Opinions on why this system is uninvolving

Asa, I've never listened to the Vandersteen Model 5, nor have I ever seen a model 5 in person. Now that you know where I'm coming from, I'm going to say that you probably don't have a clue what you're talking about when it comes to the Vm5's.

You may have listened to them, but as with any listening, even as illustrated in this thread, if everything ain't matchin' you would have no clue what the component or speaker is capable of.

I am basing my opinion solely on reading reviews and detailed papers on the model 5, reading interviews with R.Vandersteen the man and also on his research into making the model 5, and a friend who is seriously considering the model 5's at this point in time.

But supposedly one common occurrence with the Vm5's is that the initial impression of listening to the model 5's is people walk away wanting more and not satisfied. They say that listening to some of the more popular speakers on the market with pumped up highs to make a speaker sound better in the showroom or perform other showroom tricks will make those sound more 'hi-end' than the Vm5's. They say it takes some time for the listener to settle before they realize exactly what they are hearing.

Time and phase coherent, first order crossovers, each driver is custom fabricated to compensate for the typcial deficiencies found in almost all drivers, the cabinet's inert construction qualities, etc., etc.. Most people cannot believe he is only charging $10k for these speakers.

I'll stop there. You may be correct in your opinion. But for now I have no reason not to believe these could be one of the finest speaker systems made. And I'm not alone.

-IMO

While it's okay to keep tweaking the system, if you don't loose too much on the speakers (since they were demos) my guess is you will never be happy with Revels. Unless maybe a tube preamp - I don't know what your preamp is now.
Accurate sound does not have to be clinical. But Bbtuna made one of the best statements that I have also discovered:
"system was "univolved" or "thin" at times since there is no coloration"
That's how my system sounds. Problem is when you add coloration, good recordings could sound bad while bad recordings could sound better. Overall I think you're loosing out by adding colorations. But that is just my opinion.
I would recommend ATC active 100's or 50's. You can see a photo of passive ATC 50's that are being sold at Audiogon now. They are very accurate but not sterile like Revels. I found Spendor 1/2's, Vandersteen 2 and 3 are nice but colored or have box resonances and don't think that is where you'd want to go.
Other warmer speakers that you could try are JM Reynaud Evolutions or Aerial Acoustics. Accurate but warm. JMR talks about the "trailing edge" of the note while Revels are "leading edge of the note" speakers.

You mentioned windows on front and side walls. You COVER them while listening I hope? My other take would be to sit closer- 15' is probably too far for distance between speakers of 9-10'. I also agree with some of the comments regarding filtering. Go back to stock power cords (try one at a time).

And cables make world of a difference.

Finally in Hockey's defense, I would say that I completely agree with him about the Revel-Rowland combo at Ambrosia. I have listened the combo may be three different times and left me wanting more body. But I can't say if it is due to Revel Salons or The Rowland or the combo synergy.

I woud look into upgrading the speaker cables the Prime are a good budget cable but not up to the level of your system.I recently borrowed a pair of Tara Ref. Gen IIs from my dealer and they sound very nice. They would also add a little warmth to balance out your Ravels as they can sound cold at a times.Better Yet try the Tara Air 2 speaker cables.They are neutral yet slightly warm and will help to flesh out the sound.Good luck.

Bwhite: I tried everything you suggested and it made a significant difference. Its still not completely there,b ut much better. The EAD transport surprised me. What do you think, by the way, of the Audiomeca DAC?