Hi CW yes you have correctly understood my suggestion; however you also correctly point out that the signal would be inline with yet another interconnect cable pair, only 'when the buffer is inline'. This may not be the best configuration - if you typically have the buffer inline *most* of the time then you'd probably be better off not using the tape loop. But again yes, the switching arrangement does then allow for easy A/B comparisons.
I don't really have an opinion re "which is better" the only answer to the question lies in experimentation. Cable quality & synergy are certainly limiting factors; try it both ways if possible.
There may be some other ways to 'tame the SCD-1's high end' have you experimented with:
(1) the interconnect pair
(2) the AC cable (on the player & on the pre & PA)
(3) tweaks such as shelving, cones, footers...
(4) AC line conditioning
I don't really have an opinion re "which is better" the only answer to the question lies in experimentation. Cable quality & synergy are certainly limiting factors; try it both ways if possible.
There may be some other ways to 'tame the SCD-1's high end' have you experimented with:
(1) the interconnect pair
(2) the AC cable (on the player & on the pre & PA)
(3) tweaks such as shelving, cones, footers...
(4) AC line conditioning