milpai, before I moved the Ayre C-5xeMP to the living room, it had been the stereo player along with an Esoteric SA-60 for surround in the HT/music room. They both used a Parasound JC 2 BP preamp and JC 1 monoblocks driving a pair of KEF Reference 107/2s. But when I play stereo using the SA-60 -- its now the only alternate to a silver 105D, it gets very close but doesn't quite reach that uncanny sense of music just being there the Ayre provides. Nothing in my previous post should denigrate the 205. It's an excellent CD/SACD and superb Blu-ray player.
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