If you have a chance to listen to it, that would be the best thing to do. I am not familiar with the Sony so I can't hazard a guess.
I directly compared the F-50A to the built-in DAC of a Rega Jupiter 2000 CD player, a Bel Canto 1.1 DAC, and an Aragon D2A2 DAC, all of which I preferred over the F-50A. The F-50A had sweetness and some sparkle, but I found it ultimately lacking in body, soundstage and realism compared to the other products mentioned.
In all cases, I used the RCA outputs, so I don't know how using the balanced outs might affect the sound.
I directly compared the F-50A to the built-in DAC of a Rega Jupiter 2000 CD player, a Bel Canto 1.1 DAC, and an Aragon D2A2 DAC, all of which I preferred over the F-50A. The F-50A had sweetness and some sparkle, but I found it ultimately lacking in body, soundstage and realism compared to the other products mentioned.
In all cases, I used the RCA outputs, so I don't know how using the balanced outs might affect the sound.