What am I missing?

Cd quality has not been the standard for several years now ,a disc rotating with wobble is very hard to accurately read .

a quality recording on a SS drive is far more accurate , the dac a is far better implementation.  The key is that it takes quality throughout ,Ethernet cables , Hub usb cables most important the quality of the dac ,and the computer-streamer 

imo around $10-$12k minimum to achieve a pretty respectable digital setup 

which I am nearing that goal , but much more $$ can achieve much better results still, the Denafrips Terminator anniversary  dacs, and Holo spring May KTE dacs are without question best of in class $4600-$7k range  the Bricasti M1SE streamer-Dac has lots of filters and is very good at $12k and a very good buy .that may be on my short list for next year.

CDs are still great, as far as I'm concerned. 

I really don't understand the resurgence of vinyl, as I lived w vinyl for many years and was so relieved when CDs came out for many reasons from space issues to easy care to sound quality... I do understand some people claim greater "warmth" from vinyl, and yes it's charming and nostalgic to spin discs and/or a novelty for younger folks who didn't grow up w vinyl-only options.  I still have a Sansui turntable and still spin an LP from time to time, but when I do I'm always reminded why I prefer the simpler, easier compact disc.

and 10-12k for a "respectable" digital system is beyond ridiculous, imo.  

Ditto Curtdr.  My seasoned audio friend parted with an integrated amp with an internal DAC to get a pure integrated amp so he needed a DAC.  I suggested the well-reviewed Topping D90SE just for the heck of it, but he bought it and is enthralled with it.  He has a near $20K analogue rig and he finally admits that digital music is "awfully close to the sound from vinyl."  He is wedded to vinyl because of the tactile fiddliness of itl... the exact reason I parted with my SOTA TT several years ago and never looked back.   I had several ~$1K DACs that all sounded okay, but then got an Ayre QB-9 in my system and consequently sold my TT the next week since it sounded so close to analogue.  My Aqua LaVoce S3 is a fair bit better.   

Same as many, I have over a couple thousand vinyl plus hundreds of CDs. Love them all, wil always keep them, they sound great on my vinyl and CD rigs and are pride possessions. However that is going the way of the dinosaurs. Streaming is taking over whether we like it or not. The convenience, the price, the quality and the ever ending multitude of choices make it the clear leader in today's way of enjoying music. And to think I used to be like MC just a couple years ago, analog was king and that was that. Then I grew up, at 68 lol. Thanks to the few folks here who were relentless in talking up streaming. I would never have gone down this musical road without you guys.