Oppo - what's all the fuss about?

[EastCoast]

Hi - first, the title is not meant to be condescending, merely to grab attention


I am currently rocking a Samsung 3D player that works fine, never had any issues (knock wood). But, it seems everybody and their dog raves about the Oppo's, so I am trying to figure out whether one would be right for me.

First off, I need a player that has 3D and can stream Netflix - I know the Oppo can do that. (I am in Canada, so some of the other streaming services may or may not be available to me) I am not much into 2 channel, so I am guessing that the higher end analog aspects of the 95 and 105 models are lost on me.

I run my Samsung player into my AVR (a mid-range Yamaha) via HDMI. I've read a lot of things which basically say that with this configuration, you lose most of the "bling" the Oppo is capable of (ie. the higher end DAC). So, should I then just call it a day and forget about an Oppo?

On the other hand, there is also the issue of build quality. Lots of people crap on Samsung for this; most people agree Oppo is one of the best. I like the idea of buying the best quality product I can afford (although my wife would see it differently); with the new 103 and 105 models out, more and more 93 and 95 models (as well as 83 and 83SE) are flooding into the used market.

Currently, I think I would lean towards getting a gently used 93 with the region-free mod (I buy some stuff from overseas which isn't always region-free coded); but then I wonder if I am missing out on something from the 103 (region free mod will surely follow??).

As you can see, I am a bit befuddled. Really just trying to figure it all out. Maybe I should just stick with my Samsung (although it is not region-free) until it locks up (if ever) and I NEED to make a change.

Thoughts, observations, comments welcome.

[tele1962]

There is a great review here of the 103:

http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/oppo-...1212052427.htm

[EastCoast]

Originally Posted by tele1962

There is a great review here of the 103:

http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/oppo-...1212052427.htm

Thanks. I think this was an interesting passage in the review:

"If you own a 1080p TV, watch mainly 1080p/24 movies on Blu-ray, and feed bitstream audio to an HDMI capable AV receiver, you’ll end up with the same AV quality from cheaper players – provided you seek a “known good” one out and avoid players which inflict some whimsical alterations on the picture without the consent of the user (or the filmmaker, for that matter!)"


Not sure what the "known good" ones are??

4K upscaling and dual HDMI output are interesting features, but not sure I would be using either of these in the near future.

[EastCoast]

How does the Oppo compare to the Cambridge Audio Azur players?

Like the Cambridge 751BD = Oppo 105?

[tele1962]

Originally Posted by AC2011

Thanks. I think this was an interesting passage in the review:

"If you own a 1080p TV, watch mainly 1080p/24 movies on Blu-ray, and feed bitstream audio to an HDMI capable AV receiver, you’ll end up with the same AV quality from cheaper players – provided you seek a “known good” one out and avoid players which inflict some whimsical alterations on the picture without the consent of the user (or the filmmaker, for that matter!)"


Not sure what the "known good" ones are??

4K upscaling and dual HDMI output are interesting features, but not sure I would be using either of these in the near future.

Panasonic are a good bet.

[JohnAV]

Originally Posted by AC2011

How does the Oppo compare to the Cambridge Audio Azur players?

Like the Cambridge 751BD = Oppo 105?

This gets asks a lot but Cambridge does not make a equivalent product, although some of the manufacturing is from same plant in China. They are two different companies with different design goals.

They just came out with a Cambridge Audio 752BD Universal Blu-ray Player which offers five Wolfson audio DACs in a design for audiophile's that resembles the BDP-103 somewhat from rear. So this player falls into a in between performance slot, with the BDP-103 going US $499, 752BD for US $1299, and the BDP-105 for US $1199.

Cambridge products don't offer the same interface GUI except for main setup menu, even there you have differences. There is also a lot of Internet based differences besides supported files formats over network to examine. Also if you look at the back of the BDP-105 compared to a BDP-103 compared to the 752BD you can see similarities and differences with the player designs from these two BD player vendors.

Certainly Oppo has 752BD beat if you don't necessary need audiophile analog out for a lot less with the BDP-103, but then the BDP-105 offers more then what the 752BD offers for $100 less also.

[IronWaffle]

For me it came down to SACD and DVD-A support. As it turns out I find it upscales DVDs noticeably better than my old Samsung.

I messed with steaming on my 93 once or twice, but prefer my Apple TV for that.

As to Blu-ray, that alone wouldn't have justified the cost in my eyes, even though I love the player.

[sonic_debauchery]

Originally Posted by AC2011

Thanks. I think this was an interesting passage in the review:

"If you own a 1080p TV, watch mainly 1080p/24 movies on Blu-ray, and feed bitstream audio to an HDMI capable AV receiver, you’ll end up with the same AV quality from cheaper players – provided you seek a “known good” one out and avoid players which inflict some whimsical alterations on the picture without the consent of the user (or the filmmaker, for that matter!)"


Not sure what the "known good" ones are??

4K upscaling and dual HDMI output are interesting features, but not sure I would be using either of these in the near future.

This is why i decided on the Sony S790. 4K doesn't interest me right now, but the other aspects of the player did. I like the size for my set up, 1.8 inches tall, dual core processor. Separates audio and video. It is video wise and audio wise on par with the oppo, as long as hdmi is the dominat hook up. I had no interest in analog hook-ups, otherwise i would have looked at the panasonic bmp-bdt 500. An excellent player as well. Oppos are built like tanks and have one of the best customer service dept in the industry. I think they would be better priced at $399 though.

[steve1971]

Whats all the fuss about? They just happen to be the best Blu ray player on the market and their customer service is top notch. The only reason I dont have one is the price. If it were not for the price I would have had one 2 years ago!

[Nisei]

Originally Posted by steve1971

Whats all the fuss about? They just happen to be the best Blu ray player on the market and their customer service is top notch.

Never needed customer service for any of the DVD and Blu-ray players I have ever owned and I only upgraded because I wanted new features, not because they crapped out on me. And who wants to pay for the fact that they're so well built that they're still working 10 years from now? By that time Blu-ray might be a vintage format.
The only reason I can think of for buying one is when you're watching a lot of DVDs or for audiophiles.
For people watching Blu-ray most of the time I think it's wasted money.

[prerich]

Originally Posted by Nisei

Never needed customer service for any of the DVD and Blu-ray players I have ever owned and I only upgraded because I wanted new features, not because they crapped out on me. And who wants to pay for the fact that they're so well built that they're still working 10 years from now? By that time Blu-ray might be a vintage format.
The only reason I can think of for buying one is when you're watching a lot of DVDs or for audiophiles.
For people watching Blu-ray most of the time I think it's wasted money.

Well...the Oppo is marketed to audiophiles and people that upconvert. It's not your market

They fill a void, rather well I might add. Some "features" that others enjoy are considered worthless to the Oppo's intended market base.

[Nisei]

Yes, you're right. And that's what I also pointed out. It's just that I know many people who are buying Oppos and only using them to watch Blu-ray movies. They probably think it must be better because it's more expensive when in the end they're not using the features they're paying for.

[Halcro 1]

I guess if you have to ask on a forum. Haven't done any searches. It's over your head.

[Funcha]

Insulting troll posts are so entertaining. Might as well tell him to go f$&k himself while you're at it.

[Canada]

Oppo's 103 ($499) DVD up-conversion is almost second to non it beats out the Sony Bravia XBR-84X900 3D LCD Ultra HDTV for up-conversion and that's a $ 25,000 TV.

[bhampton]

Oppo players are great, I'm sure of that.

They don't appeal to everyone though and I have no use for one.

Some people like them for analog audio out features.

Some people like them for ability to move subtitles.

Some people like them for DVD upconvertion quality.

Some people just like paying too much for stuff with a good name.

I've never wanted one but they are great.

-Brian

[Cevolution]

^ You left out region free capabilities, and that out of the small amount of players available that can be made region free that the Oppos are one of the most convenient and easiest players on the market to make region free, and have one of the most user friendly button combination for changing regions. I own 2 region free players, one obviously being the Oppo, and the Oppo is the most simplest of the 2, you only need to press one button as opposed to the other region free player I own where you need to enter a menu and pressing 4 or 5 buttons to change regions.

[bhampton]

Ok,... I didn't know it could do that.

That's good too.

I know they are really great and useful with special features people end up needing.

My Sony players have fit my own needs.

[IronWaffle]

They can also play SACD and DVD-A, which was a major deciding factor for me when I bought the 93.

They also tend to include forward-looking features, such as 4k up scaling and (gimmicky, in my opinion) 2D to 3D conversion on the 103/105.

[Badas]

The fact they are really Solid. Never fault.

I have had many Denon's, Pioneer and Panasonic (also Sony for a week). They were all problematic. The Oppo just shuts up and gets on with the job.