Orca75 - Adding to my prior comment. The DAC chip alone doesn't determines the sound quality. There can be other component upgrades or changes to the power supply, etc. I still haven't found any detailed sound comparisons between the two yet. The Marantz release stated, ".. SA8005 .. features faster, low-noise and lower impedance symmetrical circuits with high-quality components (implied as compared to the 8004). The loading mechanism virtually eliminates resonance, while its reduced distortion spectrum gets the best audio quality from SACDs." However, their specs for the 8004 and 8005 on their site are exactly the same. So, it doesn't seem like sound quality will be a big jump between the two. Maybe a comparison will come along soon.
