Instead of hassling with separates, I'd recommend a new cd player. You'd be surprised what $1k will buy you these days.
The Audio Refinement (YBA) CD Complete is about $900 new, and is VERY good. You can do do extremely well if you buy a recent unit used. Better yet, the Cary CD-303 can be had for about $1.5k used. That's a terrific player.
Slowly but surely, the days of separate transport and DAC are fading off into the distance. Don't get me wrong, the approach does have its merits, and a number of the ultra high-end manufacturers are still doing it (e.g. Burmester).
But for those of us that don't have $30k + to spend on a digital front-end, a $1k integrated cd player is really probably good enough. Remember, cd's are not truly a reference-quality medium to begin with. But I won't revisit the old digital vs. analog debate here, as it has undoubtedly been covered ad nauseum...
The Audio Refinement (YBA) CD Complete is about $900 new, and is VERY good. You can do do extremely well if you buy a recent unit used. Better yet, the Cary CD-303 can be had for about $1.5k used. That's a terrific player.
Slowly but surely, the days of separate transport and DAC are fading off into the distance. Don't get me wrong, the approach does have its merits, and a number of the ultra high-end manufacturers are still doing it (e.g. Burmester).
But for those of us that don't have $30k + to spend on a digital front-end, a $1k integrated cd player is really probably good enough. Remember, cd's are not truly a reference-quality medium to begin with. But I won't revisit the old digital vs. analog debate here, as it has undoubtedly been covered ad nauseum...