I have noticed the same thing. And I don't think it's funny. I think part of it is what you mention - whether your expectations are being fulfilled. But there's more.
Maybe a good clock radio doesn't attempt much, so doesn't fail. It has no tweeter, so can't generate bad high frequencies. It can't gneerate booming bass. A system that aspires to do more may do more, but not very well, which becomes annoying.
You also probably play your big rig louder, which also makes it more likely to annoy.
There is also the trend in high-end to have a trade-off between resolution and musicality. The more highly resolving systems tend to sound more irritating. I hope this isn't an absolute rule. My goal is to put together a system thqt is both highly resolving and musical. It is not easy.
I don't know if any of this applies to your system. It looks like you have chosen good musical components.
Maybe a good clock radio doesn't attempt much, so doesn't fail. It has no tweeter, so can't generate bad high frequencies. It can't gneerate booming bass. A system that aspires to do more may do more, but not very well, which becomes annoying.
You also probably play your big rig louder, which also makes it more likely to annoy.
There is also the trend in high-end to have a trade-off between resolution and musicality. The more highly resolving systems tend to sound more irritating. I hope this isn't an absolute rule. My goal is to put together a system thqt is both highly resolving and musical. It is not easy.
I don't know if any of this applies to your system. It looks like you have chosen good musical components.