It occurs to me that the majority of sweeping conclusions expressed in these threads are drawn upon a very small sampling of in-home listening experiences. I understand your disappointment with two newer digital players, but how does that account for the other 100+ options available in today's marketplace?
This is no different than those who damn all expensive power cords after having tried one or two. Or slam speaker manufacturers for a model they heard ten years earlier. I too have heard a number of players--upsampled and not--that did not produce sound that IMO warranted their high price. On the other hand, I've heard others--older, newer, pricey and not--that sounded amazing. It all depends upon whether or not you're willing to find the right combination, one that works with your other components, your choice of music, your sonic preferences, and with your room...often with no rewarding payoff for 300 hours or more!
It's no small feat to replace one's reference, and neither a high price or a specified technology is any guarantee of successfully making that leap. But I assure you, even this empathetic lover of vinyl has heard some killer digital.
This is no different than those who damn all expensive power cords after having tried one or two. Or slam speaker manufacturers for a model they heard ten years earlier. I too have heard a number of players--upsampled and not--that did not produce sound that IMO warranted their high price. On the other hand, I've heard others--older, newer, pricey and not--that sounded amazing. It all depends upon whether or not you're willing to find the right combination, one that works with your other components, your choice of music, your sonic preferences, and with your room...often with no rewarding payoff for 300 hours or more!
It's no small feat to replace one's reference, and neither a high price or a specified technology is any guarantee of successfully making that leap. But I assure you, even this empathetic lover of vinyl has heard some killer digital.