Componets first, cables second?

Hell ya Mcpody!!

Firstly you should not buy cables until single cast crystal palladium is released. the other optionis to take an inert substance wich can be ionized like carbonwith unusually heroic methods and make it slightly radioactive where in nuetrinos after they twirl get integratedin to the electron rush through the ever so slightly impure cobalt dioxide glass fillaments. Then the cable couldn't get much better. Ormore expensive.If want fast cables use silver,if youlike warm use copper.They are all then terminated with absolutley dulling brass plugs and gobs of lead solder.
I actually think that a pure signal is only hypothetical and the recording proces invariably alters the origiginal true sound.Therefore this nonesense about keeping the sound as real as possible is complete and utter B.S.Get a player you like and there are many competant CDPs which by the way almost always have only one choice for the laser and pickup Sony.Phillips was an alternative.The rest is power supply capacitance opamp choices jitter clocking over and under sampling.etc.Allthis can be avoided by contouring the sound through a good parametric professional level equalizer also previously known as tone controls.
Yes the loudness button was based on the laws of physics and I like it.

Mechans, is your rig located in Ted Kaczynski's cabin?

Short answer, components first.

Were it me, I'd buy the right CD player for myself, then work with an entity such as The Cable Company ala their "Lending Library" or by trial and error "buying and trying" here on Audiogon to find the cabling that forms a synergistic match with your system.

That being said, I go along with John's effort to steer us towards balance and looking at things in a more holistic manner.

In my opinion, the ultimate answer lies in how you see the future. Are you going to be in a continual flux of upgrade, or do you tend more to buy and keep a component. If it's the former, to be quite honest, it really doesn't matter which you buy first, as folks in this camp never come to a state of equilibrium with their systems in the first place.

this question can be answered by mariasplunge, after some experimenting with his/her own stereo system.

this and other questions like it which frequently appear on other forums, has no definitive answer.

the most important answer can usually be provided by one's own personal experience, rather than the opinions of others.