I wanted to report on my experience with my modified BDP-83. I had Gary do the digital edition mods plus 4xSPDIF multi-channel audio output (I did not have the analog outputs disabled).

As reference, my system is as follows:

Meridian 861v4 Processor
Meridian 800v4 CD Player
Denon 3910 (w/ 3xSPDIF mod from DVDUpgrades)
Genesis 201 Front Speakers
Bohlender-Graebner 520i Surround Speakers (8.1 setup)
Genesis Sub-Woofers (7)
VTL 450 II LRC Amplifiers
Krell 3250 Surround Amplifiers
Sony VPL200 Projector
Panamorph 480 Anamorphic Lens
Lumagen Radiance XD Video Processor

The good news:

Bluray playback is outstanding. Video performance versus the stock Oppo player is close - I believe it is sightly better, although I might not be able to reliably distiguish in A/B comparisons. Audio performance is significantly improved through the 4xSPDIF versus the 5.1 analog connections. Avoiding the additional D/A conversions clearly helps.

DVD playback is also outstanding. Similar comments on video and audio as above.

CD playback is pretty darn close to that of my 800v4. Perhaps not quite as open and relaxed, but pretty close. I will continue to use the 800 for CD (Analogy: the $10 million ballplayer almost always plays ahead of the $100K ballplayer).

The not-so-good news:

There is something amiss with SACD playback on my BDP-83/861 combo. While the sound quality is superb (at least the equal of my modified Denon) I am having some decoding issues that result in periodic soft pops/dropouts. This occurs on both the 4xSPDIF outputs and the analog outputs so I think it is not an issue with Gary's mods. I need SACD to work properly in the Oppo otherwise I have three MCH digital sources but only two MCH inputs on my 861. Soft pops have been reported by other non-modified Oppo EAP users so I'll have to pursue with Oppo. (EDIT - spoke to Oppo CS and they note this is a known issue. Apparently it is quite subtle so many people might not even notice - or chalk it up to a flaw in the recording. They are investigating and I've little doubt that a fix will show up in a subsequent version of the firmware)

Did not test:

I did not bother to test DVD-A on the Oppo. Partly because DVD-A is so good on my 800, and partly because the reports of DVD-A performance so far on the Oppo has been buggy.

Hope this is helpful.

Simon

Last edited by Simon; 2009-05-27 16:32. Reason: additional info
My Kit: 861v8+ID41, 800v4, UHD722, MD600, MS600, MS200, Oppo BDP-203, Genesis 201, Genesis 350 SE, Genesis S4-8 Sub, BG 520i, VTL MB450 II, Krell Showcase 7, Genesis 928 Subs, Danley DTS10 sub, SVS Ultra 16 subs.