OPPO 105; how to beat it and at what price?

I think Dsper had the $5000 Esoteric.....but I nor anyone I know have had a $13,000 or $20,000 Esoteric to A/B with. If my modded 105 beats a $5000 Esoteric it does not mean its as good as the way more expensive ones.....I kind of doubt it. The Esoterics are super well made. If you have unlimited money then fine but seems to me you could get a super DAC (for way less money) and run it from a modded Mac/PC or server and get even better sound. There is the DSD only Lampizator that could be used with software to upsample all PCM to DSD, for instance. I bet I would like that better than a super expensive Esoteric.....but who knows? Digital is changing fast. I personally would not want to spend a lot of money on a player. What is so nice about the modded Oppo is that it is a great player (CD, SACD, DVD-A, HDCD, whatever), a great DAC (including double speed DSD and 352K input), a great headphone amp (with all the mods), a great multichannel player, can stream various things and has great HDMI inputs, and a great DVD and Blue Ray player (with fantastic picture and Darbee enhancement capabilities). It is the kind of thing you would keep for years and years and it will always sound good and can be used in any number of ways in any number of systems.

My friend recently bought a used EVS Mod 105d. I compared it with my Oppo 105, I can’t find any different. My friend can’t find either. I use Audio Note Soro SE and Focal Electra 1027be.

My $.02.

Rather than modify anything, find yourself a good separate DAC. You have many to choose from and a lot of opinions as well. For the time being, for your PCM music you will use the digital output of your Oppo and play through the separate DAC. With any sound choice at all you should notice a substantial improvement in SQ. There are too many to choose from for me to make a suggestion of a DAC. I only know what I like and I do not know your budget. Do some research. Also, depending upon what and where you buy, you may have the option of listening to a DAC in your system before buying.  Your SACD disks will still be playing through the Oppo.

Over time, if you are serious about digital, you will rip your CDs (and with the help of the Oppo--your SACDs) put them on a hard disk and send them directly to your separate DAC. The convenience cannot be beat and the SQ will increase noticeably as well.

Moreover, you will maximize your resale potential and also your upgrade potential.