Aiwa XC-700 DAC question

[planetbass]

I bought this lovely player brand new about 13 years ago after auditioning a load of other players.

In the intervening years I haven't heard another player under £300 that I'd swap it for - it's also never let me down - ever.

When I first bought it, a friend who worked in a jazz record shop (and therefore listened to the type of music I was buying and playing) told me he'd bought 5 of these Aiwa's for him and his friends and that the DAC was the same as one used in a much more prestigious player - a Meridian if my memory serves.

Does this ring a bell with anyone - and, if so, is the old XC-700 something of an underrated gem?