Accuphase DP-57 vs DP-67 Comparison

in late April I had the opportunity to listen to the Accuphase DP-57 CD player & the DP-78 SACD/CD player. The DP-57 was fed into an expensive Boulder preamp & that, in turn, was fed into either a BAT VK600SE or a Boulder 2060 power amp.
I can quite confidently say that the DP-57 is an utterly disappointing CD player from a sonic view point - flat sound that is devoid of any life, no soundstage. Just limp sound. A few minutes of the track I was playing was enough to hit the "stop" button. I used the Mark Levinson 390S that was also in the rack & connected it into the Boulder preamp. The music was *significantly* better.
In another system (much more modest) but in the same dealer's shop, I listened to the DP-78. The integrated amp it was connected to was the Mark Levinson No. 383. The speakers were Focal/JM Lab Electra 1027 Be. Cabling was all-TARA Labs in both systems.
The DP-78 was an *excellent* player! I loved its sound playing only redbook CDs. The few hours I auditioned this player w/ the various CDs I chose, I could not find an immediate flaw. I could not believe that the same company could make 2 separate machines w/ such disparate sound. If you get a chance audition the DP-78!
FWIW. IMHO. YMMV.

thanks folks for your input.

Having spent several months with the DP-57, my opinion is that it images extremely well, and is very musically involving. Plus, it has the smoothest opening and closing CD tray. I love the build quality! The Accuphase units invert phase out of the balanced outputs compared to most domestic units, so you have to take this in to consideration when listening. I guess it’s also a matter of system synergy. I am now using an Audio Research Ref Two MKII preamp in to a VT100 MKIII amp, with Tyler Linbrook Signature speakers. The Ref Two MKII preamp has a phase invert switch that allows for out of phase adjustments. This makes a noticeable difference in sound presentation on certain CD’s. For another opinion, check out the review on www.avguide.com. Good luck!

Thanks again guys, finally i got the two units new the DP57 and DP67 run through my system plus my old DP 55.
At the end I kept the DP 67 because it was much more dynamic, i heared better resolution and more three dimensional sound. However I felt that the DP55 and DP57 are much smoother than the DP67. As i mentioned both units were new and i did not have enough time to play them more than 20 hours to reach this conclusion. So i really do not know if this will be the case after proper break in. Ill post my final opinion after spending more time with the DP67, and Ill definetly try to check the DP78 when i have a chance.