I have a VK 500 SE. It is slightly warm so in that regard, it might be slightly kind to harsh recordings, although I would prefer to say less ruthless to awful recordings. My listening is probably not too far from your own. Great recordings sound great. Poor recordings sound like poor recordings. If you have any equipment that hides imperfections of bad recordings, it can not help but hide the excellent qualities of great recordings. I have ProAc Response 5 speakers that are slightly warm sounding but am using Nordost interconnects and speaker cable that is slightly lean sounding. So on balance it is a very musical system that still reveals inner details, timber, tamber, tonality, attack, energy, etc. I would not hesitate in recommending BAT for sound quality, reliability and for incredible customer service. But crap recordings are just that and if the music is undeniable, you just recognize it for what it is: great music, poorly recorded!