Lon,
I am running similarly with the Oppo UDP-205 via coax to the DS DAC - also using a very good connection cable. Currently my DMP is connected via the same PS Audio I2S cable, which I feel is fantastic.
I am very interested in your experience with the AES/EBU experiment for Redbook. I have that input available and would be willing to purchase a worthy cable to take advantage of any benefits it may offer.
On a side note, the Oppo UDP-205 is really something special in so may ways. I am about to replace the video/digital audio switching-mode power supply with a bolt-on linear power supply with high quality components. This in theory should improve the audio coming out of the coax output on the 205.
Jeff, Are you doing the mod yourself? I ask because Ric Schultz does really good ones for not much. For my 203, whose digital section is virtually identical to the 205, he replaced the power supply, damped the processor heat sink, removed the optical port and electronics, which he says undermines the SQ, and did a few things to improve the player. The power supply mod took out the analog section, which it seems none of us are using.
Lon, Iāve been using a Snake River Boomslang, which ironically is warmer with the cable direction reversed, but Iām not so sure other effects arenāt lost. I may have to bite the bullet on an upgrade there to get the warmth Iām looking for. What is your coax?
Iām burning in the Oppomod HDMI/I2S board and it seems very good. Takes a little mod to the back of the case to attach the card (Ric did it for me). Unfortunately, Ric doesnāt have a dac that takes I2S, so he couldnāt listen, otherwise I would have had him look at tweaking the card. He considers the Oppomod guy a good engineer who uses standard parts, but not a tweaker.
Very interesting. I was looking at his linear power supply, amongst others, as a candidate to replace the switching-mode on the video/digital side. I am going to do the mod myself since it is a simple bolt on application. Shouldnāt take more than 15 mins to do.
Iām very familiar with Ric as I had him do every mod he offers to my prior Oppo, model 103. It certainly improved that unit across the board but when I got the new 205, it put my modded 103 to shame. I still use the analog section of my 205 for disks that my DMP cannot play such as Blu-Ray Audio. Plus I have the 205 feeding my tube-based Decware Ultra 5.1 channel audiophile grade HT pre-amp. It is amazing for surround sound and multi-channel music.
Jeff, Iām enjoying the Oppo. UDP-205. I donāt feel the urge to do any modifications; I run it through coax into the DSD or via VooDoo cable XLR into my Decware ZTPRE, ZBIT, ZROCK2 and CSP3-25 and that puts enough magic on the sound for me! Itās a good unit and Iām glad I got one in February, before Oppo Digital announced their cessation. Before that I was using a Cambridge Audio CXUHD which I thought actually had a slightly better picture, but lacked the XLR balanced output that I felt was a bit of an improvement the Oppo delivers. Like you I use it for the Blu-ray Audio discs I have and otherwise for Blu-ray and DVD playback. All other discs are played back via DMP.
I hear you Lon. I really enjoy the 205 for what it is and for the longest time I refused to consider any modification, unlike the path I took with my 103. My 103 needed it, the 205 doesnāt. However, I do not like the fact that they use a switching-mode power supply on the digital side. They did it right installing the linear PS on the analog side and I understand their logic, but I am using it 90% of the time for digital output and for that reason, I felt it necessary to raise the digital-side power supply up to the level of the analog side. It is a 10-15 minute job with no soldering or other technical steps to complete. Easy peasy! There has been enough chatter about the improvement it brings to the digital side that I eventually deemed it prudent. I too am so fortunate to have snatched one up before they went āpoof.ā
