"Does the Freya sound over bright, etc."
aberyclark - assuming that was directed at me...
No, the Freya does not sound over bright to me. Bright/harsh is something I have worked to eliminate from the system, especially given the Totem Forests in use have metal dome tweeters. The CDP I have, while very detailed, could "bite" depending on the quality of the recording. Since running it with balanced outs into the Freya, it has become a consistently enjoyable source. Of course, as you know, that improvement is a product of the entire audio chain, including cabling and power amp.
aberyclark - assuming that was directed at me...
No, the Freya does not sound over bright to me. Bright/harsh is something I have worked to eliminate from the system, especially given the Totem Forests in use have metal dome tweeters. The CDP I have, while very detailed, could "bite" depending on the quality of the recording. Since running it with balanced outs into the Freya, it has become a consistently enjoyable source. Of course, as you know, that improvement is a product of the entire audio chain, including cabling and power amp.