Recommendations for CD Player/DAC Combo

@newbee ……………………

I own large floor standing speakers and they certainly are NOT mounted on the wall in either system.

For the rest of you:  "It's her business as to how she uses it but I don't see the logic."  That was my statement.   I never told her or anyone how to use it.   I stated how I use it and don't see her logic in the way she uses  the player.   As usual. you people are making something out of nothing.  I thought we all were allowed to express our opinion?

elizabeth-
You go girl.  Happy Listening!

stereo5, In the spirit you evince in making your comments about Liz’s use of her CDP, I can’t understand why you would be really spendy on your system yet place your speakers on the wall where, presumably, you will not hear  what your speakers were capable of had you paid more attention to your set up. Quite the contrary. I could bore you with detail about about proper set up but, hey, its your stuff, your room, and none of my business. If the sound you get makes you happy who am I to comment. But if I had to put my speakers on a wall, as you have, I wouldn’t have wasted my money on mine.

Liz, forgive me, I know you can speak for your self but, I assume, too polite to respond.

@mahler123...………………………………………….

Elizabeth has a new 10K Marantz SACD player and yet she is only using it as a dac to "save" the transport?  Save for what?  My reply was I have a 8.5K Esoteric player which I use everyday as a CD player.  Why wouldn't I use the entire player?   That is what I was driving at without naming names.  It's her business as to how she uses it but I don't see the logic.

I hope I have clarified things

@tyan42 I think there are more than you mention.  Nuprime and Denon certainly within your new price bracket, and Bryston, Hegel, and Primare just a little over it.  And that's without any research.

@stereo5 

one reason to have more expensive spinner is feature set.  I used my Oppo 105 as my everything, including DAC, but eventually upgraded the DAC.  The Oppo was mainly a transport then but still came into use for SACD, DVD-A, usb drives and network use

Like Liz I use a cheap spinner(s) plugged into my Marantz' DAC. The reason is simple - My system operates all day but I only listen to it critically for a few hours in the evening. Why burn up a built in spinner for 'background' music? It has two inputs - one I use for a 6 CD player and one for a 1 CD player. Works for me.

Why would anyone buy an expensive CD player and just use the dac portion with a cheap player.?  It’s like buying a Corvette and putting retread tires on it.  I have an 8.5K Esoteric SACD Player which I use daily and wouldn’t think of attaching a cheap player to it.  Of course Esoteric builds their own transports was Which in my case is the VRDS NEO transport and they don’t wear out.  To each his/ her own but you are defeating the purpose of superior sound.  What are you saving the transport for and when do you feel it will be ok to use if ever?

There was much more choice as recently as two years ago.  The precipitous decline in CD sales is one reason that manufacturers stopped making them.  The other is that Oppo really dominated that market niche, and their decision to pull out left a void.
   At your budget the best option would be a dedicated transport and DAC, such as the Cambridge Audio transport That goes for around $500 combined with DACs from the likes of Mytek, Benchmark, Schitt and others that sell for around 2K.  You could also use something like a Blu Rayor DVD as a CD transport.  Sony Blu Rays can be had for under $100 and are very slim, if space is a consideration.
  Sony makes a Universal disc spinner for around $400 that plays everything and has gotten decent reviews.  I think it’s DAC can be accessed.  There is a Marantz SACD/CD player four around 2 K that I think has an accessible DAC

Stretch your budget to a pre-owned REGA ISIS Valve cdp/DAC?