About six months ago, I caught the audio bug from a friend and neighbour, at which point I decided to upgrade a few components. However, I'm on a budget and so my kit is fairly modest. The NAD integrated amp and tuner, the Kef Q5's and the Monster power bar, purchased last Fall, brought my system to what I feel is introductory-level hi-fi. In January, I added the van den Hul interconnects, which were a noticeable improvement.
The CD player is currently the weak link IMO. I've been thinking that the NAD C-541i would be the best way to go, given budget concerns, a number of good reviews and a top-place finish in a What Hi-Fi? comparison with units from Arcam, Rotel, Rega, Marantz, Sony and Roksan. There's also the Shanling CD-S100, which I believe may be the same machine as the Music Hall CD-25 (although I've asked for advice on this in a thread on the Digital page here at Audiogon).
Also, I'm really tempted to find out if the merits of bi-amping are for real, with the addition of the NAD C-270.
Finally, although I said the cd player may be the weak link, the speaker cable is also vying for that title. I'm interested in the van den Hul CS-122, a 12-gauge silver coated OFC cable with a layer of carbon fibre that I've heard good things about.
Woops, I was wrong about upsampling in the Shanling CD-S100--the player *does* have it. (Always best to check before you speak... ). What confused me is that there seems to be no way to turn it on or off, either on the player or on the remote, so I guess it's always on.
Uh... have you heard both of the players you're considering? My main player is a Shanling CD-T100, the tube model, but I have a CD-S100 too, which is also available from several Canadian dealers. It is almost identical to the Music Hall CD-25 but has no upsampling (which I don't think is worth paying for, although others may differ...).
I agree that your player is your weakest link at the moment. I have listened to the NAD541i and have nothing bad to say about it but I do recommend a listen to both before you decide. They sound fairly different.
