esoteric p/1d/1gorb or dcs scarletti or top emm???

OK, I own an Esoteric player, but still prefer the EMM Labs gear to both Esoteric and dCs, so I would go with the CDSD se and DAC6e SE.

Pretty tough to say because like everything in our whacky hobby the choice of cdp is completely subjective. I personally own the P3D5 combo and love it. If you want detail, dynamics, transparency, and exceptional build quality the Esoteric should be high on your list to things to audition.

I'd imagine all of your "contenders" are stellar.

FWIW, I output a non-upsampling (Burmester 979) transport "16/44" into a Scarlatti DAC via a LessLoss SPDIF digital cable with the DAC extracting clock data from the transport feed. Phenomenal sound. It'll be a long time before I can afford the Scarlatti transport (maybe never), but I'm absolutely thrilled with what I have now.