OPPO Digital Presents: DV-980H (1080p, SACD DSD, 7.1 Surround, USB 2.0) - Page 211

Oh, absolutely--my prior machine was the Philips 5140, also a Mediatek chip, and I was very pleased with the scaling. Less than 720x486 divx files looked way better than they should have. Like I said, with my size set and the distance I sit, etc., it is unlikely I will be able to tell one from the other, but Moire issues drive me bananas--I will absolutely keep my eye peeled. The scaler in my LG tv is terrific, but deinterlacing leaves something to be desired. As long as my aspect ratio is correct and it isn't looking like VHS, I ain't terribly fussy.

I was just going to suggest you try that setting, but I see you already discovered it on your own (that's the setting I use). Glad it's working for you now.

Question for Saturn94:

I, too, am late to the DVD-A and SACD party. I set the preference for SACD to Multi-Channel, played a 5.1 surround mix, then put a 2-channel SACD into the player. It put out a 44.1 signal, which I took to be the redbook CD layer. So I went back into the Setup menu, changed the SACD preference to 2-channel, reinsterted the album, and it played at 88.2. Do I need to go into the setup menu each and every time I switch from 2-channel to 5.1? I would have assumed it would play the multichannel, then the SACD 2-channel layer, then the redbook in descending order.

That's a good question.

I would have thought the same as you, that it would look to Multichannel first, then SACD 2 channel, then Redbook (CD) 2 channel.

I don't know if the way one has it connected to their receiver/processor affects this. I noticed you are using HDMI to your receiver. I have mine connected via multichannel analog (my processor lacks HDMI).

I set SACD preference to Multichannel and haven't really thought about what it's doing when playing a 2 channel SACD. I'll have to check it out and see if I can tell what's happening when I play a 2 channel SACD with my existing settings (does the 980H report the sample rate it's outputing?).

I'll let you know what I find out.

You could also email Oppo and see what they say. They've always been very responsive to my email inquiries.

Oppo's response was interesting (can't say I comprehend it, but I will take their word for it):

This is not an error. According to the HDMI 1.2a specifications, the indicated sample frequency on the receiver will be 44.1kHz. As pulled from the documentation:

"For One Bit Audio streams, the value indicated by the SF bits shall equal the ACR fS value. For Super Audio CD, the SF bits are typically set to 0, 1, 0, to indicate a Sample Frequency of 2.8224MSamples/s (i.e. 64*44.1kHz)."

This is due to 8-channels of audio being available through HDMI at 8 bits per channel at 44.1KHz. The end bandwidth is 2.8224Mbits/second, which equates to 2.8224M 1-bit audio.

As long as the player is set to SACD DSD (Audio Setup) and the resolution is 720p or higher, then the player is outputting SACD DSD.

Now that you mention it, I remember something like that being discussed in one of the Oppo BD player threads. I don't completely understand it either, but owners were assured they are hearing the SACD tracks and not the CD tracks.

Since I'm using the multichannel analog inputs, I've not run into that issue before so I haven't paid much attention to it. BTW, the analog outputs on this player sound excellent to my ears.

Analog out did sound great. Direct DSD output via HDMI to my receiver does not allow for soundstage processing or bass management (it plays the "direct" signal, and you cannot mess with it). I switched the setting to output PCM instead and heard no real difference--both were equally terrific. Then I turned on the Audyssey EQ (which adjusts the frequency to your specific room), and the sound became much fuller, warmer, and bassier, and the surround speakers noticeably higher in volume. Not sure which I preferred--I am a punk at heart, and more trebly doesn't bother me in the least. I was wondering if the Oppo's speaker distance delay settings were coming into play, though, since the EQ on the receiver performs the same function. Too many damn variables to keep straight.

I did some checking this evening using a hybrid SACD (2 channel only). Although the 980H doesn't report sampling rate, the front display does show what type of disc is being played. With SACD Priority set to Multichannel or 2 Channel, the front display says "SACD" when playing the hybrid SACD. With SACD Priority set to "CD Mode", then the front display says "CD" when playing the hybrid SACD.

To me this confirms that the 980H is playing the SACD layer as long as SACD Priority is set to either of the SACD modes.

I never really thought about it until you brought up the question, but now I know it's working as it should.

As with any settings, always go with what sounds best to you and forget about what others say you should prefer.

Just curious how the 980 is holding up after all these years. There doesn't seem to be too many posts here, regarding units dying. I sold my first one back when I bought my BDP-83, but I just bought another one from a friend so I can play DVD-A. He only used the USB on the unit so I think the one I have now will last a long time.

(Yes the 83 plays DVD-A too but it's in a different room)

If I remember correctly, I purchased mine in early 2010 and am still enjoying it (mostly used for SACD and DVD Audio). Occasionally I'll look to what they're selling for and it seems they are holding their value very well.

Had mine since March 2008 and it was my main player for DVD-A, SACD, CD and DVD-V until I upgraded to the BDP93 in December 2010. As the main player it got quite a work out Since then it's been doing duty in eitehr the second TV room or the bedroom.

Still going strong (touchwood)

blairy

Oppo's great support sure hasn't changed. The 980 I have now never had a properly attached right/front rubber foot. It was loose in the box and then ultimately it got lost. (Don't ask). Anyway, I emailed them a couple weeks ago and they promptly mailed me a replacement.

Amazing service!

Ditto. They do seem to be just purely decent folks.

My 980h still hangs in nicely doing mostly music CDs using analog and digital outs, and via USB (thanks to all many pages ago!), with only a few non-region 1 DVD's thrown in. A really good deal those many years ago. This unit is about to experience it's third AVR. Nothing out there that'll do all that the 980h does so well.

OPPO sets a tough bar for others to reach.

Mike K

Well the new BD players do all that the 980 does...and some but in terms of dvd players nothing comes close.

Blairy

You are of course, referring to OPPO BD players. Yes?

I must admit to a bit of overstating the "perfection" of the 980h. My wildest dreams would be satisfied by coming across a 983 at a non-IN$ANE price, thereby gaining the video upscaling competencies that the 980h lacks. Barring that, I'll settle for the flexibility of the 980h for challenging video formats/regions and stunningly good audio DACs, while enjoying a pretty damn good Pio BD-51fd for Blu-ray and very, very good DVD upscaling when the media is standard for my part of the world. Can't manipulate video output (re-formatting picture size mostly) as well as the OPPO, but does an exemplary job within the boundaries of it's designed outputs.

I repeat, the people at OPPO have always responded quickly and, for the most part coherently, to any of the many silly questions I've sent their way. Nice and knowledgeably.

I'll ride with what I've got for video/audio sources for now. As long as all the 3 to 5yr-old parts hold together and remain flying-in-formation. When that changes, the OPPO offerings of whatever will certainly be on my list.

Cheers to all, and Semper Fi

Mike K

I don't think this is quite true as I believe there are audio file formats that the 980 will play but the Oppo BD players won't, such as MLP. I think there are also some other minor differences in features. Not a big concern for most people, though.

That's a resounding yes :-)

Blairy

Jd213, my oppo bdp93 plays all the sound formats that the 980 does and some.

Definitely does mlp. Also hirez flac which the 980 can't do.

As for features, two usb, esata, wifi (with a range of streaming services) 3D bluray, DLNA etc. To say nothing of much improved video and audio


We've come a long way since the 980 was first released :-)

Blairy

I don't have one myself, but according to this the 93 recognizes but doesn't output any audio for MLP files: http://wiki.oppodigital.com/index.ph...edia_Files_FAQ

In case it wasn't clear, I was talking about MLP files burned to a DVD-R or other source, not the MLP files on a DVD-A. If the Oppo does indeed play these files, then I apologize.

MLP files are not "played" because of license/copyright issues. DVD-A license requires that only watermarked MLP files (like the ones on DVD-A) are allowed, and on DVD-R you don't have the watermarking.

Sorry for the confusion, I was referring to DVD-A discs.

I asked about this over on the BDP93 thread....


and


and



and


So jd213, you are right, only the Oppo 980 can play .mlp files.

Of course you can convert .mlp to (high resolution) flac and play these on the BDP93/95 (although of course that involves another step in trhe ripping process).

Thanks
Blairy

I bought two of them when they first came out. Both are still working perfectly.

....and I haven't seen any other players that can play MLP files.....including the rest of the Oppo line.

I have had my Oppo DV-980H for 4.5 years now and it is still doing great! The only complaint I have is that I wish it had a 1.33x zoom feature so that 16:9 aspect ratio dvds recorded in 4:3 format, resulting in black strips all around the picture, could be zoomed out to occupy the full screen correctly! Not been able to figure that out yet.

Have a question...I notice the blue power light, on my 980, is not lit when the unit is on. Is this because the dimmer control is set to DIM? I'm unable to set the dimmer to normal since I'm using it as a CD player, and I don't have any video cables hooked up to it right now, nor do I have a TV near. Oddly the manual states that the resolution indicator is off when in DIM mode, but mine is on. I'm using the final released firmware.

Edit...Ok, finally hooked it up to a TV. I guess the blue bulb is dead. Odd, I've never had these type of bulbs go on me, on any equipment. And there is only about 100 hours tops on this unit. (Probably just 10 hours on the actual drive).

This has been driving me crazy for years... About 1 out of 5 of my older DVDs display with black bars around all four sides (in 1:1 mode with no zoom) on my DV-980H. The problem seems to always occur with some 2.35/2.40 movies (they play fine as expected on other DVD players and my Blu-ray player - normal black bars above and below and screen filled side to side). I've tried all the various setup settings in the DV-980H and nothing has ever worked. Also upgraded firmware to latest build and that didn't help either. Is this just a known bug with this player? (It makes me a little hesitant to purchase a new BDP-93).

For background on why some DVDs have black bars on all four sides, see: Anamorphic vs 4:3 letterboxed DVDs.

You could send an un-pillarboxed image and have the TV do aspect ratio control. You'd have to experiment with the display modes on the TV. I believe 480i from the player will not pillarbox. Does the 980 have a WIDE vs WIDE/AUTO mode? I forget, but if it has WIDE that will not pillarbox either.

I don't know why the other players work better, unless they are not pillarboxing at all?

The 983H and all of OPPO's BR players have a full-width zoom mode that is just right for 4:3 letterboxed titles.

-Bill

Thank you sir!
I read your linked article - obviously I was long overdue to become more educated on this topic. Thank you for taking time to reply! (and that helps me feel better about upgrading to the BDP-93)

Wish Oppo would update the firmware for the DV-980H to include the 1.33x or full-width zoom mode. Maybe if enough of us request it...

My 980 has performed like a trooper for three years, no problems. Recently I purchased a Sony s590 blu-ray player as it was available for a ridiculous price. One of the main reasons I bought the Sony player was to extend the life of the Oppo. I have a collection of region 2 DVDs and they play without issue on the Oppo. For my needs, the Sony is replaceable, the 980 is not.