Need upgrade from Denon 1520 and better DAC

My quick response on sound of various brands listed:

Oppo 105/105D - really clear upper registers, good spatial representation, decent bass

Arcam - bit warmer mids, voices. Good treble extension and bass, but maybe not the nth degree of sparkle and spatial info (except CD37 which is boardering on high end sound - for two channel probably the best of all listed.)

Cambridge - in between Oppo and Arcam, but closer to Oppo (because they might have the same essential guts but Cambridge voiced a little differently, it’s British!).

Denon - probably haven’t heard one of these in over ten years, no insights here.

The Oppo would be a good choice. Buying used you could try it and resell without great loss if not your cup of tea. Could also repurpose as kick butt Bluray player if you wanted.

  Thank you Knownothing for your reviews of those above.Oppo appears to be the clear choice for me from what you describe.It's incredibly difficult to hear a piece of gear one wants.I wanted to hear the new Bryston 4B3,called authorized dealer,sorry we don't stock any but can order one.I ended up buying a used one after reading many actual owners posts and input.

Oppo works works easier if a video monitor is attached, particularly for outputting DSD from SACD or playing usb sticks, so I would budget for a monitor.  I use a 19 inch Samsung that cost about $80.