OPPO BDP-83 Blu Ray /CD /SACD Player Audio Quality

Duane

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Lately I've been getting the itch to up the quality of CD playback from my decent but meager CD player (Sony CDP-302). With all the raves given to the OPPO player, I am leaning toward it because it can replace two players I already own (Sony BDP-S301 is the other).

Can anyone who owns this player comment on it's audio quality with respect the CD and or SACD playback ? I know that most people purchased this as a BD player and that is also important, but I'm really interested in the player's audio capability compared to other player's CD/SACD playback. The comparison can be with standalone CD/SACD units.

I'm also aware that there's the SE version which was designed to be an "audiophile" player. At twice the price, it may not be the top choice as yet.

Thanks.
 
I've heard both versions. The SE version is much better but the original version is no slouch. I believe that both units are a bargain for what they offer. I would love to own one at some point.
 
I have the 83. I'll go on the record as being in the minority, since I do not really like it for CD playback. Its not bad, it just sounds like a sub $1K player. As a CD player alone, its worth about $500. Its not a giant killer though. I've heard the SE version is better, but haven't listened to it. As a BD and DVD player, its killer-that's why I got it. My music system is elsewhere.
Jack
 
My bud got an SE version and calls it comparable to his Cambridge Audio Azur 840-C as a redbook CD player. Comparable but more recessed.
His take on it is that the Cambridge is better and more forward, but the Oppo BDP-83SE is no slouch and if he hadn't heard the Cambridge and got the Oppo, he wouldn't have felt like he was missing anything. He called it entirely non-fatiguing.
I know and trust his ears.

The stereo outs use four DACs cascaded together in the SE version.
SE has upgraded analog outs only - That is, their stereo outputs are most upgraded, but the 7.1 analog outputs are all upgraded. Nothing was done in the digital domain and even Oppo suggests buying only a BDP-83 if you won't take advantage of the analog outs and will stay in the digital domain through your home theater pre/pro or receiver.
My HT receiver has analog bypass and no HDMI, so for me it looks like a great way to not have to upgrade the receiver, but only the player. The fact that the receiver doesn't do HDMI is far less of an issue than it would otherwise be on any other type of upgrade if I use the universal player's analog outputs..
NuForce SE has upgraded power supply and the SE upgraded analog outputs with the theory being that the enhanced power supply supports teh analog outputs better.

I'll be getting the NuForce version for my home theater as soon as I sell off enough gear to pay for it. There's no rush since it is on backorder.
Two channel audio is only one of the things I'll be asking it to do. I'm going from two-channel to surround in the room it's in and the Oppo/NuForce fits in the slot nicely.

Since redbook playback was never the product's primary design intention, to be mentioned in the company of a giant killer like the 840-C, which is primarily designed for redbook playback (and has external DAC inputs for other inputs) is high praise.
 
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I own the BD-83 and I think the audio quality is fantastic.

It absolutely smokes the Yamaha CDC-585 that I used previously.

I haven't heard the SE, but then again, I wouldn't pay $900 for a player anyways.
 
Received my Nuforce Oppo BDP-83SE yesterday. Ordered Friday, arrived Wednesday after travelling from the US west coast to the east coast.
Professionally packaged.

Just tried it out on two-channel CD audio right out of the box.

It sounds competitive with the Cambridge Audio Azur 840C I just sold to help fund the purchase. It's a universal player and even with CD it sounds strong right out of the box. It'll need ripening and mellowing time on the two-channel side, so I'm going to put it on repeat play for a week or so. More to come later.
 
I have the Nuforce edition, bought for audio playback in competition with the Sony 5400 sacd player. Reedbook CD is amazing, and SACD aswell. Checking out DVD audio with the 40th anniversary og kin crimsons debut tomorrow. I bought this with the nuforce IA-7 and usher baby dancer II. Two days later i heard the cambridge player, separate amps and and BW 800 series diamonds at 50% more than my ushers. I laughed all the way home. The BDP Nuforce is a very good player. Streams files of my network as well. So far I use without a screen.
 
Well,I decided to buy the SE version. Ordered it yesterday and with any luck, it may arrive tomorrow. Really looking forward to it.

I just hope I can hear the difference on the analog out (2ch only) because I could not hear a major improvement over my mediocre Sony CD and the Marantz 8003. I've aquired a few more SACD discs for the testing.

I'm also going to pit the video quality against my current BD player. Really exited about this machine.I'm hoping it's a keeper. But,there is a 30 day money back guarrantee if it's not to my liking. About the only thing I cannot listen to is multichannel over the analog outs. My current processor does not have that capability as yet. :banana:
 
Why would you buy it if not for the analog outs?
The only difference between the stock BDP-83 and the SE version is upgraded DACs for the analog outputs.

Or, are you saying that you'd use two channel analog outs but not the other channels of multichannel? One thing to note if the latter, any high rez output that you take out of the SE two-channel outputs will be downconverted to PCM. So, if you want to listen to a two-channel SACD in all it's DSD glory, put the plugs in 1 and 2 of the multichannel outs for high rez. You can set the player in software to default to two-channel for SACD. DVD-A you have to set individually to two channel in the DVD-A's menu.
The two-channel SE outputs have the densest DACs and sound glorious for standard CD.
I'd be interested to see if you can hear a difference between the SE outputs and channel 1 and 2 of the multichannel outputs for two-channel audio.
 
Sorry if my last statement was confusing.
I do not have the capability to input the multichannel analog signals on my processor at this time.I would need to send it off to get an upgrade that would allow the 8 channel input capability.

I can use the 2 channel inputs and that is my reason for getting this player. I did not know the difference between the standalone L/R outputs vs. the multichannel L/R outputs. I will have to listen to both.Thanks for the information.
 
Just wanted to add a little clarification. The SACD usually has a multi-channel DSD mix, and a separate, dedicated 2-channel DSD mix. Both of these mixes are the high-resolution audio mixes on the disc. Hybrid SACDs include a regular CD layer also.

Now, let's say you are playing the two-channel portion of the SACD. It is DSD encoded. Two-channel mix maybe, but still DSD, high resolution, etc.

Then, there are two possibilities:

- convert DSD directly to analog (or)
- convert DSD to PCM and then to analog

Whichever method is used, the dedicated 2-channel output gets the analog data - converted directly from DSD to analog, or converted to PCM first, and then to analog.

If one is playing the multi-channel mix on the SACD, one would need to use the multi-channel analog outputs. But again, conversion to analog could have taken place directly from DSD, or via an intermediate DSD-PCM conversion. Using the dedicated stereo analog outputs in this case will result in a down-mixed stereo signal.

What I am trying to say is that with the proper settings on the player, and by playing the 2-channel DSD mix on the SACD, the dedicated 2-channel analog outputs will play for you DSD-direct-to-analog (or) DSD-to-PCM-to-analog.

I'd better say here that I do not own the OPPO, but have read the relevant portions of the manual quite a few times. My Yamaha S1800BL, and my Sony SCD2000ES both behave the same way.

The dedicated 2-channel analog outputs on the SE use the ES9016 DAC, which can handle both DSD and PCM signals.

The multi-channel analog outputs have their own DAC, which is also capable of handling DSD and PCM signals.
 
This is a nice machine. The menu system is straight forward and it was up and running within 30 minutes. SACD playback is quite good. I've spent the better portion of a day listening to various discs,mostly SACD Hybrids.

Using both the standalone L/R and the multichannel L/R outputs the sound is the same. Selecting DSD as the SACD option sounds best. The menu system option for multichannel output allows one to set up the standard speaker configuration for size,distance and level trim. Oddly, the level trim does not take effect while the DSD stream is selected.If you choose PCM, then you have a 20db swing and it does work (I only used the front L/R since I do not have a multichannel input). Going from PCM back to DSD, the levels go back to default.

I noticed a slight delay on track changes when viewed on the player's display window. Sometimes when a track change is made, the displayed time still shows the previous track for a good 5 seconds and then it changes.It does not effect playback, but it is a quirk none the less.

Another quirk,at least when compared to the only other SACD player I've auditioned is the change from SACD layer to CD layer does not seem to work on the fly. I auditioned a Marantz 8300 a few weeks ago and there's a button on the remote to change layers and you can plainly see and hear this. On the OPPO, from all I can find in the manual, you need to go to the menu system and make the change, but it does not take effect unless you stop the disc, open the drawer and then close the drawer to allow the disc to be loaded. When the disc loads, it is clearly identified as a CD.

If there's owner of the OPPO who can chime in and confirm the issues I've noted as normal ,I'd appreciate it.

On the Brothers in Arms Hybrid disc, I had noted quite by surprise, that there is an HDCD layer on the digital track (it's the only disc I own that shows this). My EAD Ovation can play HDCD and when I put this disc in my Sony BD player, it shows up as HDCD and sounds really good. The only way this layer can be played on the OPPO is by choosing the CD layer option and then use the digital output on th OPPO. Once I change the SACD option back to stereo (SACD analog), the player will not output anything on the digital outputs. The HDCD sounds every bit as good as the SACD. I may just try and find another copy of this Hybrid to perform a direct A/B comparison. So far, the audio is very good.

I have not had time yet to do any video evaluation. With 2 Bluray players hooked up I will rent a few movies,both BR and standard DVD to see what all the fuss is about the upconversion ability of this player.

I can say this about OPPO. Their packaging and service (so far) is first rate. This player is quite heavy when compared to other players I've seen and used.

Here's some pics of the packaging.Note the accessory box.
 

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I can't help you with the quirks, but you may wish to see if your firmware is the most recent version. Oppo tends to fix "quirks" with their updates-I believe the newest one came out the beginning of the month, so yours may or may not have it.
Jack
PS. Why not contact them directly? They are very good with customer service.
 
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Thanks. I checked the firmware numbers when I first set up the player and they are all current.

This BD player really loads fast. It's up and playing in no time. I rented two Bluray copies of the same movie as a test vehicle. I know my Sony is a slow machine, and gets bogged down with the Java crud, but from the time you power it on and open the drawer, it can be over a minute. The OPPO is almost instantaneous from power on to open.Insert the disc and about 30-40 minutes later it's at the main menu.The Sony can be upwards of 3 minutes plus.

Video quality...they both looked the same,which is a dissapointment with the OPPO but a major plus for the Sony.In fact, on a couple of scenes that were paused, I could detect a bit of a zipper effect on lines that ran on the diagonal with the OPPO but clean as a whistle on the Sony. Detail was identicle.
Digital sound was also the same, which I would assume it to be.

The audio is another area of dissapointment because from what I've read, this machine is supposed to shine.Compared to an older Sony CD player, there was not enough difference to claim the OPPO the clear cut winner. When I used the analog outputs on the Sony BD player, this is where the difference could be heard. The Sony sounded harsh and bright,so much so I changed over to the digital output to keep from getting a headache. The digital sounded a lot better, but gave ground to the OPPO's smoothness. But, against the standalone CD player, there was little difference. I had my brother-in-law give a listen also just to make sure I wasn't hard of hearing and he could not declare one or the other the clear cut winner. This is also a bummer,to say the least.
Either my electronics is the shortcoming or the Sony CD player is just good enough. That boggles the mind.

SACD was also another area that I could not clearly hear a huge improvement over the standard CD version. My brother in law thought the SACD was a bit better.Again, not be leaps.

I've got 3 more weeks to make the decision to keep this version. The minor quirks aside, it is a really nice BD player. But the standard 83 might be the ticket.

This is the second SACD player in the past month I've auditioned and I could not say that the difference in sound I hear through my meager system justifies the cost. Maybe I should just go back to 8 track and not worry...
 
Duane,
You understand that the only difference between the BDP-83 and the BDP-83SE is that the analog outputs were upgraded, correct?
Even Oppo says that if you're going to use the digital outs, buy the BDP-83.
The target audience that the SE and NuForce SE are aimed at is people who may have great processors and listen to high rez audio through the analog outputs only because until very recently, you couldn't get high rez audio to go through HDMI at all, but only through analog outputs.
So, for people like me who have a receiver with no HDMI, the Oppo is the way to go. The same if you use tube gear. If your pre/pro or HT receiver has great digital processing, go BDP-83.

One other thought comes to mind: The oppo is a universal player. There are lots of dedicated players that are contenders against one part of what the oppo does, as your comparison to the Sony CD player attests, but you need a lot of boxes to do all the things the oppo does as well or better than the oppo. It's a one box solution that's full of compromises. That being said, they're compromises that I, for one, can live with.
 
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Audiodon,

I made most of my evaluations using the analog outs,both the standalone stereo outs and then the L/R front multichannel outs when comparing the SACD/CD discs.

Since you're one who owns this player, was there a distinct break in period? So far, I've probably got about 30 hours of repeat play and another 10 in listening.
 
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You won't see much if any difference with Blu-Ray discs between the Oppo and other BD players. The Oppo's biggest advantage (besides speed) is with DVDs, where its upscaling is far better than most. As such, I do recommend it.
If you are looking for a main source of music, the Oppo is bound to disappoint. It IS primarily a BD player, and it IS less than $1K. Personally, I think it is overrated as a music player.
Jack
 
I did compare the upscaling using 2 copies of the same movie. I like to use Pixar's animated movies because of the excellent color pallette.This is what I used to make the determination that the OPPO actually had some artifacts that did not show up on the Sony.I always thought the upscaling ability of the Sony was excellent, but had nothing to compare it until now. The constant rave reviews on it's video upscaling was just another feather in the cap for me to purchase this deck.

I'm nitpicking a bit with the faults. The fact that OPPO has a fine machine in the BD83/SE is well documented. I'm wanting it to be the player of choice because it can stand as the centerpiece for both audio and video. It just doesn't outshine what I already have. The biggest advantage it has right now is the super fast load times for Bluray and the ability to play SACD and HD DVD. At over $1k, I am having a hard time justifying the cost of the SE version over the standard BD83 right now. I will hold off for another 2 weeks of playing before I make that decision. Maybe there's a break in period.
 
I ran mine continuously for a week on redbook CD and then another week with an SACD before really trying it, plus I have the NuForce power supply upgrade, so we may be comparing apples and oranges. Ripening is supposed to happen at about 200 hours.

I honestly think, Duane, that you may be asking more than this price point can deliver. For you, this might be going sideways as giant killers often do. Now, to get better, you may have to at least 5X the investment to get to appreciably higher quality or getting one with good digital if you have an outstanding pre/pro with HDMI. I know I won't be doing that. The Oppo is going into the HT system and there will be kids parties, sleepovers, and all kinds of actual usage of the equipment going on.

Personally, I have a Lexicon RT-20 to compare the Oppo to and the video upscaling is not as good in the Oppo as in the Lex, but it is not distinctly worse, but comparably different from a taste perspective. Then again the RT-20 was a $5k player before Blu-Ray came along so we're only comparing price points between two players that are comparable that way now, and the Lex has no Blu-Ray.

For the sonics, I'd just say the presentation between the Lex and the Oppo is different, with the Oppo being somewhat more forward and responding better to input dynamic range changes while maintaining coherence on loud or complex passages, where the Lex is more laid back and euphonic. The Oppo is "more" forward, yet nowhere's near as forward and punchy as the Cambridge Azur 840C I sold to pay for it. Left to my own devices, tube and interconnect rolling can make up the difference to get me where I want to be tastewise with either the Oppo or Lex, where the Cambridge was tiring me out on extended listening. I could live with either one. Then again, I think that going beyond this price point is where the law of diminishing returns for dollars invested sets in. Admittedly, there are many opinions in this set of comments.

Compared to my Sony DVP-9000ES DVD/2-channel SACD/CD player, the Oppo just outclasses the Sony, though the presentation of the sonics on the Sony is on the polite side of neutral.

All audio comparisons are with the analog outs of all players and using no digital processing.
 
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