Reference disc player...UDP 205 or Marantz?


Hey guys....
I've decided to take the plunge, and get my last reference disc player--at least for a very long time--and I'm looking for opinions on the subject.
I really wanted to get the Marantz SA-14S1, it sounds fantastic for sure, but I started to read all the glowing reviews on the Oppo UDP-205. Is it just hype, or the real thing? Is the Oppo really that rare piece of equipment that punches that far above its price? Who here has listened to the oppo and/or the Marantz? How do they compare? 
Thanks! 
jonasandezekiel
I forgot to mention that there is a button on the remote to select a different layer of the SACD disc should you wish to play back a different layer than you set the player to default to.


Thanks for your comments;

Yesterday I contacted OPPO Customer Service and received the following reply;

“Under playback setup you will change SACD Priority from Multi Channel to Stereo. The player will then playback the Stereo layer or a SACD”.

I also checked the layout of remote control, there are 35 buttons listed but I do not see any button for selecting the SACD Stereo layer on the remote.

So far so good, the only remaining question is PCM/DSD. On page 60 this is discussed but the choices listed are for HDMI output, in my case I do not want to mess with HDMI but instead use analog two channel RCA outputs.


Vahes,
It may be called something like "layer", which is how it's designated on my Marantz. I'm sure it could be called something else as well. Maybe in the oppo's case, it's something a bit more esoteric. I'm sure it's there.
I believe it is the "audio" button on the remote. I think that's what it is my Oppo BDP-105D.
Nevertheless, there IS a button for it that brings up an onscreen display that allows you to navigate to an alternate layer.
Again, if you are playing music in stereo, there is little to no reason to change the default playing area.

So far so good, the only remaining question is PCM/DSD. On page 60 this is discussed but the choices listed are for HDMI output, in my case I do not want to mess with HDMI but instead use analog two channel RCA outputs

If you re-read page 60 and 61, you'll see that the choice made for "SACD Output" affects BOTH hdmi AND analog outputs.

If you would like to have direct DSD to analog audio conversion, then you would select "DSD."

As I described, previously, a selection of "PCM" would convert DSD to PCM before conversion by the internal DAC of the Oppo.

The "auto" selection under this heading is more geared toward someone using the hdmi output for audio delivery to an external processor.










Thanks again,

I am slowly getting used to this players setup routines, I am almost there.

I listen primarily to classical, I have good many DSD’s and also an equal number of PCM SACD’s. Once I setup for DSD I am assuming that the player’s front display will indicate DSD just to be certain.

If the next SACD to be played happens to be PCM will the player automatically recognize the format or I need to change the DSD to PCM?

And yes, the remote control has a button, #13-AUDIO-Change Audio Language or Channel.