Isn't your DVD player a universal player? Or does it only play DVD/CD?? I have to admit that SACDs and DVD-Audios sound superb on my universal player.
I just did an A/B comparison with the universal and my dedicated CD player. I used the same CD and started them at the same time and switched sources back and forth. First of all the CD player was louder but thats probably due to the fact that it uses the analog inputs on the receiver. The CD player also has more depth. But when I played a certain hair band song I really heard a difference. It was during the guitar solo. I could actually make the mental image of the guitarist playing the solo right in front of me. On the universal it wasn't too bad but just not the same, not quite as focused as with the CD player.
So, I'm sold. I might just spend some money on a "high end" CD player one of these days. But I'm going to go upgrade to seperate amp and preamp before I do that. But that is definitely on the list.