gormdane and gillatgh,
I have an Oppo 105 and use a similar configuration with my combo 2ch and ht system. I connect all of the 105's outputs directly to my amps (center, sub and rear surrounds via rca cables and the mains via xlr cables) and the sq and convenience are very good.
My only reservation is that the 105 was specifically built as a step up in audio quality from the 103 even though they're both identical in video quality. I know the 105 uses expensive Saber dac chips on all channels and the 103 uses Cirrus Logic dac chips on all channels. The 105 has no harshness or brightness issues but I'm not as familiar with the 103's sq. and hope it's to gillatgh's liking.
Considering Oppo's commitment to high quality, I tend to doubt they'd use the Cirrus Logic dac chips in the 103 if it resulted in bright or harsh audio.
Since gillatgh's Rogue Pharoah integrated combines a tubed preamp section containing two long-plate 12AU7 tubes combined with a Hypex OEM class D amp section, I find it unusual that this combination would produce a sound that would be described as anywhere close to bright or harsh. I've also never read any comments on the 103's sound as having a bright character on either cd or Blu-ray playback.
Overall, I still expect the system configuration I suggested to provide a well balanced sound but, worst case if some brightness remains, there are some other options left to explore.
Tim
I have an Oppo 105 and use a similar configuration with my combo 2ch and ht system. I connect all of the 105's outputs directly to my amps (center, sub and rear surrounds via rca cables and the mains via xlr cables) and the sq and convenience are very good.
My only reservation is that the 105 was specifically built as a step up in audio quality from the 103 even though they're both identical in video quality. I know the 105 uses expensive Saber dac chips on all channels and the 103 uses Cirrus Logic dac chips on all channels. The 105 has no harshness or brightness issues but I'm not as familiar with the 103's sq. and hope it's to gillatgh's liking.
Considering Oppo's commitment to high quality, I tend to doubt they'd use the Cirrus Logic dac chips in the 103 if it resulted in bright or harsh audio.
Since gillatgh's Rogue Pharoah integrated combines a tubed preamp section containing two long-plate 12AU7 tubes combined with a Hypex OEM class D amp section, I find it unusual that this combination would produce a sound that would be described as anywhere close to bright or harsh. I've also never read any comments on the 103's sound as having a bright character on either cd or Blu-ray playback.
Overall, I still expect the system configuration I suggested to provide a well balanced sound but, worst case if some brightness remains, there are some other options left to explore.
Tim