New CDP or standalone DAC...?


Current source is the Oppo 103, bought three years ago. Would greatly appreciate any and all comments on buying a better-sounding CDP, or buying a better-sounding DAC and using the 103 as a transport.
Thanks in advance!

Tom
tomcarr
Wow, just read your second post. Like what I'm reading. Very interested in MQA. Will definitely look into that further...
Tomcarr, as far as I saw, nobody wrote anything about your amp. I had that Krell S 300 few days at my home, friend brought it just for comparasion, to see how it sounds hooked with my gear. Please dont get me wrong, but it is very poor integrated amp, not by its power, but because of its sound. It has quite 'veiled' sound, like its high frequencies are cut off. At the time I had Sonus Faber Guarneri,,Burmester 001 player, with top Nordost cables and still the sound was like the speakers were covered with light blanket. My sugestion, if you dont mind me saying  this, is to change that amp first and than look for another source if you still need one.
@alexatpos , very interesting! This is actually my 2nd unit. The first one I returned due to an odd noise at turn-on coming from within the unit itself, not from the speakers. I was sent another new  one I'm currently using. Interestingly, through two different sets of speakers (Monitor Audio Silver 8s and Vandersteen 2Cs) the sound is decidedly tipped-up! Lots of treble energy, air, detail, spatial cues, soundstaging. I'm using Anticables, true bi-wired. Nothing veiled at all about the sound. Sorry to hear it didn't sound good in your system, just proves again you never know how a piece of gear will sound in your system until it's in your system.

Tom
Again, please forgive me, I have no hidden intention neither to speak bad about that amp, or to be persistant about convincing you,or to pretend to have more experience. But, when you are speaking about all that 'qualites' of that amp, that conclusion should be based on direct comparation with simmilar priced units and with better ones, of course. In that class, I have had Krell kav 400, which I thought to be better but 'gray' in sound presentation (not the one that I would recommend either) and some other integrated amps from Pathos, classic mk3 and Inpol 2 which I found much better sounding. If I may add, also had Krell Evo 302 and Burmester complete set up (956mk2, 011, 001). My only intention was to give you advice where you could pehaps save some money and get better sound, because, imho, your amp is the week link, not the player. If you change the source, you may end up in a same place, as I have tried that amp with probably 'better' player than you are about to buy and the results were still not pleasing, to me,of course.