Big Difference With New Source?

It'll make a HUGE difference. I'd sell the NAD and the VTL, then buy a Cary 306-200 on the used market for ~$3k. Run that directly to your ampflifier via balanced connection. You'll hear a LOT more detail.

My experience has not been the same as Gthrush1. I've upgraded everything in my system at least 3 times. I found that the upgrades from a Kenwood cd to a Micromega 2 to a Meridian 508-24 were FAR less noticeable than the upgrades of (in order) amp, cables, speakers, preamp. YMMV

I agree with Rbirke.
I have found that improvements in the analog end to have much more "bang for the buck" than in the digital end.
I would probably leave your CD playback until last.
I don't necessarily agree with the order of Rbirke. I would put the combination of speakers and amp at the front.

Richard

I must respectfully disagree with some of these posts. I am not a Linn fan but I agree with his philosophy in regard to hiarchy of importance. The single most important thing you own is your source, LP, CD, or whatever you use. The second most important thing in your system is the piece of equipment which retrieves the music from the source. I don't care how good your amp or speakers are, they won't add what your CD player didn't get.
Get the most off of the CD or LP by investing the better portion of your budget there and then work back to the speakers in decending order of priority.
I just bought a Sony SCD-777es and am really impressed with the sound of redbook CD and SACDs.
Shop smart!