The latest 4K UHD HDR Blu-ray media player from Oppo is the replacement to last year’s UDP-203 and as part of the revamping Oppo gave their new machine, buyers can expect a media device packed with some powerful audio connectivity for superb Hi-fi hookup. And we mean this seriously. This 4K Blu-ray player is THE device for serious audiophiles who want maximum sound performance on the devices connected to their 4K HDR TVs.
The 2016 UDP-203 was one excellent piece of advanced 4K media playback machinery and as long as Oppo sticks to what it has shown itself to be very good at, we can expect even more of the same from the new 2017 Oppo-2015. This should apply to video performance and HDR delivery but what we definitely should expect to improve in this year’s model is its audio support.
Some of the new UDP-205’s inputs include a stereo analogue output with dedicated DAC along with the option of XLR-balanced and RCA single-ended connections. Then there’s also a set of 7.1-channel analogue outputs. Additionally, the UDP-203 comes with an asynchronous USB DAC with support for PCM and DSD files.
Then there are the 205’s improved HDMI outputs, with refined clock precision and a built-in headphone amplifier with more power than that of the 2016 UDP-203 model. Other new features of the new UDP-205 model include entirely new DACs in the form of dual ES9038PROs that replace the AKM AK4458VN DAC system that was found in the UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player.
The improvements found in the UDP-205 don’t stop here though. Oppo has promised video processing for the 205 model and has given this device an integrated toroidal transformer for greater efficiency. Even the media player’s entire chassis is made out of metal for minimal vibration problems when you really power up your sound system through this media player.
The Oppo UDP-205 offers heavy-duty audio connetivity
Finally, we can’t fail to mention that the 2017 Oppo UDP-205 comes with all the awesome playback features of its predecessor. So you once again get some truly superb 4K UHD Blu—ray disc playback, support for multiple HDR formats, playback of numerous other disk, HDMI and USB media and moving back to audio, output in 7.1 and 5.1 channels along with stereo output of the old-fashioned sort.
Oppo has the full specs of the UDP-205 listed on their UK site here and we’re expecting this serious 4K home theater machine to sell for a rather hefty retail UK retail price of £1399 once it becomes available in mid-May. This is indeed a lot pricier than its 2016 predecessor, which is currently selling for less than half that price.
Story by 4k.com