Official OPPO BDP-103 Owner's Thread - Page 182

Thanks for the update.

I returned my player mostly for the hissing problem and agree it is an Oppo issue. Based on what I've read, it's happened with at least three different dedicated amplifiers so it is more than a coincidence at this point.

For those that have the bluraychip PRO mod does anyone know how to change regions without powering off the player? One of the advertised features is "No need to restart player to change region." but I haven't been able to figure out how to do just that and their documentation doesn't seem to discuss that scenario. I've emailed them but haven't heard back yet.

Another 'for what it's worth' data point. Jeff also did the initial calibration, and more recent re-calibration on my 9G 151 Kuro.

I asked him about the multiple reports here that Pios prefer RGB, but he claims there is no difference in PQ. He also said he did repeated tests but could neither
see a difference, or measure one.

He believed there might be confusion because the monitor versions have a bug where they don't handle RGB conversion correctly on the automatic setting.

One of the things I like about Jeff, is that along with being one of the most respected calibrators out there, he is also willing to challenge opinions that
have become accepted as fact. Doesn't mean he's always right. No one always is. But I will say, having worked with a few calibrators, he has produced
final results that seemed best to my eye, and seems deeply passionate and to back up his opinions with a lot of testing on very high end equipment.

Well I'm STILL fighting with the 103...

Running the 103 in split mode (HDMI 1 to TV/HDMI 2 to Denon 4810) I have experienced on numerous occasions loud screeching when the main feature would begin. Video looks just fine when it happens, btw. My "solution" is to press stop and then begin again; sometimes taking more than once before audio finally "takes".
I have set my player to "blank HDMI 2" in the 3D settings (as advised), but I am also experiencing this issue playing "regular" BD material.

I am also rather confounded as I don't see others experiencing this issue?

Any ideas what might be happening that would cause this issue?

This is almost always an error in the AVR. The audio codec is changing from previews to menu to main feature, and the AVR is not switching to the correct decoder. It might be a handshake issue, these things often are. Several things you can try: Be sure that HDMI audio is set to bitstream and not "auto", this eliminates one handshake. Another option is to let the player decode everything by setting HDMI audio to PCM. You can further help eliminate handshakes by setting all video settings to explicit values, never "auto". Also, since it appears your Denon is HDMI-1.4a, there no reason to bypass the AVR with video so try using a single HDMI path through the AVR.

It's bad copywriting on their part. They're referring to the fact that you specify the region on startup by pressing 1, 2, or 3 (A, B, or C) on the remote to power up the player with the region already set. The other mod requires that you power up the player, enter a key combination to change the region, shut the player down, and restart it in order for the region switch to take effect.

Even with the pro mod, you can't change the region once the player has been powered up.

Is anybody having a problem when playing a dvd? When i play a dvd i get a loud screeching sound. Thanks

I don't think anyone has ever provided less information when asking for help.

Check out rdgrimes' answer to BadClams two posts above yours. If the situation is similar, it might help with your problem.

Wow, if true then that's ****** advertising. Their standard (basic) bdp-83 mod included a one button press and acted the same way all for half the cost of the BDP-103 mod. I would classify having to power off/on the player to change regions as restarting the player. So if true, then I'd consider this statement as false advertising: "No need to restart player to change region."

Different first languages will sometimes do that.
Edited by htwaits - 2/11/13 at 12:52pm

Well, my problem is

If they're going to market their product in a language that isn't their first language then they better make sure they have the meaning correct to begin with.

I like having a single button press but it would have been good to have this information up front when considering the different mods especially when they're charging twice the price for the same functionality that was provided with their 83 mod.

This is good news since I have yet to calibrate the tv (I'll be using a Disney WOW blu ray). By the way, when I mentioned that I saw no dramatic difference in SD picture quality I was speaking in terms of Comcast cable broadcasts which, I suppose, are going to be lacking regardless (?). Again, I was probably expecting the impossible: that the Oppo would make the SD channels magically look nearly as good as HD channels. I will say that when I did SD-DVD comparisons with the Oppo versus my old Samsung BD2500, I did discern at least a certain amount of improvement via the Oppo. And if the PQ on that particular source gets even better after a calibration, then I'll be a happ(ier) camper. Now if I could just figure out how to get the Oppo to do my dishes for me. . .

Thanks!

Interesting, informative exchange with Oppo. I wrote them, ala my post here on the sharpness control before"...Right now on my Kuro 9G there's a
huge jump between 0 and +1 on the Oppo 103, a significant jump between +1 and +2 and only minor further changes the rest of the way the way
to the highest level.

If that was smoothed out, those of us who feel 0 is just a touch soft next to (for example) my trusty BDP-83 could
make a subtle adjustment, and not be stuck with a choice between a bit softer than ideal to my eye ("0" currently)
or an image that edges over into looking processed at times (+1 currently)."

Oppo replied (on a Sunday - gotta give them credit!) "The reason why there are minor changes when you are changing the
Sharpness above 3 is that you start to add additional video processing to the signal, such as Noise Reduction and Contrast
Enhancement, when adjusting the Sharpness further. The Marvell QDEO has basically four forms of sharpness: Off, Low,
Medium and High. This is why there is a large jump from 0 to 1, 1 to 2 and 2 to 3. The ability to reduce the intensity between
Off and Low is something that we are looking into, but based on the register data for this chipset, it is an all or nothing type of solution."

So I decided to try the +1 sharpening just to see what it looks like (have to say that in combo with the Darblet to my ISF calibrated Panansonic 65PZ850U in my HT and watching The Last of the Mohicans blu-ray it was very, very nice. Didn't see any artifacts or other PQ anomalies at all) and when I went into the picture adjustments everything was at zero on the left and of course the sliders were all centered but the noise reduction setting on the right was at +8, and both color and contrast enhancement were at +4. Tried changing them but couldn't since they were all at zero on the left. I am using color space on Auto but even when changing that those settings stayed the same. Picture looks amazing but was wondering if something was amiss. This is on HDMI 1.

Anyone having an issue getting the disc menu to display?
Whenever I insert a disc and select- it goes right into PLAY mode.
I like to start in the menu.
Some discs will not go into full screen menu at all.
I can only access the menu via the pop up function while the film is playing.

I updated the firmware and re-set settings.

Between this and the 2 frozen/crashes and the sharpness issue...and a 1080p image that doesn't look any better than my old Pioneer 51.
Yes- audio is great and super fast load times are nice,
but I really do not see $500 value here at all.

Some specific examples would be helpful (and are you talking about DVD's or Blurays?). Some movies do just go right into play mode - the Batman The Dark Night Rises Bluray is one example of this. If that's how the disc is authored, that's what you'll get.

I played Charlotte's Web for my 5 year old- and it went right into the PLAY MODE.
Later that night I watched Get Shorty and it did the same thing- right into PAY mode- and I was unable to bring the menu screen.

Not a big deal- but odd.

That's interesting, I decided for now instead of using +1 sharpness on the Oppo and reopen my ISF settings in the Kuro 9G changed the sharpness from -15 to -12. This works for now until Oppo comes to a conclusion or not. Remember all of us have different equipment so it's what looks good to you. What I care for in at the end is that default sharpness setting is at reference quality
Edited by airborn007 - 2/10/13 at 5:32pm

Very much agree. My desire is for no additional sharpening or softening. No processing at all. But it seems,
to some of us that right now that's not an option on the 103 through the QEDO. At "0" there seems to be some
sort of NR or something that is actually artifically softening the details a touch.

I always feel, ideally there should be no processing unless it's called for by the user, and that's
how it had always seemed to me on my Oppo 83.

I've always found Oppo very responsive, and trust their statements that they are looking into the issue given
all the reports. I'm just obsessive-compulsive enough that it bothers me that this seems to be
an issue, and hope there will be a fix, or a clear explanation for why there are a number of
us seeing the same thing (though far from all).

That said, your suggestion of a slight sharpness tweak on the Kuro, which I know from experience
is a very gentle control, might be the best bet for now. Thanks for that.

I know I may seem like a dinosaur, but I use my 103 as follows:

(1) 99.8% to select "HDMI-IN BACK" where my HTPC WMC Extender (Linksys DMA2100) is connected as input, to watch HDTV

(2) .199% to play BluRay movie DISCS

(3) .001% to play music audio CD's.

I NEVER use it to render/play digital media from my home LAN PC's.

I NEVER use it to stream Internet-available media. Personally, I don't want to participate in or contribute to the 20% of the world's Internet bandwidth "wasted" on Netflix movie distribution, but more importantly I prefer the lossless audio and other performance and content advantages from actual BluRay discs themselves. I receive my Netflix BluRay discs in the mail.

With all due respect to others who may not feel the same way, I do not really care whether or not the 103 shows up in Network view for Windows, even though my Yamaha RX-V867 and Panny Viera 65VT50 and Linksys DMA2100 all do.

What I do care about is (a) high-quality 1080p video from BluRay including superb up-converting to 1080p when necessary, and (b) decoded audio decoded to LPCM and delivered via HDMI output to the HDMI input of my Smyth Realiser (for headphone listening via Stax SR-009).


I've come through a BDP-83 initially, to play BluRay movies. Audio/video was delivered via its one HDMI output to my Yamaha RX-V863. Video then went via HDMI (1080i) to my Sony 34XBR960, and audio then went via discrete multi-channel analog preamp output to my Realiser's discrete multi-channel analog inputs. My original Realiser only supported this discrete analog input method.

When I upgraded my Realiser to an HDMI-capable (via LPCM) model, I also upgraded to a BDP-93 specifically for its TWO HDMI outputs, one for video-only and the second for audio-only. Specifically the 93 supports decoding to LPCM out over HDMI, which I could then feed directly to the HDMI/LPCM input of my Realiser (not being decoded by the AVR, but instead being decoded to LPCM by the 103 and sent directly via HDMI to the Realiser).

Both of these implementations were perfectly satisfactory and acceptable to me, at least for watching/listening to BluRay movies. However HDTV through my DMA2100 still had to go through the AVR for decoding there, and delivery still via analog discrete multi-channel preamp outputs to the Realiser's discrete multi-channel analog inputs.

Hence my recent upgrade to the now available BDP-103 specifically for its new external HDMI-input capability. Since the 103's decoding of audio to LPCM applies to both BluRay disc audio as well as to external HDMI input audio this now allows me to use the 103 to decode HDTV DD5.1 audio (input to the 103 on HDMI/back from the DMA2100) to LPCM output for direct HDMI delivery (via audio-only HDMI-2 out of the 103) to the HDMI input of the Realiser. Hence ALL of my watching/listening (from BluRay discs and from HDTV via DMA2100) is now THROUGH THE 103.

Video-only HDMI-1 out of the 103 goes through my AVR (now also upgraded to a dual-HDMI-output Yamaha RX-V867) so that video can be delivered from the 103 via HDMI to either (a) HDMI-2 my Sony 34XBR960, beautiful 1080i from the 103, or (b) HDMI-1 my Panny 65VT50, beautiful 1080p from the 103.

And that's how I use my 103. I don't care about streaming from anywhere... my LAN, or web apps, or anything. I don't care about controlling my 103 or any other devices from a phone, I'm perfectly content using the provided manufacturer remotes. In fact, I don't care about "apps" at all. I don't care if these devices show up in Windows Network or not, as long as they work properly... including acquiring wired Internet access via my router if they need it (they are all wired-connected through a wired switch to my router).


Call me a dinosaur, but I like to watch and listen to REAL BluRay movie discs and HDTV, now with best possible video and audio thanks to the 103 and its external HDMI input... and I don't mind using real remotes.

Unfortunately, my AVR is not 3D ready, and this is the only reason I bought the 103 (or I would've just used my PS3 to continue as my BD vehicle of choice!)

Set HDMI to bitstream as recommended and tweaked video settings. Took about 10 minutes and then screeching started again. Starting to get fed up. Used a PS3 slim for 3 years with this AVR and never had so much as a burp.

I do appreciate the helpful tips to try, but gawd I'm not enjoying this process; I just hope this issue is ACTUALLY able to be fixed.

Im having the same problem, but with dvds, i get a loud screeching sound, try to set the oppo to dual out insted of split av.

I did some tests on the S&M disc and tried going from -15 sharpness on the Kuro back to -10 and leaving it at -15 and using the Oppo sharpness +1. What I found was that even when changing Kuro to -10 it wasn't as sharp as the Oppo and created halo's around the lines etc. Using the Oppo -1 created sharpness and more detailed lines and had no halos or errors. I could get the Kuro to -12 and Oppo sharpness +1 without any issues.
So adding more sharpness on the Kuro isn't the fix I'm afraid, they aren't doing the same thing.

There are two possibilities here. Either the AVR is not properly initializing the new digital audio stream processing or the HDMI handshake has left the processor confused as to what form of digital audio is coming in.

I recommend you try HDMI Audio LPCM instead of either Bitstream or Auto. AVRs that have problems initializing a newly started Bitstream will often not have problems when the digital audio input is LPCM.

I also recommend you try some experiments with lowering the bandwidth on the HDMI cable. This would include turning off Deep Color in the OPPO and temporarily trying a lower resolution (1080i or 720p -- don't go lower, as the high bit rate audio tracks can not be carried on HDMI when the video resolution is lower than 720p).

If the audio works without problems at 720p or 1080i, but still fails at 1080p (or 1080p plus Deep Color), than that is strong evidence of marginal cabling. Try upgrading your HDMI cables. Keep in mind that HDMI is an end to end protocol so the problem could be the HDMI cable on the OUTPUT side of the AVR. If you have any adapters, wall plates, daisy-chained cables, HDMI switches, or other gizmos in the HDMI path, they alone could be the cause of the problem. Also note that for HDMI, too *SHORT* of a cable can give just as much problem as too *LONG* of a cable. The sweet spot length for HDMI between any two devices is 6 feet (2 meters). So an 18 inch HDMI cable could very well cause problems, as non-intuitive as that must seem. This has to do with how the HDMI chips "equalize" the signal on the cable to try to make longer cables work more reliably.
--Bob

I did some more experimentation with Netflix High/HD streams and HDMI 1 video output from the 105 (which is the same as with the 103). I can still spot no reason to prefer Source Direct over explicit 1080p with Sharpness 0. But explicit 1080p with Sharpness +1 looks better than either.

This is with YCbCr 4:4:4 and no Deep Color. I wonder whether the folks reporting excessive noise reduction for Netflix (cured by going to Source Direct) might be using a different video format (e.g., with Deep Color enabled)?
--Bob

As stated, some discs are authored by the studio to go right into playback of the feature without first showing the disc's menus. Indeed some discs will even start the feature OVER AGAIN at the end instead of going into the menus at that end, too!

If you think about it, there's a whole bunch of people out there who don't think disc menus are a good idea. They long for the days of VHS tapes where you just stuck in the tape and the movie started playing. These folks have a particular problem with Blu-ray discs which require you to make menu choices for best playback (e.g., turning on the lossless audio track).

So the studios keep angsting about which way to do it to extract the most money from customers.

You are more likely to find this (playback without first going into the menus) on older movies targeting the pre-shiny-disc generation and on kids' movies where the kids might be trying to play the disc themselves. But there's absolutely no consistency on this from the studios, so it might happen on any title, and might be DIFFERENT depending on the VERSION of that title you get -- i.e., rental vs. retail, or a bare-bones version vs. one with lots of "extras" on it.
--Bob

You are saying that the sliders in Picture Adjustment did not match the numeric values shown? That's not normal.

First check that you have current firmware. Check Setup > Device Setup > Firmware Information. Your "Main" firmware version should end "1220".

Next, do a complete reset of the player. NOTE: You will need to re-enter your Wifi information and account credentials for things like Netflix. Do it like this:

1) Remove any disc

2) Go into Setup and Erase Persistent Storage. Then Reset Factory Defaults > Erase Accounts and Settings

3) Power down the player. Then pull the power plug for about 10 seconds. Do not skip this step.

4) Power up and re-enter your personal settings.

5) Power down once more. Settings are saved during the power down cycle.

Check to see that your Picture Adjustment settings are now showing correctly. Keep an eye on them from time to time to see that the problem does not recur. If it DOES recur, call OPPO Tech Support as the settings memory may be failing in your unit.
--Bob

SD cable TV broadcasts can be flat out godawful -- as broadcast, i.e., before any hardware in your house gets its hands on them. This will vary dramatically by which channel you are watching and the particular program. There are lots of reasons for this, but the point is that once the damage is done there's nothing that any processor can do to "fix" it. At best you can "blur" the damage to make it less noticeable.

Also keep in mind that to get the real benefit of the OPPO in such a setup you need to set your Cable box to send 480i video to the OPPO. If the cable box is sending 1080i or 1080p when you watch an SD channel then it is the Cable box which is doing the de-interlacing and upscaling of that SD channel content. And the video processing in many of these Cable and Satellite boxes is frighteningly bad.

If you happen to pick a channel which is showing "good" SD content at the moment, and if you have your Cable box set to send 480i to the OPPO, then you have the best chance of seeing what the OPPO can do.

---

It is a sad truth of the TV business that for MOST TVs the factory default settings are flat out wrong for best quality viewing. They are, instead, set to make the TV stand out in a wall of TVs under garish store lighting conditions.

So do spend some time calibrating your TV. Keep in mind that the first step will be to select the correct "Picture Mode" (typically labeled Movie or Cinema) and to disable essentially all of the video "enhancement features" you paid for in the TV. The wrong Picture Mode will likely make settings in the background that you can not correct with the user adjustments. Avoid any Picture Mode with a name like Dynamic, Vivid, Games, or Scorch Your Eyeballs. The "enhancement features" are pretty much all dreadful across the board. Things like "flesh tone correction". *shudder*
--Bob

Check the Hum & Hiss FAQ in the Audio Theory forum here. Your problem with the Analog connection direct to the amps may be due to an external source. The usual culprit for hiss is RF interference emanating from room lighting dimmer switches -- perhaps in an adjacent room. The relative gains involved may explain why the hiss (penetrating interference) is only showing on the Analog connection direct to the amp. The FAQ may have other useful suggestions for you as well -- e.g., how to try to isolate this.
--Bob