Will a $700 turntable outperform a CD player?

CD format is dead horse.
no future for this media.

I think it’s for retired people only, I have no idea who else might be interested in CDs since digital is all about higher resolution files on hard drive (not on CD) so far. 

Even cassettes is more fun 

I'm retired, I have CDs. Are you talking about me?

No

The sol looks badass. I have a killer analog setup and an amazing digital side as well. Analog always wins. But digital is very close, and way easy. Analog will cost you more but you will be rewarded. Also, I have the gungnir MB in my bedroom setup and although this is an amazing DAC, it definitely sounds digital and almost surgical. The warmth of analog will lure you in vs that particular DAC. 

I tell people who want to get into vinyl that the fun ship has sailed. I loved picking up great old lps for 1-5$, or snagging a whole collection once in a while.  The world supply of original-pressing vinyl (not fancy, even thin, flexy mass-market lps from the 70s are amazing) has been bought up by collectors. The remainder sell for stupid prices. Reissues are typically poorly pressed from a 16-bit, 44kHz file. Noisy as hell and poorly manufactured. And they cost 35$ each. 

CDs now occupy that junk space formerly held by vinyl. You can get great stuff for 1-5$, or classical boxes, 50 for 50$. 

If you have a stack of records, might be a different story. 

Your Gungnir sounds good I'll bet. I'd stick with that and maybe get better speakers.