$2500.00 to spend on int.amp and cd player

You could get the Naim Nait and CD5i. You can get the newest version (italic i)for about $2k right now on A'gon. The Naim Nait gets universal praise for its musical sound.

Cronus is great. If you can get a modded SACD from Sony (either a modwright or Vacuum State) it would be much better than a retail unit at that price. My VSE Level-5 Sony SACD beats up on the Cary units mentioned above, and cost me $1100 here on the 'gon.

I have a Cronus and Rotel 1072, and am pleased.

Thanks for the suggestions. I finally settled on a Rogue Audio Tempest II Magnum,Cary CDP-1 and changed my speakers to Tyler Acoustics 7U. I love the way this set-up sounds.

Musical Fidelity A308 integrated and A308 cd player. I have had this combination in the past along with Paradigm Studio 40 v3 speakers. It was a great combination. The A308 series components are built like tanks. I see there are some used on Audiogon now, and can be had within your budget. I do not know the sellers.