Thanks for the quick replies guys!

So would I be accurate in summarizing that nearly any cd/dvd player with digital outputs should sound just as good as the next?

Perhaps the reason it didn't sound good was due to the speakers. I guess I'll admit here that it was a HTiB. I didn't expect hi fi sound for music, but it was downright terrible. Movie soundtracks on the other hand were quite a bit more impressive. Whatever the case, I sold it and need something good now.