A newbie deciding on a transport/DAC

Considering that the sony DVDS7700 is more than the parasound and the MSB together where I come from(new zealand) thats not going to happen :) I am not going to buy anything from overseas, as with the new zealand dollar low, id get ripped off. Any other good ideas on transports for me? Would the parasound be a waste of money - even at that price? I already have a DVD player, but Its not a good one, doesnt have a coaxial output etc.. not 24/96. Id like a better one if thats wbhat you reckon would be good. What other models would be as good as the DVDs7000?

I owned a DVD/MSB Link combo for about a year. For the price it was a great deal. However, I wasn't the best combo. The McCormack CD transport that replaced the DVD Player was a much better match for the MSB. This combo was more transparent and the soundstage was wider and deeper (but at the cost of more $$). There are alot of varying opinions when it comes to using DVD Players as transports for CD playback. Though it may be the cheapest route it isn't necessarily the best. Take what you read with a large amount of skepticism; especially when someone tells you that something is absolutely the best there is, was, and ever will be. I suggest that you try a few combos, if you can, before purchasing. Check out www.audioreview.com to help you narrow the choices. Auditioning can be time consuming but the end result is rewarding - the best musical reproduction for your hard-earned dollar (or whatever currency you have).

I own a Sony DVP-S7700 DVD Player, Sonic Frontiers SFT-1 and Sonic Frontiers SFD-2MKII. As far as transports go, that "best in the world" review of the S7700 is a joke. The SFT-1 walks all over it. It's a fine sounding transport, but it's mid-fi sony junk compared to real high-end audio.

I purchased the Parasound about a year ago at a similar price and have been very happy with it. I had auditioned a lot of different transports and the Parasound was the overall best sounding at a reasonable price. As an alternative I would consider a Pioneer DVD with a used Audio Alchemy DTI 2.0 or Pro. I have found that either Audio Alchemy enhances the sound of any transport I have tried, including the Parasound. I have not heard the MSB version III but did audition the MSB version I and did not like it. It's worth about $400, but is no giant killer as advertised. If $400 is all you want to spend I would suggest looking for a used dac. I have purchased used Micro Mega dacs for $300 and $500 and they both sounded better than the MSB. I also have a Bel Canto Dac 1 and the only thing I have heard that is better is a Theta Pro Gen V. For digital cables, the best bargain I have heard is the Apogee Wyde Eye and the best sounding-the Harmonic Technology.

Check these reviews on the Bel Canto DAC 1: http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/belcanto_dac1.htm http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/belcanto_dac1_followup.htm Good luck. Charlie