OPPO or Something Else?


I am very ignorant in the latest and greatest in digital audio. My current setup is all analog with the exception of a CD player. Before OPPO announced their cease of production I read a lot of reviews and opinions from what a wonderful product it is. My main interest is in the quality of audio it can produce and not so much with the video capabilities. However, it is probably more capable than my current Blu Ray player (3D is not a concern).
Getting back to audio quality my sources are CD's and SACD's. I know that DAC's are all the rage with digital media. While researching the history of the various OPPO models that came out over the years, and paying close attention to user experiences with audio performance, it seems that with each model the audio quality improved with each release of a new model. Such as.....the 95 over the 93, the 105 over the 103, and the 205 over the 203.
Since the close of OPPO production it makes sense that the price of existing units in good condition would bring a premium price in the used market to those determined to purchase one. There are also many opinions that some of the upgrades to those units elevate them to a supreme product (those upgrades/modifications appear to cost almost as much as the units themselves).
Given that info on what my listening media is, would purchasing a used OPPO whether modded or not offer very good audio performance versus buying a different piece of equipment in the $1k to $1.5 range? I know that there are many OPPO users out there that are satisfied with their purchases. But I am mostly interested in opinions that have strolled down the OPPO path and have been disappointed with the audio performance.

jrpnde
Possibly best your money can buy at OPPO factory price of $1295 IF you want an all rounder.
Definitely not best buy at over inflated prices seen now.
Definitely not best buy if all you want is a CD or SACD player.
Just my opinion.

For SACD and CD playback my old Pioneer dv79 through its analog outputs sounds nicer to my ears than my OPPO205 through its analog outputs.

Again, my ears,my system

Worth doing your research if you only want//need audio playback.
Rdudley2, that model number corresponds to a McIntosh player. What is the model number of the relocker and where is it available? I use my 105 COAX out to my DirectStream DAC. 
@whart 
  I think you nailed the point of our differences.  My intro to Oppo was the 105, which has several digital inputs and therefore be used as a DAC with other digital sources (which is how I used it for a while, in addition to SACD and Red Book CD.  I never investigated the 95, which apparently per your question, does not have the same inputs.  For me, the 105 was upgrade over my previous DAC, but it clearly can be bested as a DAC.  It is an excellent transport 

This is where I don’t understand Steve’s comment; is he saying to use the Oppo’s analog output (ie, the output from the Oppo’s DAC), but improve its timing by adding a Synchro-Mesh reclocker?

The term "transport" means that it is being used as a digital source, not an analog source.

The 105 has both digital output (coax) and digital input (coax), so the Synchro-Mesh can just be inserted in this digital loop using 2 cables.  It's that simple.  Select the coax digital input in the "input source menu" and play the CD and you should get the lower jitter data to the DAC inside.  It's really simple.

For most systems, lowering the jitter of the source is a bigger improvement that upgrading the DAC, and certainly cheaper.

Steve N.

Empirical Audio