Likely culprit for harshness at higher volumes?

@Mceljo: I set the Front Speakers as Large. I don't have center, surround or subwoofer (probably meaningless, but I set the sub x-over frequency at 160Hz from 80Hz; I feel my speakers put too much weight on bass). Other than that, I set the effects to Stereo (no processing) and have bypassed Tone controls.

Using analog inputs now --- I have them going into the Direct Analog inputs which is supposed to bypass everything except volume and tone (which I've set to bypassed).

Other than that, I'm not sure what to check. Is there something else I should look at in the config that I've missed? Nothing else seems to be mentioned in the manual (that I recall).

@Mapman: I have Monster MC 200I-1M being delivered next week for the pre-amp to amp connection. While picking up the ferrite clamps from Radio Shack when they open, I was thinking about picking up their AUVIO® 3-Ft. Stereo Audio RCA Cable for the CD to pre-amp connection.

Is this better than the non-branded red/white RCA cables (that might come with cheap consumer electronics)? Or are you thinking about something even better? I'm not really sure what to look for in a IC cable.

You say "hardness", can you be more specific? It's hard to determine if you have electronic or an acoustics problem. Throw some blankets up and listen. If that helps you can experiment with different approaches. Sometimes you can put big plants, bookshelves, or other objects to disperse instead of absorb the sound. This can be an alternative if damping makes the room too dull.

Hi again,

It's hard to describe some of the things I'm hearing since I don't share the audio vocabulary (yet) that you folks have. Not quite accurate, but the closest description is that the harshness is somewhat like humming and then patting your chest -- what should be a smooth sound is disrupted by unnatural vibrations.

I bought the Auvio RCA cable and the ferrite clamps that I installed, 2 per channel, on the CD-pre-amp and pre-amp to amp interconnects. I installed the new Auvio cable between the pre-amp and amp. The remaining non-brand RCA cable seems to be pretty good as generic goes (a little thicker than normal and w/ gold plated leads).

Again, re-configuring the room layout and adding some fabric to minimize reflections (still get some echo from clapping but not as bad as before), seemed to have a dramatic impact. I could turn up the volume louder before the harshness kicked in.

I also moved everything into a larger room (temporarily) that is asymmetrically shaped (no/minimal echoes from clapping). The sound really opened up then and harshness was moved to even louder volumes.

I'm guessing that:
1) room dynamics is having a large first order effect
2) the better(?) cables and the ferrite cores may be helping but not sure; hard to tell after changing the room config
3) the harshness also depends on what I'm listening too (Monheit singing louder and at higher frequencies can result in harshness; acoustics like Joe Pass seems less susceptible). Perhaps room dynamics affect certain frequencies more than others; or maybe just the selective sensitivity of my ears.
4) at some loud (uncomfortable but not painful) volume level, I think I'm approaching the limits of either the amp and/or the speakers (starts at about -5db) -- harshness that is maybe distinct from the symptoms I hear with Monheit at lower volumes.

I think now I can listen to things like Monheit at volumes I desire (around -15db to -20db) w/ acceptable levels of harshness (perceptible but perhaps not enough to drive changes to components with their associated costs) whereas before the harshness was unbearable and tiring.

I'll continue to experiment with room dynamics and look into getting a better (24/192?) CD player (my 20 year old Sony has had a good run). But the sound is much more enjoyable than 24 hours ago. :)

Thanks much to all for the help and suggestions!

Saru - I read through the manual for your pre-amp and didn't see anything like what I was referring to. On my truck subwoofer amp and also some of the amps in the audio system at my church have adjustments for the input sensitivity that can really change the way things sound. I think some seperates have this type of adjustments, but not all. I was thinking that you might have things oversensitive and amplifying something in the digital recordings.

You might actually try allowing your pre-amp to do some processing rather than bypassinge everything. On my Integra 50.1 receiver I generally listen in direct mode when I'm in audiophile mode, but for some recordings it simply sounds better in stereo mode where the signal gets processed a bit. It may be similar for your system but for different reasons.

I highly doubt that you'll hear much if any difference from any cable swaps you make unless you are currently using a damaged cable currently or you're getting a lot of interference in an unshielded cable.