Oppo BDP-95 Universal Audiophile 3D Blu-Ray Player

2011 Product of the Year: Home Theater Review's 2011 Best Of Awards
2011 Audioholics Product of the Year: Universal Blu-Ray Player
Best Blu-Ray Player: Home Theater Review's 2011 Best Of Awards (Runner-up: Oppo Digital BDP-93)
Best Universal Player: Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity Best of 2011 Awards

Unlimited region switching is just one of the incredible benefits bundled with Oppo’s BDP-95 Audiophile Universal 3D Blu-Ray Player (Standard or Professional), with the full features you expect from a high quality Blu-Ray player ... and more!

The BDP-95 plays standard and 3D Blu-Ray Discs in Full HD, provides 1080p DVD upscaling, and has two HDMI outputs for additional connection flexibility (including to non-3D HDMI AV receivers).  For Blu-Rays encoded at 24 frames per second (the same frame rate as the original movie's theatrical release), the BDP-95 faithfully delivers the original frames using 1080p 24Hz output (compatible display required) for a cinema-style performance.

This Audiophile Universal Blu-Ray Player can also stream A/V content from your home network; play Super Audio CD (SACD) and DVD-Audio; and play images, home movies and mp3 files with two USB ports for importing images and sound from flash drives.

Two additional features are provided for those that desire above-and-beyond audio performance and connectivity: dual Sabre32 Reference Audio Digital-to-Analogue Converters and a set of balanced XLR audio output connections.

Utilising Qdeo by Marvell video processors the BDP-95 delivers a truly immersive viewing experience by rendering natural video free of noise and artefacts for all types of content.

For high-quality Blu-ray content, the BDP-95 faithfully reproduces the program just as the director intended … for DVD, the up-converted picture quality bridges the visual gap from your current DVD library to Blu-ray discs … and for network streaming and user-encoded content at a variety of formats and quality, the enhancement options include video noise reduction, compression artefact reduction, intelligent colour, contrast, detail and edge enhancements.

The high fidelity audio performance delivered by the SABRE32 Reference ES9018 DAC from ESS Technology is no surprise, as it is the world’s best performing 32-bit audio DAC solution targeted for high-end consumer applications and professional studio equipment.
 
With the ESS patented 32-bit Hyperstream™ DAC architecture and Time Domain Jitter Eliminator, the SABRE32 Reference DAC delivers an unprecedented DNR (Dynamic Range) of up to 135dB and THD+N (Total Harmonic Distortion plus Noise) of -120dB, the industry’s highest performance level that will satisfy even the most demanding audio enthusiast. The BDP-95 uses two ES9018 DAC chips - one for the 7.1-channel output, and another for the dedicated stereo output.

Powered by an audiophile-grade Toroidal power transformer (custom designed and built by Rotel), the player’s superior inrush current and low exterior magnetic field provides a very clean and robust power source to the critical audio components.

NOTE:

• The Standard version is modified with DVD_Region_Free_&_BD_Zone_Select standard kit (Zone_Select means you can select any zone, and change as often as required).
• The Professional version provides configurable remote control address, simplified zone switching, and is future firmware proof (upgradable).

With two HDMI outputs, you can set up two TV's / projectors to view simultaneously, or enjoy 3D television without having to upgrade your AV receiver.

The ultimate in convenience, quality and diversification, Oppo's BDP-95 will simplify and enhance your home entertainment experience.

• XLR Balanced Stereo Output & RCA single-ended Stereo Output Connection
• 7.1 Channel Analogue Output for an incredible and immersive multi-channel soundstage
• Digital Optical and Coaxial Outputs for simple and easy connection to traditional AV Receivers
• Dolby® TrueHD for lossless studio master quality HD audio
• DTS-HD Master Audio for an auditory experience that matches the lifelike images of high-definition video with up to 7.1 channels that are bit-for-bit identical to the studio master.
• Full HD 1080p Output - The BDP-95 features user selectable video output resolutions, including 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, and up to 1080p 50 or 60Hz.
• Source Direct Mode - no additional processing or alteration – for use with an external video processor, high-end audio/video receiver or display
• Multiple Zoom Modes - multiple levels of aspect ratio control and image zooming, including a vertical stretch mode for 2.35:1 CIH (Constant Image Height) display system (Blu-ray discs with BD-Java may prohibit zoom operation.)
• eSATA Port –this fast interface plays contents from external hard drives and enclosures which contain audio, video and photo files.
• Wireless & Ethernet – Using the included wireless-N adapter or the built-in RJ45 Ethernet port
• Dual USB Ports - Two USB 2.0 high speed ports (front and back) for direct photo, video, or music playback.
• PAL/NTSC Conversion - for both disc playback and video output. It can also convert content of one system for output in another. (Subject to DVD and BD region restrictions.)
• Back-lit Remote Control - The BDP-95 comes with a fully back-lit remote control for ease of use in dark home theatres. With its ergonomic button layout and clear labelling, operating the Blu-ray Disc player is easier than ever.
• External IR - For integration into home theatre control systems, the BDP-95 provides external IR IN port to use with an IR distribution system.
• RS232 Control - For custom installation, the BDP-95 offers an RS232 control port with a rich control and communication protocol. Installers can easily program their favourite control systems to operate the BDP-95.
• HDMI CEC - HDMI Consumer Electronics Control simplifies the home theatre by allowing a single remote control to operate multiple devices.

Oppo BDP-95 Universal Audiophile 3D Blu-Ray Player Reviews and Awards

Home Theater Review - 2011 Product of the Year
In a year of game-changing products, price drops and market corrections – no one product has been more meaningful to the HomeTheaterReview.com editors, writers and readers than the Oppo Digital BDP-95. This disc player can do it all (ok, not HD DVD but who cares) and likely is the last disc player you will need for a while. It also comes packed with audiophile DACs for those using the player in non-home-theater situations. It wasn’t that long ago when you could spend ten times the cost of the Oppo Digital BDP-95 on a source component and not get the functionality provided here. Calling this player a game changer is an understatement. Calling it HomeTheaterReview.com’s 2011 Product of the Year seems more appropriate.

Home Theater Review -  Best Blu-ray Player of 2011
Talk about a dominant player in their space! Oppo Digital’s two Blu-ray players have basically taken over as “the disc player of choice” as they do 3D, Blu-ray, DVD-Audio, SACD and more. For the audiophile, the Oppo Digital BDP-95 offers a sexy analog section that people using an HDMI AV preamp or receiver (or a high end DAC) won’t need.
Runner-up: Oppo Digital BDP-93

Audioholics 2011 Product of the Year Award Winner: Universal Blu-Ray Player
There's a reason why Oppo makes waves in this industry. They produce some of the best Blu-Ray players on the market that support every major feature set a serious audio/video-holic would expect. More importantly, their products are highly reliable and well supported by their phenomenal customer support.  

The BDP-95 produced some of the best bench tests we've seen from a Blu-Ray player regardless of price. The BDP-93/95 play every current audio codec including DVD-A and SACD while also supporting streaming services such as Netflix, Pandora, Youtube, etc.  

Audiophiles will appreciate the upgraded analog audio performance and no nonsense build quality of the BDP-95.  HDMI only users should save their money and simply purchase the BDP-93 for 1/2th the price.

We challenge the industry to make a better Blu-Ray player than this at even double the price.

Digital Trends - Best of 2011 Home Theatre - Best Blu-Ray Disc Player
Oppo has made quite a name for itself in the past few years, and it’s no wonder with products like the BDP-95. Oppo’s flagship Blu-ray player handles just about everything. Its Blu-ray playback is nearly flawless, and its DVD upconversion is second to none. What really gets us excited over this player, though, is its audiophile features such as balanced XLR outputs, separate DACs for two-channel and 7.1 output, SACD playback and streaming FLAC and WAV support. It’s even got an eSATA port! Our review of the BDP-95 is forthcoming but, as you can likely gather, we’re rather smitten with this player.

Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity by John Johnson, Chris Heinonen & Stephen Hornbrook Feb 2011 - Best Universal Player of 2011
Blu-Ray movie soundtrack, SACD, DVD-A, CD: ... thunderous, yet clear in every nuance ... The sound was perfect. No harshness, no midrange mush, no excessive sibilance. Just satin smooth musical pleasure.  I have never heard a better quality sound.

Just when I thought it was safe to put all those RCA interconnects away, you know, the ones used to connect the multi-channel analog outputs from the DVD player to the multi-channel analog audio inputs on the receiver, out they came, because the DACs in the players are better than the ones in the SSP.

Both the OPPO BDP-93 and BDP-95 represent two of the very best Universal Blu-ray players on the market, and especially the BDP-95's audio performance is nothing short of superb, posting some audio measurements that were below the limits of detectability by the standard bench text instrument in the industry.

The Oppo's video performance is also excellent. In short, the BDP-95 is a reference quality player, capable of standing toe-to-toe with the best projectors, SSPs, preamps, power amps, and speakers out there.

Positive Feedback - 2011 Brutus Award
Oppo has done it again: produced the Swiss army knife of digital playback ... I wouldn't be surprised if Oppo didn't include playback of DSD files in the near future… it would be smart thing to do given the movement towards DSD downloads now developing. These folks are very savvy about supporting audiophile formats.

The BDP-95 includes outputs that handle 7.1 channels if you're using it in a home theater/surround music system, but there are also dedicated stereo outputs, both balanced and unbalanced, for pure stereo use.

The Sabre32 chipset produces surprisingly good sound; indeed, I have spent countless hours here in my PFO editorial office, listening to the Oppo BDP-95 as the source for my desktop systems.

I like the way that Oppo has provided two HDMI outputs, so that video and audio streams can be separated for better performance. There's a LAN connector for updating the firmware and pulling in Blu-Ray content... they work very well, and I've never had a problem with my firmware patching.

The Oppo BDP-95 is also nicely modable and tweakable; there are several companies (e.g., ModWright) who are producing very good upgrades for the BDP-95.

This is another triumph for Oppo Digital, and one of the biggest no-brainers in quite a while when it comes to my "bang-for-the-buck" Brutus Awards. At its price, who can argue with it? Consider this to be a "highly recommended!" product, and a winner of a 2011 Brutus Award…with real affection!

AV Forums by Stephen Withers Apr 2011 - Reference Status
When we reviewed Oppo’s BDP-93 earlier in the year we discovered a player that was not only universal but also offered some of the best video and audio performance we have seen over HDMI. Incredibly with the BDP-95 Oppo have managed to produce a player that is even better than the already excellent BDP-93. In fact the BDP-95 manages to include all of the capabilities that made the BDP-93 so good and has even improved in the areas where it was weakest.

The BDP-95EU is still able to produce pristine 1080p24 images from 2D and 3D Blu-rays and it can still handle just about any format you care to throw at it. In addition, the Marvell video processing is still capable of reference processing with standard definition and 1080i content.

However Oppo have not been content to just add dedicated stereo analogue outputs to their audiophile player and the BDP-95EU has in fact been redesigned from the chassis up. This has resulted in a reference level of build quality incorporating separate power supplies and additional shielding.

The use of reference DACs, for both the dedicated stereo analogue outputs and the 7.1 analogue outputs - as well as the addition of XLR balanced stereo outputs results in a player that is capable of a reference audio performance.

Whilst listening tests might well be subjective the BDP-95EU was capable of some of the best sounding audio that we have ever heard from a Blu-ray disc player, let alone a universal disc player.

Aside from the limited networking and internet capabilities of the BDP-95EU, the only other minor complaints we had related to the shape of the remote control and the depth of the disc tray. Frankly if those are the only areas where we can find fault in the BDP-95EU then that gives you a good idea of just how impressive this player actually is.

Obviously the decision to choose between the BDP-93 and the more expensive BDP-95EU depends entirely on your needs. If all you want is a digital transport to send high def audio and video via HDMI to your receiver and display then the absolutely superb BDP-93 is the player for you.

However, if you are looking for an audiophile universal player with a high-end design and reference quality DACs then the BDP-95 should be top of your shopping list.

In fact the BDP-95 is so good that it can comfortably hold its own against players that cost two or three times as much and as such Oppo should be congratulated for a remarkable achievement.

Home Theater Review by Brian Kahn Aug 2011 - 2011 Product of the Year - Best Blu-ray Player of 2011
The BDP-95 is the player to beat if you are looking for a reference grade universal disc player. I have not had another under-$5,000 player in my system that could outdo the OPPO with its audio performance. The BDP-95's audio performance was very detailed, dimensional, balanced with a presentation that was relaxed and natural. These are all qualities that make for an enjoyable listening session.

OPPO Digital remains on the performance forefront with the introduction of the BDP-95 ... the universal disc player benchmark for audiophiles. The BDP-95 is equally at home in either a reference stereo system or a multi-channel home theater.  

I found the Easy Setup Wizard to be informative and easy to use.

The bass notes had noticeably more texture and detail ... the highs were more pronounced without tipping the scales to being forward and they were delicate and refined. I was impressed by this balance as many sources this detailed have an artificial forced quality about them that was not present with the BDP-95.

Another area of the BDP-95's performance was its dimensionality of the sonic image; the images had depth and believability to them.

The improvements at the ends of the octave spectrum I noted with CD were also present with SACD. The SACD performance of the BDP-95 distinguished itself even more in the midrange area ... the BDP-95 brought it to a whole other level. I could "see" much further into the recording. The BDP-95 resolved more of the individual voices of the chorus and was able to place them appropriately in the sound stage. Not only does the BDP-95 resolve more of the detail, it does so in a natural and relaxed manner.

High resolution audio through the network player feature was phenomenal. The DACs and balanced analog outputs were able to retrieve and convey this greater amount of information than what is available on CD or SACD.

Blu-ray video quality was excellent as was to be expected.

cnet by Steve Guttenberg Apr 2011
Compared with Oppo's older BDP-83SE Blu-ray player ... more body and soul ... a more lifelike presence ... more natural-sounding. If you have a high-end system, it's a difference definitely worth upgrading to.

The BDP-95 also played ultra-high-resolution 176.4-kHz/24-bit WAV files on DVDs from MA Recordings and Reference Recordings. Puente Celeste's "Nama" from MA was a standout; the album was recorded "live," without compression, overdubs, or processing of any kind, and it sounds as lifelike as they come. The band's hand percussion instruments sounded so real I felt like I could touch them. It's funny; high-resolution audio doesn't immediately seem more "detailed," it just sounds more like the band is in the room with you.

Electronic House
Buyers Scorecard: 5 out of 5.
If you think a Blu-ray player is just about what flashes up on the big screen, then OPPO’s BDP-95 probably isn’t for you. This component is designed for those demanding a lot from the audio side, as well.

TechnoFile by Jim Bray - June 2011
I definitely have a new favorite player. Having used the BDP-95 for a couple of months I think it's a bargain considering its performance and capabilities.

The BDP-95's performance is spectacular. The Oppo's picture knocked my socks off.

As for the audio quality, need you ask? I've been putting it through its paces with a wide variety of my favorite test stuff, with sources ranging from streamed MP3's to stereo CD's, DVD-Audio and SACD discs and music Blu-rays (This is as close to a universal player I've seen).

The sound is awesome. The imaging's wonderful, with a wide and deep sound stage, and the overall sound is extremely smooth, dynamic and detailed, with no trace of shrillness unless it's on the source material. The BDP-95 has taken everything I've thrown at it and tossed it back through the speakers as if to say "Is that all you've got?"

As often happens when you upgrade your equipment, I found myself discovering things I'd never heard before, even on discs I've listened to hundreds of times.

Movie soundtracks sound superb, if the source is good. And the Oppo doesn't just excel with explosions, gunfire and the big stuff that's so much fun; quiet, subtle sounds and ambience are reproduced exquisitely; a well recorded and mixed soundtrack puts you right in the action like I've never experienced before. It can be truly breathtaking.

Oppo BDP-95 Universal Audiophile 3D Blu-Ray Player Specifications

(Designs and specifications are subject to change without notice.)
Disc Types* BD-Video, Blu-ray 3D, DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, AVCHD, SACD, CD, HDCD, Kodak Picture CD, CD-R/RW, DVD±R/RW, DVD±R DL, BD-R/RE
BD Profile BD-ROM Version 2.4 Profile 5 for 3D (also compatible with Profile 2, Profile 1 Version 1.0 and 1.1)
Internal Storage 2GB (Approximately 1GB available for BD-Live persistent storage. Actual storage varies due to system usage)
Output Multi-Channel Analogue Audio: 7.1ch, 5.1ch, or stereo
Dedicated Stereo Analogue Audio: XLR balanced and RCA single-ended
Digital Audio: Coaxial, Optical
HDMI Audio: Stereo, up to 7.1ch high-resolution PCM, up to 5.1ch DSD, bitstream or LPCM conversion of Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Analogue Video: Composite, Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr, 480i/480p, 720p/1080i available for non-restricted content only)
Digital Video: HDMI with HDCP (NTSC: 480i/480p/720p/1080i/1080p/1080p24, PAL 576i/576p/720p/1080i/1080p/1080p24)
Video Characteristics Composite Video Amplitude: 1.0Vp-p (75Ω)
Component Video: Y: 1.0Vp-p (75Ω), Pb/Pr: 0.7Vp-p (75Ω)
Audio Characteristics** Frequency: 20Hz - 20kHz (±0.2dB), 20Hz - 96kHz (±1dB)
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >125dB (A-weighted, with auto-mute), >115dB (A-weighted, without auto-mute)
THD+N: <0.0003% or -110dB (1kHz 192/24 at 0dBFS, 20kHz LPF), <0.002% or -95dB (1kHz 44.1/16 at 0dBFS, 20kHz LPF)
Output Level: 2Vrms at 0dBFS (RCA), 4Vrms at 0dBFS (XLR)

General Specification Power Supply:  ~ 100V - 120V or 200V - 240V, 50/60Hz AC
Power Consumption: 45W (0.5W Standby)
Dimensions: 430mm x 311mm x 98mm
Mass: 7.3kg
Operating Temperature 5°C - 35°C
Operating Humidity 15% - 75%
No condensation
* Compatibility with user-encoded contents or user-created discs is on a best-effort basis with no guarantee due to the variation of media, software and techniques used.
**Nominal specification.