Want to buy Ayre C-5xeMP but...

My conclusions follow my experience and my experience follow the theories Ive been able do dig up so far.
This is not a proof.
I have had the same experience with other good DACs as well. They sounded better when fed with a CD transport than with a computer.

It depends on how you define cheap but I still think most cd players contain large enough RAMs for powerful error correction and memory buffering.

May I ask what server you run and has it beaten your CD transports?

I was reading the post with Charles Hanson comparing the C5 to the QB9 and he writes that they are comparable and each outshine the other in somethings. He did not go into specifics on what those things were. He was asked if he used a beefed up computer and he replied he used a mac mini for the comparison but they were plugged into a filter for clean power. Clean power I have so I am not worried about that.

I will ask the dealer about the electrical noise from switching power supplies. When he was telling me about his error correction theory I mentioned that the G08 has a cd-rom and spins faster than a normal cd player to make those corrections and he still felt that the hard drive solution was better.

It still comes down to can I get a server to sound as good as the C-5xeMP in my system. My hearing will be shot in 10 years so the cd dying argument is most likely a moot point.
I want sonic bliss now while I can still enjoy it.

My processor only has a pair of balanced inputs that just go to the volume control then to the amps so I have to chose one or the other for the best sound, I wont be able to get the best out of both of them in my system together.

Why not upgrade to the 808.2? A friend has it and sez it bettered his previous player(Spectral 4000)and the full DCS stack before it.

Well you can always get a player that has a digital input and then you have both CD and music server. One that comes to my mind is the new Esoteric DV50.

From what I have read about the 808.2 I have to believe it is a incredible sounding player. But it puts you in a whole different category price wise with lots of great players to choose from, Wadia 781i, Esoteric X01/D2, Puccini to name a few.

I thought about the SA-50 with the USB input but I had an Esoteric X05 in my system and at first I liked it a lot, very lively and great bass but after listening for a few days I decided to stay with the Meridian.

So far the Ayre is the only one that makes me want to upgrade my player. I have been thinking about this and it is truly difficult to decide on which way to go. If the DAC/computer combo does sound as good as the player, now I have to figure out where to put everything. I will need a small computer, small display, external hard drive, keyboard and mouse. These things are steering me towards just getting the player. I have to see what the dealer can come up with for me(he is getting the loaner DAC in a few days). In the end with all things considered the price will be about the same.