Oppo Vs Esoteric
@in_shore Ya the Modwright Oppo is the exception to Oppo gear. That mod has made a mark for itself for sure. The Esoteric/Marantz/Luxman mentioned above are a good 3-4 levels above that of the Oppo. Now, having said that, the Oppo is best bang for buck, and the E/M/Ls are end-game sources/players, such that there is a point of diminishing returns. We all have our own personal threshold here in regards to how much we are willing to spend and point of our ROI or no ROI. the Gear you mention costs 6x the cost of the Oppo: go to the bottom of this page and see the horizontal row of CDPs/DACs-I think you mentioned them all: https://www.musicdirect.com/dac/esoteric-k-07x-sacdcd-player-dac That said, you will get about 3x the cleanliness, transparency, dynamics, that you will get from the Oppo. B/c these other 3 will have better "Clocks" etc. But of course each of the EML manufacturers may impart their own sonic influence on the final product, but the actual electronic signal will be much cleaner with more power to reveal those details and nuances in the music (as well as thundering bass, or a delicate top end, micro & macro dynamics improved etc). Others may argue. But just read a couple reviews of the EMLs above, and look at the power supplies and higher quality circuitry. When we get down to the brass tacks so to speak of higher-end audio, IMO the quality of the power source in particular makes huge differences in what you can - or cannot - hear from a recording. The Oppo may even have 2 small power supplies that they tout allows huge gains in AV quality. But compared to what? a multi disc player at Walmart for $59. Remember that the Oppo is a multitasker that is trying to juggle a lot of sh*t at once: Audio, Video, multiple Digital and analog ins and outs, etc. So spreading out that limited and limited QUALITY power to all those different functions will sap the energy that o/w could be dedicated to JUST receiving the digital signal (CD to signal), or JUST sending the digital signal out the back to a DAC, e.g. .... My last point is that of your Source .... sh*t runs downhill (sorry, I was raised by Rednecks) ... From the Source onward the quality of your signal will only degrade, not get better. I mean, it may sound Different b/c the PreAmp or the Amp or speaker imparts its own sound qualities onto the final sound, but the clarity, black background, etc will not improve. IMO the Oppo would not have the cleanest digital signal transferred, but the EMLs would, and would make a great sources for life, since they have digital ins as well. |
@1graber2 Agree 100x. @milpai Yes, higher end products will sound different but, will they provide the sound you are looking for? And will you will be willing to spend that kind of money in order to achieve it? Furthermore; yes a great source is paramount as @1graber2 stated. However, if your electronics and speakers don't have the resolving power ; you'll never hear this potential. Until of course you upgrade them. Frankly, finding a dealer that will let you borrow one of this pieces to hear in your system is the only way to be sure. Finally; I also own a 205 and recently upgraded it with the MW 205 upgrade. It has taken the performance to a new level and I preferred it in my system to the PS/Audio/Directstream combo (that I heard a few months ago with previous firmware). That stack retails for over 10k. System synergy and subjective preferences do go a long way. To that end; I'm looking to replace my MW 205 eventually but not as fast as I once thought. I'm thinking it might take an Esoteric K03X or higher ; Luxman D08u to surpass it. All those one box players I listed retail for over 10k. Enjoy the 205. |
1graber2 currently I’m enjoying the best digital playback in my home to date , though changes are a commin , I’m experiencing familiar music is at its best only made more enjoyable by some critical cable changes . The ModWright 205 oppo is possibly a very satisfying performer for some and with member Lances comparison of his ModWright 205 and his PS Audio dac and player I find curious because the PS Audio pair playback is outstanding however as good as these components are they are not worth thier retail price at all . It has absolutely nothing to do with diminishing returns , clearly they do perform very well though technical issues still plague these components they and I think partly is why they don’t hold thier value at all as frequently seen on the used market . For that very reason I have moved on from PS Audio and currently auditioning thier replacement. Over the years I’ve listened to these so called giant killers wonder of all wonders only to realize no matter what mod and tweaks most if not all are just an expensive digital sounding player . The Esoteric K03 was replaced by PS Audio simply because playback was much better , I can actually tell the difference from good and better however CD playback of the KO3 I never warmed up to even after the ridiculous run in time and trying the too many set options . the OP s question about other dedicated players or the ModWright Oppo he should maybe stick with and purchase quality anti resonance devices for under the power supply and oppo , there will be a nice improvement, well it did with my oppo 205 by ridding some but not all digital glare and improved the picture quality by a good margin. |
@in_shore The reason I passed on the PS Audio stack (even though was discounted highly off MSRP) was more so the technical glitches you mentioned. In addition, I prefer having a one box digital solution. You might consider checking out the newly released K03Xs model to replace your PS Audio. I've also seen some used K03X and 01X for sale to make way for the XS models that were just released. I'm also considering Luxman and perhaps even TAD D1000Mk2. EMM Labs XDSv2 while amazing isn't available new anymore but; probably also very good if you can find a deal. |
