Chord Dave or Ayre QX5 Twenty DAC???

This has nothing to do with sound quality but in my research looks to be a bigger and bigger issue: the QX-5 Twenty lacks an HDMI input. Most Blu-ray players that support SACD discs, including players from Sony and Oppo, can only transmit DSD from SACDs via HDMI. As the QX-5 Twenty lacks HDMI… you're out of luck playing DSD except from files on a computer via USB. It remains to be seen how big a real world issue that proves to be, but for me on a recent audition it meant no DSD for me.
see: showbox & kodi

Both DACs are very, very good. But each will sound differently with any different system. You need to either borrow a store DAC with your system, or listen to either with a system that is as close as yours.

Well, it looks like I'll be selling the QX5.  I still love it and may keep it just for the great headphone amp as I listen a bit to some very high end IEM's and also a top ZMF can.  The Memory Player should be here in a week or so and I had the DAC installed internally.  It was time to simplify things as well as upgrade the sound quality.  Very excited.  I'm shocked that more people aren't going with TMP.  Their advances in lowering jitter and their defragmenting hard drive are leaps and bounds better than what's out there.  it's in a different league than any other server on the market.  

I've had both in my system and would go Dave because of Blu2.

I can only chuckle at the "authoritative" comments I read when evaluating luxury 2 channel audio electronics.  All electronics will have their particular sound signature.  While I may lean toward analytical detail and you prefer warm and lush, I truly doubt there are any responsibly assembled $75k 2 channel systems that each of you above could not easily live with for the rest of your lives.  The differences each of us hear in system A or B are merely individual perceptual differences.....whether or not a particular difference is more musical than the other is purely a matter of subjective preference.  

Hint hint.....spend you big money on speakers, amps, preamps, turn tables, linear power supplies......these items could serve you well for decades.  Show me someone who is spending ridiculously high 4 figures on digital storage, streaming, etc gear that will be totally obsolete in 3 years and I'll quickly chase him down to sell a bridge to.