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Good/bad idea? Oppo in 2 channel w/out preamp?

I'm considering moving on from an Upgrade Co Denon 3910 to a modded Oppo SE or Nuforce BDP-83, probably a Modwright with the tube upgrade. I've just went from an integrated amp to seperates and am using a cheap Parasound mini-preamp until I can either have a good passive built OR get a player with built in volume control. I've mostly had very good success going without a preamp when possible. I've had a Theta Miles and Consonance Droplet 5.0 which were much better without a preamp while a Consonance SACD 2.0 was a bit tubby and less precise direct (it sounded quite a bit better using the passive preamp section in an integrated I used to own vs running that integrated as an amp only).

So, can anyone comment on running the BDP-83 SE or Nuforce direct into an amp and do any of the aftermarket upgrades affect the quality of the volume control? Many thanks for your time and experiences. Lyle
lcherepkai
jeffga
89 posts
 
I used an Oppo without a preamp and found it to be generally good. A slight loss of lower frequency weight and dynamics. Less "full" in the mid range (vocals). A bit of soundstage flattening. I thought the top end was excellent and all frequencies were very transparent and "fast." Unless you buy a very good preamp ($2K+ used), and assuming that the amp matching (sensitivity) is satisfactory, going direct is a good thing. My experience is that a "lesser" quality preamp never improves sound. So IMHO, unless you want to spend some dough on a good preamp, going direct to the amp can be a good thing (and assuming that this is the only input).
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,693 posts
 
Lcherepkai-

It is not that the VC is good or bad. It is simply that it is a digital attenuator and, as such, must lose resolution with attenuation. Almost all do. (There are some that get around this by DSP.)

So, a little attenuation means a little loss and that is usually OK. A lot of attenuation means a lot of loss but it may not be an issue if the listening level is very low.

So, again, it is a question of how much attenuation you need and I cannot estimate this for you as it requires knowledge of your speaker's sensitivity, the gain of the power amp and what listening levels you use.

The numbers refer to the Oppo's volume indicator scale which ranges from 0 to 100 but is uncalibrated.

Kal
lcherepkai OP
280 posts
 
Hey, thanks for your advice/experience Kal and Jeffga. Sounds like it's worth a shot. I'll post my experience if I do purchase one of these modded Oppo's. Best wishes.
erndog's avatar
erndog
261 posts
 
I have had the Modwright tube Oppo 83 for over 6 months now and absolutely love it. When I plugged it directly into my Pass Labs amp it opened up the sound and revealed that my preamp was holding my system back. So from that point forward, I removed the preamp.

I also found that the Oppo's volume control jumped too far for each click on the volume button, so that the music was either too loud or too low. Which for me was a mild inconvenience compared to the sound. My previous sources include Sony 5400, Marantz SA-11S1, Bada HD-22 and a NAD c542.

I loved the "direct" sound so much that I eventually decided to get a transparent preamp because I have a subwoofer and multiple inputs. I ended up with a Placette Active.

For more info about the Modwright Oppo 83, check out a thread I started about my experience with it on the Audio-circle website: http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=86327.0
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