Which of these SACD players would you choose?

Mceljo, John Marks say about the album you used in your evaluation, "Perhaps I first should have consulted my horoscope in the local newspaper. But I can't imagine what it could have said that might have warned me off. So, in blissful ignorance, I went to the local big-box consumer-electronics chain retailer and laid down my lettuce. I thought I was buying the SACD version of Norah Jones' Come Away With Me (Blue Note 5 41472 8), but, by the end of the affair, I felt I'd gotten The Royal Scam."

http://www.stereophile.com/thefifthelement/1104fifth/

Hmm, I won't dispute what the article says on the Norah Jones CD, but it wasn't the only CD used for comparison. I think it does sound better in the SACD format, but it isn't a significant difference. I'll listen a little more carefully next time and see what I think now that my perception it tainted a bit.

It'll be later today as I'll be listening to tunes while watching Nascar...repetitive turning left makes for a great opportunity for listening to music.

After another A/B comparison of the song Come Away With Me I can agree that there isn't a significant difference in sound, but there are a few characteristics in the music that the SACD has the edge on. An example is the soft percussion instruments at the very end are a bit more clear and defined. It's possible that the difference that I'm nearing is essentially negated when played on John Marks system where the CD DAC is worth 14 times what the SACD player is.

What I did notice, was a nice improvement in standard CD playback from my blu-ray player and Integra multi-disk to my new Pioneer. It's not subtle.