Marantz SA-10 Vs Esoteric K-05Xs

I have not heard the SA10, but am sure it is a fab player having owned the previous flagships.

 Now, Marantz voices their CDP's from the midrange which results in a very nice beautify midrange at the expense of more openness and solidity in the lower regions.

This midrange voicing is more tubelike and is "fuzzier" compared to the Esoteric voicing, especially their higher  K series players where you will appreciate more openness, cleaner highs and midrange with just a hint of warmth has more bass slam but with a less "golden glow" in the midrange.

Details tend to be less defined and not as pin point in the Marantz's.

Your choice will based on your preferences and music.

For myself, the Esoterics are a  keeper and perform on all types of music long haul in which the Marantz can impart that midrange centric presentation over all types of music left me wanting more when i made the jump.  

@ptss ,Thank You for making me think about power conditioning instead of upgrading the player.

@cmach and @erik_squires ,
Thank you for providing me details on your experiences with power conditioning.

@anwar ,Thank You for solidifying my decision to choose power conditioner over new player.
I have acquired the Inakustik AC-3500p power conditioner in my system. It has improved my system in a way I never thought was possible. @cmach , I tried the amp "direct to wall" and "through the power conditioner" and I too prefer it through the power conditioner. It did not even take me 15 seconds to figure that out.
Yes, a dedicated CD/SACD player may have helped -  but I am not sure it would have made such a difference.

Anwar, I have a new SA-10 on the way. I am surveying the possibilities to connect a music server to the dac via usb. I see that some servers/streamers are listed as not compatible with the s10, although it's likely that software/firmware updates will correct that. But now, Melco is not compatible, and it will not work as a Roon endpoint. 
I am wondering if you have any ideas regarding what servers/streamers/software might currently work with the S10 while we wait for the updated soft/firmware?

@milpai   You are welcome, and congrats on the power conditioner purchase.

@ejholtom  I just bought a used Innuos Zenith MkII with 2 TB internal SSD. Wow, what a difference it makes compared to using Intel NUC with LPS previously. However, DSD 256 playback is not possible currently, and Innous Support told me a kernel update is required. I have yet to do any serious comparison (playing CD/SACD media on SA-10 and thru SA-10 external USB drive vs. playing thru Zenith), but I will share soon.