Schu Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 the Oppo 95 has what are widely considered the best DAC chips in the world, used on some 5 figure DACS. on the other hand I feel SACD is a dying medium (insert your flame here). regards, tony "Dead" not dying... all medium, regardless of type, is pretty much a dead idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Dead or not, multichannel recordings on DVD-A & SACD are awesome and I am never going back to 2 channel. [Y] [H] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmassey Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 After thinking more and more about it, I am going to go with the Oppo. The UMC-1 analog stage is excellent, which should make it a great match for the UMC-1, and other owners at the Emotiva forum tend to agree, though obviously, they tend to be very bias towards Emotiva products. With any luck, I won't feel the need to upgrade to the XMC-1 , unless the Tact Room Correction ends up being unmissable. Then I am screwed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 If spending a grand makes ya feel better go for it.It is a nice player and as good as most any, I don't think you'll hear any difference in it and any other player,imo.The video may be some improvement over a cheap player if you don't have a video proc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmassey Posted July 22, 2012 Author Share Posted July 22, 2012 Why do you feel that there would be no difference in audio? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Blind testing of many less expensive BD player vs more expensive one, the result were mixed due to the quality of digital chips going from cheap players to more expensive. In audio to go from a grade of 95 or 97 to 100 get's expensive and it is up to the comsumer to decide. That is why I don't use terms when upgrading like blown away or night and day difference. I am sure others disagree. Sometimes you buy something because that is what you want and that is all that matters. The video quality of my Sammy is as good as any player that I have seen. My next player will be picked based on apps, Flac and other features. Sound is done by the avr, so not a big factor in selection of BD players as long as it does lossless formats which is a slightly better audio quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allgonoshow Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 What about this one, I'm not a pro on reading the specs, but I think it's well made. about $600 new. http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/summary.php?PID=887&Title=Azur+651BD+Universal+Blu-ray+Player Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psg Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Why not use HDMI to transfer the bits off the SACD disk, avoiding bass management issues? A $100 Sony Bluray player can do that. Once reason would be if he ever wants to explore DVD-A as well. No Sony will read DVD-A. I agree about getting a player that also decodes DVD-A, but if one were to use HDMI wouldn't a lower end player will send the same information as a high end player that plays both formats? This is why I recommended that, combined with bass management issues (just as 10 dB gain on LFE channel) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikekid Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I have been running the older Oppo BDP-83. Fantastic player. I have a good sized collection of SACD's and DVD-A's and this machine plays them all perfectly. Very quick to load ANYTHING in the tray. Video and sound = outstanding. Also, I understand that Oppo support is among the best. I emailed a question to them regarding a firmware upgrade once and received a reply within ten minutes. I do realize there are many good ones out there..... but, having owned this~ one ~ and running it to death, I don't think you can go wrong with Oppo. [][Y] Take care, Mike (why would anyone buy 4 of anything they don't like??) [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Why not use HDMI to transfer the bits off the SACD disk, avoiding bass management issues? A $100 Sony Bluray player can do that. Once reason would be if he ever wants to explore DVD-A as well. No Sony will read DVD-A. I agree about getting a player that also decodes DVD-A, but if one were to use HDMI wouldn't a lower end player will send the same information as a high end player that plays both formats? This is why I recommended that, combined with bass management issues (just as 10 dB gain on LFE channel) Thanks for clearing that up and it is what I thought...If that is the case and a person was going to use HDMI, then they wouldn't benefit from better DACs in the player unless they were going to use the 6 RCA connections in the back and not go the HDMI route...In that situation, they would also sacrifice the advantages of using the AVRs EQuing for those same sources as well as bass mgmt (on that note the Denon DVD players have good bass mgmt). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmassey Posted July 22, 2012 Author Share Posted July 22, 2012 The more I look, the more mixed reviews I am finding. Some say the difference can be more than subtle. Others say there will be no difference, just as well as there is never a difference between the sound quality of different prepros. The only variable I can come up with is these people are demoing their blu-ray players on different setups. What I am thinking, and this makes sense to me, is that the difference you do or do not hear from difference prepros and sources is dependent on the rest of the system, most importantly the speakers. Going from a low end blu-ray player to a high end while using a 200$ Sony HTIB from Best Buy, I am willing to bet there won't be any difference at all in sound quality. On the other hand, if someone has the same upgrade, but on a better set of speakers, I am thinking there likely will be a difference. If right, I guess in the end, I will figure out how good these RF-83s are. I am not expecting a night and day difference, but if I can hear even a very subtle difference in audio on blu-ray, than the extra money I spent towards it instead of going with a cheaper SACD only player, it will be worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 The more I look, the more mixed reviews I am finding. Some say the difference can be more than subtle. Others say there will be no difference, just as well as there is never a difference between the sound quality of different prepros.. Are you going to be using HDMI? If so, the audio DACs won't matter in the player. Btw, you mention only SACD but don't discount DVD-Audio as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmassey Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 The more I look, the more mixed reviews I am finding. Some say the difference can be more than subtle. Others say there will be no difference, just as well as there is never a difference between the sound quality of different prepros.. Are you going to be using HDMI? If so, the audio DACs won't matter in the player. Btw, you mention only SACD but don't discount DVD-Audio as well. I will only be using HDMI when streaming from internet. I'll be using the 7.1 analog outs for everything else except two channel stuff, in which case I will be using the 2.0 analog out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 I dunno...That seems slightly old school, but I don't know much about the Emotiva products...Fwiw, I thought everything was going to HDMI. I use DenonLink now after having to go the RCA type cable route and I am not going back. Again, not knowing how the Emotiva works but my guess is you will only be able to listen to multichannel music in 5.1 in this scenario and I like the way my Denon converts this material to 7.1. My 2 cents. [C] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmassey Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 In a bout of genius, I decided to check out the manual. Who would have thought there might be something useful in there. Talking about the 7.1 Analog input on the UMC-1... "This is designed to be a very short, ultra pure, analog-only signal path. DSP-based effects such as tone controls, bass management and DSP surround are bypassed in order to maintain the highest fidelity. This input is not available in Zone 2. The only tonal adjustment for this is LFE level." So looks like you are indeed correct. I am stuck with whatever the source material was done in. I am thinking this is a good thing though. My sub has it's own room correction and I can still set crossover frequencies in the Oppo, and I do enjoy hearing only what was intended to be heard. I am curious though, what is the main reason you like DenonLink? Is it because your tracks are extended to 7.1? Can you hear any audible drawbacks? It looks like a really sweet technology, and admittedly, I am not sure I ever even heard of it before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 ...I am curious though, what is the main reason you like DenonLink? Is it because your tracks are extended to 7.1? Can you hear any audible drawbacks? It looks like a really sweet technology, and admittedly, I am not sure I ever even heard of it before. I'm sorry I didn't get back to you before but I've been outta pocket....Truthfully, I thought/think HDMI has the same benefits as DenonLink for Audio... If I am wrong someone please correct me. Insofar as why I like it, yes the ability to convert to 7.1 and use the AVRs EQ and Bass mgmt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivanhurd Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 Denonlink is just supposed to keep the timing of sound and video perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zen Traveler Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 Denonlink is just supposed to keep the timing of sound and video perfect. Denonlink has nothing to do with video.. EDIT: I stand corrected if paired with HDMI http://www.denon.com/pages/GlossaryDetail.aspx?GId=14 Second EDIT: Here is a discussion where the OP thinks it made more of a difference in DVD-A SACD playback and no difference on Blu-rays: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1349373/does-denon-link-really-matter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdog Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 Blind testing of many less expensive BD player vs more expensive one, the result were mixed due to the quality of digital chips going from cheap players to more expensive. In audio to go from a grade of 95 or 97 to 100 get's expensive and it is up to the comsumer to decide. That is why I don't use terms when upgrading like blown away or night and day difference. I am sure others disagree. Sometimes you buy something because that is what you want and that is all that matters. The video quality of my Sammy is as good as any player that I have seen. My next player will be picked based on apps, Flac and other features. Sound is done by the avr, so not a big factor in selection of BD players as long as it does lossless formats which is a slightly better audio quality. This misses the whole point of the BDP-95. If you are going to just play the SACD, DVD-A, or even CD using a HDMI connection through your AVR, of course you will not hear any difference from a cheaper player. I and many others use a dedicated 2 channel preamp for 2 channel listening and it does sound much better than using the HT pre/pro via a HDMI input. If ones system is set up the way mine is a player with better converters and better analog output section may very well be worth the added expense. I believe one of the biggest improvements any HT enthusiast who enjoys listening to music in the theater is to place a good analog preamp with HT bypass mode into their system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 I guess I am just to much of a fan of the digital domain with streaming and using cd's for most of my 2 channel and multichannel listening. I will have to give some dedicated 2 channel setups a more critcal listen. I do like dedicated 2 channel nearfield setups and feel that the imaging, clarity and detail is excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.