OPPO 980 h dvd mod?

03-20-08: Elf73
I have a Monarchy M24 Tube DAC preamp.. you think it would be better to use the Monarchy DAC or the Oppo players?

You can't lose either way. When Wes Philips reviewed the DV-970H, he thought it was a pretty good player, but when he plugged the coax SP/DIF into a good DAC, it turned into a seriously good transport and competed with much more expensive setups.

The 980 is a significant improvement over the 970, so its internal processors probably narrow the gap. I use mine in a 7.1 channel setup, and I slightly like the Oppo's internal surround processors over the one in my Boston Acoustics AVP7 (a 7.1 ch pre/pro based on the Sherwood Newcastle, which is also the basis for the Outlaw 990).

Still, I think you'll have fun comparing and picking.

I recently purchased the Reference Audio Mod Oppo 970. Full mod with digital clock, separate PSU and cyrogenic treatment for $1.6K. Easily the most resolving, transparent and vivid player I have heard at this price level.

I do find a slight tendency towards sounding thin and a subjectly lower output level. The player seems to lacks some tonal colours, but so was some other more expensive players I have heard.

My former SACD player was the $6.5K Musical Fidelity Tri-vista. The MF player was warmer and has a effervescent quality, but sound flat, veiled and diffused in comparison. Not even close in terms of redbook CD performance.

It was only with SACD that the MF player gain scores. SACD advance over redbook is hardly detectable with the Oppo, most likely because the player converts SACD format into PCM.

Sorry, my player is RAM modded Oppo 980 (not 970)

Could someone please explain the logic in modding a $350 player for $1,600 and cancelling the warranty instead of buying a fully warrantied new player for $1,950 ?(there are a few that sound really good in this range). Do the mods come with a COMPLETE RE-Warranty? Even for the transport? How long is the warranty, and is it only for labor?

Hi Storyboy,

The firms that modify and provide new modified players for the oppo units provide full warrantys on the entire unit top to bottom. So in case a transport laser goes out or something happens, the entire unit (including labor) is under warranty by the modification company instead of oppo, so there is still peace of mind like with the stock warranty.

The reasoning of modifying a $169-399 player is to take it much much further sonically than the $1950 stock player (obviously) but more so take it further or equal to players costing 5-10 times the price of the modified oppo. Basically if you want the best bang for the buck and have a swiss army knife, buy the modified oppo from your firm of choice.

However, if you want prestige of owning a something that might make your friends jealous to look at or know that you own, then buy that flashy stock player.

Same thing goes for cars. Want prestige and speed, buy that BMW or Benz. Dont care about prestige but only care about performance, then buy a used dodge neon and throw a turbo and some other parts on it and blow right past the BMW down the road. Its all in want you want.

Different strokes for different folks!

I hope this answered your question.