one-box solution

You should be able to find a Linn Classic for under 1K on Audiogon. Quite good.

I've owned the NAD L-40 and the Linn Classik. You get what you pay for. The L-40 is decent enough but the Linn creams it so it all depends on your needs. Vocals are smoother with the Linn and bass is definitely more controlled.

You can also pick up a used Sony AVD ES series receiver. There were several models. They were HTiB units with a DVD player and 5 channel amp for home theater, but they also played SACDs, and the audio fidelity of the all digital amp was quite good. For a few hundred bucks you could have a nice unit.

Personally, I've converted a Marantz ER2500 DVD player/5-channel receiver into a stereo only unit for my office. Audio is fair. Thought about getting a used NAD L40, but why bother?

Denon UD-M31 mini-system ~$300.00.