Saturn,
One must compare apples to apples and we both know that comparing tubes to solid state is not equivalent.
Don't get stuck on the words out of context thing that Alan brought up the other day. People are not saying ALL cdp sound the same. Obviously if some have tubed outputs then by their very design they SHOULDN'T sound the same.
Keep within the context of the discussion.
Take a Musical Fidelity solid state cdp and listen to it vs. the $150 Denon from Walmart. Get 50 other ppl to do the same, but in a general blind test, even if at home. Do these same Stereophile electronic tests that so many ppl like to refer to and then come back and we'll check out some results.
