OPPO BLU RAY PLAYER VS. SONY 5000 BLU RAY PLAYER

BJB

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With the help of WHSV and after testing I have purchased the following:

SONY 5400ES AV Amp

B&W 684, HTM-62, M-1s for rear, and ASW610XP

I have ordered a SONY 5000ES Blu Ray player. I live in South Africa and Sony have ordered from Australia only 20 x Sony 5000 Blu Ray players. The player was meant to have arrived already 2 weeks ago. Despite numerous attempts, I am unable to clarify the exact arrival date of the 5000. It has subsequently come to my attention that the Oppo Blu Ray player is available (or will be available imminently) in SA. My obvious question is whether to cancel my order for the Sony and purchase the Oppo. In terms of price, I would be paying the equivalent of 1160 pounds for the 5000 and 830 pounds (after modifications for universal play) for the Oppo. Thanks for all your help.
 

hammill

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£830 good grief. I will remember that next time someone talks about "rip of Britain". Cant you import an Oppo from the US and the mod form Denmark?
 

Clare Newsome

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Unless you're planning to buy lots of SACDs, I'd buy the Sony. The Oppo is superb for the money, but the Sony is in a different league for performance; as reflected by the price difference here in UK!
 

BJB

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Thanks for the advice but I prefer to purchase local in case I have problems with the machine. Unfortunately, I have gotten used to paying more in SA but at least the weather is good (and free)!
 

BJB

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Thanks Clare. I suppose I'll just have to be a little more patient. Is ther any way of making the Sony multi zone?
 

Clare Newsome

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There must be, as most dealers here in the UK sell the Sony players as multi-region (for DVD) as standard. Check with your dealer - it's the least they can do, considering the delay!
 
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Anonymous

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Couldn't disagree with Clare more. The price tag on the players has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with how good they are. It's entirely down to their performance, not what Sony or anyone else determine the RRP to be. I'd buy the Oppo, it's a faster more versatile machine and in my experience is equal to if not better then anything else on the market in the past year including the £4,500 Denon DVD A1UD. If you're importing it then get in touch with Henry at CRT Projectors and he'll ship you a modded multi region 83. This is what I use and there is no way on earth I'd pay more for the Sony. Not in a million years.
 

BJB

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VoodooDoctor:I think there's a hack that you can do with a Harmony remote on the Sony that makes it multi-region. To Google!

Thanks for the advice Voodoo Doctor. I tried google but did not get any useful hits.
 

BJB

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Will Harris:Couldn't disagree with Clare more. The price tag on the players has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with how good they are. It's entirely down to their performance, not what Sony or anyone else determine the RRP to be. I'd buy the Oppo, it's a faster more versatile machine and in my experience is equal to if not better then anything else on the market in the past year including the £4,500 Denon DVD A1UD. If you're importing it then get in touch with Henry at CRT Projectors and he'll ship you a modded multi region 83. This is what I use and there is no way on earth I'd pay more for the Sony. Not in a million years.

Thanks Will. Not that I blame you, but I am now completely confused. To make matters worse, there is simply no way that I am going to be able to do a back to back comparison. If anybody else has experience with both machines, I would appreciate your advice.
 
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Anonymous

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EDITED BY MODS - happy for you to promote Oppo (at extreme length) and Henry (ditto), but not other forums. You should know better by now, Will

You'll struggle to test one in SA but there are lots and lots of reviews online already. It's not a new machine. I have had mine since June, it's just that the official UK launch is only just happening now, hence the WHFSV review being released in the Awards edition. There is always going to be a hoohaaah around a player that does things it shouldn't be able to do at it's price point because it spoils the game for other manufacturers and makes a mockery of the evergreen "you get what you pay for" adage in hi-fi. If you want to spend more then by all means do, but in my view and that of many many others, you'll be utterly wasting your money if you do and buying a more limited machine with slower load and response times to boot. Best of luck with the decision!
 

Gerrardasnails

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Will Harris:Couldn't disagree with Clare more. The price tag on the players has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with how good they are. It's entirely down to their performance, not what Sony or anyone else determine the RRP to be. I'd buy the Oppo, it's a faster more versatile machine and in my experience is equal to if not better then anything else on the market in the past year including the £4,500 Denon DVD A1UD. If you're importing it then get in touch with Henry at CRT Projectors and he'll ship you a modded multi region 83. This is what I use and there is no way on earth I'd pay more for the Sony. Not in a million years.

I can't comment on the machines as I've not seen either but Will, I really don't think Clare was saying that the Sony is better because of the price difference. She was inferring to the price difference reflects the difference in quality. Obviously sometimes, more expensive doesn't mean better but I believe Clare was saying that this time it does.
 

BJB

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Hi Will, I appreciate your input. You certainly make it sound like a no brainer. I really wish there was someone out there with experience with both machines.
 
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Anonymous

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Gerrard, I would have to disagree with Clare. "Sony is in a different league for performance; as reflected by the price difference here in UK". Those are Clare's words and I think they do suggest an expectation of greater performance for more money. Well you should expect more performance if you spend more, except that in this case, unusually, you don't get it.

Hence I disagreed. Wouldn't you say, on this occasion, quite reasonably? Look forward to hearing your view of the Oppo once you've had a chance to play with one.
 
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Anonymous

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BJB:
Hi Will, I appreciate your input. You certainly make it sound like a no brainer. I really wish there was someone out there with experience with both machines.

Mate, you really do need to look around the web just a wee bit more widely. There are plenty of people with experience of both machines and many more who've written copies quantities of editorial and forum blogs on the Oppo. You only have to look for it. This isn't the only source of reliable information online, though I do happen to love the print edition.
 

Gerrardasnails

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Will Harris:Gerrard, I would have to disagree with Clare. "Sony is in a different league for performance; as reflected by the price difference here in UK". Those are Clare's words and I think they do suggest an expectation of greater performance for more money. Well you should expect more performance if you spend more, except that in this case, unusually, you don't get it.

Hence I disagreed. Wouldn't you say, on this occasion, quite reasonably? Look forward to hearing your view of the Oppo once you've had a chance to play with one.

I understand that you disagree with Clare about the Sony's performance Will (and you are completely entitled to having that view as you have tested both players). I just don't think she was saying that the Sony was in a different league BECAUSE of the difference in price.

Anyhow, I would love to have a play with the Oppo one day. If you are calling that it's up there with the £4k Denon, it must be special. i have to say though, as I still only have a 40 inch screen and I am still startled by the picture I get with Bluray, I doubt I will upgrade for sometime yet. Your speakers by the way look stunning - I just googled them.
 

hammill

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With the £500 you save buying the Oppo (UK prices) you could buy an extensive selection of SACDs which the Sony could not play in the first place.
 

Big Aura

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to the OP - if you're reading on-line reviews of the Oppo, please be aware of the fervent proselytising by the faithful. I'm sure it's good, I may even buy one, but it's not the second coming.
 

aliEnRIK

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Clare Newsome:Unless you're planning to buy lots of SACDs, I'd buy the Sony. The Oppo is superb for the money, but the Sony is in a different league for performance; as reflected by the price difference here in UK!

Can you clarify the 'different league' statement please Clare? (Being specific if you would please)
 

staggerlee

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Will - you seem an expert and a fan of Opps if you only play Blue ray and DVD's is the Oppo such a good thing. It is quite expensive compared to other models.

By the way who buys SACD's these days ?
 

hammill

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staggerlee:

Will - you seem an expert and a fan of Opps if you only play Blue ray and DVD's is the Oppo such a good thing. It is quite expensive compared to other models.

By the way who buys SACD's these days ?
Me. I also buy DVD-A releases. The new release of King Crimson "Red" sounds damn good on my denon dvd 1920 so I am really looking forward to it on the the Oppo.
 
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Anonymous

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staggerlee:
Will - you seem an expert and a fan of Opps if you only play Blue ray and DVD's is the Oppo such a good thing. It is quite expensive compared to other models.

By the way who buys SACD's these days ?

Actually, I'm looking at getting a NAS (network attached storage) (Synology DS419 with 4 x 1.5Tb Seagate or Samsung drives) and a network streamer (Popcorn Hour C200) once they've sorted out all the bugs in it. If I didn't already have the oppo I'd go the streamer route. But then you need the right PC to rip from, the right software, etc etc, a gigabit wired switch on the home network. So there are still many reasons to use a player. Of all the players out there, I wanted the best one, did a lot of research and have been very happy. But like I said, the future is moving to data / storage / streaming. It's not quite a mature enough technology to handle BluRay rips consistently without fault. The products are there, but the firmware is maybe one or two iterations from being fully ready. Should be by the new year I'd guess.
 
Sony 5000 is an excellent player. There are a few fervent supporters of the Oppo. No doubt it's a good player, but it's definitely not the VERY BEST blu-ray player out there.

Personally, I would trust Clare who has more experience of blu-ray players, being the Editor-in-Chief of an AV magazine and giving unbiased reviews, rather than someone who owns a player & supports it (there will always be an element of bias).
 
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Anonymous

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In my opinion, the Oppo would be the best blu-ray machine up to £500.00, while the Sony would be the best blu-ray machine up to £1000.00.

The Sony, being double the price, certainly doesn't equate to double the performance. It is not significantly better, but only marginally better.

I had an opportunity to test both before I settled for the Pioneer BDP-LX91 - for performance and aesthetic reasons.
 

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