Best under $2000.00 : Denon,Marantz,Onkyo,Pioneer?

Thanks for all of your excellent responses guys!
I am currently leaning towards the Onkyo DV-SP1000, and the Marantz DV-9500. I can get a better price on the Onkyo SP1000, so it is actually at the very top of my list.
PLUS, the build quality looks simply AWESOME!
Has anyone out there personally compared the Onkyo DV-SP1000 head-to-head with the Marantz DV-9500, or heard both units? If so, what were the results?
Thanks again!

Daryl, the original poster in that thread is going to be purchasing a better display so that is why I reccomended the sp 1000 without hesitation.
Because he is primarily interested in music for now, I thought I would add that tid bit about the 9500 being a touch more musical in the German reveiw and still losing out to the sp 1000 for audio.
Reading between the lines, I would say it might be a systym dependent choice for audio between the two.
Keep in mind that all these universals cost about the same as in the U.S. in these reveiws except for one.
The sp 1000 sells for about 5k U.S. in Europe and elsewhere, and can be had for less than 2k in the U.S.

Dalton, I have seen no personal comparisons of the sp 1000 and 9500, but whith the 30 day return policy offered by a few retailers, perhaps you could be the first.

I was considering comparing them myself until I got way too busy with work to do a proper comparison.
I still may compare the two, but it will be after christmas before I have time.

I like that the Onkyo weighs 24 lbs . I must admit I like to grunt a little when lifting a 4 figure purchase !

Yep it weighed around 35 lbs in the box and even the remote is classy with its aluminum top and great functionality.

I also like the stock Onkyo better than a pro modded Philips 963sa for both redbook and 2 channel sa-cd as the Onkyo has that toe tapping musicality going for it.

I would say that the sp 1000 falls short of a Modwright signature 9000 for redbook/sa-cd, but not by much.

It is definitly the first universal player that I tried were I felt I definitly got my moneys worth in every area.

Hello All,
I just received my Onkyo DV-SP1000 yesterday.
Wow, what a well built player! This thing is SOLID!
Even though this unit is fresh out of the box, I am extremely pleased with its sonics, and build quality.
This player has the best Redbook CD performance I have ever heard in my home, and this includes my SCD-XA777ES and my former EVS modified Pioneer DV-47Ai universal player.
The DVD-Audio performance is outstanding as well.A little better than the modded Pioneer, and much better than the stock Pioneer.
The SACD performance is at least as good as my Sony, in my opinion.
The picture is outstanding, probably the best I have saw in my home.
I cannot wait until it is fully broken in!
This is an outstanding player, worth every penny, and I cannot recommend it highly enough!
Lanny