If you are hearing shrillness in stereo but not in movies, it is most likely in the source. It is not fair or reasonable to judge the "sound" of a component on the reproducing end without knowing all the details of the recording session. All microphones have different colorations and the producer will color the original according to individual taste. So use your head and use your tone controls!

And why would anyone with a 950 listen in 2-channel? If you really want to be retro, you might as well listen in mono! The huge improvement in going from mono to stereo is dwarfed by the vast improvement in going to surround sound, even if you're just extracting ambiance with DPL2.