Cambridge 740c or Rega Apollo with Linn and Sonus

Others to consider around or under $1000:

Marantz SA8001 Super Audio CD Player

MUSIC HALL CD25.2 24/96 CD PLAYER (<<$1000)

used Shanling CD-T100

used Naim 5 or 5i

I'm buying a Cambridge in 2 weeks, when it arrives. I'll enjoy hearing it cold out of the box, as I did with my Hurricane amps, which took all of 30 seconds to reduce me to awe. It would be lovely to repeat the experience again. Given the consistent praise given to the top 3 (maybe only two octaves), it would be surprising that it should not be a dazzler, since the top octaves define clarity and a lack of confusion elsewhere (unless they're too hot). About the only thing I'm expecting is that the Cambridge is, perhaps, a "lightweight" - sounding player. There have been mentions of that in reviews, although it has been counterbalanced by mention of a very good upper bass/lower midrange, which is where a sense of "body" imbues images with solidity.
In any case, I'll have an Apollo AND a Cambridge simultaneously, and that, in itself, should be fascinating. It would be wonderful to have a player that could even match a $3000 player (which, if you all recall, was what the Lector originally cost before the importer, after seeing TAS' rave review, hiked up the price [eventually] to over 4k.
It seems that now, more than ever, High End means "High Priced." I've never seen so many 30k speakers, and so many daft reviewers saying "this is a bargain, considering the cost." They're screwed in the brain cells to even say such a thing when only 10 years ago, the majority of speakers were in the $15-25K range if they were "awesome," and only 10K if they were merely "fabulous" (WATTS excluded).

....how quickly time goes by....two weeks? Try 2 days. Bought an 840C from this site and am warming it up as we speak. Sent the Apollo back to have it checked out in anticipation of selling it if I prefer the Cambridge.
The Cambridge was not even out of the box, so it's cold, cold, cold.... For all that, one can still hear the transient response and hard consonants, such as hearing the "k" in "kick" expulsed as "kick-kuh" instead of just "kick" with the last "k" being softened. The brass has an actual leading edge now (and when doing listening using Mercury CDs, which were tipped up in the treble due to the peaky microphones) and wondering it if would sound harsher...so far, the answer is: not. But hey, this is after only 1 hour. It's distinctly more articulate than the Rega, that much is apparent. I'll fill us all in more after 24 hours....

I doubt either player is much of an upgrade over the NAD. A slight difference maybe. I tried all these players, I learnt my lesson the hard way.

Rotarius, you've heard all three players? I've heard the NAD, but not in my own system, and I find it hard to make assessments using unfamiliar systems. One never knows if they have the polarity right, or grounding correct,or the power cords touching the interconnects/speaker cable, all of which can kill one's ability to determine the traits of ANY component. Plus, room acoustics mask detail that would otherwise be apparent.
What was your experience when you heard the Apollo and Cambridge players?