sony xa 777es how good?


I had been contemplating buying an fmj23, jupiter,
or cd5,or possibly a used arc cd2 or 508.24.In the
mail comes the Absolute sound with the stones releases
so naturally I begin to think about sacd. After much research this 777 player is compared with ml 39's Wadia
850's and other gear that I would have considered superior
to the levels of an fmj. To further complicate things
the prices for the sony are down to about $1700 new or cheaper than an fmj. My question is:is the sony in redbook
that good so it is a no-brainer to get the sony as the sacd
is thrown in for free or is my research of base?
Final thought: Why does it seem to be compared in redbook
with very high end gear and not in it's own price range?

Thanks for any input.

Current system is B60 and Dunlavy SClll's.
attilasimon

Showing 1 response by thsalmon

I have experience with the CD players you mention, and I own an XA-777ES. The Sony player is the equal or superior to all that you mention. I think that the Arcam FMJ player is really quite disappointing. I A-B'ed The CD23 against a Linn Genki, and the Linn absolutely smoked it. The Jupiter is probably the closest to the XA-777 for redbook. The Sony is a bit warmer in character on redbook than the Jupiter.