Thanks for the warm welcome and the advice. I will check out the headphone circle and Head-Fi.
To dB Cooper's points, I am using a Schiit Modi Multibit DAC with the Violectric, which is somewhat dull sounding and if anything tames the Violectirc's stridency. It's just that the Focal sound is so dynamic and punchy that it can become fatiguing after a while when coupled with an amp like the Violectric V281.
There was an audio show in the spring where I live and I missed it so I will have to wait until next year. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to audition audio gear as brick and mortar stores are disappearing and the ones that do exist tend to carry gear that they know they can move - Beats, home theater systems, wireless speakers, etc. and "hifi" stores tend to not carry brands that compete for the same market. For example, I have never seen any two of the following speakers sold at the same store: Harbeth, Graham, Falcon, Rogers or Spendor. Going from store to store, listening in different acoustic conditions, with different components in the chain whilst trying to remember what you heard in the last store is painful. Which is in part why this hobby is so expensive and why forums like this have become so popular.