Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by hgwy407

I installed firmware 1.66 on my UB820, as suggested above by another poster. I did confirm a successful update on the system information page. I have tried several 4K and 1080 discs with no obvious issues. For others considering this, please take note that the TV display will be black and all update progress is displayed in English on the unit’s display panel. The entire update took about 5 minutes. The word “Finished” is displayed when the update is complete. For me the unit still doesn’t play BD-R discs, no matter where the disc was authored, Windows or Mac. Oh well, minor gripe I suppose. I just don’t like having to have two players to play my burned discs.

Hmm odd. Have you had issues with BDRs in other players? I've had both the old Panasonic 900 and the UB9000, and both played BDRs, dual layer. The Oppo wouldn't though.

I did try a remux 3d blu ray that didn't fit on a DL and tried a triple layer and it wouldn't play it though - but I thought possibly triple layer isn't part of blu ray movie support?

[hgwy407]

Originally Posted by Mobe1969

Hmm odd. Have you had issues with BDRs in other players? I've had both the old Panasonic 900 and the UB9000, and both played BDRs, dual layer. The Oppo wouldn't though.

I did try a remux 3d blu ray that didn't fit on a DL and tried a triple layer and it wouldn't play it though - but I thought possibly triple layer isn't part of blu ray movie support?

The same discs play in virtually every other player I have tried them in. The Sony UBPX800, which is my other player, the Xbox and PlayStation all will play the discs but the 820 won’t. It’s been like this since I purchased it and was hoping firmware updates would resolve it. I have authored with Toast Titanium, Final Cut Pro and Nero. Same results.

[sschen]

Originally Posted by Mobe1969

BTW, I upgraded my 9000 to 1.66. Found the firmware on Panasonic.

I wrote up some basic instructions (theirs are a bit incomplete). I should have taken more notes when I was doing it, but was expecting it to just all happen automatically, including restarts.

https://github.com/Mobe1969/miniDSPB...irmware-Update

Aside from external subtitles, not sure what else it does. It doesn't fix the DV issues.

Since China blu-ray is coded Region C, can you please confirm that loading this China firmware won't locked blu-ray coding to Region C? Thanks!

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by sschen

Since China blu-ray is coded Region C, can you please confirm that loading this China firmware won't locked blu-ray coding to Region C? Thanks!

Gee, I didn't even think of that! If I had, I wouldn't have risked it!!!

No, my machine is still region B. I watched a disc this morning that was definitely locked (I'd tried it earlier on my region A machine and it wouldn't play).

Interesting idea though. Imagine then if I could get the US firmware and have a region A version!

[sschen]

Originally Posted by Mobe1969

Gee, I didn't even think of that! If I had, I wouldn't have risked it!!!

No, my machine is still region B. I watched a disc this morning that was definitely locked (I'd tried it earlier on my region A machine and it wouldn't play).

Interesting idea though. Imagine then if I could get the US firmware and have a region A version!

Interesting. I wonder where the blu-ray region coding is being done then???

Just for the sake of testing, do you mind trying a Region A locked blu-ray to see if it will play?

[RodChester]

Originally Posted by Cortiz

Regarding a new firmware...Some members on this forum have asked Robert for any info he may have or to inquire with his Panasonic contacts but so far he has remained silent.....I hate to be the pessimist but it's looking more and more everyday that Panasonic has either abandoned their players or simply do not care anymore. Just my 2 cent.

The silence really is troubling. Especially when there are newer firmwares ready to go. It doesn’t make any sense to me.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by pbz06

I think I never noticed because I enable and use the "Smooth Gradation" setting on "Low" for my Sony TV.

I think my next round of movie watching, I'll try disabling that and the HDR Optimizer.

So there's you aksing for examples and saying you don't see it...of course you flippin' wouldn't if you're running the Smooth Gradation!

Putting SG on Low is exactly what I use to counteract the Optimiser's banding if/when it becomes a visible problem (as said, it doesn't manifest on content with enough bit depth to spare), but SG takes a bit of picture detail with it so it's not something I use for critical viewing.

[hgwy407]

Originally Posted by sschen

Interesting. I wonder where the blu-ray region coding is being done then???

Just for the sake of testing, do you mind trying a Region A locked blu-ray to see if it will play?

I can confirm this. My player still pays Region A after the update. I tested several discs and all were good to go.

[pbz06]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

So there's you aksing for examples and saying you don't see it...of course you flippin' wouldn't if you're running the Smooth Gradation!

Putting SG on Low is exactly what I use to counteract the Optimiser's banding if/when it becomes a visible problem (as said, it doesn't manifest on content with enough bit depth to spare), but SG takes a bit of picture detail with it so it's not something I use for critical viewing.

Yea I'll leave both off. Feels wrong to enable processing to counteract an issue caused by other processing.

I really like what Optimizer does, but testing some high nit scenes last night (Wonder Woman finale)...where almost the entire scene is lit with fire as Ares blabbering about. Yes I do see more detail resolved in the peak nits within the flames, but it's more of pause it and check while toggling thing. Although I also noticed there's more white (clipped signal?) when optimizer is off. Basically what I'm getting at is I'm not terribly worried if I don't use it, knowing that there's also no potential for banding.

p.s.- what a terrible villain Ares is. He's supposed to be the god of war, but all he does is walk/float around trying to convince her to join him while he flings around tanks with his powers.

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by RodChester

The silence really is troubling. Especially when there are newer firmwares ready to go. It doesn’t make any sense to me.

Yeah he had no problems posting here and AVS when he was selling the 9000 exclusively and selling them, and touting Panasonic contacts, and now people have real firmware issues with it and he is nowhere on these threads. Seen him post on others though.

Pretty disappointing to be blunt.

[ibanezjp]

I’m having occasional picture drops on Dolby Vision discs. No sound dropouts since I’m currently using the 2nd HDMI port for sound. Is this a known issue with the player or maybe a handshake issue with my TV? (A8H)
It’s a shame because DV looks amazing on this player.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by pbz06

Yea I'll leave both off. Feels wrong to enable processing to counteract an issue caused by other processing.

I really like what Optimizer does, but testing some high nit scenes last night (Wonder Woman finale)...where almost the entire scene is lit with fire as Ares blabbering about. Yes I do see more detail resolved in the peak nits within the flames, but it's more of pause it and check while toggling thing. Although I also noticed there's more white (clipped signal?) when optimizer is off. Basically what I'm getting at is I'm not terribly worried if I don't use it, knowing that there's also no potential for banding.

p.s.- what a terrible villain Ares is. He's supposed to be the god of war, but all he does is walk/float around trying to convince her to join him while he flings around tanks with his powers.

Aye, if the grade is more like highlights bolted onto more of an SDR-esque brightness level then even if you're shaving a bit off the top you're not necessarily going to miss it in motion. I generally keep the Optimiser in reserve for stuff that has insane average brightness - like into the thousands of nits - as well as peaks, e.g. most Sony catalogue titles because they can and do look overly harsh with my 'standard' HDR calibration on the ZD9, not just for the clipped peaks but the loss of colour volume that goes with a clipped average brightness.

But as that same 'standard' mode can essentially reproduce up to ~1000-nit content with no compromise in either peak highlight retention or colour volume (and still with superb contrast) then it's great for watching HDR stuff from Universal, Paramount, Fox, Disney and StudioCanal in "1:1" fashion with no mapping at all. Many of those come with Dobly anyway but of the ones that don't, I know I'm seeing them in as true a form as any consumer TV past or present can manage. Optimiser is just the gravy on top, not the entire meal.

And I know that having to check what a title is mastered at/to every time in order to use the correct HDR viewing mode is an anathema to most people who just want the 'plug and play' experience, but to me it's just a natural part of the process. I always double check my settings before I watch something anyway, just to make sure nothing's turned itself on (which has happened before) or if I've used a certain mode for prior non-critical viewing, like black frame insertion.

PS

I think Ares is awesome, I love that Lloyd George-esque vibe he's got going on.

[Robert Zohn]

Originally Posted by Mobe1969

Yeah he had no problems posting here and AVS when he was selling the 9000 exclusively and selling them, and touting Panasonic contacts, and now people have real firmware issues with it and he is nowhere on these threads. Seen him post on others though.

Pretty disappointing to be blunt.

Not sure, but think you might be referring to me?

I do understand and appreciate your feelings. Yes, I worked closely with the engineers in Japan and Panasonic did honor me with a 9 month exclusive in the USA on the UB9000 and we had a 3 month exclusive on the UB820.

I want you and all who read this to know I've tried on many occasions to get Panasonic HQ to fix some issues with no success. I have not given up and am still in regular communications with Panasonic product management.

Regarding your remark about me posting on AVS Forum that is simply not true. I am not a member of AVS Forum and have not been on that forum for many years.

I am a dedicated advocate for the a/v enthusiast and will always support and work with product development and design engineers and senior management on the advancement of our beloved premium audio and video technologies and products. I have a well respected engineering background and 17 years ago I created the annual TV Shootout Evaluation event, which gives me access to all of the TV manufacturers at all levels.

[PoorSignal]

Have any of you worked with Software Engineers in Japan, the process can be quite slow and painful.

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

Not sure, but think you might be referring to me?

I do understand and appreciate your feelings. Yes, I worked closely with the engineers in Japan and Panasonic did honor me with a 9 month exclusive in the USA on the UB9000 and we had a 3 month exclusive on the UB820.

I want you and all who read this to know I've tried on many occasions to get Panasonic HQ to fix some issues with no success. I have not given up and am still in regular communications with Panasonic product management.

Regarding your remark about me posting on AVS Forum that is simply not true. I am not a member of AVS Forum and have not been on that forum for many years.

I am a dedicated advocate for the a/v enthusiast and will always support and work with product development and design engineers and senior management on the advancement of our beloved premium audio and video technologies and products. I have a well respected engineering background and 17 years ago I created the annual TV Shootout Evaluation event, which gives me access to all of the TV manufacturers at all levels.

Hmm sorry for some reason I thought you were on AVS too. I guess it must have been all the posts on the thread in the early days referring to Value Electronics

Great to hear that you have been in contact with them though, and are still trying, although unsuccessfully. They obviously have no interest in us consumers, but given you do have contacts, it is good to know someone with more clout with Panasonic than any of us end users is in contact.

It is disappointing though that even given your direct relationship with them on the units that they don't seem to care about these firmware issues. It is not doing them any favors.

[Robert Zohn]

Thank you Mobe1969. We agree and I have politely expressed the same message to them. I am still optimistic we'll get some if not most of the items fixed or enhanced.

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

Thank you Mobe1969. We agree and I have politely expressed the same message to them. I am still optimistic we'll get some if not most of the items fixed or enhanced.

Real head scratching though is the 1.66 existing firmware players are shipping with that the auto update link hasn't been updated for yet. I posted above how to manually do it with the firmware link. But how much effort could that be? I mean the auto update is still 1.60!

[The Edge]

Originally Posted by ibanezjp

I’m having occasional picture drops on Dolby Vision discs. No sound dropouts since I’m currently using the 2nd HDMI port for sound. Is this a known issue with the player or maybe a handshake issue with my TV? (A8H)
It’s a shame because DV looks amazing on this player.

Would it be possible to post a screenshot of what those picture drops look like? I posted my issue here a few weeks ago and want to know if what you're experiencing is the same as my issue.

[ibanezjp]

Originally Posted by The Edge

Would it be possible to post a screenshot of what those picture drops look like? I posted my issue here a few weeks ago and want to know if what you're experiencing is the same as my issue.

I’ll see if I can get a short video. The picture just goes black for like .5 seconds. It’s very quick but bothersome nonetheless. I don’t think I’ve watched a DV disc all the way through since recently getting the 820 so I can’t say how many times it would happen during a movie but when I just check like 1 scene it usually happens once.

EDIT: Last night I tried 2 different DV movies and played them for 10 min each and of course it didn’t happen. I’ll just have to wait until I watch a DV movie all the way through to report on how many times it does it. I wonder if it has anything to do with happening only when you first start things up. I had been watching a baseball game on the Tv for about 30 mins prior to testing it and the recent times I remember it happening I just popped in a disc to check something and then noticed the issue.

Originally Posted by Mobe1969

Real head scratching though is the 1.66 existing firmware players are shipping with that the auto update link hasn't been updated for yet. I posted above how to manually do it with the firmware link. But how much effort could that be? I mean the auto update is still 1.60!

Do we know what the 1.66 firmware update fixes? I guess also the couple before that since you say we’re only on 1.60 if we’re doing online update correct?

[NewAgeYankee]

I got my UB9000 this week and I am loving it for the most part but I am having an issue when playing HDR 10 discs where when I start a UHD the screen goes does not start but if I switch inputs on my receiver and then switch back the video appears. I dont have that issue with Dolby Vision discs. I have a Denon AVR X2700h receiver and Sony Z8H tv. Any ideas why this is happening or solutions?