While I have only been living with my new 333ES for 2 days now, I can say it does a very nice job on redbook cds. On SACD it is a marvel. Here in Canada the 777ES is prohibitively expensive at $2850 ($cdn) so I cannot offer a comparison. On HDCD discs I would give the edge to my Arcam 8SE. The Arcam is generally more laid back and the sound of redbookd cds on the Sony will take some time to get used to.
