Oppo 105 - Is it going to make a difference?
Hi Guys,
I have finally had enough of the LX54, its so sluggish, takes forever to respond to a button press and has serious problems playing some Bluray films, like Prometheus 3D. Pioneer have mentioned a firmware update to address the problem with loading certain disc's but, overall the player itself is awful to use.
So my big question is regadring an upgrade really. Will spending more money on an Oppo 105 be justified in comparison to spending £200 on the Best Buy Sony player?Will I plug it up and think "wow i can really hear and see a major difference" or will it be negligible. I guess in part, I wish to upgrade becasue of my new TV too.Appreciate the help in advanced.
Hey bigboss, great to chat as always.
This is what Im stuggling with. Will I see any gain by having the 105 over the 103? If not, then I will go for the 103?
Are you going to play CDs as well, or only movies? Differences if any, will be very small. Only you can answer if the small difference is worth the extra outlay. Personally, I can't justify it, especially if I had a class leading AV receiver.
Thanks Bigboss. I don't think I will play CD's through it, I have many albums on FLAC that I play directly from the PC to the AV (I know probably not the best way to play them, but still sounds decent over HDMI). It's main purpose will be for Bluray films. Would love to demo them but no retailers around me have them 
I am stuck wtih sevenoaks or richersounds in London. It will be a bling purchase at this rate.
You will not go wrong with the sony-790 in fact the sony was compared with the Oppo 93-95 regarding picture performance which is quite a statement,if music and all the bells and whistles are important to you then the Oppo would I suspect be the way to go, but would it be 300pound more improvement, I dont think so, most players today can do pretty much everything and anything alot of the extra outlay goes on the components used and the quality of the player itself,but the Blu-ray players of today are so close in terms of picture quality I feel its hard to justify spending 2-3 even 600 pounds more on a player that at the end of the day gives a great picture, I am pretty sure with a little tweeking of the settings on the player and Tv even better picture quality can be had, so if it is just picture you are wanting for the money you will not go wrong with the likes of sony or even panasonic, but if music and all the online trimmings are for you then maybe a little more outlay would get you better results. 
There are a few retailers in London (you may have to travel a bit):
You will not go wrong with the sony-790 in fact the sony was compared with the Oppo 93-95 regarding picture performance which is quite a statement,if music and all the bells and whistles are important to you then the Oppo would I suspect be the way to go, but would it be 300pound more improvement, I dont think so, most players today can do pretty much everything and anything alot of the extra outlay goes on the components used and the quality of the player itself,but the Blu-ray players of today are so close in terms of picture quality I feel its hard to justify spending 2-3 even 600 pounds more on a player that at the end of the day gives a great picture, I am pretty sure with a little tweeking of the settings on the player and Tv even better picture quality can be had, so if it is just picture you are wanting for the money you will not go wrong with the likes of sony or even panasonic, but if music and all the online trimmings are for you then maybe a little more outlay would get you better results.
Agreed mostly. Oppo offers superior DVD upscaling, but that has to weighed with the extra cost.
I am going to demo these once and for all. I just spoke to some retailers who swear blind that there is a major difference in quality. I have my doubts as they are more then likely wanting me to part with 1k. I am going to try out the Sony and Oppo 93 side by side and see what difference there is. But, by the sounds of it, it will probably be a little underwhelming.
Thanks for the link bigboss I just found one in Surrey buy will check that link out now!
indeed bigboss forgot to say upscaling.. was meaning more on blu-ray play back 
I have an Oppo 83 and am very happy with it, but I bought it because I wanted a universal (SACD + DVD-A). , multi region(Blu-ray and DVD) player As you do not have that requirement I would buy the Sony if I were you, it looks likes it is excellent value.
and bluray playback is my top priority. I spoke to another retailer who tells me that the oppo 103 will be more of a side step for me at this stage. He also mentioned that side by side comparisons would leave me non the wiser. So I guess it comes down to features and how much I want the extras. I like the idea of an oppo for its multi region playback and no known issues when playing discs.
Thank you Hammill for the feedback, its good to hear from more Oppo owners.
Not Oppo stockists then?
As mentioned in another thread, I'll be trying a 103 out against my battleship Sony BDP-S5000ES at home next week, and hopefully the 105 in a few weeks time. Like you, Bluray reproduction is the main thing for me, but I am also interested in how well it can play back DVD's, as my Sony is very good at this, but my Panasonic BD60 isn't (but I need it for Region A Blurays). As my system sounds very good for music, I'll also be interested to see how well it does for playing back CD's - although I will shortly be adding a HDD via my Sonos ZP90 for music duties.
Hey David,
That was a stockist, who only stocks Oppo products. Either, that was one honest person or he just didnt want to sell it to me 
I would be interested to hear your findings as im almost pulling the trigger on a region free one.
If you decide on the oppo,go for a 95....theres a dealer up here in yorkshire that will sell for under £700...£300 cheaper than the new 105.
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You've got the brilliant Pioneer LX83 to decode audio; is it then worth spending on the extra audio abilities of the Oppo 105? Only you can answer that. Otherwise, Oppo 103 will offer equal video performance as the 105 at half the price.
A demo is certainly on the cards.
My Home Cinema Pioneer KRP 500A, Yamaha RX-V1900, MA Radius R225HD LCR, R90HD rears, AW12 sub, Panasonic BD60, PS3, Boxee Box, Sky HD, Boxee Box, Logitech Harmony One, Logitech PS3 Adapter, Sonos ZP90
Bedroom Samsung UE32C6510, PS3 slim white, Apple TV, Sonos S5, Sonos ZP90, Audioengine 2, Oppo OPDV971H
Miscellaneous: Synology DS212J + 2 X WD Red 2TB drives, WD 1TB NAS, Sonos ZoneBridge, BT HH3 as modem & AirPort Extreme router