Rotel RCD-1072 vs Sony XA5400ES

With all due respect to the OP--I'm not sure there's much, if any, value to answers you get to "which is better?" questions. As many have said a million times in the past, it depends on the room, the associated gear, personal subjective tastes, etc. Your best bet is to try to hear the players in your set up to decide which you prefer.

That being said, I can tell you that I would answer exactly the same as Zd542, but with the Sony 5400 being the player that was "one of the best CD players I have ever owned." And, yes, I'm sorry I sold mine, too. Good luck.

Jon

Jonathan1257,

I totally respect your opinion buy when I made my comment, it was based on listening to both units. I wasn't just guessing on the Sony. I also put it next to my 9000ES and it was still quite a bit better. But thats just my opinion.

Mkash3,

Reading your post, you talk about the Sony having the better DAC. I don't know if I would agree on that. There's more to a DAC than just the chip. The overall design and quality of the other components that go into supporting the DAC chip are important to consider as well. Also, you can't forget the analog portion of the DAC. That's every bit as important as the digital section. The Rotel just gets the whole package right. There's nothing wrong with the Sony either, I just prefer the Rotel.

I had the Rotel and was quite happy with it. Just a note - there was a MAJOR difference when I put in Kimber Cable Hero Interconnects. I would highly recommend putting a bit of $ into cables.

Zd542, no disrespect was intended, so I hope none was taken. Having heard both players, your feedback may be exactly what the OP was looking for.

I own both units currently and my Sony XA 5400 ES outperforms my Rotel RCD 1072, in my opinion, with redbook CDs. Especially in the treble, which is just smoother with the Sony. Now, the RCD 1072 is a fine unit and I kept mine for a backup if the Sony ever goes out (trouble free for 3 years so far), but it doesn't do SACD. The RCD 1072 does HDCD, but good luck finding a HDCD. The Sony cost me $1,050 new and the RCD 1072 was $725 as I recall, and for the price the RCD 1072 was (is) a wonderful unit.