Rotel analog with digital gear?

[Noddy347]

Hi all, i want to access the True HD and DTS HD sound formats on my bluray discs but my receiver being a 1056 doesn't have them.

So i was thinking of upgrading to the newer RSP-1570 but my amps are the old 1075(5ch) and 1080(2ch) analog units.

Can you mix the new digital line sound processor with the old analog amplification?

If so has anyone done it and what is the sound quality like?

Are there any other options open to me to get the desired result without changing the 1056?

thx,

Matt.

[Kevin D]

I think you're confused on certain aspects. The 1570 would be the equivalent of what you have now, but it just supports HDMI and the new surround formats. It's just as digital as your 1056.

Rotel does have their line of digitally driven amps which do sound different then their analog ones, but that's on the amp side of things.

Kevin D.

[madmac]

Get a Blu ray player (Oppo is recommended) that decodes the hi def formats and has 5.1 channel analog outputs on the back of it and plug it into the multi inputs on the back of the 1056. Configure properly and your Done!!.

[eelco74]

Hi

I use even older amps, like the RB-991 and RB985MKII, and they are fine for SACD/DTS HD etc.

The problem is that your 1056 cannot decode DTS HD since it lacks HDMI.

But I still use a RSP-1098 and it also has no HDMI. So i got a Blu ray player with a 7.1 analogue out, that is connected to the 7.1 input of the 1098.

Marantz and Denon have some perfect players with 7.1 outputs. The mentioned Oppo is also fine, but the analogue output of the standard version is rather weak.

[stuofsci02]

I also recommened to get a player that does the decoding. I use the Oppo 83SE. Now the Oppo 93 and 95 are coming out. All the codecs change to fast to upgrade the pre/pro everytime.

I think the multichannel analog outputs on the older 83 and newer 93 are fine for the price of the unit. Sure Marantz and Denon will have something better, but for several times the price. Going to the 83SE or the 95 should put you close to on par with the much more expensive units.

[madmac]

Yes...I was talking about the Oppo 83SE for the Blu ray. The regular Oppo 83 is designed to be used with HDMI and NOT the analog outs. It's expensive but it's worth it both for the video AND analog processing and will most certainly beat out Denon or Marantz on both fronts. Check out the pro reviews on line and you'll be convinced. I have an Oppo DVD player and it looks like I'm watching Hi Def when I use it. Amazing product!.

[Noddy347]

Thankyou to all for the prompt replies. Ok I Will change the blurry player. 83se is sold out here in Oz. What about the new oppo 93? it's just about to be released here. Does it have better audio/video than denon etc?

Thanks again

Matt.

[madmac]

The Oppo BDP-93 is available now apparently but does not have the same upgraded DAC's and audio section that the BDP-83SE does. Oppo apparently does plan on putting out a 'SE' version of the 93 but it has not indicated when. I would poke around and try to find a 83SE at this point or wait until the SE version of the 93 comes out. What this unit will do for both your BD and DVD discs will amaze you!!. Nothing on the market less than $2K touches it!.

[srb]

I would poke around and try to find a 83SE at this point or wait until the SE version of the 93 comes out.

As previously briefly mentioned a few times the BDP-95 due in February 2011 will be the "audiophile" replacement for the BPD-83SE.

http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-95/

Steve

[madmac]

@srb.....Thanks for the Oppo info. That's good to know

[TommyV]

Multi analog connections on Blu-ray Dics Players

In my experience just from a sound quality stand point, I would recommend the Pioneer BDP-320 or 23FD over the Oppo for a low cost solution. If you do not need or want SACD/DVD Audio, the Pioneers are far superior for using multichannel analog audio. You are going to be close to that of the higher cost units at a fraction of the price and the picture quality is excellent as well. I cannot recommend them enough for multi analog use on a budget.

If going into the high priced units, as mentioned earlier, Denon and Marantz are great options. The Denon DBP-4010UDCI and Marantz UD8004 make units that play SACD/DVD and are superior in multi analog to the Oppo 83SE but cost about the same if you shop around. The Oppo 83 or 83SE does not have an adjustable crossover and as tested by audioholics, it is fixed at a very high 100Hz (despite the fact they claim it is 80Hz). Unless using small speakers, you should want your bass management set at the THX recommended 80Hz.

I do not know if this has been addressed in he new Oppo 93 but when I wrote them an email about the problem, they seemed to not care or have any interest in addressing it. You are also limited to setting speaker distance in pairs unlike the other units I have mentioned.

[stuofsci02]

If you do not need or want SACD/DVD Audio, the Pioneers are far superior for using multichannel analog audio.

I am not sure how you can say this. The Oppo is regarded as one of the best sounding universal players available, and has virtually no competition in the sub $1000 pricerange..

[TommyV]

I am not sure how you can say this. The Oppo is regarded as one of the best sounding universal players available, and has virtually no competition in the sub $1000 pricerange..

First off, the Oppo 83 not regarded as one of the best "sounding" universal players under $1k. It may do many things well (speed, video quality, inexpensive universal player) but analog audio is not its strong suit. Where you quoted me I was referring to the Oppo 83 (or 93 if same issues are present) vs The Pioneer 320/23FD.

How can I say this? Well based from my own experience as well as Gene DellaSala from audioholics. I have spoken with him specifically about the issues with the Oppo players and his extensive testing of the players' bass management.

Oppo on the Inside, Lexicon on the Outside
Oppo BDP-83SE / BDP-83 Blu-ray Analog Audio Measurement Supplemental
0dBFS & Bass Management of DVD / Blu-ray Players

Most people do not use the multi analogs so of course you will find tons of reviews praising the Oppo BD players. In this thread we are speaking specifically about BD players that can be hooked into a Rotel RSX-1056 using Multi-Channel Analog Connections and get the best results. If Oppo does not address their processing of the audio, most importantly the bass management, then it does not matter how great the DACs or toroidal transformers are in the "audiophile" version of the players. They are still missing a very important step in getting proper audio from the multi analogs in a home theater system and the audio will suffer greatly from this. That is why you see people in the 83SE thread on AVS purchasing the Outlaw ICBM-1 Bass Management System just so they can get proper bass management (selling for $200+ on eBay) for a player that already cost a grand.

For the money, you cannot get a player that comes close to the Pioneers I referred to when it comes to multi-channel analog audio from a BD player.

Want to go up in price or get a universal player? Well Oppo is not the only game in town anymore. Maybe Oppo will take this issue serious and fix it in their 93 and upcoming 95.

[stuofsci02]

Sorry, I thought you were referring to the 83SE. This is why I mention $1000.

[TommyV]

Sorry, I thought you were referring to the 83SE. This is why I mention $1000.

The SE suffers from the same issues and the regular 83 (see the links). The SE in a 2 ch setup sending a full range signal from the dedicated stereo outputs is a different story but that is not the subject of this thread as the RSX-1056 is a surround sound receiver.

[TommyV]

Update on the 93

I did just read the manual the the Oppo 93 and they have an adjustable crossover now so that is a huge improvement over the previous models when it comes to multi analog use.

Still if a universal player is not needed (or streaming), the Pioneers can be found so much cheaper than $500 so I would still recommend those if on a budget and want excellent sound.

[TommyV]

I just heard back from Oppo on this, the 83/83SE/80 previous generation players are hardware limited and cannot have an adjustable crossover. The new players has a different DSP chip that allows them to implement the adjustable crossover.

Only get a player that has an adjustable crossover for multi-channel analog audio into your Rotel receiver!

[wettou]

So maybe we will see a Rotel Blu-Ray based on Oppo BDp-95 since they did the transformer for them

[madmac]

@TommyV - Are you talking about Pioneer Elite stuff?. That I can see possibly competing with the Oppo SE Units but otherwise, I seriously doubt it!. I am a BIG fan of an 80hz crossover as I believe a 100hz cross is too high for sending those feq to the sub. I also tried 60hz too on the Rotel and didn't like that either. 80hz is the standard as far as I'm concerned.

[Noddy347]

Just one more thing gents. Once i get my new bluray player i am little unsure of the connection process.

So the amps are connected to the 1056 atm so i would just pull the feed out of the receiver and plug them into the pre-outs on the back of them bluray.

Is that it or have i missed something?

[Audio_ElF]

Just one more thing gents. Once i get my new bluray player i am little unsure of the connection process.

So the amps are connected to the 1056 atm so i would just pull the feed out of the receiver and plug them into the pre-outs on the back of them bluray.

Is that it or have i missed something?

On the back of your 1056 there is a set of 6 RCA inputs labled "multi-channel input". A Bluray player would be connected here.

As for what player, another to consider is the Cambridge Audio 650BD.

Eloise

[Noddy347]

Just before I pull the trigger on a new oppo or similar BR player what difference am I going to get in sound?

At the moment the 1056 isn't decoding the bluray true hd or dts hd formats even through the sound is better than most STD 5.1 DVDs.

So is the going to be major difference?

Using 7.1 analogs with a bluray disc such as toy story 3, which is 7.1. Are they 7 discrete channels?

Am I getting the same quality sound using 7.1 analogs compared to a hdmi sound connection?

Thanks for advice

[madmac]

You will get the same hi def sound with the 7.1 analog outs of your BD player as you would via the HDMI connection. And yes, it will have 7 discret channels of sound. How much better the sound will be is a question to how well the recording was made. Obviously, the audio performance when playing concert BD's will likely be dramatic!. 80% of a movies sound is dialog so you can imagine that the audio impressions will not be noticed a lot of the time.