I own the 840C, and I can't be more pleased. If you're also looking to stream music from PC, you can run your intermediary source (i.e. Squeezebox) through 840C's DACs. I run my Squeezebox through 840C, and the sound is really damn good. I haven't had a chance to compare my combo w/ the sound of Transporter, but it's really impressive.
Go to a dealer and talk to him & I'm sure you can pick one up for about $1200, especially if you convince him you're going to be a client for a while. There were some online vendors that were selling 840C for $1175, but the wait was crazy long, I think, and I don't know if they're doing it anymore? You can check... I think they were called "hi fi traders" or something...