Has anyone had eperience with the new sony xa5400e

I really like it in my system. I don't know of any used cdp's that might improve on it for the new price of the 5400 (I paid 1100) If you already have some sacd's and your current player isn't working out- I'd say go for it, if you can spare the cash right now.

How does this compare to the Marantz Ki Pearl player? Has anybody heard both?

Jonny,

What the hell do you expect people to say if they are indeed satisfied with the 5400ES? In my system it replaced a very good sounding DVP-S9000ES; my only other comparison is an Esoteric SA-60 in my cousin's system. The 5400ES portrays timbre extremely well, and has excellent frequency and dynamic range. Soundstage is very good. Compared to the unit it replaced, it sounds smoother yet with more detail and better low frequency response. Although I really like the Esoteric SA-60, I suspect in a side-by-side comparison I'd pick the 5400ES every time even without factoring in cost.

My vintage processor does not have HDMI, so I've only used the analog XLR from the 5400ES.

db

I had it, liked it very much, thought it was an absolute steal for the $$. Sold it because it did not surpass my CEC TL1X/Dodson 218 combo, which costs considerably more. But if I were looking for a one-box for less than $5K, I certainly would seriously consider the Sony. Very musical and easy to live with.

Neal

Another happy 5400 owner here. Replaced a Rega Saturn.