[Oswego0522]

I just set up my 4B SST2, BP-17, Dali Epicon 6 speakers and an old Denon 2800 DVD player, which will be removed once my BDA-2 and BDP-2 arrive. I have Kimber 8tc speaker cables and Kimber Hero XLS interconnects between the amp and preamp, and Kimber Hero RCAs between the preamp and DVD player.

The room in which the stereo is set up is 15' x 30' with a 14' vaulted ceiling and hardwood flooring.  A 9' x 12' rug will be put in the room in the next two weeks.

Problem: I find the sound to be very bright and forward--not the warm depth that I heard in the small, carpeted demo room. I am hoping that the rug helps dampen the sound. Are there any equipment issues that I should consider adding or changing?

[mkaiser]

I just set up my 4B SST2, BP-17, Dali Epicon 6 speakers and an old Denon 2800 DVD player, which will be removed once my BDA-2 and BDP-2 arrive. I have Kimber 8tc speaker cables and Kimber Hero XLS interconnects between the amp and preamp, and Kimber Hero RCAs between the preamp and DVD player.

The room in which the stereo is set up is 15' x 30' with a 14' vaulted ceiling and hardwood flooring.  A 9' x 12' rug will be put in the room in the next two weeks.

Problem: I find the sound to be very bright and forward--not the warm depth that I heard in the small, carpeted demo room. I am hoping that the rug helps dampen the sound. Are there any equipment issues that I should consider adding or changing?

Have your dealer to come over and have a listen to the room sound/response and he can determine what type and quantity of room treatment you will require to tame the space. Your equipment is fine. Most people assume the gear when actually the room is the culprit. The area rug is a good start.

[Chicago]

MKaiser has a good idea with the dealer but they are likely to recommend bass traps and panels for the walls.  If it is a living room and you have a wife you probably are not going to get those treatments past her.  It sounds like you don't currently have much in the room to absorb the sound and I think the rugs will help but one 9x12 may not do the trick. 

I have a similar size room with a 15' peak that is 8' at one end and 13' at the other end with hardwood floors.  Two ends of the room are pretty much glass and covered with window treatments.  I have four area rugs, 2 sofas and four upholstered chairs that cover maybe 90% of the floor space.  So there is a fair amount of soft goods to absorb sound.  I think the sound will improve as you add soft goods and rugs.  If you live in an area with an oriental rug dealer see if you can take some home on approval.  Try and cover most of the floor with some of these and see what happens to the sound.

I run all Bryston including the cables with B&W 803 and for my ears the sound is great.  I don't know anything about your speakers but if you liked the sound at the dealer you probably have a room treatment issue.   

Best of luck,
Mike

[Oswego0522]

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like my options are limited for the reason so correctly stated...my wife cares about room appearance, not sound

I bought the speakers from one dealer (floor demos) and the Bryston equipment from another.

I misspoke in my original post. I auditioned Aerial 9s and Paradigm Signature S6 in a small carpeted, curtained room...both had lots of bass. I then auditioned the Dali Epicon 6s in a showroom that was 25' x 40' x 16'. When I asked about the missing bass, the salesperson said that it was because of the large showroom, but that I would have plenty of bass in my room. I also relied on the positive comments about the speaker's bass in The Absolute Sound review (April '13).

I am not giving up on improving the sound, but wow is this disappointing.

[Grit]

Sounds like you are running music from the DVD via analog to the BP-17, correct? It may be the DAC in the player isn't producing the bass you expect. I'm not at all familiar with your player, but I do know the DAC can make quite a big difference.

I have a Rotel receiver. I was originally running my audio into that via coax (digital). I thought it was fine. Then I added a Bryston BDA-1 and was astounded at the differences, one of which was MUCH better, deeper bass than the DAC built into the Rotel could provide. That's not fair to or a knock on Rotel, as the Bryston DAC cost about as much as the Rotel receiver. However, the DAC alone made quite the difference.

So, hang in there until your BDA-2 and BDP-2 arrive. You may find everything is as you hoped, or better. Let us know what happens!