My first choice would be an xbox with ultra hd. I have one and I am very happy. Optical and hdmi,I use the hdmi for video and the optical for audio. The older models can be purchased market at a better price than a high end blueray, and since you will not use it for gaming, even a used one will have a good longevity (slow cpu usage)
If you do not need sacd or dvd-a or similar "esoteric" media, any blueray will work. You can get a DAC capable of -110dB or better ( probably any dac on an blueray is -89 to 95 dB as a guestimate from prior test on similar equipment) and if needed a hdmi to optical extractor in the range of 100-125 euros/dollar's. Thaw will give you the better quality possible.
In the last test of a cd player / transport in ASR, it was found that the unit had some induced noise / jitter in the optical out. Without a test of a specific unit it is impossible to know, but more likely low end player may have weaker implementations than high end (but it is not always the case).