Oppo-95 or Sony XA5400ES - Page 9

Panasonic DMP-BDT500
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=5336055023-20
Shipping in late May / June.

The Pioneer BDP-05FD/51FD players yield very good sound quality via 2ch & 7.1ch analog OUT's. They both feature Wolfson Audio DACs. Excellent CD and movie surround sound playback. Pristine video quality (especially SD-DVD's):
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...ayers/BDP-05FD

I own the BDP-05FD and have been very happy with performance and quality.

Also owned Denon DVD-3800BDCI, another very nice player. High-end chassis design, audiophile components (Burr Brown DAC's, etc.,...). Excellent CD and movie surround sound via-analog OUT's:
http://hometheaterreview.com/denon-d...ayer-reviewed/

I'll +1 the 51FD although its been replaced by an Oppo 95 it played well with my Anthem AVm 20 via analog for movies, at the time though I preferred the dac's in the Anthem for 2 channel music, some stuff sounded very nice indeed from the Wolfson dac's

interesting, thanks. What are you meaning in regards to "sluggish behaviour"? Delayed network navigation behavior (when attempting to load/stream audio files)? Erratic mechanical function (loading disc etc.,...)?


you guys know about "Willis" down in the Land of Contentment?

yeah, right on both counts, simple things like switch the oppo95 on and cant simply hit the open button stick a disc in and hit close. because on boot up its off looking at the network youd be standing there like and idiot jamming the open/close button waiting for it to respond. try explain that to family or kids that have to be patient with the thing and wait till it responds to button pushes. I emailed lengthly with oppo re this issue which they admitted was due to the players network ability. I even tried suggesting to them to maybe allow people to switch the network abilities on/off but they refused saying it would confuse people. no other player have owned and have owned a new player every year since launch of blu-ray with 2 sony's, denon, pioneer and now cambridge have had that issue. yes sluggishness can be at other times too. again due to network side. its network/media playback also sucks. used once never went back. with the cambridge its actually much better implemented. easier to navigate and use it quite often now for movies and flac playback off usb/network sources


yep was a part of our upbringing here

Just leave player running all the time. There is nothing wearing while it is on, so it will work for many years. Consider that players like this is a specialized computer. There is zero reasons to turn it off completely, just do not forget to take disk out of it.

hi, guys, I'm new on this forum, but I wanted to chip in my five cents (EURO) from the old continent. I take it that the main thread is discussion what is worth more a sony 5400 or an oppo95. let me give you my impression: I owned both basic units and they are in my opinion on par with each other, personal subjective audition taking the upper hand.
I decided to upgrade to a mod by ModWright of the oppo at an additional 2k cost and I'm fully satisfied now...it sounds as it cost 10k or more, for the time no need to further upgrade.

Thanks for chiming in. It is good to know that you couldn't fault either of the units.

Since it is impossible to audition both of these units without buying them, I encourage subjective discussion on relative comparisons. Without opinion this would be a very boring forum.

I don't know if the 95 is different, but I can switch the Oppo 93 on by pushing the Open/close button. The tray will open almost immediately, and I can put a disc on it. There is no need to wait more than 2 seconds.

By the time I've sat down on my couch, the player has fully booted up and I can play the disc by hitting the Play button on the remote (tray with disc will close, playback starts).

Except for electricity consumption.

Sorry, I'm european ...

if you are running the eu version it is different. as it doesnt have all the media player carp. otherwise no if have us version the 93 should be no different. and this is even in writing from oppos admission. it is a slow player and unresponsive at times by compared to older players have owned. anyways moved on to the cambridge 751bd which is a local aussie version and doesnt seem to suffer from the same sluggishness.

Sluggish You seem to look for the chance to promote the Cambridge 751bd at every turn Oppo's are mentioned that from the sound of it, your very happy with! Do I detect a little regret for selling the Oppo

What I said that comparing the basic factory players I could not hear much difference in a good set up on the same media. I cannot give any opinion on mods of the two models discussed here. I have however had a chance to listen to an Oppo solid mod British and it sounded to me too harsh compared to my ModWright tube version. As always it may also depend on the rest of the gear, I prefer the sometimes very analytical European equipment and listen thru Ayon speakers.

hehe no regrets, I have no qualms sharing both the good and the bad in this case just sharing what have found better in the 751bd. the oppo is a very nice machine however for me in some aspects have found the 751bd a better choice. for others they might choose otherwise. there are many nice machines around ... take you pick ...I have

ps I have owned top of the rung players from sony, pioneer, denon, oppo and now the cambridge. hehe if know me have owned a new bd/universal player just about every year, from day one of launch of BD. And before that including hd-dvd and DVD universals. if I had regret in selling all have owned I would be very sorry soul ...

I still own some nice disc players a teac/esoteric transport from the 90s likely never sell. a sony scd-xa9000es cd/sacd also probably never sell. a musical fidelity a5cd with its muvista valves. a nad master series m5 cd/sacd. so yeah plenty to keep me company and drive away any hint of regret.

well you seem to be rich aficionado of playing gear, do you have the time to listen to all of it or you just collect and you go by the look or the make?

I'm curious about this one too.

not rich by any means and not paid full retail on any of players owned.

just separate systems, lounge room ht and 2ch. and bedroom system which is pure 2.0

the 751bd works a treat for av/ht and multichannel blu-ray/sacd/DVDA
the musical fidelity is pure cd with valve output
the sony is just beautifull on 2ch sacd.

yes I do listen to them, they are not for show. the teac/esoteric cd transport is only player not employed at present but given I used it for over a decade. its now out to pasture and since will probably get a pittance for it - dont have the heart to sell it.


the nad m5 is in my bedroom system and works in beautifully with the nad master series m3 integrated I run there its a lovely player, build and put together well. and has a very nice pure class A output stage to match the same class A input stage of the integrated. the m5 is very much a sleeper in as far as player goes and can often be picked up cheaply, and being a master series piece a real catch if can find one

I have read that the NAD is similar in sound to the Sony (compared to other SACD players such as Marantz). Would you agree? I certainly like the look of it and the fact that it does HDCD.

I am going to the local NAD dealer today but not counting on them to conduct and intelligent demo. They also have McIntosh so I'm sure they will say the MCD-500 is better

Thanks

avfile I'd say a bit more warmth in the nad vs sony.

which marantz are you talking about ? the sa11s1/s2 are lovely players. if I had no disc player today and looking for one I think its one can confidently walk in buy one and have a lovely very competant player. these are all good. just slightly different shade of the pallete. something for everyone

I did finally get a good demo of the NAD and based on what I heard I would say that makes sense. In fact I was surprised how relaxed the NAD sounded, as I was expecting it to be a little more agressive. I could see it being a very "compatible" sounding choice for many people. I could not however live with the ergonomics of the thing due to bright blue lights, poorly designed disc tray, slow loading time and grinding noise (very concerned about reliability).

For sure! I just unloaded an old SA-14 and would buy an SA-11 instantly, if only they made it in black. I refuse to introduce any of that "champagne" color to my system.

Have you heard the McIntosh MCD500? This is a different price league and I don't want to derail the topic, so "Wow" is all I will say...

the mac gear is very nice, but the disc players are really a denon arent they just more expensive and in different packaging ?

the nad have had a few years afvile, no probs. warranty is long too 5 years. but yeah few choices in this segment

it would appear the updated sa11s3 is available in not only champagne but also silver and BLACK !
http://www.avland.co.uk/aasp/marantz/1220/sa11s3/sa-11s3.asp

Awesome, thanks for posting that. I thought Marantz would have to come out with a new model with USB and digital input soon. Since it isn't even on the shelf in Europe yet it will be a while before we see it in Canada, and we might get screwed on the color again (like they did with the SA14v2). Until then I will have fun with a new Sony SCD which I have just ordered online. I don't think it will be the best player for regular CDs but I can always add a killer DAC like the Bryston, all for less than the price of a McIntosh or Cary.

hi guys, have'nt been around here some time, but it seems the thread is dying due to lack of interest?
By re-reading some of the earlier posts I came to the conclusion that some American colleagues prefer European players and vice versa. Maybe we could have a sub-theme on what we expect to hear and not what we subjectively hear? As I mentioned earlier I use Ayon speakers which are all but coloring and NADs, Cambridge etc. are too analytical complement for me. Maybe it is the same for you, having too much American flavor you look to tone it down without spices?

I have no idea what you just said, but NAD & Cambridge (while designed elsewhere) are both assembled in China. Some even at the same factory --though different lines. As in the Oppo & Cambridge players.
Edited by Tank_PD - 9/20/12 at 8:00pm

What is a European player, the NAD M5? Based on my comparison with that and the McIntosh I would expect that to be right up your alley. The M5 voice does nothing wrong; a very compatible sound in my estimation, but its ergonomics are flawed.

I ended up getting the Sony and so far find its sonic character unpredictable or difficult to nail down, so I cannot recommend it yet. That might actually be a good sign. Ergonomics are exemplary. It is most impressive as a SACD player but I now have a DAC hooked up to it for redbook and HDCD.

The only one I haven't heard is the oppo 95.

My friend bought the MCD 500 and couldn't be happier. I loved the sound and build quality but it just wasn't a fit for me aesthetically. That could have been a slippery slope!

What can I say if you : I have no idea what you just said
I see no further discussion, then.

In my view it is not where the gear is assembled (meeting quality acceptance) rather the induced sound. I am still open to discussion whether Americans perceive music differently to Europeans? Funnily enough I have tube amps from Canada and US and speakers full European. Anyone to comment this discrepancy?

I get your point, the gear is so good that looks may play heavily in the selection.
INHO comes down to the budget, to mod or not to mod? mod American or British? wow, what a choice for us...

Aside from the BBC dip in old British speakers I would not attempt to draw any conclusion these days about American vs. European listeners. I am a European living in Canada for example

I guess my main point was the NAD was far from analytical and much to my surprise actually sounded warmer than the McIntosh. When you think about it that makes sense at their respective price points, hence my comment (perhaps too subtle) about the NAD being "compatible sounding". I would recommend it to you but the transport was making weird groaning noises and the cheap tray doesn't eject far enough past the thick faceplate (afterthought?) to easily remove the disc. It has all the features and the sound quality but usage is horrible. The McIntosh is the exact opposite with very slick tray. I guess one thing is still true that British designed gear is very particular or finnicky!

I like the Sony but you may find it too forward, especially with regular CDs. If you have full-range speakers the bass will be world class, but you really need to have the rest of your system issues including room reflections tamed. The good thing about it (for me) is it concentrates on audio, there is no video, BD software, fans, etc.

My experience with modding is it often makes the sound more forward, upsetting the original design goals / voicing, since big-package modders tend to go for the "fastest" parts with most agressive specs. If the result is too analytical or strident you are screwed. It is also harder to get your money back on the used market. It is better to do it yourself or choose a-la-carte style, say nice capacitors and a few minor things, and see how it sounds. Unfortunately some companies like Modwright don't offer this, and only start with a full outboard power supply / digital / analog / tube output stage kit for $2k. Last time I checked the $500 solid-state kit was removed from their web site and they won't answer my simple emails. I guess they are too busy for small fish I also get skeptical when they start claiming you need a $300 umbilical to take full advantage of their DC power supply

Hi Guys.
The original question was the Oppo 95, or Sony 5400.......................................? There is no comparison between the two player. The oppo a nice uni player while the Sony is the best ever made SACD player, regardless it's price. The SONY 5400 a native sacd player, while the oppo converts the signal to pcm. We can talk about this for a long time, but if you ever had a chance to listen the two side by side, or the Sony 5400 against other player you would understand once you have a chance to buy one, you never have to buy another again. I keep playing sacd player since this media was born, but nothing could touch the Sony 5400 quality so far. One more thing. The Sony plays the regular cd with some magic as well. It converts the cd to dsd, which doesn't really matter, but it sounds amazing for my ears. Sorry for my bad English. I hope I could help.
Music forever!!!