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[Ardemus]

I currently have a fairly high end surround sound system:

• Bryston SP2 Pre/Pro and amplification
• PMC FB1 mains with matching center and surrounds
• Martin Logan Dynamo 700 sub in parallel with line level outputs to the mains

My SP2 is on its way out the door, and I want to fill the gap with something that will meet or exceed its quality.  While buying good DAC ICs is easy, the analog section isn't so easy to reproduce.  I'm a big believer in only paying money for objective improvements that can be explained with sound science and engineering.  However, I'm seeing quite a few new unsubstantiated standard features since the last time I looked at high end audio.  I'd appreciate any input, but I'm particularly interested in irrefutable objective data.

Interesting Considerations
I) I asked this on the MC18 board, but can anyone objectively justify 24/192 outside of a production environment?  I have a hard time finding fault with this article: http://people.xiph.org/~xiphmont/demo/neil-young.html
II) Audyssey MultEQ XT - High end fuzzy logic system EQ.  It seems like an unassailable feature, but I haven't done my homework on it yet.  Any experience or objective references?
III) Ambisonics - Apparently this is a new approach to surround sound that is gaining traction and may be superior to the X.1 approach.  Any thoughts?

Option A: Stereo
1) Asus Xonar Essense STX $180.  I can't see the analog section on this guy matching my $5000 pre-amp.
2) Outboard DAC ($800-$1200): PeachTree iDAC, Musical Fidelity M1DAC A, Wyred 4 Sound DAC-2, NAD, Audioengine, Cambridge Audio, Benchmark.  It seems like Async USB is a no brainer.  Otherwise I have no idea how to choose between them.  However, I don't want anything that will pollute the analog signal path with inaudible (> 20Khz) analog signals.
3) OPPO BDP-105 BluRay player $1200.  It's comparable to the DACs above but also adds a load of features.

Option B: Surround Pre/Pro
4) NAD T 187 $3000 - My local dealer swears that this will be a night and day improvement over my SP2.
5) Onkyo PR-SC5509 $2500, Marantz, Integra, Denon... ?

Thanks!

[Datman]

I’m not sure how much I can help but  I have an SP1.7. I have loved the sound of it but it falls way short of today’s digital needs.

About 2 years ago I was ready to trade the Bryston in and demo-ed a Marantz av 8003. It was very cool and I almost traded. I can ebay the 1.7 and get about what the 8003 would cost.  A side note the 1.7 came with the full 20 year warranty. I still have 10 or 11 years left.

 At the end of the day I liked the sound of the Bryston better and have figured out how to make it work. Now that I have MC18 I’m even more glad I kept it. My audio card Asus xonar hdav 1.3 deluxe has been a perfect match. There is an easy way to get the full 7.1 analog audio with it.

So if I was buying today I would just get the Marantz or other $1500 pre/pro and pocket the rest of the money but being that I dumped over 4k into the 1.7 and the analog still sounds better than anything else up to that price range, I’m keeping it.