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New system has fatiguing, harsh high frequency sounds. How to fix?

I just purchased my first audio and home theater system (other than a bluetooth speaker or computer speaker system). I use it for listening to music as well as watching movies. It is a tremendous upgrade and I’m enjoying it. It has clarity and detail that I have never heard before. However, I notice a harshness in the high frequency sounds when listening to music.

I would like my treble to be smooth, sweet, soft, silky and gentle. Right now it is the opposite of that. It is annoying, screechy, metallic and harsh.

I am seeking a solution to that issue. From the little I have been able to find on this subject, it seems that room acoustics might be a big part of my solution. Is that true? If not, what is my next step? An equalizer? I can’t see many options for big changes in speaker placement. At most I can move them a few inches or change the angles.

My listening room is about 11.5 feet by 11.5 feet and square except for the doorway in the back corner which protrudes into the room 18 inches x 44 inches. In the room are a bookcase, couch, end table, media center stand (holding TV, center speaker, receiver, disc player and Roku), computer & computer monitor, my speakers (and rear speaker stands), a ceiling fan and that’s about it... I’m describing the room on the assumption that the room (or its contents) are relevant to the treble problem I’m describing. (However, throwing some thick blankets over my TV and computer monitor, as a test, did not change the issue.)

Here are my home theater components:

  • Computer monitor: WASABI MANGO UHD400 40" 3840X2160
  • TV: LG OLED65C7P 65"
  • Receiver: Sony STRDN1080
  • Disc Player: LG UP875 4K BLU-RAY PLAYER BestBuy SKU 5979504
  • Streaming Box: Roku Ultra streaming player (model 4660)
I mention the monitors (and their size) in case they play a role in reflecting sounds.

Speakers:
  • Front 1: Polk Audio RTi A7 floorstanding speakers
  • Front 2: Polk Audio RTi A5 floorstanding speakers
  • Center Speaker: Klipsch RP-250C Center Channel Speaker
  • Subwoofer 1: Polk Audio PSW125 Subwoofer
  • Subwoofer 2: Klipsch R-112SW Subwoofer 
  • Rear/Surround: Polk Audio RTI A3
Speaker Layout: 5.1 layout with two pair of front speakers and two subwoofers.

The front speakers are on either side of the LG TV on the front wall (and near the room corners. The front speakers are angled in. Minimum distance to wall is 10", but measuring straight/parallel from back of speaker to wall is at least 18". From side of speaker to wall is at least a foot (one side of room has 30 inches). There is only 3" between each RTi A5 and RTi A7 speaker.

The rear speakers are behind the couch at each corner and against the back wall.

One subwoofer is in the back corner. The other is midway on the other wall and angled toward listening area.

For music, I usually prefer listening in 2-channel stereo. The dual pairs of front speakers are awesome. (I initially started out with a 7.1 layout but I prefer this layout now.) The high frequency problem exists even in 2-channel stereo. It also exists if I use only 1 pair of front speakers.

Wiring
All speakers are bi-wired, except the center (and subwoofers), which don’t support it. (Not bi-amp’d, just bi-wired*.)

Speaker wire: Mediabridge 12AWG 4-Conductor Speaker Wire (100 Feet, White) - 99.9% Oxygen Free Copper - ETL Listed & CL2 Rated for In-Wall Use

* https://www.qacoustics.co.uk/blog/2016/06/08/bi-wiring-speakers-exploration-benefits/

Banana Plugs:
  • Mediabridge Banana Plugs - Corrosion-Resistant 24K Gold-Plated Connectors - 12 Pair/24 Banana Plugs (Part# SPC-BP2-12 )
  • Sewell Silverback , 24k Gold Dual Screw Lock Speaker Connector
  • Ocelot Banana Plugs, 24k Gold Plated Connectors, Open Screw Type
BTW, my prior speakers were the Edifier e25 Luna Eclipse. I thought they sounded good and I did not remember them having these harsh high frequency sounds. After listening to my new system for a week, I went back to those for a test and they sounded horrible in comparison. The harsh high frequency sounds are much worse, and every other aspect is worse as well. (That shouldn’t be a surprise given the price ranges being compared, but my incorrect memory had been that they didn’t have this issue.)
lowoverdrive
russmaleartist's avatar
russmaleartist
34 posts
 
Sir,

When stressed and in a panic mode, the first thing to do is take a deep breath and relax. Start with the simplest fixes and the least expensive. If these don't work then escalate your efforts. There are so many well-meaning people -- all with their own ideas, but taking it all in can only cause confusion unless you take charge. Look through the lists of possibilities and then do your homework on each of these changes. Again, you will get many opinions, but you know what you are after . . . and you can decide what is best for you. Remember, experts have their own biases and their own set of ears. Only you can tell if a fix is doing what you expect it to, so don't be mislead into great expense and frustration . . . and thereby give-up or put yourself into higher debt by those who have no stake in your music appreciation, your goals, or your financial situation. As you build upon one change and see what that does, you can decide if you wish to pursue further changes. Best to you.
kosst_amojan
2,095 posts
 
@artemus_5 
Since you seem to like taking to people who know better than you to task, I'll correct you. 

Watt for watt, thermionic valves are most definitely the most expensive power you can buy. Valves are also the most inefficient, even moreso than pure class A solid state. 

Glad you figured out measurements aren't the end-all, but tubes don't do much of anything that a transistor can't do with a tenth of the distortion. 

I don't know what kind of solid state amp you left on all the time, but those of us operating class A amps do NOT leave those beasts on all the time. Clearly you had a class AB or D amp. Welcome to class A. 

Willemj is 100% correct about the impedance issues he described. I have no idea how you got anything about efficiency out of that. Tubes are typically transformer coupled to the output and transformers drive reactive loads in a nonlinear manner. I'm not sure I believe an amp should be completely transparent, but transformers of any kind in a signal part exhibit significant coloration. Whether you like it or want it is a different question, but be aware your "tube sound" is in no small part "transformer sound". 

willemj
1,036 posts
 
Unless the amplifier has a sleep mode (many modern ones do, if only because some countries now mandate them), typical idle consumption of an AB amp is some 50-150 watt. Take 100 watt for a calculation: leave it on all day that is 2400 watt per day, or 875 kilowatt per annum. That is about 13% of the annual electricity consumption (much of it own produced by our solar panels) in our large family home with fridges, dishwasher, washing machine, dryer, electric oven, several computers etc. At Dutch electricity prices 875 KW costs about $200 if bought from a utility. So in my mind electricity consumption is worth considering, both financially and environmentally.
Therefore, in my view leaving any amplifier on all day is unwise, and similarly I believe Class A and tubes are about to become extinct species because of their high energy consumption. Misery sleep modes will become far more common soon, and after that Class D will replace Class AB (it already has in many mass market units).
kosst_amojan
2,095 posts
 
I see nothing but high bias class A solid state amps in my future. According to the NRC, Davis-Besse is operating at 100% tonight so I'd need a microscope to see the amount of fuel leaving the F5 on all weekend consumed. 
kalali's avatar
kalali
1,645 posts
 
The better the sound system, the more you listen to music, the less you leave the house, the less you drive, the less fuel is used. Zero sum energy consumption. Leave the amps on...
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