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flyingdutchman said:
Yes, but there are huge differences in the new 983H that is a substantial upgrade.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=905400
Flyingdutchman,
Are they (the improvements) all in video or in sound quality? If in sound quality, is (are) the improvement(s) distributed across all formats or only to DVD-A or to SACD or CD?
I am interested in this because I want to recommend a player in this price range to a young friend whose present income will not allow him to acquire one of the top of the line units.
Bruce
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Windsurfer said:
Flyingdutchman,
Are they (the improvements) all in video or in sound quality? If in sound quality, is (are) the improvement(s) distributed across all formats or only to DVD-A or to SACD or CD?
I am interested in this because I want to recommend a player in this price range to a young friend whose present income will not allow him to acquire one of the top of the line units.
Bruce
I've just been following that thread I gave, Bruce. However, the improvements mentioned seem to indicate a potentially great universal player with great SACD potential.
I'd wait until a few more reviews come out about it.
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Post by mcchuk November 27, 2007 (13 of 34)
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I just received the OPPO 980-H and am very impressed with it. I have had 4 earlier SACD models namely an early Philips model (1 think it was the 963), Yamaha S-1500, Cambridge Audio DVD-87 and now the OPPO.
The SACD sound quality has improved with each model. I noticed the biggest difference with the 980-H is the sound ambiance. As a result the detail is clearer. I have over 140 SACD's and have yet to notice problems with the playback of any of these SACD's. I had these problems with the Yamaha S-1500 for example.
For $169 US the OPPO unit is a steal. This could be the model to break SACD wide open to the market. With gapless SACD track playing, DVD 1080P upsampling and superb CD playback I feel this could be a winner, at least for those who cannot afford to spend $1,000's of dollars on sound equipment.
Apparently the DAC's on this system are by Mediatek which is same manufacturer as the one's in the DVD-87's. However the funcionality of the 980-H is much improved. The remote works better, etc.
Kudos to OPPO.
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Post by Julien November 27, 2007 (14 of 34)
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Windsurfer said:
Flyingdutchman,
Are they (the improvements) all in video or in sound quality? If in sound quality, is (are) the improvement(s) distributed across all formats or only to DVD-A or to SACD or CD?
I am interested in this because I want to recommend a player in this price range to a young friend whose present income will not allow him to acquire one of the top of the line units.
Bruce
Bruce,
As far as I remember, the 980 is the one for SACD because the newer 983 doesn't support DSD via HDMI. Apparently the 983 only improved the video quality, not the sound (meaning I guess that the analogue outputs won't sound better). And I remember also that the audio out is 7.1 for the 980, not for the 983.
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Post by mcchuk November 28, 2007 (15 of 34)
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The sound quality improvements that I have noticed are primarily in SACD and CD. DVD-Audio sound quality seems to be the same as the Yamaha and the Cambridge Audio DVD-87.
The DVD picture quality is execeptional. I have a 42" 1080P Westinghouse with the high def. cable package. The picture quality from the 980-H of course is not quite as good as a native 1080P signal but the DVD upsampling makes a strong difference. I recommend the OPPO for DVD playback as well.
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Post by Sigfred November 28, 2007 (16 of 34)
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Julien said:
Bruce,
As far as I remember, the 980 is the one for SACD because the newer 983 doesn't support DSD via HDMI. Apparently the 983 only improved the video quality, not the sound (meaning I guess that the analogue outputs won't sound better). And I remember also that the audio out is 7.1 for the 980, not for the 983.
You must be confusing the 980 with the DV-981HD as the upcoming 983 supports DSD via HDMI as well as analog out 7.1:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=905400
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Post by dbmay75 November 28, 2007 (17 of 34)
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Sigfred said:
You must be confusing the 980 with the DV-981HD as the upcoming 983 supports DSD via HDMI as well as analog out 7.1:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=905400
Sigfred, just to correct you, as I too own the 980 - it does support DSD over HDMI as well as 7.1 analog out. I live and work near the OPPO office and I'm in frequent contact with Derek who is their customer service rep.
If audio is your priority, the 980 is an excellent choice and at only $169 it can't be beat. If video is your priority, you should invest in either an HD or Blu-Ray or hold out for the 983 which is now being scheduled for a January release due to extensive testing in Dec.
If you really want the truth about OPPO, go straight to the source and call them (650) 961-1118
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Post by Sigfred November 28, 2007 (18 of 34)
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dbmay75 said:
Sigfred, just to correct you, as I too own the 980 - it does support DSD over HDMI as well as 7.1 analog out. I live and work near the OPPO office and I'm in frequent contact with Derek who is their customer service rep.
If audio is your priority, the 980 is an excellent choice and at only $169 it can't be beat. If video is your priority, you should invest in either an HD or Blu-Ray or hold out for the 983 which is now being scheduled for a January release due to extensive testing in Dec.
If you really want the truth about OPPO, go straight to the source and call them (650) 961-1118
Seems I was unclear. The 980 supports DSD over HDMI while the 981 does not, as far as I know. In the January issue of Stereophile there will be a review of the 980 that will be interesting to read.
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Post by Bobpaule December 5, 2007 (19 of 34)
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The Seventh Taylor said:
If you're thinking about a replacement you may want to take PlayStation3 into consideration. I read reports of owners telling it sounds better than their dedicated Sony SACD player, especially since the recent firmware upgrades.
Unfortunately it (still) outputs multichannel high-res PCM instead of DSD but apparently that doesn't spoil the sound as much as one might expect and I wouldn't be surprised if they offer DSD in a future upgrade.
Judging by the info on AVS it appears that HBR both movie formats and DSD may never happen given physical limitations of the Cell Engine. Knowing this i parted with my PS3, no regrets, though great machine, highly recommended for a first BD/SACD player.
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Bobpaule said:
Judging by the info on AVS it appears that HBR both movie formats and DSD may never happen given physical limitations of the Cell Engine. Knowing this i parted with my PS3, no regrets, though great machine, highly recommended for a first BD/SACD player.
Not sure what you are saying. Are you suggestign that the PS3 couldn't output DSD because of limitaitons of Cell????
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