Have auditioned the 808.2 at home, and will again. Concur on the lack of slot loading, but I was very unimpressed by the wobbly plastic tray that came out for me to insert the disc on! I have had over a dozen CD players and this was the lowest quality tray I have ever seen!

Perhaps it doesn't matter, once it is in the player (it may be dropped onto a sturdy spinner, and perhaps this is the change....so that the insertion tray is irrelevant, as opposed to being part of the spinner??). Other high-end CD players have sturdy insertion trays, usually aluminum alloy.

Sound seemed to be less harsh (smoother) at the upper end than the 808, but I had different speakers and electronics so I cannot compare the two. The mid-bass was stunningly rich and authoritative. I used very high quality balanced interconnects and speaker cables as well as electronics and 4-way speakers that fully integrate the drivers.

I was listening analog direct to the amps, bypassing the 861, hence 2-channel only with no sub.

Enjoyed what I heard, but I did not have too long to settle in before the unit had to be returned to the dealer. Have also listened to the unit at the dealer showroom and it was flawless, but the CD's are usually of the very best recordings, so I intentionally varied the CD quality while at home.