OP - Yes, I found that the expense of the dCS equipment did not translate into better sound. The Oppo 205 was on the market well before the CA X45Pro and I did pipe the audio output via the dCS. Make no mistake, the Oppo is good for what it is.
The electronics used in the CA is more recent with a great OPA627BP precision high-speed opamp for “reference level sound quality" and I believe that this may the reason that the CA sounds better, to our ears. I still have the Oppo but it is relegated primarily to showing movies on the second system.
It may be that my primary system is relatively new also, and way upmarket. The CA sounds much better on this system than my (also upper market) second system. I have used both DAC/Streamers on each system and my lovely wife agreed, the CA was better.
In my opinion, the CA does more, has more audio formats, can rip and save locally or to NAS, streams everything, FM radio and internet radio (of course), is a Roon endpoint and on and on.
It is a bit expensive, but my opinion is worth it. Check this out. https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2019/06/14/cocktail-audio-x45-pro-music-player-dac-review/
AMG