I own both (A1 & A2) -- can barely tell them apart from an A/B. My pre-amp allows me to switch DACs with a button click. And I can split the optical out from my mScaler to feed both simultaneously. So literally, the only thing that changes is the DAC (even the same analog cables from DAC to pre-amp).
I'm 'headphones-only', so there may be differences 2-channel listeners hear that I miss, but that is more likely to be imaging (your holography), not tonality (your dry/brittle/stiff). I certainly don't hear a significant bright/dark difference.
(amusingly, the reason I own both is that I got the A2, liked it, succumbed to curiosity, found a good deal on an A1, and now can't decide which I prefer so I can sell the other)