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Best way to hook up my Oppo UDP-203 for audio?

HiFiJeff

HiFiJeff

Super Member
I am getting conflicting information from multiple people. So I am turning to you guys for guidance. I have the UDP-203. I wanted a dedicated BD player a long with the CD and SACD capabilities. So I picked up the 203. I also just purchased an Integra DTR 50.3 AVR with 7.1 multi channel audio inputs and will be hooking it up this week. The AVR says it decodes DSD in it's native format. So...... How should I hook up my Oppo? Analog outputs? HDMI? Should I let the Oppo do all the decoding? What's the best possible way to listen to music and get the most out of my system?
 
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Either analog or digital connections are fine. Both units have good DACs, so it's really which method you prefer. Here's some info I found that might help sway you to HDMI (since it involves just one cable, and your receiver is more than capable of good decoding):

DSD Output via HDMI:

If your A/V receiver supports native DSD, your OPPO player can send DSD signal over HDMI to the A/V receiver or audio processor. You should connect the HDMI 2 port of the player to your A/V receiver or audio processor since the HDMI 1 port does not transmit DSD signal. The following settings in the player's setup menu should be used:
  • Playback Setup - SACD Priority: set to Multi-Channel or Stereo based on your preference
  • Audio Format Setup - SACD Output: set to DSD or Auto
 
Thanks for your help! Did you find that in the Oppo manual?
And do you know much about the Integra AVR? It's about 4 years old but it seems pretty legit and is only lacking Atmos, which right now I don't really care about.Should I ever get a stand a lone DAC, or dedicated CD player to hook up to the analog inputs of the Integra? Or is that redundant and a waste of money? I even had Oppo tell me to hook up the 203 through HDMI.
 
HiFiJeff said:
Thanks for your help! Did you find that in the Oppo manual?
And do you know much about the Integra AVR? It's about 4 years old but it seems pretty legit and is only lacking Atmos, which right now I don't really care about.Should I ever get a stand a lone DAC, or dedicated CD player to hook up to the analog inputs of the Integra? Or is that redundant and a waste of money? I even had Oppo tell me to hook up the 203 through HDMI.
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I know a little about the Integra. It's certainly no slouch, and there's really no good reason to purchase another DAC at this point. You already have two good ones, one in the Oppo and one on-board in the Integra. So why get a third when it's (in my opinion) unnecessary?

And no, I don't see any reason to buy another CD player right now. Your Oppo is more than up to the task of handling CDs, either as a transport (meaning the Integra handles the DAC process if you choose a digital connection between the two) or by using the Oppo's analog outs and using its on-board DAC for playing CDs.

I think you're pretty much all set here, to be honest. Connect them together via HDMI and let us know how everything sounds.
 
I want to connect my Oppo 203’s HDMI video output to my Sony 6580L TV. And keeping the TV’s sound off connect the 203’s analog stereo outputs to inputs of my preamp to drive my power amp.

But playing DVDs and BDs, will there be any picture and sound syncing issues?
 
jkff said:
I want to connect my Oppo 203’s HDMI video output to my Sony 6580L TV. And keeping the TV’s sound off connect the 203’s analog stereo outputs to inputs of my preamp to drive my power amp.

But playing DVDs and BDs, will there be any picture and sound syncing issues?
Click to expand...
You might have to tweak the OPPO 203`s menu`s audio sync settings, as I did need to when running it`s analog outputs fed to my 5 room hard wired distribution setup to sync up the separate audio L/R analog to HDMI 1080P video feeds to each of those rooms.
Those sync offset settings didn`t seem to affect my main A/V system which used the OPPO 203`s audio only HDMI output feeding my living room`s HT`s Iintegra A/V/Processor`s HDMI input with the OPPO`s HDMI video output directly feeding my Sony projector, I`m guessing the menu audio sync setting offset only affects the OPPO`s analog outputs to the HDMI video sync.

Works well with my multiroom distribution setup`s configuration playing any BR/DVD disc.

Won`t hurt to test out, and tweak the sync settings, if necessary, while watching a movie disc or 2 to try to get the feel for proper lip sync.

Good luck.
 
HiFiJeff said:
I even had Oppo tell me to hook up the 203 through HDMI.
Click to expand...
Yes that would be OK. When playing an SACD the DSD data would be output from the Oppo as DSD-over-HDMI. In this situation you would be using the Integra's DAC.
Important tip - this feature is available only on the 2nd HDMI port of the Oppo, not the 1st HDMI port ! It's labelled "Audio Only".

jkff said:
I want to connect my Oppo 203’s HDMI video output to my Sony 6580L TV. And keeping the TV’s sound off connect the 203’s analog stereo outputs to inputs of my preamp to drive my power amp.
Click to expand...
Yes that would be OK too. In this case you would be using the Oppo's DAC ... which I suspect may be marginally better than the Integra's DAC.
 
Thanks guys. For the 2.4 system I want to build in the same room, rather than a processor like from Marantz or Anthem, I'm thinking of a straight multichannel DAC like Fusion 8D - Nuprime-X

Nuprime products are taken quite seriously by professional reviewers.

SoundStage! Hi-Fi | SoundStageHiFi.com - NuPrime Audio Evolution Two Mono Power Amplifier

www.soundstagehifi.com www.soundstagehifi.com

But getting questions answered by Nuprime support is a bad joke. They don't reply to my emails or phone calls. So I posted this in the Nuprime section of this forum. https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...i-decoder-for-dvdbd-21-audio/#comment-1352129 Not surprisingly, no replies.

So, unless I choose to go with a conventional HDMI licensed processor the Oppo 203's own DAC and analog outputs is apparently the only way for DVD/BD disc audio.
 
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jkff said:
So, unless I choose to go with a conventional HDMI licensed processor the Oppo 203's own DAC and analog outputs is apparently the only way for DVD/BD disc audio.
Click to expand...
Yes. As you correctly surmised, devices which accept DSD-over-HDMI as an input are usually AVR's ... but I know of at least one DAC which supports DSD-over-HDMI - the Bryston BDA-3 (US$4,500). Be aware, though, this DAC is stereo, not multi-channel.
 
linuxfan said:
supports DSD-over-HDMI - the Bryston BDA-3 (US$4,500). Be aware, though, this DAC is stereo, not multi-channel.
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Actually, I don't own any SACDs so DSD is irrelevant. My concern is only with the audio from DVD and BD movie discs. Ideally, the audio from the Oppo's HDMI audio output would be decoded by this presumably better DAC Fusion 8D - Nuprime-X

Also, because as the Fusion 8D would be USB connected and interfaced with JRiver the stereo/mono digital audio from the Oppo would be processed by DIRAC software or what other means I will choose to EQ the room/system. Unfortunately, probably thanks to movie studio owner Sony and other such entities who created the HDMI interface, hardware brands have to pay a stiff fee for every HDMI connector they use, so very few straight multichannel DACs have HDMI audio inputs. This does but is priced higher than I like and has features which I don't need very much. exaSound Audio Design > Products > s88 Streaming DAC

So, I emailed Nuprime support to ask if this decoder H16-AES - Nuprime-X would work with the Fusion 8D DAC to decode DVD/BD audio from the Oppo. No reply so far.

Worst case, though no system/room correction is possible, at least I could probably use the Oppo's stereo analog outputs, as long as I won't have to use the Oppo settings very often for syncing the audio with the video, as Bill Ferris said above. And this way at least I'll finally get some use out of the Don Sachs preamp that I bought last year to drive my First Watt F4 amp.
 
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jkff said:
Actually, I don't own any SACDs so DSD is irrelevant. My concern is only with the audio from DVD and BD movie discs. Ideally, the audio from the Oppo's HDMI audio output could be decoded by this presumably better DAC Fusion 8D - Nuprime-X Also, because as the Fusion 8D would be USB connected and interfaced with JRiver the stereo/mono digital audio from the Oppo would be processed by DIRAC software or what other means I choose to EQ the room/system.

But no straight multichannel DACs I could find have HDMI inputs, but this one which is priced higher than I like and has features which I don't need very much. exaSound Audio Design > Products > s88 Streaming DAC

So, I emailed Nuprime support to ask if this decoder H16-AES - Nuprime-X would work with the Fusion 8D DAC to decode DVD/BD audio from the Oppo. No reply so far.

Worst case, though no system/room correction is possible, at least I could probably use the Oppo's stereo analog outputs, as long as I won't have to use the Oppo settings very often for syncing the audio with the video, as Bill Ferris said above. And this way at least I'll finally get some use out of the Don Sachs preamp that I bought last year to drive my First Watt F4 amp.
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FWIW, for somewhat best sonic results derived from the OPPO playing the encoded surround BR/DVD movie`s multi tracks into a 2 channel analog stereo, the user should go to the OPPO`s menu and find in the various audio settings that permit the user to select the down mixing of the side/rear/center surround channels into the players L/R audio analog outputs so as to avoid missing any surround sound audio information that is surround channel information encoded in the playing movie`s media disc.

Any straight 2 channel (stereo) audio disc (CD/DVD audio, will not be altered, or screwed with that I could ever tell having my OPPO 203 configured in this manner for distributing the player`s L/R stereo analog audio to my 5 room`s stereos when playing a BR/DVD multi channel (surround sound encoded) movie.

FWIW, OPPO Universal optical players internal DACs have a very good reputation from what I`ve read online elsewhere, and here over the yrs., and I`ve been impressed enough with their internal DAC based SQ to own (1) 103 (my first OPPO Universal), & (2) 203s, that 1 of them is playing 24/7/365 for close to 10 yrs. using a nearly filled 1Terabyte capacity WAV. lossless ripped music flash drive with my all day multi genre enjoying music desires.
 
Yes, as I did with my Oppo 95 in my little bedroom system, I will have to check my three 203's audio settings to ensure that movie disc multichannel audio is properly downmixed to two channel stereo. My floorstanding main speakers should give acceptable bass response but I wish I could route the Oppo's LFE subwoofer single analog output from the the RCA connector to the two XLR connectors to feed my two Rythmik F12 subs.
 
jkff said:
Actually, I don't own any SACDs so DSD is irrelevant. My concern is only with the audio from DVD and BD movie discs. Ideally, the audio from the Oppo's HDMI audio output would be decoded by this presumably better DAC Fusion 8D - Nuprime-X
Click to expand...
Well that's doable with some Nuprime accessories - it's shameful that Nuprime didn't advise you on this.
First you need the Nuprime H16-AES multi-channel HDMI audio extractor (1300 Euro)
H16-AES - Nuprime-X
Then you need the optional AES-96A plugin card for the Fusion 8D DAC (215 Euro)
Plugin Cards - Nuprime-X
Finally you need a DB25 cable to connect the audio extractor to the DAC (185 Euro)
AES-Core DB25-DB25 - Nuprime-X
 
jkff said:
Yes, as I did with my Oppo 95 in my little bedroom system, I will have to check my three 203's audio settings to ensure that movie disc multichannel audio is properly downmixed to two channel stereo. My floorstanding main speakers should give acceptable bass response but I wish I could route the Oppo's LFE subwoofer single analog output from the the RCA connector to the two XLR connectors to feed my two Rythmik F12 subs.
Click to expand...

What do you mean by single RCA connector to what? RCA to XLR cables exist, if that's all that's holding you back.
 
whoaru99 said:
What do you mean by single RCA connector to what? RCA to XLR cables exist, if that's all that's holding you back.
Click to expand...

Well, if I stayed with all analog outputs from the Oppo 203, then the workable (I hope) plan would be where the 203 player's speaker settings could be configured via its OSD so that the front stereo signals are sent to the front RCA outputs to feed my preamp and either the front stereo signals or mono subwoofer signal can sent to the pair of balanced XLR outputs for my subs.
 
linuxfan said:
Well that's doable with some Nuprime accessories - it's shameful that Nuprime didn't advise you on this.
Click to expand...
Thanks for this very complete reply. But as I said above those in my kind of situation have Hollywood and those goons from the HDMI Assn to thank for having to spend hundreds more beyond the cost of the Fusion 8D just so that DAC can access HDMI audio from my BD player. This compels me to at least search for more cost effective solutions.

Okay, the optional 4 input AES module is not that expensive, though I then have to find a reliable SPDIF to AES adapter for the impedance match.

But is it also true that the Fusion 8D cannot work offline, like I believe the Merging Hapi can? My internet connection is via my iPhone's wifi hotspot. I have to reset my connection once or twice within 24 hours but otherwise it's good service. But it may not be a reliable enough connection for this situation. And a router accessible connection will likely triple my monthly internet bill.
 
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jkff said:
Thanks for this very complete reply. But as I said above those in my kind of situation have Hollywood and those goons from the HDMI Assn to thank for having to spend hundreds more beyond the cost of the Fusion 8D just so that DAC can access HDMI audio from my BD player. This compells me to at least search for more cost effective solutions.
Click to expand...
That high cost is on Fusion. Devices way cheaper can do it.
 
whoaru99 said:
That high cost is on Fusion. Devices way cheaper can do it.
Click to expand...

I think $4K for the Fusion 8D is reasonable and it's on my short list for multichannel DACs.
It's the extra cost to enable it to access HDMI audio that is the big rip off. But AFAIK, the only advantage of HDMI audio is that it can carry multichannel audio, be it lossy Dolby digital or lossless DTS-MA 5.1 or whatever. As long as there's no clocking issues what I might be able to do is connect the coax SPDIF output of all three players to a 3 in/1 out switch for mono/stereo audio to feed the Fusion 8D, if not other multichannel DACs with coax, or if need be. optical inputs. https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/my-cable-mart/FE-TOS-3WAY/24714465
 
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