It sounds like you have it sorted, but at that budget I'd say a DAC, no question. You can get the non-SE, coax-only Border Patrol for just under your budget and have a very, very musical DAC. Might not be the best measuring, but whatever.
I just recently got back into CDs (not a streaming guy) from a turntable and while I still use both, you cannot argue the sound quality of a good transport, good dac, and very, very cheap media. If you can or want to stream music, then that's even more reason.
I just recently got back into CDs (not a streaming guy) from a turntable and while I still use both, you cannot argue the sound quality of a good transport, good dac, and very, very cheap media. If you can or want to stream music, then that's even more reason.