Please help me improve my system - next steps?

Hello,

I have only recently been introduced to the world of high quality music, and I must say, listening to good tunes on a nice system is a revelation. I am by no means an audiophile (and if anything am inclined to be skeptical of some claims), but I have begun to get better at differentiating good sounding music from bad (eg, low bit-rate MP3).

I first noticed how good music could sound at a buddy's place. He had a nicely put together beginner system - nothing too crazy. Because of a limited budget, and less than stellar help from a local audio store, I ended up just getting some of the same stuff as my buddy. However, we do have some key differences.

One very important thing to me was to have a computer based audio set-up. The convenience of it is unparalled, and while I really enjoy the sound of vinyl, starting a vinyl collection is just not a practical step for me right now (maybe down the road). I do the right things with my digital audio - I rip with Exact Audio Copy (with error correction) and I encode as FLAC (lossless).

So, here is what I have (most of this I got from the good people here at Audiogon): Simaudio i-5 integrated receiver, Totem Acoustic Hawks, Logitech Transporter (digital front-end and built-in DAC), Blue Jeans Cable speaker wires (14 gauge, bi-wired) and interconnects, and Richard Gray 400Pro power conditioner. I am using all the stock power cords I received. The Transporter is hooked up to a music server via Cat6 ethernet cable. Like I said, I play mostly FLACs.

On the whole, I really like what I have. Things sound good (friends give unsolicited compliments). However, I have noticed that I like the sound of my friend's system a little more. Whereas my system sounds a bit "bright" and "clinical", his sounds a bit warmer and softer and just overall nicer. (I admit that I may not be using these terms correctly, but it's the best I can describer it.)

Here is his system: Simaudio i5.3 integrated receiver, Totem Acoustic Hawks, Mac Mini with a Wavelength Brick (USB DAC), Straightwire Octave speaker wire (not bi-wired, uses jumpers), and Chang Lightspeed line conditioner. I'm not sure of the brand of his interconnects, but they're $100-$150 each. He listens to Apple Lossless files (which should be identical technologically to the FLAC files - both lossless).

I would prefer to avoid being completely unoriginal and simply copying the rest of what he has. So my dilemma is what should I focus on?

I was thinking as a first step to change up my speaker wire, if not to the Straightwire Octave then to something similar.

I was also thinking about maybe getting a ModWright modification to the Transporter, but I don't know if that kind of improvement would be noticed/appreciated given the rest of my gear. I would prefer not to go down the Wavelength Brick route because I like the functionality of the Transporter (I have other items from Slim Devices in my house). However, I wonder if the Brick is really what's giving my friend warmer music.

Thanks for reading this far! Any help/comments/insights would be greatly appreciated.

Best,
Chirag