Originally Posted by AFdoughty
If the spinner and processing for sound and image is the same architecture in each then I'd buy the cheap one.
To that I'd add 'and power supply'. It's very hard to say without an actual side by side comparison though, without that, or actually opening them up and/or pulling apart the firmware/software code (even if you understood it) it's only an assumption that the cheaper models are the same as the dearer ones apart from features...

HC: 861v4/ID40/LPS, DSP5000, DSP5000VC, DSP3100, SW1600, HD621, Oppo BDP-105, Sony VPL-HW55ES
2-Channel: Oppo BDP-105, TEAC VRDS-7/Trichord Clock 3/PSU, 551, Quad 303, Harbeth Compact 7ES-3, Kimber cables, Russ Andrews mains and supports.
Previous Meridian: 5000C, 5200SL, 7200.2, 6000, 562V.2, 568.2mm, 800v4, 808.2i, 818v2/v3, 861v8, 502