Is there a"giant Killer" CDP ?

Tim: You probably just need a $600 power cord, $1K set of interconnects and $2-300 worth of "fancy footwork" to make that Toshiba really sing in your system. Give that a shot and then let us know what you think : ) Sean
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And now back to our regularly scheduled program...

The Music Hall MMF25 is the only player I know of which can be called a giant killer.

Actually, it is not really a giant killer, because it does not kill any of the giants(Electrocompaniet, Audio Aero, Granite, etc.), but it is the best budget CD player on the market right now.

I am not such a big fan of CD sound, but this $600 player leaves me very impressed. It isn't the best I know, but you would have to spend 3X as much to take a definitive step up. It is truly an audiophile level component. Again, not the best, but points you in the direction.

This is a no brainer. The Audio Aero Prima MK2 CD player at FULL retail ($2250) smokes most every player twice its price, and yes it does get very close to the "Big dogs".

You can always ask to audition the players at home. It's been my experience that dealers are willing to oblige home auditions.

Trelja mentioned the Granite. I have the Granite 657 tube CDP and have been very happy with it--I've seen them used for less than 2K (and demo'd for slightly more than 2K). I've compared it side by side only with a Meridian 508.24. The Granite sounded significantly better (more liquid, less etched) than the Meridian to my friends and me.
But, as the posts show, there's a lot of good players available.