Amp suggestions for $1000

Bondmanp - Seconding that recommendation! I got a used Stratos Plus and it has made a HUGE difference, albeit as an upgrade from a Yamaha. Took a huge edge off harsh highs, and I'm hearing so much more than I've ever heard on my speakers before. Definitely smoothed the highs, making them listenable again, added very noticeably to the low end response, and I have an new level of imaging. I don't use my sub in 2 channel anymore.
Again, I was upgrading from a low point, but the difference was so dramatic I have to believe it's worth a listen. Klaus will customize an amp to your needs, the Khartago starts at $800 iirc.

Agree with Khartago recs. I've got a McCormack 0.5 rev A and not sure that will warm things up unless it's your amp that's adding brightness.

What interconnects and cables are you using? That might be another area to explore. Best of luck.

Thanks all for the input so far. Here's a bit of an update...I stopped into the local shop where I picked up my speakers (Reference 3A) and he was kind enough to create a setup that mimics most of my system at home: Same speakers, same Bel Canto preamp, and I was able to listen to a couple different amps in this system.

* Bel Canto REF 500 S - Very nice, but sounded pretty similar to my current PS Audio Trio A100. Not what I'm looking for.

* Parasound A21 - This was a step in the right direction. More warmth for sure than my PS Audio, and no harshness in the highs like I've got now. Musical and easy to listen to. But, soundstage was a little compressed and not as much air around the instruments & vocals...the PS Audio bests the A21 on these criteria. Also, the amp is physically huge. Overall though, I did like it.

* Linn Majik 2100 - Out of my price range but probably attainable used. Outstanding detail and soundstaging, great dynamics. Not particularly warm but still more lifelike than my PS Audio for sure. The guy at the shop loves Linn stuff and thinks it's a no-brainer...I liked it a lot but in some way it wasn't quite a slam-dunk. I would give it a shot if I found a good deal on a used one.

So based on some online research, listening sessions, and the ideas you've all put forth, here's a short list I've compiled:

* Parasound A23 or A21

* McIntosh MC7100

* Odyssey Audio Khartago

* Linn Majik 2100

* Conrad Johnson Sonographe or MF-series

* VTL ST85 (still curious about tubes...there's a local dealer where I can probably hear one of these just to check it out)

If anyone has thoughts on the above short list, let me know, and thanks again!

It was nice of the guy to set up a system "close" to yours, but it still wasn't your source, cables, room, etc. Any decent dealer should let you borrow a piece of equipment or two for a couple days to try at home in your system. I bet you'd be surprised at some of the differences you hear, and I'd give the Bel Canto another shot at home if I'm you.

Also, you didn't mention your interconnects and cables, and they could be contributing significantly to what you're hearing as well.

@Soix - All good points for sure. The system I heard was only "close" to mine at home, so there are still a lot of differences to be accounted for. I am able to take items home from the local shops to demo, but I'd like to be closer to a decision before I put them (and myself) through the trouble. Also I may end up going with a used amp, in which case I probably won't be able to audition it, but that's just the nature of the beast in that case.

Re: cables - I've got Cardas Quadlink interconnects throughout, just .5m or 1m lengths.

Speaker cables are a newly interesting topic for me...I was using MIT EXP-1 which I had in my system before buying the Reference 3A speakers, so I just kept the cables. Turns out they were a terrible match. My dealer gave me some Kimber 8VS to try out, which he recommended as being great for my speakers...And they were. The Kimber 8VS got rid of maybe 80% of the high-end harshness which was bothering me and also fixed a significant hole in the bass and mid-bass which I never even knew was there. So they made a huge difference for the better and are staying in my system.

With the amp I'm still looking to improve the listenability of the highs and add a little warmth and/or realism to the mids. Hope all this info helps, thanks!