’re experiencing at higher volumes. Don’t know if this applies to you, but I strongly suggest leaving the grills on.

At least one reviewer noted that the Super Lintons take at least 30 hours to break in and for sibilants in the treble to smooth out.

Finally, the double edge of having highly resolving gear is that less well produced or compressed recordings will be revealed - especially at higher volumes.  If 1980s pop music is your bread and butter, a warmer setup might work better for you in your room for you.  Although, curiously, a better source and even help with that.

Good luck,

kn

The new MoFi speakers seem well regarded.  But, buy nothing until you have heard them yourself.  Everybody has different preferences.