I did a bit of careful comparative listening this weekend. I have been ripping my CD's according to the recommended best quality approach described here with EAC etc., ultimately to FLAC. The SB3 is connected by digital coax with fixed digital volume at max.

I cued up Diana Krall's cover of Almost Blue from 'The Girl in the Other Room' on both SB3 and G98DH. Switching back and forth, the sound was pretty close, but not the same. With the SB3, there is a slight loss of sweetness, most noticeable in voice. Also the brush strokes on the cymbals sounded less like a brush stroke and more like impact and there was some loss of bloom in the lower end. On the other hand, Diana's voice was less diffuse with the SB3.

To my ear, the G98DH had the more natural and enjoyable sound, but certainly not by a huge margin. Very impressive, given the price difference! For me, the margin is large enough to be worth the effort of getting up to put in a disc whether I'm sitting to listen on a dedicated basis or while reading. I intend to connect the SB3 in the family room as the convenient access to all the family's music will trump any other considerations.

Cheers, Ian

Cheers, Ian

1: Roon on Mac Studio, G-Drive 10TB, 818v3, 7200.2, UHD722, LG 77G4
2. 808.6, 8kSE
3. 218, 3200's
4: Rivian R1T - 18 speaker 1200W Elevation by Meridian premium sound system
5. G68ADV (croaked), G98DH (also croaked), [HD621, Syles SL-S/PDIF, MD600 (2*4TB), QNAP 469L (4*3TB), MS200], Ayre MX-R Twenties, TBD