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Old 07-28-2025, 06:31 PM   #1
Marincho Marincho is offline
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Default 1080p Blu-ray on a 4K TV

Hi! I'm so sorry if this may be a duplicate thread.

So basically, my question is if there are any downsides to using a regular Blu-ray player on a 4K TV?

I'm not planning to upgrade my movie collection to UHD, but I was wondering if there's any actual difference between playing the movies through my current player vs a 4K player.

For reference, my collection consists only of Blu-rays and DVDs.

Thanks in advance!
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Old 07-28-2025, 09:06 PM   #2
alchav21 alchav21 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marincho View Post
Hi! I'm so sorry if this may be a duplicate thread.

So basically, my question is if there are any downsides to using a regular Blu-ray player on a 4K TV?

I'm not planning to upgrade my movie collection to UHD, but I was wondering if there's any actual difference between playing the movies through my current player vs a 4K player.

For reference, my collection consists only of Blu-rays and DVDs.

Thanks in advance!
Yes the people that watch and play UHD 4K say that is a big difference, but you have to try it for yourself. I say you have to have a High End Player, UHD 4K TV, or Projector to really tell the difference.

I enjoy Digital Streaming, and with a good setup and connection you have many options. Solid Providers like Amazon Prime, Netflix, AppleTV, and Hulu will give you all the Movies and TV Shows you'll need with UHD 4K Quality!
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Old 07-28-2025, 09:18 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marincho View Post
Hi! I'm so sorry if this may be a duplicate thread.

So basically, my question is if there are any downsides to using a regular Blu-ray player on a 4K TV?

I'm not planning to upgrade my movie collection to UHD, but I was wondering if there's any actual difference between playing the movies through my current player vs a 4K player.

For reference, my collection consists only of Blu-rays and DVDs.

Thanks in advance!
You could get a Panasonic 4k player which plays hdr content and makes it sdr. If you want to have an Atmos track that the Blu-ray won’t have, you get that benefit. Also sometimes the 4k gets a brand new master but the Blu-ray is old. It looks like you’re watching a remastered Blu-ray. I did this for about two years before a went full UHD and it worked beautifully, if Atmos or brand new masters tickle your fancy, it’s an option.
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Old 07-28-2025, 10:16 PM   #4
Vilya Vilya is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alchav21 View Post
Yes the people that watch and play UHD 4K say that is a big difference, but you have to try it for yourself. I say you have to have a High End Player, UHD 4K TV, or Projector to really tell the difference.

I enjoy Digital Streaming, and with a good setup and connection you have many options. Solid Providers like Amazon Prime, Netflix, AppleTV, and Hulu will give you all the Movies and TV Shows you'll need with UHD 4K Quality!
You are already on record as saying that you can tell much of a difference between HD and 4K streaming. You do not even own a 4K disc player nor any 4K discs, so you definitely can not speak to the difference between a blu-ray and a 4K disc.

As for streaming, no one hear asked about it. At all. This is the blu-ray section of the forum, not the digital section.

As to the OP's actual question, you can let your 4K TV do the upscaling, then the player that you use to play your blu-rays won't much matter as your 4K TV will do the work.

Last edited by Vilya; 07-28-2025 at 10:25 PM.
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Old 07-28-2025, 10:19 PM   #5
Streamingsux Streamingsux is offline
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1080p blu-rays look great on a 4K TV..
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Old 08-05-2025, 08:02 PM   #6
Axel X Axel X is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alchav21 View Post
Yes the people that watch and play UHD 4K say that is a big difference, but you have to try it for yourself. I say you have to have a High End Player, UHD 4K TV, or Projector to really tell the difference.

I enjoy Digital Streaming, and with a good setup and connection you have many options. Solid Providers like Amazon Prime, Netflix, AppleTV, and Hulu will give you all the Movies and TV Shows you'll need with UHD 4K Quality!
Basically you pretty much said absolutely nothing!
Need an explanation?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Vilya View Post
As to the OP's actual question, you can let your 4K TV do the upscaling, then the player that you use to play your blu-rays won't much matter as your 4K TV will do the work.
The actual question is if it matters if the OP uses his current Blu-ray player vs a newer (?) 4K player.

Shoot first, ask questions later...

What TV does the OP have?
Does the OP have an AVR in between the BD Player and TV? If so, What AVR?
What BD Player does the OP currently have?

Just a couple scenario's I can come up with:
1) The OP has a very old 4K TV and no AVR, in that case letting a 'newer' 4K BD Player do the up-scaling may improve the PQ 'substantially'
2) The OP has one of the latest's ToTL Sony or Panasonic TV's, in that case let the TV do the up-scaling, very unlikely that your AVR is going to do a better job.

'Substantially' is subjective, just like 'day and night'

Quote:
Originally Posted by Streamingsux View Post
1080p blu-rays look great on a 4K TV..
Care to elaborate?
I mean, VHS rips look 'great' on a 14" 4K screen @ 10ft.

Stick the physical disc to any size TV and it will look just as great from the same distance
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Old 08-05-2025, 11:02 PM   #7
Streamingsux Streamingsux is offline
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Elaborate what? I was just making a blanket statement for the heck of it. That a great blu-ray upscaled on a 4K TV still is a fantastic viewing experience. On any size 4K TV. I'm not splitting hairs about it one way or another. If that wasn't an answer to the question that started the thread....well, that's just my overall opinion. The thread says 1080p blu-ray on a 4K TV. Not VHS rips. So that's what I gave my opinion on..
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Old 08-11-2025, 10:05 PM   #8
Marincho Marincho is offline
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Sorry! Didn't mean to open this thread and run away.

This is my TV

I currently own two Samsung players: J5700 and F5100. I also have a PS3 but only use it for movies whenever the DVD disc doesn't have any subtitles but does have CC.
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Old 08-27-2025, 11:37 PM   #9
Axel X Axel X is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Streamingsux View Post
The thread says 1080p blu-ray on a 4K TV. Not VHS rips. So that's what I gave my opinion on..
The thread title says 1080p Blu-ray on a 4K TV
The question(s) that were asked:
Quote:
my question is if there are any downsides to using a regular Blu-ray player on a 4K TV?

if there's any actual difference between playing the movies through my current player vs a 4K player.
You've taken VHS rips out of context, I said VHS rips on a 14" 4K screen @ 10ft.
The reason I mentioned this is because not only the source matters, but because screen size and viewing distance also matter.
When you're close enough to the screen you may see the difference between a regular Blu-ray and a 4K Blu-ray, when you're too close to the screen you may see individual pixels, and when you're too far from the screen you'll lose detail and a 4K Blu-ray may look the 'same' as a regular Blu-ray.

That still isn't the whole story, but it's also not an answer to the OP's question(s.) (Various things are left out, like eyesight, environment (Daytime viewing with the sun shining on your TV vs a dark room...))

Quote:
Originally Posted by Streamingsux View Post
Elaborate what? I was just making a blanket statement for the heck of it. That a great blu-ray upscaled on a 4K TV still is a fantastic viewing experience. On any size 4K TV. I'm not splitting hairs about it one way or another. If that wasn't an answer to the question that started the thread....well, that's just my overall opinion.
You can argue whether you should or shouldn't make blanket statements, in this case I'm going to keep my opinion to myself.

Maybe you should also have a look at: TV Size To Distance Calculator (And The Science Behind It)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marincho View Post
Sorry! Didn't mean to open this thread and run away.

This is my TV

I currently own two Samsung players: J5700 and F5100. I also have a PS3 but only use it for movies whenever the DVD disc doesn't have any subtitles but does have CC.
Don't worry, we are all human (Sometimes I have my doubts, but that's a different story) and while I can't speak for other people, I think most of us also have a life besides blu-ray.com, not to mention priorities or the fact that we tend to forget things (Especially the things that are least important to us.)

EDIT: When you're satisfied with what you're seeing, stop reading.

First of all I'd suggest that you have a look at the article below:
TV Size To Distance Calculator (And The Science Behind It)
If your viewing distance is close enough, you should ask yourself if you're satisfied with the way things look right now.
Then ask yourself if you're willing to spend $$$ on a player that may or may not show an improvement.

By now you may understand that things, unfortunately(?), aren't always that simple, only you can decide whether a change is a minor improvement or a 'day and night' difference, or maybe not an improvement at all.
We all experience things in different ways, that could be your viewing experience, pain, pleasure, taste... you name it.

See if someone is willing to bring over his/her 4K player or if there's a store that will let you try one at home (Watch the small print!)

Wish I could give you a better/more satisfying answer.
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