what cd player ?

As per another reader I have an Audiolab 6000 CDT and Denafrips Ares II. The combination is excellent.  The Audiolab replaced my Rotel RDD 980 transport and the difference is substantial. I also looked to replace with other CD players including recent models from Rotel, Marantz and Naim, if any of these sounded any better I would have bought them. If you already have a DAC or need a DAC for other sources the Audiolab at the price is outstanding. 

+1 for the Audiolab 6000CDT. I have mine hooked up to a Denafrips Pontus II standalone DAC and it sounds awesome. The 6000CDT currently sells for $499 on Amazon and you can maybe pick up a Denafrips Ares II DAC used for $500 - $600.  The Pontus II is the next model above the Ares II and sells for about $1800 USD new. Your only other expense would be to buy a quality coax cable to connect the 6000CDT to the Ares II. Buying quality separate components (CD transport + standalone DAC) will more than likely outperform a similarly priced all in one CDP.  Having a standalone DAC is also useful for future system expansion such as adding a dedicated streamer or headphone amplifier. I have both of mine connected to the Pontus.

Get a DAC you'll need it later anyway and then almost any transport will be ok. I use a Pro-Ject and an integrated with a DAC; Just to eliminate the analog connections is such a relief.

Lots of folks getting out of CDs and into streaming makes it a good time to buy a used CD player. Here’s a Naim CD-5i for $1200:

An Ayre CX7 for $1100:

I guess you can only paste one link per post but here is the aforementioned Ayre CX7 for $1100