Good Processor

David,

A better comparison would have been analog output from the Oppo to the Marantz as well as the Lexicon. It may have been the analog processing of the Oppo that you preferred to that of the Marantz.

The comments at AVS re the Cary 11a had to do with bugs. I output analog from my 105 to my 11a, and the 11a inputs are set to bypass, so I am no longer bothered by the bugs. The critics at AVS agreed the sound from the 11a was excellent.

db

David,

I have 93, 95, and 105 Oppos -- I plan to give the 93 to my mother. If you want to use analog from the Oppo, then the 95 or 105 are superior to the 93 and 103, and the improvement is noticeable. It seems to me that the 105 is the best sounding of the three, but I bought it (to replace the 95) for its HDMI and asynchronous USB ports to accommodate a DirecTV HD-DVR and Mac Mini. The 95 will replace the 93 in the living room setup.

The sound of high-quality SACD played on the 105 is remarkable similar to that of high-qualty vinyl played on the Thorens TD 124 with SME Series III arm with SME 30H cartridge. Both sound superb to me, with excellent timbre and soundstage detail.

db

Kr4,

I use analog from an Oppo 105 and Sony 5400ES to a Cary 11a. The inputs of the 11a are set to bypass. A DirecTV HD-DVR uses the HDMI port of the Oppo, a Mac Mini the asynchronous USB port. Video from the Oppo goes directly to a projector.

I've been reading the reviews of the Parasound Halo P7, and it seems a perfect match for my setup. It also has a phono stage for my Ortofon SME 30H. The preamp would output to Proceed HPA 2 and 3 amps and a Velodyne SMS-1 via balanced lines,

Does replacing the Cary 11a with a Halo P7 seem as though it is unlikely to result in sonic degradation? The system is used for both music and HT.

db

Kr4, I agree. I get the impression both Bol1972 and Bacardi are promoting, both a bit over the top in their praise for the products they espouse.

db

I assume all the room correction technologies require a digital signal, whether presented to the processor as digital or digitized by the processor. Is that correct? It causes me wonder if the Velodyne SMS-1 digitizes the signal from the sub output of the Cinema 11a.

db