Denon 1930 or Oppo 981 ?

rupertx

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I was fairly convinced I was gonna get the Denon 1930 for use on my 507 but then I started reading reviews of the Oppo 981 and now im kinda stuck again.
What would you lot recommend ?
 
In my limited experience, the Oppo has no component, it has HDMI, optical out, 5.1 multi and sub outputs. Not hugely feature rich. Very slim. nice blue lights. Plays quite a lot of file formats. Outputs excellent 1080p and both upscales and deinterlaces better than my Bravia X. Excellent PQ. Very happy with mine. Nice for the price.

Never tried the Denon. :)
 
The 981 is one of the most complete DVD solutions I have come across. VERY impressed. Think quality.
 
I've only got a DVI input on my display (Hitachi 28LD5200), will this output the video ok using a converter cable? I really want a player that will not only upscale but play SACD and DVD-A as well. this one looks good at the price but....
 
Hello Roy,
Got myself the Denon for Christmas this year and i'm very pleased with the picture and sound. Only played LOTR so far but the colours and sharpness are amazing. I dont have anything to compare against as i've only had the TV for a month but im well pleased so far.
Only way to really know is to see them working in the flesh I think.

Cheers:)

Chris.
 
Do they use the same Faroudja chip? Even the 1920 uses the Faroudja but doesn't scale to 1080p.
 
Hello Roy,
Got myself the Denon for Christmas this year and i'm very pleased with the picture and sound. Only played LOTR so far but the colours and sharpness are amazing. I dont have anything to compare against as i've only had the TV for a month but im well pleased so far.
Only way to really know is to see them working in the flesh I think.

Cheers:)

Chris.

Hi there, its really the OPPO I'm interested in and the question is whether my Hitachi will accept an up-scaled output from this unit through its DVI input.Isn't there some sort of protection on HDMI outputs which might stop me using them?
 
Now I'm really confused, I was waiting to get over christmas before purchasing my new Denon 1930 but keep reading about the OPPO 981, and am now leaning towards this product, but am still unsure as you cannot read many reviews from the same source as has so far reveiwed the Denon ie What Hifi Sound & Vision. So am very unsure.
I currently have a Tosh SD220e and am running it through my new Tosh WLT32. Have been very pleased with the PQ and is either of the others really gonna make that much difference.
I watch a lot of DVD but have recently broke my CD player so this will also be my only source of playing CD's.
This is all going though my New Denon 1530 receiver.
I am under pressure to make a decision as this was supposed to be my Christmas pressie and the boss is getting upset

Help Please
:lease:
 
Picked up a 1930 from Richer S today for £199 - and WOW :eek: this is one hot DVD player. Visuals and audio are well up their (via component) with the very best. Knocks the spots off my trusty pio 575a
 
Hi there, its really the OPPO I'm interested in and the question is whether my Hitachi will accept an up-scaled output from this unit through its DVI input.Isn't there some sort of protection on HDMI outputs which might stop me using them?

Is your Hitachi's DVI input HDCP compliant? Anyhow an HDMI > DVI lead (or HDMI > HDMI with HDMI/DVI adaptor) should work fine.
 
Is your Hitachi's DVI input HDCP compliant? Anyhow an HDMI > DVI lead (or HDMI > HDMI with HDMI/DVI adaptor) should work fine.

Went through the manual but couldn't see HDCP mentioned so I logged onto the Hitachi site and found in the tech. specification for this screen and it stated it was DVI with HDCP.
On this basis I've taken the plunge and ordered one direct from OPPO and purchased a HDMI to DVI converter plug (off Fle-Bay, described as a SKY HD HDMI to DVI converter). OPPO dispatched my unit the same day I ordered it and I'm now just waiting for it to turn up. Hope it all works out OK:rolleyes: :rolleyes:
 
Hi RoyH

please let us know what you think of the Oppo as you will have seen in this forum I still am undecided what to go for and need to make a decision soon.

I'm very tempted by the Oppo but not sure of the CD sound quality and I will have to now use this unit to play my CDs'

Hope all works out and am very interested in the answer

:hiya:
 
I have replaced an Arcam DVD and a DVDO deinterlacer with a 981.
 
Yes but the Arcam and DVDO are no duffers so I think that says loads, especially wrt sound quality.
 
So where's the catch?

Superior visual quality than many mid/high end players from respectable companies, and now the 981 competes well with an Arcam for audio!

Is there something I am missing, or is that a good example of 'excluisve' manufacturers charging for the brand name.

Before anybody mentions research costs etc, did the Oppo appear by magic? No, R&D and cheaper production costs...?

If the oppos was encased in a 'tank-like' shell, then it would probably be selling for £500 more like 'other' brands...
 
The Oppo 981 sounds like the best choice for me to partner my new Sharp 37X1DE. Can anyody let me know where you can get one from please.
 
I want to avoid double scaling, so which one would you chose to feed a Pioneer 427?

1) Oppo DV-970HD outputing 576i
2) Oppo DV-981HD outputing 576p

Cost is not an option. Is macro blocking really a big issue with the 981? I'm presuming that the Pioneer has a better scaler then the Oppo. If I moved up to a Denon 2930 and still output at 576p would I gain much, apart from full PAL support and no macro-blocking?
 
Yes but the Arcam and DVDO are no duffers

Well that's what I thought, so the 981 must be pretty good.

If you don't mind me asking, what was the price comparison, Arcam plus DVDO vs 981?
 
Arcam and DVDO were both about £1k when released.
 
I want to avoid double scaling, so which one would you chose to feed a Pioneer 427?

1) Oppo DV-970HD outputing 576i
2) Oppo DV-981HD outputing 576p

Cost is not an option. Is macro blocking really a big issue with the 981? I'm presuming that the Pioneer has a better scaler then the Oppo. If I moved up to a Denon 2930 and still output at 576p would I gain much, apart from full PAL support and no macro-blocking?

You may be mixing up scaling and deinterlacing here. You need to decide what device yuo want to do what. If you are happy for you telly to do both then the 970 may be all you want.

As a user of all the Oppos I do not find MB an issue at all when calibrated correctly. Some other models (denon, Panny) it was much more worrysome but this is a personal issue.

I don't know what you mean by full PAL support.
 
All in all then is the concensus that the Oppo981 is an allround better player than the Denon1930 (must say I am having difficulty in getting a quote for the Denon in Black anyway).

I will order the Oppo today! but is it better to go direct or through CRT Projectors?

:confused:
 
CRT give excellent service, fast and fairly priced. They would be my choice.
 
If there were any warranty issues I am sure CRT would be easier to deal with than Oppo in the US ??
 
Nic,

On the 970H the lack of full PAL support is mentioned at:

http://www.crtprojectors.co.uk/dvd_players.htm

"Important: Since the 970HD does not have 2:2 pull down for PAL film, we do not recommend it for PAL playback, other than via a scaler or into a display that accepts interlaced HDMI input (480i / 576i)"

So I assume if I use 576i output the lack of 2:2 support is not an issue? The 970HD was built to give an option of no Faroudja chip used at all.

M

Note: 981HD is fine and has full support for PAL.
 

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