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Oppo BDP 83SE- RESULTS ARE IN

I recently purchased an Oppo BDP 83SE as it replaced my PS3(first edition). I am a home theater buff(75/25) and pay very close attention to audio detail.

I configured the Oppo 83SE for 7.1 analogue and noticed an immediate positive difference in the audio spectrum as opposed to HDMI audio. I left the HDMI for video duties. I set all my speakers to small and set my distances and left the trims at 0..

A/B Comparision: There was a cleaner and blacker field between sounds. Voices in Transformers 2 were cleaner and more real. Explosions had more dramatic impact and sense of dimension. The surround effects were more prominent, detailed and more precise than in digital. Sounds that were low keyed or voiced jumped out more but weren't overdone. Overall the soundstage was very articulate and had greater realism. My Onkyo SC-885 processor is simply amazing for home theater but I chose the better processing of the SE as the analogue in the Oppo SE is just astonishing....Unbeatable.....

I will later post results in 2 channel analogue as I cant stop feeding all my blu rays to test this machine!!!!LOL

I am extremely impressed with the Oppo BDP 83SE's player. I hadn't experienced analogue before and didnt know what I was missing. On the video side the picture on my Samsung 58" plasma looked amazing...The Oppo really put alot into this machine and gets great regards from me...GOOD JOB!!! AAA+++

Regards Bacardi
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chatta
314 posts
 
Nice impressions Bacardi, i have heard good reviews about it as well.
Are you using their latest firmware?
bacardi's avatar
bacardi OP
663 posts
 
Chatta. I am using the version that came with it. What does the latest firmware help or do. Maybe the bass management issues??

Regards Bacardi
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,686 posts
 
There will likely never be any change in the bass management on these Oppos. Firmware updates usually address functional issues related to playing discs with new features and fixing various tracking/noise issues.

Cannot say what the "latest" will do for you since you didn't say which version you have now but I have just updated as they become available. It's so easy.

Kal
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dbphd
1,630 posts
 
Bacardi,

As I understand your post it seems you've confounded replacing equipment with switching from HDMI to analog, and concluded HDMI is inferior to analog. Could it be that a new Oppo BDP 83SE is an improvement over an early PS3 and an Onkyo SC-885 processor? It wasn't clear to me that you compared the Oppo HDMI with the Oppo analog. Another possible explanation is that removing the Onkyo from the audio chain improved the sound. It's often not easy to attribute a causal link.

db
bacardi's avatar
bacardi OP
663 posts
 
Dbphd, ok. I am still running HDMI from Oppo to Onkyo for video. I have switched between the HDMI with the Onkyo processing 5.1 and the analogue 5.1 through the Oppo processing and found the Oppo better. More distinctive and isolated channel separation, more profound and 3 dimensional bass.

The analogue in the Oppo for stereo is pretty obvious compared to the Onkyo HDMI or analogue.

The Oppo also supports bitstream for lossless audio which my PS3 only had linear PCM.

One other clear distinction is I pulled out my old Monster series 1 400's from 15 years ago. I bought them from a fella who sold me his Audiocontrol equilyzer and 8 RCA's. So I am using them for the analogue. The rest of my system uses Synergistic Research Tesla cords, interconnects and speaker wire.

So, in regards to my Onkyo being old or my ps3, my conclusions are now based on the facts above. Everyone knows the Onkyo HQV Reon processors excell in home theater processing and are below average for 2 channel. The Oppo SE is known for there analogue and Anchor Bay Processing.

All this said, I think the PS3 is the obvious weak link, that is why it is out. For what I paid for the Onkyo & Oppo and the league of performance achieved, it was well worth the $$$.

Regards Bacardi
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