Looking for SACD player............

RE: the Oppo 105... the reviews are superb, and everyone who comments about it seems very pleased. And it would be tempting - the ESS Sabre DAC is one of the best, if not the best.

But... the sound of the Sony is just... so incredible... so... if you have it... and you can keep it operating properly... you’d have a difficult time giving up on it. The known vs the unknown... I guess.

And... the Modwright mod is costly for such an old player. And... I’m not sure I want the Sony to sound more... "analog" - if that means it could lose any of the clarity and detail resolution of the stock unit. I’d want to be sure that will not happen before I spring for an expensive mod.

Lexicon RT-20 - find one used: Fabulous

I agree the oppo 105D is great unit that does many things well. However I need a player for one single purpose only. For 2 channel stereo playback. 

That is PRECISELY what I do with my Oppo 105.  No multi-channel, no movies.  The days are long gone where a multipurpose spinner has to be inferior to a dedicated two-channel system.  I play two-channel CDs, SACDs, and Flac files on a USB stick.  

I would wait til the Fall when the new players are available. There is a new Sabre DAC  that is supposed to be much better than the current one. Oppo has a standalone DAC that will use it and I suspect their new players will too.

Oppo 103 approx $500 done and dusted.