Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by Naiera

HDR should’ve been a layer that could be turned off, instead of this mess.

Yeah, had I known it was going to be messy, I wouldn't have bought a UHD player. The people at AVS Forum said the Panny was very good in converting HDR to SDR, so that's why I bought it. And it's certainly not bad, but I just think 4K SDR is still better!

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by MrHT

Yeah, had I known it was going to be messy, I wouldn't have bought a UHD player. The people at AVS Forum said the Panny was very good in converting HDR to SDR, so that's why I bought it. And it's certainly not bad, but I just think 4K SDR is still better!

Just because you seemingly don't understand what the HDR toolset is or does or is unwilling to save up for a better display, doesn't mean the rest of us can't muddle through with this technology.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

Just because you seemingly don't understand what the HDR toolset is or does or is unwilling to save up for a better display, doesn't mean the rest of us can't muddle through with this technology.

Never said you didn’t. Not sure why you’re getting all riled up about it.

And it’s not that I can’t afford a better technology; it’s just that I don’t want to throw out a working TV that’s only three years old that I paid money for. Especially since it’s only UHD discs that are giving me issues due to there being no SDR counterpart available other than just watching the included 1080p BD.

[Naiera]

Originally Posted by MrHT

Yeah, had I known it was going to be messy, I wouldn't have bought a UHD player. The people at AVS Forum said the Panny was very good in converting HDR to SDR, so that's why I bought it. And it's certainly not bad, but I just think 4K SDR is still better!

Having the best HDR to SDR conversion just doesn't mean much, unfortunately.

[pbz06]

umm, 4K SDR is better to what? lol

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by pbz06

umm, 4K SDR is better to what? lol

HDR doesn't work well on my particular display.

Here's an example of the "The Greatest Showman" both in HD SDR vs. 4K HDR, as well as the HDR to SDR BT2020 Conversion:

SDR
https://i.ibb.co/P4z03w5/GS-SDR.jpg

HDR
https://i.ibb.co/jZJn2Sq/GS-HDR.jpg

HDR to SDR BT2020 Conversion
https://i.ibb.co/ZSrBP9L/SDR-BT2020.jpg

As you can see, the SDR has deeper, richer colors. The HDR looks washed out with faded colors.

[chip75]

Unfortunately unless you buy an OLED you're probably not going to get the best tech, it's reserved for 55'' models and above.

As to your issues, MrHT, just watch how you enjoy the content until you do upgrade. 400 nits is just too low for any kind of HDR, if you didn't have the 820 I'd imagine some 4,000 nit masters would be just brutal.

You might also try some bias lighting, that might help.

[pbz06]

Originally Posted by MrHT

HDR doesn't work well on my particular display.

Here's an example of the "The Greatest Showman" both in HD SDR vs. 4K HDR:

SDR
https://i.ibb.co/P4z03w5/GS-SDR.jpg

HDR
https://i.ibb.co/jZJn2Sq/GS-HDR.jpg

As you can see, the SDR has deeper, richer colors. The HDR looks washed out with faded colors.

OK, yea. Missed the earlier conversations about the TV you have. You're better off sticking with SDR.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by pbz06

OK, yea. Missed the earlier conversations about the TV you have. You're better off sticking with SDR.

Yeah, just for the fun of it, I added in a picture with the HDR to SDR BT2020 Conversion to my post above.

Here is the added picture, for your reference:

HDR to SDR BT2020 Conversion
https://i.ibb.co/ZSrBP9L/SDR-BT2020.jpg

Picture is a little darker than the HD SDR, but colors are brighter due to the BT2020 color space and blacks are deeper too. Not perfect, by any means, but it beats using the horrendous HDR on my TV.

[Naiera]

Originally Posted by pbz06

umm, 4K SDR is better to what? lol

UMMMM, read the whole conversation.

[Naiera]

Originally Posted by Panson

For your next purchase, I suggest you consider a 4K UHD TV with a VA panel.

Good luck.

This is a terrible recommendation. The only correct answer is OLED.

[pbz06]

Originally Posted by Naiera

UMMMM, read the whole conversation.

I did. Keep up. Thanks for your contribution.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by chip75

Unfortunately unless you buy an OLED you're probably not going to get the best tech, it's reserved for 55'' models and above.

As to your issues, MrHT, just watch how you enjoy the content until you do upgrade. 400 nits is just too low for any kind of HDR, if you didn't have the 820 I'd imagine some 4,000 nit masters would be just brutal.

You might also try some bias lighting, that might help.

Yeah. All I have to say is that next time, I should take the advice from AVS Forum with a grain of salt. The posters there were the ones that told me this Sony X800E was a good TV and they were the ones that told me the Panny UB420 would fix my HDR issue since the player has good tone mapping.

I'm sure some members there have good expertise, but I feel like many of them probably pose as "experts" when they really aren't.

Next time, I need to research and learn all about the proper specs and use that to do some independent research on my end and not rely solely on opinionated reviews.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by Naiera

Having the best HDR to SDR conversion just doesn't mean much, unfortunately.

After toggling back and forth non-stop today between HDR and HDR>SDR BT2020, it does appear like I'm losing detail with the HDR>SDR conversion. Due to the dimming of the picture and loss of contrast, there's quite a loss of detail and picture depth. Even though the HDR gives me a washed out look and weaker colors, at least the detail and contrast are all there. So I'm really at a loss of which to pick. Both are bad in their own way. I guess your suggestion about forgoing the UHD discs and only watching the 1080p BDs instead is the best route to go, but then what do I do with my UHD player? Maybe I should just sell it and put this headache to bed once and for all....

[chip75]

Originally Posted by MrHT

I guess your suggestion about forgoing the UHD discs and only watching the 1080p BDs instead is the best route to go, but then what do I do with my UHD player? Maybe I should just sell it and put this headache to bed once and for all....

If you like rewatching things just keep doing what you're doing, yes, watch the BDs if the UHDs aren't acceptable, but they will be when you get a new display assuming it has better HDR capabilities.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by chip75

If you like rewatching things just keep doing what you're doing, yes, watch the BDs if the UHDs aren't acceptable, but they will be when you get a new display assuming it has better HDR capabilities.

Definitely if/when I get a new TV, I have to be careful, not rush into it and do endless research. I was doing a quick gander at Best Buy’s website and saw that the many TVs such as the Samsung UN55AU8000 literally only has about 300 nits, according to rtings. Can’t believe a 55 inch TV would have a worse peak brightness than my Sony 43” TV. It’s crazy how many garbage HDR TVs are out there. So definitely need to do my research next time…

[Naiera]

Originally Posted by MrHT

I guess your suggestion about forgoing the UHD discs and only watching the 1080p BDs instead is the best route to go, but then what do I do with my UHD player? Maybe I should just sell it and put this headache to bed once and for all....

Keep it and buy an OLED as soon as possible. Heck your three years old LCD TV. Sell it for whatever you can get after you've purchased that OLED.

Originally Posted by MrHT

Definitely if/when I get a new TV, I have to be careful, not rush into it and do endless research.

You really don't. As mentioned, an OLED from Panasonic, LG or Sony is your answer.

[Compson]

Hard to tell from a picture of a monitor, but the SDR looks oversaturated to me. You might try raising the TV’s color level for HDR and see if it’s more to your liking.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by Compson

Hard to tell from a picture of a monitor, but the SDR looks oversaturated to me. You might try raising the TV’s color level for HDR and see if it’s more to your liking.

On my TV, you can’t independently adjust the color tone in HDR. So if I raise it in HDR, it will raise for SDR as well.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by Naiera

Keep it and buy an OLED as soon as possible. Heck your three years old LCD TV. Sell it for whatever you can get after you've purchased that OLED.

Is there an easy way to sell a 43" TV? I'd prefer not to lug that thing around just to get chump change for it. That is my issue, and I don't want to be wasteful and just throw it out.