I'll pass this along for what it's worth.
While I'm not sure what you hear as "upper midrange glare" I had a problem with instruments like violins and sax's. They were so screechy and glaring I just couldn't listen to them.
After a bunch of equipment changes I have come to believe the problem is actually my room.
Using an equalizer with real-time display I have determined that there is a large (about 6db) peak at 1000hz in my room.
Speaker position doesn't change it. Amps don't change it. Different speakers don't change it. It seems like some frequencies are being sucked out and the room just rings at 1000hz.
For now, even though I have some pretty fancy gear, I use an equalizer to take away that peak and everything is fine.
If you can borrow some equipment it would probably be worth a shot at taking some measurements.
Hope this helps.
While I'm not sure what you hear as "upper midrange glare" I had a problem with instruments like violins and sax's. They were so screechy and glaring I just couldn't listen to them.
After a bunch of equipment changes I have come to believe the problem is actually my room.
Using an equalizer with real-time display I have determined that there is a large (about 6db) peak at 1000hz in my room.
Speaker position doesn't change it. Amps don't change it. Different speakers don't change it. It seems like some frequencies are being sucked out and the room just rings at 1000hz.
For now, even though I have some pretty fancy gear, I use an equalizer to take away that peak and everything is fine.
If you can borrow some equipment it would probably be worth a shot at taking some measurements.
Hope this helps.