Just to offer a contrarian view -- one of the truly nice features of the Sony ES line is the 5 year warranty. In addition to voiding the warranty, any of the above mod may negatively effect the resale value of your unit. I use the 333ES machine with a MSB Platinum DAC, total cost under $3,800. More expensive than the modded 777ES, but better sound quality (at least for Redbook CD) and flexibility.
