I've owned the 5400 and the CD was not bad, but any of the $1000 dacs mentioned in the forum threads would by far sound better than the 5400. Whether you can hear the difference is another story. That's not a jab, btw. People listen for different qualities and in some cases, moving to a better dac doesn't make a difference to what they're listening for. If you want a recommendation, I think the Heed Abacus is excellent. Well-made, American distribution and service and sounds great, IMO. A bit over your price point, but just a bit.
Sony XA5400Es CD Player DAC Upgrade?
I was wondering if using an outboard DAC with my Sony CD player would improve the sound?
It sounds good now, but I am curious if anyone has used other DACs to improve the sound.
I use it in a bedroom headphone system. The music goes from the Sony player to a Woo WA22 headphone amp.
It sounds good now, but I am curious if anyone has used other DACs to improve the sound.
I use it in a bedroom headphone system. The music goes from the Sony player to a Woo WA22 headphone amp.