Well, you got the conventional advice, I suppose. The truth is that good revealing speakers can sound awful with poor amplification, so the order of importance depends on what you're starting with. If I were in your shoes, and I assume you are happy with your speakers, I would forget about a dac and look at any of a number of new one box cd players with the latest 24 bit dacs. You can find them in a wide price range.
Order of importance
I recently upgraded my system to Thiel 2.2, CJ MF2200 and CJ PFR. I went back to using my old Denon 1520 CD player from a new DVD. I was told by a salesman that the order of importance in a system is 1)speakers, 2)source, 3)preamp, 4)amp. Therefore, I was told to buy a new CD or use the Denon as a transport and get a DA converter. Any thoughts on this and what DAC to consider?