Oppo BDP-103 & BDP-105 Universal Blu-ray Players :: Reviews & Opinions.

[NorthStar]

It's possible that the new 95 was defective. There is no reason that the 83 should outperform it at the level you report. You might try returning the 95 for a replacement, and evaluate that one against the 83.

Lee

+1

---- Interesting as it also crossed my mind.

Remember, he got a very good deal for it (a used unit for half price).
Sorry Lloyd, but it's all for the best.

 

[LL21]

Wow...that's a lot of responses in a short time. Thank you!!

I agree with many who've praised the Oppo 95. it is simply that to my ears, the 83 is even better after mods than the standard 95. In the end, i have 30 days on the 95 if the dealer is honest...i will be speaking with him in the morning. If he is prepared to give me a week to evaluate a bit more...then i will do so. no rush then. I will take my time...but in truth i only spend when a) something is broken, or b) something is at that 'next level' where i plan to stay for several years. In this case, i would not have bought the 95 if the modd'd 83 were working. i bought the 83 thinking i would wait as long as it took until my wish-list SOTA transport came along 2nd hand. its been 5 years and i am prepared to wait patiently.

That said, when the 83 did break...i thought go with the 95 regular for a bit more rather than spend a still significant sum for repairing an oppo...and at least have a new unit with a 5-yr warranty. however, with this quality differential, it is tough to contemplate going backwards for more than the cost of the repair. i will play the unit a bit more and see if anything changes.

 

[rbbert]

Since I own (or have owned) a stock 83, an 83SE, a stock 95 and a Modwright SS 95 I also should have thought of the possibility of a broken 95. Nothing I have read about The Upgrade Co's mods (I haven't heard any myself) suggests that they are dramatically better than Modwright or other reputable modifiers (if even as good), and nothing in my experience with my 4 Oppo's (used both as transports and as stand alone players) suggests such a dramatic difference either, unless it is favor of the 95. The difference between the stock 95 and the 83 is noticeably more than the difference between the stock 95 and the Modwright 95, and none of the differences are what I would call dramatic.

 

[NorthStar]

-- The highest the resolution of your 'kit' (system) and loudspeakers, the more pronounced the differentiation, I think.

...Like from an 'SS' modded to a 'Tube' modded. ...A choice, a personal preference. :b

 

[LL21]

Since I own (or have owned) a stock 83, an 83SE, a stock 95 and a Modwright SS 95 I also should have thought of the possibility of a broken 95. Nothing I have read about The Upgrade Co's mods (I haven't heard any myself) suggests that they are dramatically better than Modwright or other reputable modifiers (if even as good), and nothing in my experience with my 4 Oppo's (used both as transports and as stand alone players) suggests such a dramatic difference either, unless it is favor of the 95. The difference between the stock 95 and the 83 is noticeably more than the difference between the stock 95 and the Modwright 95, and none of the differences are what I would call dramatic.

Thank you. I appreciate your experience. Believe me...i was just expecting to substitute the new for the old, and keep the old as a backup since it still plays CDs. I was expecting them to be about the same/virtually indistinguishable, and hoping it might be better. That was why i am so surprised.

The primary difference is the 83 seems to give harmonica on older blues recordings equal extension (including the mike-induced distortion)...but i hear a lot more of the note...whereas with the 95, i hear more of the distortion bit. 83 also seems quieter (both music wise)...but also the fan of the 83 is quieter.

Broken? It does not strike me as a broken unit...just not as good as i was expecting. In any event, i will keep it running for a bit...see what happens. Thanks again for sharing your experience.

 

[LL21]

Just went thru a silly A/B/A/B/A on tracks i have used for well over 20 years. Just to triple check. Clapton Unplugged...first track. The audience clapping in the very opening...with 95 digital out, slightly compressed, and 'tizzy' sounding. Put thru digital out on modd'd 83...and the individual claps are more 3D, natural, separated, rather than pressed together. Feels like an audience. If graded the 83 an arbitrary '100', the regular 95 would be 70-75. This is digital out...same power cable, same digital cable, same positioning. Same on 3 other CDs.

 

[NorthStar]

-- Lloyd, you make a lot of sense as other 95's owners have also discovered that its sound is harsh, irritating somehow, shrill.

And the people who compared it to the 105 (both the 95 and 105 in their stock versions),
found the 105 much smoother and easy for the ears and soul, and without losing the higher details.

The combination of your components also play a role into the final equation.

_____________

In one of my very first posts from this thread I did mention that this thread is about the Oppo 103 and 105, mainly, and that other Oppo players are to be involved into consideration for comparison's purpose (stock or modded).
...SS or Tube. ...Modwright or the Upgrade Company. ...Or even DIY modifications from the DIYers.

But the main bulk is all 'bout the 103 and 105. ...Because they are the brandest/newest ones; and that they eclipse those older Oppo models from yesteryear (the 93 and 95 are already over two years old, and in this world it is old; and the 83 is a dinosaur).

Oppo is an avant-garde company, and they improve stuff (audio/video/features/performance/solidity/value/etc.) constantly. They just don't make inferior players to those from prior years.
- Your 83 is good (well, doesn't play DVDs no more), because it has been modified in that goal to be a better player.

_____________

I have a Panasonic Blu-ray player; highly rated, with an 'audiophile' built analog section (nice sounding when playing CDs), and it cost me $400 (not too bad), with all gold plated jacks on the back, a multichannel (7.1) analog output as well, but the Blu-ray lens quit reading Blu-ray discs after only 14 months! I was very mad, and I did a lot of research, and I talked with Panasonic technical engineers, till one of them told me that my player had a faulty transport and it was just a question of time till it cannot read discs no more. Many people who own that Series of Panasonic players also encountered the exact same problem I had. It is a well known Panasonic issue, from the major audio/video forums of the Internet.

Anyway, the transport wasn't available no more for my particular player, and the deal that they offered me (even outside my warranty) to compensate, wasn't good enough; so I refused their offer.

Do you remember, or have you ever read about Panasonic's black level from their plasma HDTVs with a timer in which the black level changed over time (for the worst)? I think it was from their 2008-2009 (or 2009-10) Series. A lot of people, and professional calibrators complained, and Panasonic admitted to this malpractice. They later fixed that issue with their newer Series (2010 or 2011 plasma models).
There are other things that are inferior in Panasonic electronics (audio & video); even if they are highly rated with their plasma TVs and Blu-ray players.
Samsung ain't no better. Neither Sony.

Panasonic is not in my book of electronics no more. And Samsung I just about had it with them too.
Sony? ...Only back in my life mainly for their Blu-ray players with SACD capability, and also their dedicated SACD players.
But Sony is one of the worst company, business wise in their dealing with other manufacturers; they irritated so many people over the years with their control of everything; and still to this day.
...Many issues in the past too with their rear projection HDTVs. ...A lot of unhappy consumers.
...And probably the company with the most class action suits in all history. ...They bought everyone, to keep their monopoly.

I can tell you way more stories (in intricate details with supported links and all that jazz), and about each manufacturer of audio/video equipment (for both the masses and the high-end crowd), but not here, not now, and particularly not in the
Oppo BDP-103 and BDP-105's thread. :b

* Excuse my typos as I'm sure there are some.

 

[LL21]

-- Lloyd, you make a lot of sense as other 95's owners have also discovered that its sound is harsh, irritating somehow, shrill.

And the people who compared it to the 105 (both the 95 and 105 in their stock versions),
found the 105 much smoother and easy for the ears and soul, and without losing the higher details.

The combination of your components also play a role into the final equation.

_____________

In one of my very first posts from this thread I did mention that this thread is about the Oppo 103 and 105, mainly, and that other Oppo players are to be involved into consideration for comparison's purpose (stock or modded).
...SS or Tube. ...Modwright or the Upgrade Company. ...Or even DIY modifications from the DIYers.

But the main bulk is all 'bout the 103 and 105. ...Because they are the brandest, newest ones; and that they eclipses those older Oppo models from yesteryear. :b

Oppo is an avant-garde company, and they improve stuff (audio/video/features/performance/solidity/value/etc.) constantly. They just don't make inferior players to those from prior years.
- Your 83 is good (well, doesn't play DVDs no more), because it has been modified in that goal to be a better player.

_____________

I have a Panasonic Blu-ray player; highly rated, with an 'audiophile' built analog section (nice sounding when playing CDs), and it cost me $400 (not too bad), with all gold plated jacks on the back, a multichannel (7.1) analog output as well, but the Blu-ray lens quit reading Blu-ray discs after only 14 months! I was very mad, and I did a lot of research, and I talked with Panasonic technical engineers, till one of them told me that my player had a faulty transport and it was just a question of time till it cannot read discs no more. Many people who own that Series of Panasonic players also encountered the exact same problem I had. It is a well known Panasonic issue, from the major audio/video forums of the Internet.

Anyway, the transport wasn't available no more for my particular player, and the deal that they offered me (even outside my warranty) to compensate, wasn't good enough; so I refused their offer.

Do you remember, or have you ever read about Panasonic's black level from their plasma HDTVs with a timer in which the black level changed over time (for the worst)? I think it was from their 2008-2009 (or 2009-10) Series. A lot of people, and professional calibrators complained, and Panasonic admitted to this malpractice. They later fixed that issue with their newer Series (2010 or 2011 plasma models).
There are other things that are inferior in Panasonic electronics (audio & video); even if they are highly rated with their plasma TVs and Blu-ray players.
Samsung ain't no better. Neither Sony.

Panasonic is not in my book of electronics no more. And Samsung I just about had it with them too.
Sony? ...Only back in my life mainly for their Blu-ray players with SACD capability, and also their dedicated SACD players.
But Sony is one of the worst company, business wise in their dealing with other manufacturers; they irritated so many people over the years with their control of everything; and still to this day.
...Many issues in the past too with their rear projection HDTVs. ...A lot of unhappy consumers.
...And probably the company with the most class action suits in all history. ...They bought everyone, to keep their monopoly.

I can tell you way more stories (in intricate details with supported links and all that jazz), and about each manufacturer of audio/video equipment (for both the masses and the high-end crowd), but not here, not now, and particularly not in the
Oppo BDP-103 and BDP-105's thread. :b

* Excuse my typos as I'm sure there are some.

Thanks, Northstar...good read. I went back to find out exactly how much repair, shipping, labor, parts will cost. it is more than originally 'guestimated'...ok...that puts me at nearly 'par' between keeping the 95 and shipping the 83 for repairs. At this stage, repairing an 83 that has had its analogue outs fixed once already (some random crackling)...probably means its best not to put too much money back into this one. Let it ride out as a music-only transport...and keep the 95 for movies only.

And hopefully the 83 can live long enough that i can convince myself to bite the bullet and go for the dream music transport and be done. (i am far less critical about movies). Stay tuned...

 

[audioguy]

Just went thru a silly A/B/A/B/A on tracks i have used for well over 20 years. Just to triple check. Clapton Unplugged...first track. The audience clapping in the very opening...with 95 digital out, slightly compressed, and 'tizzy' sounding. Put thru digital out on modd'd 83...and the individual claps are more 3D, natural, separated, rather than pressed together. Feels like an audience. If graded the 83 an arbitrary '100', the regular 95 would be 70-75. This is digital out...same power cable, same digital cable, same positioning. Same on 3 other CDs.

That is very interesting. All I have read about the various upgrades (Oppo and 3rd party) seem to relate to using the analog out portion which is not how I use mine so have never invested the time to investigate the upgrade.

In your view, the modded 83 with digital out is better than the digital out of the stock 95. I wonder how it compares to the stock 103 or 105.

And not to beat a dead horse, but I have heard (read) great things about Modwright mods but much more controversy about The Upgrade Company.

I ask all of this since I have a stock 83 and had been considering one of the newer units but most (all?) of the improvements seem to be analog related so had put it on the back burner.

Lastly, did the digital out improvement come from the SP/DIF output or HDMI or both

 

[NorthStar]

-- Well that's good if you have a plan like that and you can live by it. :b

And with patience, and luck too, you can get an eventual great deal on the Oppo BDP-105 when the 115 will appear (Fall 2014).

OR! You might find that you have more money in your bank account than what you previously estimated; so you can sell both your 83 and 95 (with a profit), and just buy the 105 now, plus with new speakers. :b

 

[LL21]

That is very interesting. All I have read about the various upgrades (Oppo and 3rd party) seem to relate to using the analog out portion which is not how I use mine so have never invested the time to investigate the upgrade.

In your view, the modded 83 with digital out is better than the digital out of the stock 95. I wonder how it compares to the stock 103 or 105.

And not to beat a dead horse, but I have heard (read) great things about Modwright mods but much more controversy about The Upgrade Company.

I ask all of this since I have a stock 83 and had been considering one of the newer units but most (all?) of the improvements seem to be analog related so had put it on the back burner.

Lastly, did the digital out improvement come from the SP/DIF output or HDMI or both

Again, i am no techie. I too have heard great things about Modwright and equally seen the controversy surrounding TUC. What i can say is that some of the controversy probably is at least as much about the cost for a TUC as anything else. The basics espoused by TUC, shielding, damping, improving connections, all seem like fine concepts. And the 83 digital out is superior to my ears than the stock 95 and not by a close margin. one sounds like a high quality transport...even the Audio Aero dealer who brouht the la Source felt the oppo sounded bloody good as a transport when compared to the La Source...i feel confident he would not have felt that way about the stock 95...which sounded like a dvd/blu ray player that costs a few hundred. i do not have hdmi out audio capability, so i only have compared the spdif bnc output.

 

[rbbert]

What I find strange about your comments re: 83 vs 95 used as a transport is that the transport on the 95 is inherently far better mechanically than that on the 83, in fact that was one big reason I sold my 83's after getting the 95. Modwright does do some things to the 95's transport of the same nature as what you describe for TUC, so maybe you should reconsider one of the Modwright mods for the 95?

 

[MarinJim]

What I find strange about your comments re: 83 vs 95 used as a transport is that the transport on the 95 is inherently far better mechanically than that on the 83, in fact that was one big reason I sold my 83's after getting the 95. Modwright does do some things to the 95's transport of the same nature as what you describe for TUC, so maybe you should reconsider one of the Modwright mods for the 95?

What I like about Modwright is they also build highly rated amps and preamps. Dan knows his stuff, and does his homework. And, he is not overly secretive concerning his mods.

 

[audioguy]

What like about Modwright is they also build highly rated amps and preamps. Dan knows his stuff, and does his homework. And, he is not overly secretive concerning his mods.

Which, among other reasons, is why I would never consider TUC.

I am going to contact Modwright and see what he recommends for my situation.

 

[audioguy]

Given that I got the following response from an information request from ModWright, I am now even more "surprised" that one would get improvements from digital outputs from a modded Oppo 83.

Hi Chuck,

I am sorry but our mods do not affect the HDMI output, only the analog outs for the 83, 83SE, and 95 models. In regards to the new Oppo BDP-105, the modification is still in prototype/design. I am not sure if the mods applied to the 105 will affect the HDMI output, but I can check with Dan if you are interested. The mods should be finalized for the 105 in about a week or so and then we will start taking orders on a first come first serve basis.

Thanks,

Kristin Boyd
Executive Director of Operations
ModWright Instruments, Inc.
www.modwright.com
360.247.6688

 

[rbbert]

Given that I got the following response from an information request from ModWright, I am now even more "surprised" that one would get improvements from digital outputs from a modded Oppo 83.

If you actually ask for a description of what they do, there is some damping and isolation added to the transport mechanism. I think what she means is that there is no modification of the electronics leading to the HDMI out.

 

[edorr]

Given that I got the following response from an information request from ModWright, I am now even more "surprised" that one would get improvements from digital outputs from a modded Oppo 83.

Just fore kicks, you should ask David Schulte of the upgrade company what he did to the 83SE to get better digital out though....

 

[audioguy]

Just fore kicks, you should ask David Schulte of the upgrade company what he did to the 83SE to get better digital out though....

He would never answer my phone call. I have a VERY low opinion of him and I have expressed that on several forums -- and he knows it. What I find interesting is that folks pay out good money for his "modifications" yet he absolutely refuses to give any substantive description of exactly what you are paying for, claiming that if he did so, others would steal his ideas!

I've seen photos of the inside of some of the equipment he has modded and all I can say is: "seriously?"

 

[NorthStar]

What I find strange about your comments re: 83 vs 95 used as a transport is that the transport on the 95 is inherently far better mechanically than that on the 83, in fact that was one big reason I sold my 83's after getting the 95. Modwright does do some things to the 95's transport of the same nature as what you describe for TUC, so maybe you should reconsider one of the Modwright mods for the 95?

---- I was just about to say that.

* I am reading this thread with the utmost attention (of course, I started it), and adding all important info that I gather from only the best sources (I do try very hard my best).

It is very interesting to me to read Llloyd's comments; on the 83TUC (The Upgrade Company) vs the 95 stock. ...And the better digital out (SPDIF) BNC from the 83TUC.

I read so many reviews on the 83, 83SE, and 83NuForce, and also the 95, the 95ModWright, and now the 105; that Lloyd's comments do come as a surprise.
And I don't doubt for a second what his own ears told him; Lloyd is a straight shooter.

The 83TUC, this one I am less familiar with, because I read enough about The Upgrade Company in the past that I decided to satay away (personal choice). ...And the digital BNC out from that 83TUC version is also new to me.
I believe now that I am at the threshold of further investigations, from new sources, in the help to corroborate with Lloyd's comments, and even more. ....

 

[MarinJim]

If you actually ask for a description of what they do, there is some damping and isolation added to the transport mechanism. I think what she means is that there is no modification of the electronics leading to the HDMI out.

The audio mods are for analog, I believe. But with the linear power upgrade, the pq is improved.