hi guys,
I found a used Oppo 981 for $220 local pickup, so on Saturday afternoon, I picked it up. I then didn't use it until the evening as I had to watch Barcelona vs. Real Madrid
I know it's the audio norm to write long reviews with many details, but I won't. I haven't used it enough to comment on it that much.
But so far, this is an incredible DVD player. I was previously using a Samsung HD841
Upsampling is beautiful. This is perhaps the biggest improvement over my previous player. I'm running it DVI to a Hitachi rear projection, and I've never seen it look so good on DVD's.
It's regular audio CD and HDCD playback is also superior. Ih have Tool - Lateralus, and it's an HDCD. It definitely sounds better on the Oppo than on the Samsung. This may be just due to better DAC's, who knows. But it sounds better.
I'm currently listening to an SACD, but at very low volume, since it's late, but so far it sound very good. I can't comment further at this point. I haven't tried DVD-A yet.
The player is also very sleek looking, and completely quiet during operation. The remote is rather easy to use. Setting up was extremely simple. The manual is easy to read.
Overall, I'd highly recommend the player to anyone in the market for one at its price point.
