I have modified my SCD-1 twice and now have all the available mod's from Audiomod (Richard Kern) I generally feel this is far and away the best money spent in that so much of the SCD-1/777ES is beyond anything a similar dollar would buy. In your case however you are straddling the line. First off, your motors and lasers are around five years old and will die in the coming year or so. I had both motors and both laser pick-ups replaced at the same time as my last mod. This was around $500.
Given that cost, and shipping round trip to Portland you are left with only a few mod options in your budget. I would get Superclock 3 and Superclock 3 power supply, about $300 each. I then suggest the op-amps being replaced followed by the power regulators. This is possibly beyond your budget, but that would be the order I would consider.
Now if you feel you could better the level this would produce, then go for it. I guess I still consider the mod route the best though.
Given that cost, and shipping round trip to Portland you are left with only a few mod options in your budget. I would get Superclock 3 and Superclock 3 power supply, about $300 each. I then suggest the op-amps being replaced followed by the power regulators. This is possibly beyond your budget, but that would be the order I would consider.
Now if you feel you could better the level this would produce, then go for it. I guess I still consider the mod route the best though.