Problems with my Berning ZH270

George. We need to know HOW bright it is. You must be comparing with something else (your previous amp, perhaps?). In my experience, ZH270 has much better and controlled bass than many other tube amps. In fact, I deferred sub-woofer purchase for a year. Your expression sounds like the "brightness" you suffer is not something cable swap or tube rolling can resolve. Did you buy it new? I suggest you check the ZH270 whether it is in perfect condition. Maybe you want to talk to David, who is known to be very sensitive and keen resolving these issues from his amps. Or, maybe it is just not your cup of tea.

You might try some Marigo bands and dots on your speaker cones and basket arms, especially on the woofers and midrange drivers. If you have any windows apply the Marigo dot treatment to them as well, if you don't mind their visual effect.

I have a very bright listening room, and a very sensitive system, and the Marigo resonance control products have helped me in very significant ways. Not only will they tame problems areas, they will also improve performance of your whole system.

If you choose to try these, do the woofer bands and windows first.

I share Duke's hunch on the issue of tonal balance. It is amazing how improving the performance of one element in the spectrum will improve other areas passively.

try taming your reflections. it worked for me (in spades)

George, I have (almost) the identical system to yours--EMC I CD, Merlins', and Berning 270's, although I have two running as monoblocks. I tried Quattro FIl IC's--no go, too bright, IMO. Haven't tried SPM's, although some would say there is a Nordost 'house sound'. Using HMS Gran FInale IC's, now, much better. Will (Tubegroover) would probably say my speaker cables (stage3's) are still a little too bright :)( Hey Will, check your email).
Sorry to get off topic. However, the biggest improvement came when I moved my speakers, so I would support suggestions to that effect above. Also, as Khokugo asks, what was your previous amp? And do you have any of the mods on the Berning (ERS, etc.)? The Berning's reputation is for utter neutrality, not brightness. If you are comparing it to a traditional tube amp, it won't sound like that.

Hi George,

Before spending a dime, I would definitely talk to Bobby and figure out how to best place the speakers in your room. I recently switched cables and it didn't sound quite right. I angled the speakers out a bit more (maybe an inch...certainly not more than a couple of degrees) and everything fell into place. Try setting them up according to Bobby's recommendations, or the Golden Ratio set up on Cardas' website. Experiment from there. You'll know when you get it right. And be patient...a few inches towards or away from the wall can make a rather large difference in bass and depth, and the angle does the same for cohesive treble, soundstage width, etc.

If that doesn't help, make sure the room isn't too bright (lots of wood floors, glass, bare walls, etc.). After that, I'd definitely recommend a cable other than the Nordost. They do have excessive treble IMO, which is perfect for many speakers, but not for one with the Esotar tweeter. I've tried Cardas, Luminous Renaissance, Audience AU24, and TG Audio (the last being silver), and all are great in different ways. The Luminous Renaissance is the best deal price-wise...I'd say I prefer the Audience AU24 in most ways, but they are 3X as much. The TG Audio are excellent, but silver (so maybe not the best for brightness problems). TUbes can also make a huge difference, so those are also well worth messing with if all else fails (though a little trickier buy and sell).

Good luck!