Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[Cortiz]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Huh. With the Sony 800 and the Panny 820 I can't tell them apart when playing BD, this is with them connected directly into the ZD9 and not running any kind of enhancement or interpolation at the display end (no Reality Creation) nor any kind of processing at the player end, save for the 4K upscaling.

Geoff - How do you compare the BD/DVD playback of your Oppo, Sony and Panny?

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Cortiz

Geoff - How do you compare the BD/DVD playback of your Oppo, Sony and Panny?

DVD is terrible on the Panny. Much better on the other two. Panny has more artificial sharpening baked into its chroma processing and upscaling by default which is why I think additional sharpening enhancement like Reality Creation would 'latch on' to it betterer in coolguy's case. Test patterns show up the Panny's baked-in sharpening in isolation, but on the ZD9 from the same 7ft viewing distance without any extra sweetening at the display end then the Panny's BD output is all but identical to the other two IMO.

[IlCorvo]

So, the UB820/ 824 does a better job with BRs than both the Sony S6700 and S3700?

[Cortiz]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

DVD is terrible on the Panny. Much better on the other two. Panny has more artificial sharpening baked into its chroma processing and upscaling by default which is why I think additional sharpening enhancement like Reality Creation would 'latch on' to it betterer in coolguy's case. Test patterns show up the Panny's baked-in sharpening in isolation, but on the ZD9 from the same 7ft viewing distance without any extra sweetening at the display end then the Panny's BD output is all but identical to the other two IMO.

That additional sharpening you mentioned on the Panny is why I think a lot of people feels the Panny upscale better. I guess is a matter of taste.

[Webmaster1990]

So I own a Sony A8H (OLED). I have the Panasonic UB820 connected directly to it. My concern (if I can call it that) is that the tv's HDMI CEC can't seem to probably label the HDMI input of the player. Here is a screenshot

[Show spoiler]20220112_153129_1_18.jpg

. Tried manual but not luck.

Any thoughts?

[dannalexcon]

Good evening (In Sweden anyway)

I'm planning on buying the UB820. I've had my eye on it for a couple of years but I went for the UB450 instead, which is fine A/V wise but it's currently being "repaired" (hopefully) beacause of very loud constant noise tested on several discs(my Panasonic 1994 Laserdisc player is pretty much silent in comparison). Even if they replace or fix the 450 I'm leaning towards buying the 820 anyway. But before I do I have a few questions:

1. How much of a difference does the HCX processor make PQ-wise over the 450?

2. Does it handle DV and HDR better?

3. How loud is it? Especially compared to the 450 which was rather noisy even before it started sounding like a sowing machine.

4. Is it recommended to turn off the HDR tonemapping function in the TV when using the HDR optimizer? I have a Panasonic 65" HZ980. How do owners of the 820 here feel about the HDR optimizer? Many reviewers have given it high marks, but I've also heard that it induces artifacts such as banding, that it can clip highlights, and that it does little to nothing for some discs and sometimes makes the picture look too dark. Any truth to this?

5. Should I wait? Since I waited this long I can wait a bit longer if I know that there's new player around the corner this year. It would be a bit annoying if I spend 500$ on player just to see it being eclipsed by a new player for the same price or less. I know, i know, that's how it is with electronics, but since the 820 is 4 years old by now, chances are that a new player would have significant improvements. Any speculations/guesses on the matter?

[pbz06]

Originally Posted by dannalexcon

Good evening (In Sweden anyway)

I'm planning on buying the UB820. I've had my eye on it for a couple of years but I went for the UB450 instead, which is fine A/V wise but it's currently being "repaired" (hopefully) beacause of very loud constant noise tested on several discs(my Panasonic 1994 Laserdisc player is pretty much silent in comparison). Even if they replace or fix the 450 I'm leaning towards buying the 820 anyway. But before I do I have a few questions:

1. How much of a difference does the HCX processor make PQ-wise over the 450?

2. Does it handle DV and HDR better?

3. How loud is it? Especially compared to the 450 which was rather noisy even before it started sounding like a sowing machine.

4. Is it recommended to turn off the HDR tonemapping function in the TV when using the HDR optimizer? I have a Panasonic 65" HZ980. How do owners of the 820 here feel about the HDR optimizer? Many reviewers have given it high marks, but I've also heard that it induces artifacts such as banding, that it can clip highlights, and that it does little to nothing for some discs and sometimes makes the picture look too dark. Any truth to this?

5. Should I wait? Since I waited this long I can wait a bit longer if I know that there's new player around the corner this year. It would be a bit annoying if I spend 500$ on player just to see it being eclipsed by a new player for the same price or less. I know, i know, that's how it is with electronics, but since the 820 is 4 years old by now, chances are that a new player would have significant improvements. Any speculations/guesses on the matter?

1. Doesn't your HZ980 come with the HCX processor? If you set your player to output 4:2:2, then I doubt there would be any noticeable differences especially from viewing distance. The 820/9000's latest processor is known for its upsampling of chroma and resolution, but it's debateable how noticeable it is in real world. There's a reason the specification is only 4:2:0.

2. Depends on your definition of "better". The main benefit would be the HDR Optimizer, but if you don't really need it nor use it, then no. I like the HDR Optimizer on my 77 A9G because it otherwise clips a little too much highlights especially when it comes to colors. But I wouldn't say it's a deal breaker if I had to go without it. I could only tell a difference with test patterns paused and standing inches away (with the Oppo). Same thing with my PS5. I would imagine it would be similar with 820 vs 450.

3. I have the 9000, so I can't say about the 820. My understanding is that the 820 is a tad louder due to it's lesser build quality, but I don't know what that means in terms of audible at a normal distance. My 9000 is pretty quiet during playback, and it only makes noises when it first loads the discs and cycles through chapter skipping.

4. Yes. If you use the HDR Optimizer, then disable any TV tonemapping feature. I don't think there's much truth to the darker/artifacts/clipping claims (likely a Dolby Vision or settings issue). However, the banding was brought up by Geoff whom I believe and trust. I personally am not able to see any banding, and even when turning off smooth gradation. However, it could be my eyes.

5. Only you can decide on waiting or not. Your TV would be responsible for 90% of your PQ viewing experience, along with your settings. There WILL be noticeable upscaling/upsampling improvements with the 820/9000 over the 450. However, I don't necessarily agree or think it will be noticeable from normal viewing distance and if you don't have need for HDR Optimizer. Most discs these days come with Dolby Vision too.

[dannalexcon]

@pbz06

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated.

[Jack Priest]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

DVD is terrible on the Panny.

How is it for 1080i/50 Blu-rays, in your opinion? Would I be better off playing them through a standard Blu-ray Player?

[Naiera]

Depends on the standard Blu-ray player.

[Blu Balls]

Did Panasonic announce a successor to the UB820 at CES?

[panasonicst60]

@Geoff D

I know you recommend having chroma at -1 to reduce ringing. I have been testing this using Ted's calibration sharpness test pattern and at -3 all ringing is gone, but at what cost? I have an OLED so naturally the image is very sharp already (have sharpness panel setting at 0). I'm going to do more content veiwing once I get a chance, but in my display I'm debating between -2 or -3.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

@Geoff D

I know you recommend having chroma at -1 to reduce ringing. I have been testing this using Ted's calibration sharpness test pattern and at -3 all ringing is gone, but at what cost? I have an OLED so naturally the image is very sharp already (have sharpness panel setting at 0). I'm going to do more content veiwing once I get a chance, but in my display I'm debating between -2 or -3.

Yes, -3 or -4 will reduce the chroma ringing completely (but DON'T use the Edge Correction feature as I've previously recommended for the luminance ringing because it induces moiré in real world viewing) but test patterns aside they're all a much of a muchness for day to day viewing, I only put chroma sharpness on -1 as a nominal thing rather than it making a material difference. When viewing an animated movie then areas of hard contrasting colour could make the ringing stand out more, so you could perhaps keep one of the viewing modes set to -3 for that, but for live action then don't bother.

Originally Posted by Jack Priest

How is it for 1080i/50 Blu-rays, in your opinion? Would I be better off playing them through a standard Blu-ray Player?

They're fine, as are PAL DVDs strangely enough. It seems to be NTSC content where the deinterlacing falls apart.

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Yes, -3 or -4 will reduce the chroma ringing completely (but DON'T use the Edge Correction feature as I've previously recommended for the luminance ringing because it induces moiré in real world viewing) but test patterns aside they're all a much of a muchness for day to day viewing, I only put chroma sharpness on -1 as a nominal thing rather than it making a material difference. When viewing an animated movie then areas of hard contrasting colour could make the ringing stand out more, so you could perhaps keep one of the viewing modes set to -3 for that, but for live action then don't bother.



They're fine, as are PAL DVDs strangely enough. It seems to be NTSC content where the deinterlacing falls apart.

Fair enough. But if I don't/won't see a difference in viewing content then I may just keep it at -3 for a feel good on all content. I don't see a reason for -1 as to -3. Please convince me otherwise

Edit: Settled on -2 as it seems to be the best for HDR and sdr.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

Fair enough. But if I don't/won't see a difference in viewing content then I may just keep it at -3 for a feel good. Wouldn't you say?

Yeah, it won't hurt.

[JB27]

Those who have TVs that are compatible with both Dolby Vision and HDR10+, do you just leave both turned on and let the player default to HDR10+ with discs that have both? Or do you turn off HDR10+ before watching those films to use the DV layer of the disc instead?

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by JB27

Those who have TVs that are compatible with both Dolby Vision and HDR10+, do you just leave both turned on and let the player default to HDR10+ with discs that have both? Or do you turn off HDR10+ before watching those films to use the DV layer of the disc instead?

DV is better than HDR10+.

[cicada88]

Originally Posted by Blu Balls

Did Panasonic announce a successor to the UB820 at CES?

No, and they basically dug in deeper with the UB820/9000 platform recently, as they have a $3000+ DVR + UB9000 flagship combo unit debuting in Japan sometime soon.

[JB27]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

DV is better than HDR10+.

Right. It's unfortunate that the player doesn't default to DV when a disc has both. Is there any way to change that without manually turning off HDR10+ for those films?

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by JB27

Right. It's unfortunate that the player doesn't default to DV when a disc has both. Is there any way to change that without manually turning off HDR10+ for those films?

No. If you have a setup & disc that supports both flavours then the Panny players will default to 10+. Why? We don't know. As you say, you'll have to turn off 10+ manually to get DV in those instances.