Hello,

I recently purchased an Oppo BDP-83 Blu Ray player. It is connected to a Carver 125 watt per channel 5 channel amp. I am considering purchasing a dedicated preamp or an av receiver with Audessy. I would like to spend no more than $500, but frankly that doesn't leave me many options for a preamp. The OutLaw 970 is the only preamp that I am aware of that meets that criteria, as it is occasionally on sale for $299. Being as objective as you can, would you purchase the Outlaw 970 or say a Marantz SR5003 receiver with Audessy? I have heard numerous pro's and cons regarding the Audessy. Also if I upgrade my BDP-83 to the SE version, would I need to purchase an OutLaw 990 to enjoy the improved sound or would the 970 still be fine? Sorry for all the questions. Thanks for your help.

The advantages of Audyssey can vary depending on the space acoustics and the quality of the receiver or processor. In my space, it is nice but not earth-shattering. In fact, the BDP-83's analog output (which doesn't benefit from Audyssey) is extremely well matched to digital output when connected to an Onkyo PR-SC885 (which does benefit from Audyssey). The 885 and is a more substantial processor than either the 970 or the SR5003.

If you upgrade the BDP-83 to the BDP-83SE, you are upgrading the power supply and the analog section. This upgrade will only yield a benefit to you if you are using the BDP-83's analog output, in which case you aren't using Audyssey anymore (no matter what processor you have). In that scenario, a product with a good, clean analog path is really all you need - and the Model 970 would likely be right up near the top of that list, especially considering your budget. The Model 990 has a few more bells and whistles, and it has better DAC's, but you aren't interested in its DAC's when the BDP-83SE is your source. A 970/83SE combo is actually a pretty compelling package.

Gonk,

I have read a lot of your posts here and you are very knowledgeable and helpful. I was initially considering upgrading to the SE and picking up the 970, but others suggested I upgrade to an av receiver with more bells and whistles. I do see that OutLaw is pairing the Oppo BDP-83 with the 970 and the SE with the 990. I understand the 990 and 970 probably can't be compared, but would the sound be noticeably better with the 990? I didn't want to breakdown and spend more than $500-600, but I have also been waiting for reviews on the Emotiva UMC-1. People at Oppo told me if I go that route they suggested I don't upgrade to the SE. It's just so confusing.

By the way I do have a very nice system listed below are my individual components.

Samsung PN50B650
Front L & R Speakers JBL-L112
Center Speaker JBL ?
Rear Surrounds Bose 301's
Carver Amazing Sunfire Sub 1800 watts
Blu Ray Player Oppo BDP-83
Carver AV-705X 125 watt per channel

Placed in the garage Carver CT-28 preamp
Sony Digital Preamp DSP-EP9ES

The Model 990 will likely offer the biggest sound quality benefit for digital audio sources, but what I've heard of the Model 970 indicates that the analog path for sources that simply "pass through" (no analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog conversions) is quite good. The BDP-83 would be just such a source as long as you didn't set the rear panel bass management switch to "DIGITAL". (See my Model 970/BDP-83 setup guide for my suggestions regarding this switch.) At that point the differences between Model 970 and Model 990 would be minimized.

OPPO Digital was quite right to steer you away from the SE if you are looking at an HDMI-based processor or receiver. If you use HDMI for your audio, the SE upgrade is a waste of money.

I have my Oppo hooked to my 970 via the 7.1 analog inputs. I have no other connection except the HDMI to DVI. Do I need to make a digital connection in order for the 970 to output DD True HD or DTS-HD MA? The only time I have seen the 970 show Dolby Digital on the screen was with a broadcast signal, via a digital cable direct from the tv to the 970. I don't even get it through my cable box. Do I have these all things hooked up all wrong??

If you set it up correctly you will get DD True HD and DTS-MAHD via analog. I'm not sure if you looked at gonk's set up link for the 83 but you might want to refer to it and make sure you've got things set up correctly:

http://prillaman.net/setup-970bdp83.html

Not sure why you've got your tv out to the 970 instead of the cable box directly in, but if you follow the instructions above you'll be fine.

I have the Cable box to the TV via HDMI, then connect the TV to the 970 via optical. This way I can watch HDTV without having to fire up the whole system. Is it possible that I may need an optical connection from the cable box to the 970 also?

At some point, either the cable box or the TV need to break the digital audio signal out and pass it to the 970. I would think that this would be best accomplished as early in the process as possible, so I'd try an optical connection from the cable box to the 970 and see if this gives you any improvement.
I tried using seperate inputs on the tv so that i could switch from the main system speakers to the tv speakers when I wished but found that this simply added complexity to the system an increased The Boss's fustration level when she wanted to change channels.
The proof of the pudding is how it sounds to you.

I run my DirecTv audio via optical to my 970, and I have the DirecTv receiver connected to my TV via HDMI, so I can watch tv independently of having my system on.