Vinyl guy seeking recommendation for a top level cd player

I am the OP to this thread and this is a follow up.  To summarize and bring readers up to date (2/6/2026) , with many kind responses to my original query, I purchased a Luxman D10-X in 2021.  They were in great demand and it took many months to get one as they were on back order.  It was worth the wait.  The Luxman expanded my horizons on many levels and continues to do so.  In addition, I recently put together a new system for our second home and bought the recently discontinued Marantz SA10 for it, which I will comment on briefly a little later.  As I predicted in my original post, it was indeed a good time to buy a new cd player.  Although I remain firmly committed to vinyl, old jazz primarily, as the prices have steadily climbed and desirable records have become more and more difficult to find, cd reissues have become more widely available.  It is not only possible to find long sought after and out of print records in the cd format, but often they include 2, 4 or even 8 albums by an artist of interest in 2-4 cd sets at very attractive prices.  The sound quality is typically clean mono, really better than available vinyl choices which if they can be found at all cost significantly.  So for that alone my cd player has undoubtedly paid for itself.  But there is more.  Dormant for years, the cd format has reawakened an interest in classical music.  I have purchased the entire J.S. Bach canon as a cd Box, something like 180 cds, for ~ $1 each!  Similar prices for tons of Early music, Vivaldi, Mozart, Handel, etc.  All of the Mercury Presence recordings, prohibitively expensive on vinyl, but affordable as cd box sets.  This has opened a new door for me.  Comparing the sound quality of a pristine vinyl pressing with the same recording, mastered by the same engineer, on cd in Redbook, reveals the vinyl usually sounds better.  Sometimes by a lot, sometimes by a little.  SACDs usually sound the best of all.  Usually be a lot, but not always and once in a while there is a turkey thrown into the mix.  For the record, my best vinyl playback system is as follows:  VPI HW40/Hyperion (stereo); Technics SL1200 GAE/mono cartridge varies; Consolidated Silver wire SUT, C-J ART Phono-stage.  All in perhaps 4x the cost of the Luxman D10-X.  Now a few words about the Marantz SA10.  I bought it and it's matching PM10 amp when they were discontinued a couple of months ago.  I paid approximately 50% of original list price for the pair.  In round numbers that is about 25% of what the D10-X cost.  The two cd players were exhaustively compared side by side daily for over a month.  Using the factory settings, the SA10 has a slightly softer sound than the D10-X.  Some would prefer it as the sound is easy to like.  For the analytical, the D10-X offers greater detail, perhaps the way to say it is if you are so inclined you can hear further into the music with the D10-X.  The SA10 can be adjusted via setup controls to sound more like the D10-X without ever quite reaching the same level of sophistication.  But very, very close.  I also suspect, by the look of them, the way they feel and function that they both share major components in their transports.  Both units are built like tanks.  For those who are in the market for a cd player right now this SA10, while still available, must be considered the wise buyer's preference.  In spite of my assessment that the D10-X is the better of the two, the margin is very small, whereas the price spread is too great to justify.

Every time someone resurrects a dead thread I’m reminded how much better this place is without that shill spewing opinions as facts nonstop. 

@billstevenson Always nice to have a follow up post.  Glad you are happy with your purchase. I have very much enjoyed my Marantz Ruby gear.  I saw the close our pricing on the SA10.  Tempting but I am quite happy with where I am at to be honest.

I certainly agree with you on the CD bargains out there.  Most recent purchase of a box set was Sir Charles Mackerras conducting the Prague Chamber Orchestra performing the Mozart Symphonies.  Excellent in both performance and sound engineering!  Get it.

REGA ISIS VALVE cdp//dac
 

https://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/rega_valve_isis.htm

https://6moons.com/audioreviews/rega2/1.html