[Sgoldfin]

This is great feedback. Are there mods available for owners of the Oppo 103?

[modwright]

I am sorry but while I did look into it seriously, I decided that there was not appreciable benefit to be had from any mods that I investigated.

Thank you,

Dan W.

[North Star]

That's because the 103 is already a great Universal BD player in its original stock version.    ...And at its price of $499 what can we say! 

[NutBuster]

Congrats on the superlatives from Awesome Arnie!

Q for you Mike; what was your experience going from the stock IEC too the Furutech IEC?

BIG thanks.

[Phil A]

This is great feedback. Are there mods available for owners of the Oppo 103?

By the time you get done modding a 103, it probably would be in the price ballpark of a 105, which is great in its stock form at its price point. 

[modwright]

I have to agree with Phil here...

[Phil A]

The 105 is a whole different animal.  I still have one of Dan's modded BDP-83s.  When the 93 was introduced (I have one in the bedroom system) they introduced the 95 as a better audio machine.

[mav52]

I took the plunge and went the Oppo105/Modwright route myself and very happy I did. I tried quite a few tube combos and ended up settling with a pair of Sophia Electric 6SN7 ( incredible tube ) and a NOS Mullard GZ34. It really depends on which side of the Neutrality fence your System sits. The Neutral Openness of the Sophia 6SN7 tubes compliments the Sweet Mullard Rectifier . This tube combo is a huge step up from the stock Russian tubes ( which are not bad ) . For power cords I went with VH Audio Airsine.

I'm on the fence.  The tubes Dan uses in his modded player does the buyer have a choice of make  ?

What tubes (make) came with the modded OPPO105 ?

Does the modded player get rid of that ESS9018 clinical sound ( to me at least) I would rather at the moment use my Rega player for audio, maybe I'm just partial to the Wolfson dacs.

[Phil A]

I'm on the fence.  The tubes Dan uses in his modded player does the buyer have a choice of make  ?

What tubes (make) came with the modded OPPO105 ?

Does the modded player get rid of that ESS9018 clinical sound ( to me at least) I would rather at the moment use my Rega player for audio, maybe I'm just partial to the Wolfson dacs.

I'll let Dan speak to most of it, there's some info here - http://modwright.com/modifications/oppo-bdp83-and-bdp83se-mod.php  and it has additional details.  I've heard the 105 in both standard and modified form and it is not the same animal.  I think the stock 105 is a great value for the money and does many things really well at its price point.  One would be hard pressed to find a stand alone player at it's price point as good on any format. Of course in it's stand alone form, it is a reference player.  Many moons ago (like probably 15+, when I was 20 years old of course ). I bought a lightly used Sony XA-777ES CD/SACD player.  It was great in stock form for what I paid at the time (like $1.7k), but a whole different level of player when I had the Absolute Truth Mod done to it.  For those looking for an all in one machine for the various, I think they would be hard pressed to find anything better at the total price of the modded machine (even for CD alone).  The 105D machine of course can do DSD via the USB input (vs. the 105 which does DSD via an attached hard drive).  If you're on the fence, find a local owner and ask if you can bring over discs.  There's no substitute for your own ears.

[modwright]

Hi, the short answer regarding getting rid of the 'sharp' Sabre DAC sound, YES.  This is why I chose the 6SN7 driver tubes and also made the supply tube rectified and tube regulated.

It offers the beauty of tubes whilst still maintaining excellent bass control, detail, extension and resolution.

Thanks and I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Dan W.

[mav52]

I'll let Dan speak to most of it, there's some info here - http://modwright.com/modifications/oppo-bdp83-and-bdp83se-mod.php  and it has additional details.  I've heard the 105 in both standard and modified form and it is not the same animal.  I think the stock 105 is a great value for the money and does many things really well at its price point.  One would be hard pressed to find a stand alone player at it's price point as good on any format. Of course in it's stand alone form, it is a reference player.  Many moons ago (like probably 15+, when I was 20 years old of course ). I bought a lightly used Sony XA-777ES CD/SACD player.  It was great in stock form for what I paid at the time (like $1.7k), but a whole different level of player when I had the Absolute Truth Mod done to it.  For those looking for an all in one machine for the various, I think they would be hard pressed to find anything better at the total price of the modded machine (even for CD alone).  The 105D machine of course can do DSD via the USB input (vs. the 105 which does DSD via an attached hard drive).  If you're on the fence, find a local owner and ask if you can bring over discs.  There's no substitute for your own ears.

I already own the 105, the 93 and the older 95.    Just thinking about the Modwright mod to my 105.

[mav52]

Hi, the short answer regarding getting rid of the 'sharp' Sabre DAC sound, YES.  This is why I chose the 6SN7 driver tubes and also made the supply tube rectified and tube regulated.

It offers the beauty of tubes whilst still maintaining excellent bass control, detail, extension and resolution.

Thanks and I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Dan W.

Thank you Dan, that's what I wanted to hear. 

[modwright]

No problem.

Dan

[MellowVelo]

Hi Dan,

A couple quick questions:

1. What is the output voltage from your analog stage for both RCA and XLR outputs?

2. On future Oppo models, will you be exploring the new design approach that you've used on the Elyse DAC and the Sony HAP-Z1ES?

Thanks!

[modwright]

It is slightly below 2Vrms.

The analog stage used in the Elyse DAC takes up quite a bit of room, due to the Lundahl transformers.  I always strive to incorporate the technology from our own products into our mods however.

Thanks,

Dan

[jhrlrd]

Just getting around to trying the Sophia 6SN7 in the modwright OPPO 105.
I could hear the tray going in and out, and me removing the disk from the tray through the speakers!
A little tap on the tubes to confirm they are hugely microphonic.
Anyone else experience this?
Changing to vintage RCAs eliminated the drawer sound, but tapping still came over the speakers.
Is this common, and Can this be cured with tube rings? Also would it be useful to damp the board(with the tube sockets)
with putty or other damping material?
thanks

[modwright]

Tube dampers are effective.

Be careful damping the PCB as there are many high-voltage traces and at tube pins.  Better off damping the enclosure.

Thanks,

Dan

[jhrlrd]

Thanks Dan, I hope others who may have experienced this will chime in.

[JerryH]

I haven't experienced any microphonics using the Sophia's in my 105. In fact, I had stopped using my Tungsol Round plates in my 95 because of the microphonics. When I got the 105 I tried the TS's there and no problem in the 105.And in case anyone is wondering, I like the Sophia's better.