I've had both and have the Oppo DV-980H now. All things considered, it's so good it's insane. Take your Sony and overpriced HDMI cable back for a refund and get the Oppo. The picture is at least as good, the player is far more configurable for picture and sound, and the Oppo absolutely kicks the Sony's butt for sound quality, plus it plays DVD-A, SACD, and decodes HDCD CDs to great effect.
For digital movie soundtracks, the Oppo's internal processors sound slightly better to me (better clarity and tonal balance, and a little more dynamic) than my pre/pro, a Boston Acoustics AVP7 that was priced at $2000 just two years ago.
The Oppo has a musical, relaxed character that has revived my enjoyment of CDs after a year-long vinyl-only hiatus. It is better in every audible and visible parameter than the Philips DVD-963SA universal player it replaced. That one was considered an overachiever at $600 four years ago.
And don't pay $60 for an HDMI cable again, unless it's REALLY good. The one that comes with the Oppo is actually pretty good--better than other included ones I've encountered. It has gold-plated connectors and ferrite rings. So I guess compared to that Sony, it's like the Oppo is $109. At that price compared to the Sony it's an absolute no-brainer.
I had bought the Sony just to upconvert CDs and was still using the Philips for music playback. The Oppo replaced them both because it outperforms them both.
For digital movie soundtracks, the Oppo's internal processors sound slightly better to me (better clarity and tonal balance, and a little more dynamic) than my pre/pro, a Boston Acoustics AVP7 that was priced at $2000 just two years ago.
The Oppo has a musical, relaxed character that has revived my enjoyment of CDs after a year-long vinyl-only hiatus. It is better in every audible and visible parameter than the Philips DVD-963SA universal player it replaced. That one was considered an overachiever at $600 four years ago.
And don't pay $60 for an HDMI cable again, unless it's REALLY good. The one that comes with the Oppo is actually pretty good--better than other included ones I've encountered. It has gold-plated connectors and ferrite rings. So I guess compared to that Sony, it's like the Oppo is $109. At that price compared to the Sony it's an absolute no-brainer.
I had bought the Sony just to upconvert CDs and was still using the Philips for music playback. The Oppo replaced them both because it outperforms them both.