I just heard the 9000 at a friends house in his spectral/audio physic system (this means HIGH resolution!). Excellent CD player. I would put it in the same general category as the Sony XA7ES for CD playback. I did not A/B compare them. SACD was outstanding - better than vinyl. It really is true that it's got the detail of vinyl but without the surface noise or warbling. He said it was within a hair of his levinson 36 dac for cd playback. He sold the Levinson !
