Upper Midrange Glare problem

The glare could be caused by any of the above or a combination of them. Something cheap ($3-$4) to try would be to pick up a small piece of wool felt at a fabric shop along with some double sided tape. Cut rings out of the felt to go around the tweeters (approx. 3" wide, so that they can later be narrowed for less of an effect) and mount them with the tape. Sounds stupid, but it can sometimes be very effective (smoothing) in the mid to upper registers.

Bow- You are bound to have a slightly different suggestion from every poster. You have obviously attempted to assemble a high quality system and have given thought to each choice. None of the suggestions above, or mine, are meant to belittle your efforts. I agree with others that you have a couple of components that may contribute too much in this area when combined in your system.

My first recommendation is a thorough evaluation of your room since alterations can be accomplished relatively easily. Could there be sidewall reflections or hard, reflective surfaces on any wall contributing to the glare? Have a friend/family member walk with a mirror along the sidewalls while you're seated in the listening location. If you can see the speaker in the mirror, this is an area that could be contributing to early reflections. Also, I strongly suggest playing with speaker tilt as well as toe-in. Changing the tilt of the speaker can have significant effects upon the tonality.

Next, consider using the Sakura OTA cable kit. It isn't well known (yet), and is relatively inexpensive. It provides enough cable and IC terminations for three pairs of interconnects and at least one set of speaker wire, all for around $600. Don't let the price fool you. I currently have over $10K in speaker cables and IC, and this stuff is equal to or better in many areas. One of it's strengths is a marked reduction in midrange strain or glare, yet offers marvelous detail, tonality and palpability. At the price, you can't go wrong.

Next, I would be experimenting with different sets of NOS tubes for the SF equipment. This can have dramatic effects on the sound, but can become expensive.

All other suggestions that I offer will effect the sound but aren't targeted for just glare reduction. I'd offer, though my preference is for tube amps, to investigate into a better tube pre-amp. Your system appears to be at a crossover point between good to very good. Having owned this piece, I would recommend seeking a higher standard. Some may hear this as a putdown of the SFL1 Sig, but it isn't intended as such. It is a fine unit and well built, but sonically, there are better with less contribution to your current problems. (With modifications, it can be significantly improved, but most people tend to want only stock equipment). This change will likely not be inexpensive. You might consider an integrated amp approach which would eliminate the need for a separate pre-amp and interconnects and power cords! There are some exceptional products available which might make this approach more cost effective. However, this can require a complete re-evaluation of the speaker/amp relationship.

Good luck with your quest. As always, Just my .02.

JC: When using a mirror to locate the first reflection point, how much of the wall area needs to be treated (is their a reasonable minimum)? This has always confused me.

While i'm not about to get into an argument about this, there ARE cables out there that can take care of such problems and there are members here that have experienced them first hand. I know that Issabre made a few posts pertaining to the cables that i supplied him with that seemed to "work magic" with the same exact problem in his system. Up to that point in time, he didn't think that cables made much of a difference whatsoever. He's also not alone in that situation, as i've sent these out to a few people that were in the same boat. Not ONCE have i ever gotten any negative feedback on these cables nor were any of them ever returned. Some folks have even bought a few more sets just to have on hand.

With these specific cables and depending on how severe the problem is, sometimes it takes one set to smooth things out, sometimes two. Either way, the "scary" thing is that these things cost less than just about ANY other "tweak" mentioned other than buying felt and putting it around the tweeters. Since i would have sent them to him with a money back guarantee if they didn't work out for him, he would have been out NOTHING to try them.

Other than that, i would suggest that you look at the room response with a spectrum analyzer. If things show to be reasonably smooth / flat in that specific frequency range, the next step would be to change tubes. Some tubes just sound like JUNK in specific components, regardless of all of the hoopla about specific make / model / brand and "tubes being warm & smooth". Some of the most forward / harshest sounding systems that i've heard made use of tube preamps. Like anything else, it's all a matter of having a balanced system that sounds good, not mixing and matching brand names, makes and models or specific topologies.

As to my comments and all of the others, take them for what they are worth. Nothing more than someone's point of view. Sean
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Sean I agree with you to a point.
Cables should not be used as tone controls to overcome problems with equipment.
A cable should be neutral and truthful,it should not alter the sound.
I belive the problem is in the synergy or lack of it betwwen the components being used.
Each component on its own is a solid choice of gear.
For some reason they dont work well toghther.This does not mean the choice of gear is flawed it means our friend has to possibly make some changes.