Does Avergae CD Player + DAC = Average Sound?

You certainly CAN go the route you suggest, with reasonable quality. I really think that for the price of a decent external DAC and digital cable though, you probably can find a new CD player that will yield excellent results.

I think the Audio Refinement CD Complete is really good, and you can probably find a used one for $500.

That's a problem. I hadn't checked because I assumed all CDPs have digital outs, but this one doesn't. No luck here. Case closed. A new CDP it is.

That's a problem. I hadn't checked because I assumed all CDPs have digital outs, but this one doesn't. No luck here. Case closed. A new CDP it is.

Depends. If there's something wrong with the sound of the Technics, the DAC may well help. (Of course, it's also possible that there are some bad DACs out there.) At the same time, using an outboard DAC introduces the risk of jitter, which is unlikely to be a major factor in a single-deck system.

Here's a suggestion: Since your Arcam is a fine unit, try doing a blind comparison of the Arcam and the Technics. See how often you can guess which one is playing, based on sound alone. If you have trouble distinguishing between the two (and don't be surprised if you do), then it's unlikely that a DAC will do anything for you.

Budrew, if you can swing it, I would get the Bel Canto DAC-1. It is quite inexpensive now because Bel Canto is releasing their DAC-2 soon.