Dedicated Red Book CD player vs. "Universal" type players....

I I like chayro suggestion about getting an Oppo and then adding a DAC later if the redbook playback is found wanting.  It sounds like the OP plays mainly CDs but is thinking about playing from a hard drive in the future.  An alternative would be to spend the money on a DAC and keep his present CDP as a transport.  Or, if he needs to sell the current player to fund the purchase, or wants some video source in the system, put the money in a DAC and put a Sony Blu Ray in the system, which can also play SACD if he needs that.
  The Oppo is also a great way to play music from  USB drives or other hard drives and you wouldn’t need a separate streamer if you start adding other digital sources

The newest Bryston CD player may be a viable choice. This is a true, one box, Redbook Cd player that does nothing else. No DVD, SACD. The Dac cannot be accessed for computer audio or streaming. A true one trick pony.

Thanks all for the input. I am interested in whether there is (real or perceived) difference in cd playback quality with a "universal" type player. Does all of the added circuitry for video etc. degrade the sound in some way? Or, have they gotten so good that it's immaterial....

My Esoteric UX-3 Universal Player CD, SACD, DVD A, DVD sounds great and IMHO sounds much better than many other players on the market.  I can shut all the video circuitry off from the remote, but I hear no difference in sound.

Beernut , PS Audios new Direct Stream Memory Player is a universal player however not in the same sense of any other universal player on the market past or present .
However there are multiple issues which most if not all universal player brands , it has been found they all have sonic compromises from one thing too another though some company engineers attempted to address , like Bryston with their 3 model , EMM Labs and Esoteric to name a few .

The PS Audio Direct Stream Memory Player and Dac may not be my final digital components though in the here and now that have been by far one of the best purchases in a long , long while .