Oppo BDP-95 sounds GREAT?

Having not heard some of the SOTA digital I wouldn't know but I'd sure bet Mike is dead on based on my impressions. One thing to consider with this unit as I did when I purchased it after hearing it in two different systems is the potential. My bet is that with with some modifications, a tube output stage and an upgraded power supply this unit could be a real contender.

Good news, the unit is extremely resolving of ambient information and excellent at the frequency extremes, actually it is quite remarkable at this price point. Where the unit is wanting in my limited experience is the rather lean nature of instruments, something is missing here so far. I expect an improvement but I'm not too sure it is going to improve enough to my satisfaction. I received mine last week so it is still breaking in. I prefer the OPPO as transport with my Havana doing the processing. What is lost with the Havana is all the great things the OPPO does, resolution and extension. What is gained with the Havana is the image density and tonality. As things stand now I like the latter. What I expect is that I will get tired of going back and forth and will modify this unit to bring it to its full potential. I think at that point it might be best to ask the question.

My guess is the ESS saber dacs and the transformer. One thing to keep in mind Syntax is that this is an EXTREMELY good value but keep in mind the usual cavaets, YMMV. When I compare this unit to my TT set-up (Oracle/SME/Benz LO) it really does hold its own in several areas of performance especially resolving ambient information, really exceptional in this regard. To me this unit was a hedge bet, I wasn't sure if it would be satisfactory in its stock form; I needed a new transport in any case so it could be used for that plus all the other bonuses that are of little interest to me now but may come into play later. I was looking for a relatively cheap CD/SACD unit that has the platform for significant upgrading, I know how modifications can be a great route to go to another level without breaking the bank account along the way. Worse case scenero, I sell it and lose a few hundred bucks, it really is a no brainer, you need to hear this unit for yourself. Notice all the 83SE's for sale, wonder why? :)

I was listening last night to the Arthur Rubinstein SACD remasterings of the Chopin Ballades and Scherzos and was absolutely stunned at how superb this unit performed, capturing the performance to such a remarkable degree with much of the subtle nuance I hear on the vinyl recordings. No it doesn't get the tonality in the same way but it still is amazing to me that digital can be this good at this price point.