should I go with the rega brio or schiit vidar

Yup, RS1  is one of the most natural sounding speakers I've heard .

i just purchased the new Rega Brio with the Rega RS1 speakers and all Rega cables and the combo is sublime

Take a look at Belles Aria.  Includes phono.  Has the grunt to power your Ryan’s quite nicely.  Best....

Looks like you can use the Oppo's volume controlled output to connect directly to an amp.

From the Oppo site:
"Sonica DAC provides both XLR balanced and RCA single-ended outputs, and the outputs can be set to volume-controlled or bypass, making it suitable for connecting to either pre-amps or power amplifiers."

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. It sounds like the best option might be the schiit vadar.
The nuforce sta 200 is interesting. Would this be similar to the performance of two  nuforce ha -200  amps.
How would i know if I can use my Oppo as a line stage. I'm not sure what that means, sorry I'm still new to this.
Last, since the rega is also a preamp will this sound better than just using the oppo as a pre amp

Thanks again for all the feed back it is a big help.

Not to hijack your thread, but I've been looking at a lot of Schiit lately. Egads, doesn't this ever get old?

Looking to replace my amplification, a Kenwood Integrated from college days bought in 1978, really. Served me very well for all that time.

Anyway, I have Energy Reference Connoisseur 22s.

Has anyone heard the Shiits, Vidar & Freya?

Cary has a sale ending in a few days that's compelling, to me. SL-100 Pre $1,197. and 200.2 Amp $2,397.

The Rogue separates are more than what I'm willing to spend. 

The Vidar’s balanced input numbers exactly one, so if stereo balanced connection is important you have to buy 2 Vidars.

All good ideas. Consider also the used Hegel h80s which are going for very good prices now. They have balanced ins which sounds great. 

i would get 2 vidars if you have balanced outputs. 400 watts into 8ohms

If it were me, I'd go with the Vidar and see how it pairs with your Sonica. If you feel its too dry/clinical, you can always add a tube preamp or even a Freya later to add some warmth and juice up the soundstage and still stay under your budget.  

The Vidar is 100 wpc into 8 ohms and 200 wpc into 4 ohms.  The Rega is 50 wpc into 8 ohms and 73 wpc into 4.  The additional power of the Vidar will probably be welcome with the Ryans and their somewhat lower sensitivity.

I agree with asp307. Many options available within your budget. Are you looking for a integrated amplifier, or can the Sonica be used directly into an amplifier? My bias would be toward using the Sonica with fixed output into a integrated. There are those who would suggest using it's variable out. 

Just look at the Nuforce sta 200. Class a/b originally $1400 now $499. Just try it. Great reviews designed by the same Goldmund team that gave us the JOB 225

https://www.amazon.com/NuForce-STA200-160-watt-Power-Amplifier-Swiss-design/dp/B01552AKCU

The Rega Brio is an integrated amp so you can use it for line stage and amp. It's received lots of positive feedback, however, with your Oppo you have an opportunity to run balanced with XLR. The Vidar provides an XLR balanced input so if that is important to you I would look to the Vidar (assuming you can use your Oppo as a line stage.)

Both the Rega and Vidar can be had for less than $1K. How far under $2K are you looking to land? You still may have room in your budget to research other options...

Just looking through integrateds, amps and preamps in the Audiogon marketplace, you would certainly have some options in the $1K-$2K range. If you like Rega, there is an Elicit-R in the $1,600 range which should get you a few steps up in the Rega line (no affiliation to seller, just an observation during a quick search.)

I'm sure you will receive some good recommendations from the community. 

Good luck