All-In-One Options

I went the all in one route with a Naim Uniti Star.  It has streaming capability plus a built in CD (no SACD however).  It's 70w/channel but is plenty to power my Goldenear Reference tower speakers.  You could a a SACD transport, the internal DAC is good.

I've been very pleased with my Aurender ACS-10. I've ripped thousands of CDs to the internal drive in FLAC format and have room for thousands more. You havento rip a CD aand play back the file, so it's not exactly a player. I have no complaints about the sound quality I get streaming Qobuz and Tidal although I generally still prefer records.

@elliottbnewcombjr LMAO that’s definitely an all in one hahaha 

+1 @audphile1 

I’m considering Shanling SCD3.3 SACD player as a Cd/SACD transport as other SACD transports seem to be more expensive players that can be used as transports.  Can also use the SCD3.3 as a Cd/SACD player whose Sonics are very good.  

One brand that many buyers in the US ignore is T+A, which is one of the most respected audiophile manufacturers in Europe and parts of Asia.  Its $8K-ish DACs are superb, providing distinct circuitry & signal paths for DSD & PCM streams. 

Last year, when shopping for a mid-level audiophile integrated -- $15-$30K range -- I discovered the R 2500 R, a 2025 "receiver" based on the latest iteration of T+A's higher-end DACs and clever power-supply design -- a true Class A/B that weighs more like a Class D.

I've had my unit for about a year and am still thrilled with the overall SQ, connectivity, & functionality.   Its bundled DAC/streamer/clock benefits from all the advantages of an integrated form factor -- no external cabling, no external-clock/sync/jitter issues, etc.  It's extraordinarily flexible, doing double-duty in my system as the driver of the front channels of a home theater.  It even offers FM/NAB/Internet radio.

But to your point, it also includes a CD transport.  Again, you get all the advantages of a single integrated DAC/digital-source form factor.

For some reason, TAS has chosen not to review many T+A products other than speakers, and Stereophile's ostensibly rave review was, um, a bit superficial. (Something that I think the senior staff agreed with, since it's already had two follow-ups.)  T+A now has a robust distribution presence in North America and I can verify personally that its customer service is some of the best I've found.  As far as retailers, Bliss HiFi in Minneapolis offered terrific pre-sales support.  That was my journey.

When I bought my unit, it cost about $19,000, but with tariffs & inflation, it may now be over $20K.  But if, as you say, price is not important, you owe it to yourself to at least take a closer look at this model, or perhaps some of T+A's lower-end receivers. (FWIW, T+A considers any integrated that has radio capabilities and a disc transport to be a "receiver.")

I had a lot of requirements, so many that I found only 2 or 3 products on the market that could satisfy them -- Ayre and maybe Hegel most prominently.  The R 2500 R handled them all with aplomb and provided sound quality that is arguably in a higher class than, say, an EX-8. These days, the digital portion of my stereo portion consists solely of the T+A, some better WireWorld cables, an SACD player, and speakers.

Unlike some earlier comments, if you can deal with having an external SACD transport, you won't have to "sacrifice sound quality."  I can discuss my personal experience -- including an excruciatingly anal half-year shopping experience -- with this product.