To say that Jfz "couldn't stand" the Oppo 95 in his system is certainly to go against the grain of virtually all press reviews, sophisticated audiophile reviews and virtually everything else written about the product. The Oppo 105 is said to sound much like the 95, perhaps just a bit better and is also getting raves all around.
One thing we know is that tubes almost always add harmonic distortion. A lot of listeners prefer it that way. Many years ago Bob Carver experimented and proved that, even with solid state. That's why I asked if the moders publish their distortion figures.
Another issue is that Oppo has improved its audio circuits with each release. But judging by the rapidity with which the mods appear, they likely stay about the same so that with each new version they would add less and less.
Just one person's views.