Bought the new Oppo DVD981HD player...

Dawgbyte, the 980H is actually their latest model and was built with improved auido as one of their goals.

I read their site thoroughly before making my decision. Here is an excerpt from the news release posted on their site:

"Continuing the OPPO tradition of extraordinary audio/video performance and immense value, OPPO designed the DV-980H with a focus on sound and picture quality. Taking inputs from audiovisual enthusiasts and world-famous high fidelity audio equipment partner companies, OPPO refined the audio portion of the DV-980H for precision rendering from Super Audio CD, DVD-Audio, HDCD and regular CDs".

I sold my Denon 2930ci for an Oppo 981 becuase I did not have the room to fit the Denon anymore. What a mistake, the Oppo is dark, grainy and 2 dimensional compared to the Denon. Even my wife who is a skeptic about all of this said it is painfully (yes, painfully) obvious. Well, time to sell my receiver to get a smaller one so I can get the Denon back.

Tpk123, It's the DV-980H that has the superior audio. Not the DV-981HP which has the superior video. The modle numbers are confusing. You have to read over all the specs before you buy the unit best for you.

Hey OPPO! How about a unit with suprior Audio and Video? They should conbine the two and stop confusing their customers.

What a mistake, the Oppo is dark, grainy and 2 dimensional compared to the Denon.

Do you mean in picture, sound, or both?

I have seen the now discontinued 971 in action...very nice video. So-so audio for the 971. The 981 is better in both aspects however, as mentioned by others, the new 980 has refined audio circuitry but ditches the finer vid chip. I'm a 70% music 30% movie/games kind of guy( yea, although I was born in the 60's I enjoy military type shooter games and they are awesome on my large pj screen). Anyways, the new 980 will suit me nicely for a budget player that performs much, much better than the price would suggest. And I, or anybody for that matter, can get it at list w/ free shipping if you look/buy at the right website.