[jdandy]

The Oppo BDP-83 arrived today. I was impressed even before I got down to the actual player in the box. The packing is excellent, not your typical two pieces of styrofoam on either end of the player like Sony and Samsung packing. The Blu-ray player came inside a custom made black cloth bag with handles. This was firmly supported with black foam on four sides, not styrofoam, for a secure and well cushioned ride. The accessaries (remote, power cord, gold plated 1.3 HDMI cable, and mid-level audio cables) were neatly packed inside a seperate black box that fit snuggly in its assigned spot, nothing loose inside the main carton to get loose. Once I unpacked the Oppo BDP-83, and removed it from its soft bag, I was impressed with the heft of the machine, very solid. The remote control is well laid out in a logical manner, backlit, and easy to operate. Once connected to my MX120 and energized, the set up menu is a joy to behold, crystal clear high definition, and color highlighting of selections, unlike the basic DOS computer level quality of the MX120's set up menu. The setup menu of this $500 Blu-ray player puts to shame the setup menu on the $8000 retail MX120. I have to ask myself why this is.

Anyway, setup took all of two minutes. I put the Shakira - Oral Fixation Blu-ray DVD in, and pressed play. HOLLY MACKEREL.......What an incredible picture. The visual clarity difference between my old Panasonic Blu-ray player and the Oppo BDP-83 is like the Claritin television commercial. The foggy vail was lifted. Every detail was bright, clean, and clear. Color saturation is amazing right out of the box, and I haven't made any video adjustments. I also like the disc tray in the center of the player with no hinged, translucent cover over the controls and disc tray, ala Sony, Panasonic, and Samsung. Those flip down or spring loaded covers across the face of the players are a royal nuisance. I am beginning to think that all the reviews, and the positive comments I have read and heard about the Oppo BDP-83 are true. This Blu-ray player is an unbelievable value at this performance level. At this price point, I am ultra impressed. The Oppo BDP-83 is a winner.