Hi Orion, I think it is more helpful if posters have actually compared these players side by side as I have. I managed to dig out my old listening notes from the a-b-a test I did when I sold my old CD-5 vs the buyer's Audio Aero Prestige -
...the end result? The buyer kept the Ayon and sold the AA.
The buyer was using an Audio Aero Prestige player and we a-b-a tested it on the same music & the differences were certainly clear to me; the AA was more rolled off in comparison, the dac section was less detailed and accurate & the midrange was bloated. I also felt it had a 'sheen', like a veil clouding the music. The AA certainly sounded warm, though I felt that quality was compensating for omissions elsewhere. In comparison, the CD-5 had better weighted bass & extension, the above-mentioned veil was lifted, sound came from a dead quiet background & you then felt like the band were in the room playing for you. The buyer also noticed the improved detail and accuracy of the dac, whilst his wife noticed the above-mentioned veil being lifted, though on first impression said she preferred that quality in the AA.
...the end result? The buyer kept the Ayon and sold the AA.