DMP-BD65 vs. Oppo BDP-83

[drtone]

I just bought a Panasonic DMP-BD65, and let me say out front that without having used the product, I'm not second-guessing my decision. The deck has a lot of features for $150 (at Amazon), and I've read one rave review after another from pros and users. Nevertheless, my not-so-sainted daddy taught me to judge almost any kind of equipment by weight to get a rough gauge of its quality. By and large, the heavier the better, a principle that extends through the whole spectrum of manufactured goods, with some exceptions, such as mountaineering equipment, where light weight is desirable. The Panasonic weighs 4.2 pounds. The Oppo BDP-83, which seems to be the apple of everybody's eye, weighs 11 pounds. What is in the 7 pounds difference between the two decks? In other words, what is the relationship between the gobs of extra stuff that must be in the Oppo and any performance differences from the Panasonic?

 

[skers_54]

The Oppo has to have circuitry to read 2 extra disc types and 7.1 channel analog outputs. That'll take up space and so requires a bigger chasis. The 83 has about twice the power consumption so its transformer may be bigger. Lastly, the 83 has an aluminum faceplate and probably uses thicker metal for the chasis.

These differences won't have any inherent performance advantages.

 

[PENG]

I would also add that it could actually be easier to design a larger and heavier player. Your much lighter player should give you AV performance that may not be as good as that of the OPPO but I would be willing to bet watching real world material (that is, not test discs) you can't tell the difference without trying really hard. You made a good choice.

 

[drtone]

Thank you for understanding my question and responding to it thoroughly. That is exactly what I was wondering: Whether the OPPO's real world performance reflects its additional weight. I should add that it would be foolish to use weight as the sole criterion for judging quality, because there can always be dead weight, as you point out, and because there is certainly no one-to-one relationship between poundage and performance. In addition, although the proportions here are not so out of whack, there's the old adage about not using an elephant gun to kill a fly.

 

[j_garcia]

There is no dead weight in the Oppo. It has an aluminum front panel and a much heavier duty steel cover compared to the Panasonics which are mostly plastic and use relatively thin steel covers. I own a BD-60 and the difference is not unsubstantial. Performance: video wise, I can tell no difference with BDs, but with upscaled DVDs the difference is noticeable, just as it is between the Oppo and my PS3. I don't watch many DVDs anymore though, so that is sort of moot. I do listen to a lot of SACD and DVD-A which is why my main rig has the Oppo and when I listen to music on the Oppo I am always reminded why I chose the elephant gun.

 

[drtone]

You also have done an excellent job of answering my question by pointing to why a person might want a machine that is literally and figuratively heavy. Not to argue at all that the Oppo isn't a more powerful, more versatile machine that a Panasonic player. I obviouslly don't have one, but it is easy to believe it's better in many ways. But...Brushed aluminum does nothing for me. I have loved my Emotiva DMR-1 receiver (talk about something heavy!), but one thing I do not love about it is the aluminum front. A metal box is probably nicer than a plastic one, all things being equal. But does it improve audio or video performance? That said, I can see how a heavier lower chassis could act as a vibration damper, and may have other positive properties. Same for a bigger transformer. I have a large music collection, but it does not include the more exotic media types you listen to. I imagine they sound great, but the original cost of the disks and the cost of the equipment to play them properly, is prohibitive...for me. You have a bit better equipment than I do, as well, and can therefore take advantage of a better source. An elephant gun is the thing to have if you're out shooting elephants, but not if you aren't.

 

[drtone]

List System

I know that this is off-topic, and if it's too far off, I apologize, but how do I permanently append to my posts the details of my system?

 

[PENG]

I try not to but cannot resist this one about upscaling DVDs. I used to think the Reon/ABT stuff made quite a noticeable difference but lately I have watched certain discs many times using my different players including the PS3 (no Oppo..yet) and can now conclude that a normal human being could hardly pick those players apart from their PQ except that the XDE definitely looks a touch sharper whether one likes it or not. The so called noticeable difference in upscaled PQ IMHO is due to the quality of the transfer itself. To draw a conclusion as I did, one must watch the same DVD disc repeatedly using different players.

That being said, it could well be that the Oppo does stand out as the one that makes noticeable difference but no one can convince me the PS3 is not as good (in real world usage) as the Pioneer, Samsung (Reon equipped), Toshiba (ABT) models that are known to score higher than the PS3 using test discs because I have done enough tests to know the truth.

 

[sptrout]

I know that this is off-topic, and if it's too far off, I apologize, but how do I permanently append to my posts the details of my system?

Click on "User CP" and then go to "Edit Signature" where you can create a "signature" of your liking, including equipment lists (check the Forum Rules first). While in the "User CP" Section you may want to review all the Sections and make changes if needed.

BTW - - Most Forums of this type have similar capabilities and rules, with one notable exception. Most of us I image belong to multiple Forums including HT Boards and non-HT Boards (I post in several of each for example). The Rules for Signatures usually are the same, but the one "elephant in the room" (AVS) does not allow equipment lists in Signatures for some reason.

 

[indulger]

"when I listen to music on the Oppo I am always reminded why I chose the elephant gun."

One of these days, someone should start a thread for classic quotes read here on this forum.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I just bought a Panasonic DMP-BD65, and let me say out front that without having used the product, I'm not second-guessing my decision. The deck has a lot of features for $150 (at Amazon), and I've read one rave review after another from pros and users. Nevertheless, my not-so-sainted daddy taught me to judge almost any kind of equipment by weight to get a rough gauge of its quality. By and large, the heavier the better, a principle that extends through the whole spectrum of manufactured goods, with some exceptions, such as mountaineering equipment, where light weight is desirable. The Panasonic weighs 4.2 pounds. The Oppo BDP-83, which seems to be the apple of everybody's eye, weighs 11 pounds. What is in the 7 pounds difference between the two decks? In other words, what is the relationship between the gobs of extra stuff that must be in the Oppo and any performance differences from the Panasonic?

If you want a heavier player, just buy a bar of lead and place it on top of that player or inside it
After all, this is not an amp with a heavy transformer

 

[drtone]

Yes, but..

One of these days, someone should start a thread for classic quotes read here on this forum.

It is good, but I want a little of the credit: he wouldn't have said it had I not set him up.

 

[j_garcia]

You also have done an excellent job of answering my question by pointing to why a person might want a machine that is literally and figuratively heavy. Not to argue at all that the Oppo isn't a more powerful, more versatile machine that a Panasonic player. I obviouslly don't have one, but it is easy to believe it's better in many ways. But...Brushed aluminum does nothing for me. I have loved my Emotiva DMR-1 receiver (talk about something heavy!), but one thing I do not love about it is the aluminum front. A metal box is probably nicer than a plastic one, all things being equal. But does it improve audio or video performance? That said, I can see how a heavier lower chassis could act as a vibration damper, and may have other positive properties. Same for a bigger transformer. I have a large music collection, but it does not include the more exotic media types you listen to. I imagine they sound great, but the original cost of the disks and the cost of the equipment to play them properly, is prohibitive...for me. You have a bit better equipment than I do, as well, and can therefore take advantage of a better source. An elephant gun is the thing to have if you're out shooting elephants, but not if you aren't.

I don't use heavy as a basis for buying gear either. I am not saying that a heavier duty chassis makes the player a better player either - it could be in a cheaper chassis an likely perform as well, but I do like having that sturdy feeling front panel on the player. For $800, I don't want to pull a 4lb player out of the box. My criteria is the performance. If I had bought the player and it didn't perform, I would have returned it or sold it. The BD-60 doesn't give me everything that the 83SE does, but what it does, it does just as well and I have no complaints about it.

 

[mtrycrafts]

It is good, but I want a little of the credit: he wouldn't have said it had I not set him up.

Yes, yes, the elephant gets cred too