Using Oppo 105 for Audio from Cable Box?

Of course, you can go directly from the box via HDMI and that would be the best way.

Hmmm...I wonder why Malcolm isn't using HDMI then. Seems like a no-brainer, and that Oppo would have told him to do that (instead of just "wait for the firmware"). I'd assumed the obvious thing was HDMI from box to 105; then HDMI to TV for video, and "regular" (analog) interconnects to integrated amp for audio. Is anyone certain this will work? If it does - and there are no "out of sync" issues - the sound would presumably be better than the cable box or TV audio to integrated amp.

The main thing I had wondered about is whether it's really worth it, i.e., is the cable sound already so compromised that it makes little difference that the 105 is doing the D/A conversion instead of the box or TV. I'm willing to try it if there are no sync issues. If there are, though, I'm not interested until they are cleared up.

Oppo released a beta update (3/26/13) that seeks to address the audio synch delay:

* Added a feature that allows the adjustment of the audio delay time within the range of -100ms to +100ms. This can be set under "Setup Menu"->"Audio Processing" -> "A/V Sync", and the delayed time will be applied to all output terminals including HDMI 1 and 2, Coaxial, Optical, and 7.1 outputs (including the Stereo outputs of the BDP-105).

* The actual audio delay effect might be different for each of the output terminals due to the different audio process algorithms and signal paths used for each output. Please adjust this setting based on the actual output terminal in use.

* The negative adjustment values are for cancelling out the audio delay that the player automatically applies. Depending on the video source and the time it takes to process the video, the main decoder chip automatically applies an audio delay in order to optimize audio video synchronization. The negative manual settings reduce the automatic audio delay, while the positive manual settings apply additional delay. Any negative value setting beyond the player's automatic delay will be treated as completely cancelling the automatic delay. For example, if the "A/V Sync" value is manually set to -100ms and for the current video source the player applies a 70ms automatic audio delay, the final result is that the 70ms audio delay gets cancelled and the audio is not delayed at all. It is not possible to put audio ahead of video using this setting.

I take HDMI from a DirecTV HD-DVR to the HDMI port of the Oppo 105, HDMI-1
out of the 105 directly to the projector and HDMI-2 to a monitor for video,
analog XLR stereo and RCA 7.1 to a Cary 11a processor for audio. The result is
excellent audio and video.

I often listen to balanced stereo leaving the other amps in standby mode, but
that's just to save energy.

db

Thanks db. The question is "does it sound better with the audio being converted to analog via the 105 vs via the DVR or processor?"