[judson_w]

Abelza was faster at typing and answers nicely. I like my Oppo and due to it I have fallen into the pit of SACDs (which is to say, I have 5). Part of me is tempted to get a second Oppo so I can have it in my home theater system and use the multichannel analog outs for one of the multichannel SACDs I have that sounds amazing that way.

However, I do not necessarily recommend getting into SACDs and I imagine the Urd will be great for CDs.

I just like my occasional indulgent, esoteric formats like SACDs and 78s.

 

[bosiemoncrieff]

What would be the benefit to getting Oppo rather than, say, the Sony that I linked two a page or two back with the coax out? For the handful of blu-rays I own, even the Barenboim Ring, it may be overkill.

 

[Ableza]

I've owned a Sony BRD player and did not like how cheap it felt, replacing it with an OPPO 105. YMMV,

 

[Pietro Cozzi Tinin]

In my experience it always helps to use a dedicated computer (or transport) for playing music.

 

[bosiemoncrieff]

What are the tradeoffs with normal blu-ray vs Blu-ray UHD? It looks like the 4k Oppos are edging into car prices, and Sony has the 4k BRD functionality for $250. The 103/105 looks closer to 1,000 and I would be open to spending that, though it is absolutely a luxury. I don't think I have any 4k BluRays - just the Barenboim Ring and I think a Siegfried from the Netherlands. Is it becoming a legacy technology? Are operas going to be released on 4kBluRay and not normal BluRay?

And does the USB input just let you plug in a thumb drive with files on it? Teslas (used to?) be able to do that, IIRC, and that was one consideration I had when I was considering getting one. Are the USB drives able to have a file system on them? Could I put my whole library on a big USB stick?

 

[artur9]

Yikes. What server software/protocol are you using? Could there be cable issues? Depending on protocol and wiring, there's the possibility that packet losses/retransmits could affect the streamer's ability to reproduce a good quality audio stream. I use Roon, which gives up pretty aggressively if there are any networking issues, but other protocols might try to "recover" and miss a few samples here and there.

I'm going to have to do a lot of experiments to see if I can isolate.
All my cables are old and kinky .
I am also going to try with 10Mb hub in there since I'm needing one more ethernet port.

More precisely, the setup is
Mac Cheesegrater (2009?) running Linux Debian Jessie running BubbleUPNP and minimserver (older version).
Mac MacBook Pro 15" (2011?) running Jessie and newer version of minimserver. This mac is one of those with the defective graphics chip. Maybe having it disabled improves sound quality?
Into Krell streamer (no DAC) into GMB over coax.

I don't really have any other use for the laptop. If it ends up running minimserver that's fine. I was hoping to consolidate everything onto a Trashcan Mac running Linux.

 

[artur9]

What are the tradeoffs with normal blu-ray vs Blu-ray UHD?

UHD gets you HDR/DolbyVision and the higher pixel count. HDR/DV is fun (makes the stars more twinkly). It's not critical.
And it does you no good at all unless you have a TV that also does 4K/HDR/DV.

IIRC, DVD sales were still higher than BD up until 1-2 years ago. 4K discs, while available, aren't always available in desired content easily.

It looks like the 4k Oppos are edging into car prices, and Sony has the 4k BRD functionality for $250. The 103/105 looks closer to 1,000 and I would be open to spending that, though it is absolutely a luxury.

Well, the 205 was always a bit over the top.

I forget what AVR you're using? If it were me, I'd get the 203 (or other BD-only device) and an older audiophile preprocessor like the Cary Cinema 11a. The DACs in those are fantastic. (I used to have a Cinema 11. Still miss it even though my current prepro is way better.)

I don't think I have any 4k BluRays - just the Barenboim Ring and I think a Siegfried from the Netherlands. Is it becoming a legacy technology? Are operas going to be released on 4kBluRay and not normal BluRay?

I'm not sure 4K is worth it for realistic content. About the only thing I think benefits are things like 70MM epics like Lawrence of Arabia.

And does the USB input just let you plug in a thumb drive with files on it? Teslas (used to?) be able to do that, IIRC, and that was one consideration I had when I was considering getting one. Are the USB drives able to have a file system on them? Could I put my whole library on a big USB stick?

Yes. Navigation is a pain as it's just a flat list of files, nothing fancy. Might be better off using DLNA or something.

 

[oryan_dunn]

Unless you need SACD/DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

Edit: Unless you need multichannel analog out SACD or DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

 

[Ableza]

Unless you need SACD/DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

Edit: Unless you need multichannel analog out SACD or DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

If you want video.

 

[artur9]

Unless you need SACD/DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

Edit: Unless you need multichannel analog out SACD or DVD-A, what's the point of getting an old Oppo over a modern player?

In addition to the latest UHD Blu-ray, the UDP-203 supports regular Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, DVD, DVD-Audio, SACD, and audio CD (from OPPO).

Many modern players do not support one or more of those discs.
In addition, the OPPO can play media off a USB disc/stick.
The OPPO can also play media via DLNA, SMB, NFS.

The OPPO 103 is similar without NFS support.

I regular use my OPPO to play all those and over the LAN as well.

HST, if all one wants to do is play the latest DVD/BD/UHD then a modern player will suffice.

 

[oryan_dunn]

If you want video.

Are you saying modern UHD Blu-ray players don't output video?

In addition to the latest UHD Blu-ray, the UDP-203 supports regular Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, DVD, DVD-Audio, SACD, and audio CD (from OPPO).

Many modern players do not support one or more of those discs.
In addition, the OPPO can play media off a USB disc/stick.
The OPPO can also play media via DLNA, SMB, NFS.

The OPPO 103 is similar without NFS support.

I regular use my OPPO to play all those and over the LAN as well.

HST, if all one wants to do is play the latest DVD/BD/UHD then a modern player will suffice.

Seems like most people have a decent box to handle everything other than disc playback (whether that be a Shield, FireTV, Apple TV, etc.). I've not used the Oppo, but I have a hard time believing a 4yr old disc player would be better than modern streamers for any network playback.

 

[darkarn]

Abelza was faster at typing and answers nicely. I like my Oppo and due to it I have fallen into the pit of SACDs (which is to say, I have 5). Part of me is tempted to get a second Oppo so I can have it in my home theater system and use the multichannel analog outs for one of the multichannel SACDs I have that sounds amazing that way.

However, I do not necessarily recommend getting into SACDs and I imagine the Urd will be great for CDs.

I just like my occasional indulgent, esoteric formats like SACDs and 78s.

Well I mean, Abelza is a-blazing-ly fast

 

[artur9]

Seems like most people have a decent box to handle everything other than disc playback (whether that be a Shield, FireTV, Apple TV, etc.). I've not used the Oppo, but I have a hard time believing a 4yr old disc player would be better than modern streamers for any network playback.

For video you rent from Netflix, Prime, etc, get another box. The 103 has some of those built in that I've never used. The 203 doesn't even have them.
For audio-only streaming, get another box.

The OPPO excels at playing media you own that is video-related. For videophiles the OPPO also has a bunch of features that are a tweaker's delight and are apparently very helpful for projectors. For transcoding video during playback from DVD->2160p, BD->2160p, 2160p->720p it's hard to beat.

As I've said before, if all you want to do is put a disc in and play it, go to Costco and get the cheapest UHD player you can find. They're all the same in that respect. It's the other features the OPPO has that no other player has. I've even used it as a pre-pro. See here for what it can do: https://www.avsforum.com/threads/official-oppo-udp-203-owners-thread.2676801/

It's funny you have no experience with the OPPO and yet come across a bit belligerent about it's lack of capability. Maybe I'm misreading your tone?

 

[Ableza]

Are you saying modern UHD Blu-ray players don't output video?

The OP's question was comparing the Urd to a BRD player. If you want video, a CD transport is not giving you that.

 

[Pietro Cozzi Tinin]

Some info on the how and why of clean data to your DAC.
So why not use an undedicated computer.