Simontju: Jerry Ozment modified my 777ES by adding his tubed output stage, and as modified it is a superb player, comparable with the best out there. The digital side of these players seems to be where Sony spent the bulk of its time and money; they put in a servicable, fairly good-sounding (if you like smooth sound), analog stage, but that's where you can wring a lot better performance out of these machines. Don't know if Jerry's decided to keep doing the mods, and they may be more expensive than Stan's if he does, but you are correct about potential of these machines, and there are plenty of talented modifiers out there if you want better resolution than the stock units.
Cheap SACD Player or wait for DVD Audio?
Do I understand there is a new Sony player for a reasonable price? Has anyone auditioned or purchased this unit? I heard the $5000 one and thought it looked and sounded great but found the price tag a bit steep given the number of titles available. I would love advice from any gurus on this format