DAC recommendations for CDs in 2-channel system

@twoleftears that Border Patrol DAC (eg. on the LTA site) has made me drool. there was a used on the classifieds recently that got snatched up.

@sorcan. I would support the Oppo suggestions. Transports are not created equal from CD player to CD player. there are big differences in the sound quality. about 3-4 years ago I did an "A/B" Transport test b/w the Oppo 95 MULTIPLAYER ($1000) and my DEDICATED SimAudio Equinox SE CDP ($2500). the Oppo was humiliated. 

But in your situation: you have a self-professed crappy transport, which tells me that if you use a crappy transport with even very good DAC like the Schiits that have been suggested above, you will still get inferior sound for what you have already paid for.
Because in the electronic chain from source to speakers, the SQ Sound Quality can only degrade and get worse, it will NEVER get better per se. I mean, it might get "different" and you may like that "different", but it will never recover resolution that has been lost earlier in the audio chain. 

So your best bet, if you have $1000, is just to pick up an Oppo to get the CDP and transport in one unit. Down the road, your upgrade chain would be to perhaps use the Oppo as transport only, and hook up to a dedicated Schiit DAC and/or use reclocking devices to clean up the signal as Steve has suggested. 

But sorcan, what is you budget?
and are your ears sensitive to higher frequencies? perhaps not.
when I ran Klipsch HORN speakers with SS, made my ears hurt.

I too am using Odyssey Kismet Mono Blocks driving Maggie 3.7panels with DWM woofers in parallel. I also owned Cornwalls in the late 70'S. The Dac I purchased a couple of years ago is the PS Audio Direct Stream Junior. Great sound in every respect, and I came off f a Benchmark HGC 2 Dac to switch. No one but no one does customer service like PS Audio. Call them up,They are the friendlies folks around and will answer any and all questions, never rushing you.T
ry their website and chek out the Forums. Again very informative. That Dac sells for $4000.00 but with a decent trade can be had for $3000.00.

Down the road, your upgrade chain would be to perhaps use the Oppo as transport only, and hook up to a dedicated Schiit DAC and/or use reclocking devices to clean up the signal as Steve has suggested.

+1

That is precisely what I’m doing, albeit minus Steve’s suggestion of a reclocker. I maintain the "clean up" (jitter) is successfully handled by the DAC itself. No need, IMO, to clean, and then re-clean again.

that Border Patrol DAC (eg. on the LTA site) has made me drool. there was a used on the classifieds recently that got snatched up.

I am the one who bought the Border Patrol dac. To my ears, in comparison to my Yamamoto YDA-01 dac, the BP is more holographic with more meat on the bones. In addition, it does more to get my toes tapping and my head bobbing. This dac is right up my alley, well suited to my listening style and preferences. If you are the type that likes to close your eyes and completely relax while listening, the BP dac might also be a worthy consideration, but you might also want to audition other dacs. The BP dac perhaps is not the last word in detail. There is not the blackness and air between images that one might hear in systems that are geared toward extreme high resolution. Turning off the EZ80 tube rectifier tube, which can be done by pressing the front button, well get you in the direction of blackness, air and endless decay, but the magic is not quite the same. For me, the BP dac in EZ80 mode is quite engaging. Mesmerized is how I feel, YMMV. I have already had a few listening sessions of 5-6 hours in the short time that I have owned it. I have a strong feeling that it is a keeper.

I have no love for the Oppo.  If you like your digital to sound like digital that’s the one for you.

My suggestion is get rid of the transport period.  Load all your cds into a Blue sound Vault 2.  It sounds better than my Oppo 105D.  Plus now you have all your music accessible from your iPhone or iPad.  Then if you want to really bump up the performance, add a Chord Hugo.  The Bluesound has a digital out so no problem.

The Hugo is really small so space will be no problem, plus you basically get a free headphone amp with an awesome dac.  No fancy power cord is needed so you get to save some dollars there.

Btw, the Bluesound is very compact as well measuring approximately 8X8X4 inches with 2 TB storage.

This will be my primary playback source for my new summer home.  

Approximate pricing, Vault 2 new 1299.00, Hugo used 1100.00.