I have one of the first 25 PW combos in this world. After breaking-in the combo for about 200 hours using good HDMI cable like the Wireworld Silver Starlight 5.2, there is no point to keep my Ayre C5XE SACD player.
I am still using my ATC SCA2 pre with the PW combo. The sound is a bit better with my SCA2, but mind you that the SCA2 worth close to US$10K now. If you have a mid-fi pre, then I would suggest you to sell the pre to save some money.
By the way, using the PSA's own I2S-12 HDMI cable really improve the performance of the combo.
If you have a budget of US$6000 to spend on CD player, the PW combo is a no brainer. Plus the PW combo is a lot more flexible and a great potential if you are into music server.
I am still using my ATC SCA2 pre with the PW combo. The sound is a bit better with my SCA2, but mind you that the SCA2 worth close to US$10K now. If you have a mid-fi pre, then I would suggest you to sell the pre to save some money.
By the way, using the PSA's own I2S-12 HDMI cable really improve the performance of the combo.
If you have a budget of US$6000 to spend on CD player, the PW combo is a no brainer. Plus the PW combo is a lot more flexible and a great potential if you are into music server.