Upgrade Esoteric K03XD to K01XD?

thyname has a good suggestion.

There are some threads about the Esoteric XD series on the AudioShark Forums:

Esoteric (audioshark.org)

Here is a quote from a dealer posting there (Mike from Suncoast Audio):

The historically speaking there wasn’t always a major difference between the K1 and K3. But with the XD series, there is a significant difference between the K-01XD and K-03XD. I believe the K-01XD carries triple the number of delta-sigma chips over the K-03XD. Sonically, there is greater layering and a smoother presentation with the K-01XD. That being said, the K-03XD is a super performer at $14k and it’s the product that got me hooked.

I think that you would need a very transparent system to get a big upgrade in sound from the K-01XD, but that’s just my guess. I know that Mike from Suncoast has a lot of really good gear at his disposal.

How do you like the.N03T streamer?

I think the DACs are very similar if not the same.  The K-01XD would have connections to the disc drive, but I don't think that would affect the sound.  Esoteric has diagrams on their website that you could check for differences.

Do you have many SACDs?