Just wanted to add an update as to why the Oppo BDP 95 may sound better than the BDP 105. I found the following an another forum; It appears that the difference in sound quality claimed by some is due to the way the audio is allocated to the DAC(s). In the BDP-95, apparently in stereo mode all 8 channels in the DAC are used (4 for Left, 4 for right), but in the BDP-105, only two channels in one of the DACs are utilized for stereo, with the rest dedicated to other functions (headphone amp, I think, while the second DAC's 8 channels are dedicated to 7 + 1 surround, if I remember correctly). So from a design standpoint, it seems there's a lot more 'processor power' (for lack of a more correct way to say it) devoted to stereo sound on the BDP-95 than with the BDP-105. I probably didn't explain what I was trying to say very well, the following comments are supposed to be from an Oppo FAQ, but I couldn't find it on the Oppo website: ____________________________________________ Q: On the BDP-95 the ESS9018 DAC was stacked 4-DAC channels per stereo Left and Right outputs channel. How are they configured on the BDP-105? A: In the BDP-105's stereo board design, the 4 pairs of DACs in the ESS9018 DAC are allocated as: 1 pair for the RCA outputs, 1 pair for the XLR outputs, and 2 pairs stacked for the headphone amplifier. https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/oppo-bdp-95-vs-bdp-105-sound-quality-comparison.320632/ 2/1112/14/24, 5:06 PM rbbert Senior Member Location: Reno, NV, USA SamS Forum Legend Location: Texas Oppo BDP-95 vs. BDP-105 — Sound Quality Comparison? | Steve Hoffman Music Forums Q: Does the lack of non-4+4 DAC stacking affect the audio performance? A: During the initial design stage, OPPO simply continued the BDP-95 approach by stacking 4 pairs of DAC for each Left and Right channel. However due to the complexity brought in by the newly added headphone amp and USB DAC, OPPO could not achieve an ideal PCB layout. The analog specifications became slightly worse than the BDP-95 in this 4 stacked configuration. OPPO's audio engineers and consultants analyzed the problem and made many experiments to further enhance the quality of the analog output stage of the BDP-105. In the end, they decided that the only way to ensure maximum performance was to separate the current-to-voltage conversion stages for each output path. This change enables us to have a much cleaner PCB layout which minimizes interference and crosstalk. It also eliminates the possibility of the load on one output path affecting the other paths. The drawback is that BDP-105 now loses the benefits of the thermal noise cancellation by stacking 4 DACs. The engineers were able to make up for that by designing an improved power supply, optimizing the filter and drive stages, and beefing up the power and ground paths. " ____________________________________________ '67 Chevy, Jun 12, 2013 |
@lovepianos i agree with you on the bdp95--i think it's quite extraordinary as a player, while the 103 (which i still use) and 105 always sounded a bit overbright/digital to me.the 95 seems to be going for $300-400 on ebay compared to $600-800 for the 105; good deal for a universal player. |
