Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[WITCHCULT]

Just upgraded from the 420 to the 820 as I found it for almost half price (pre-owned) on ebay. Nice to finally have Dolby Vision and the front panel display. I did the region free hack as well. Overall cost was cheaper than my 220-electronics modded 420, which I'll sell now (DM me if interested, it's on ebay). Can't beat that. Bring on some more DV 4ks!

[jurid]

Originally Posted by WITCHCULT

J I did the region free hack as well.

You mean the Stop->Top menu thing?

[ronand]

Originally Posted by jurid

You mean the Stop->Top menu thing?

There is a free region-free modded firmware available now - check it out at the avforums site. Its not a simple USB install but it works perfectly

[deatheats]

Just be aware it does require some familiarity with virtual machines & Linux, and there is the potential for bricking the player if done incorrectly.

With that said they’ve done some very cool stuff, including removing a couple of unnecessary CPU processes consuming 100% of their core (which speeds up the player, reduces energy usage & heat), as well as improving subtitle support. Last I read they were trying to figure out MGVC support.

[WITCHCULT]

Originally Posted by jurid

You mean the Stop->Top menu thing?

Nah, the firmware hack referred to in the above posts.

[jtu128]

Has anyone had an issue with the UB820 freezing and pixelating? I had it happen on a couple library rentals and thought it was just due to scratched discs but I had it happen again with one of my discs which is spotless. I cleaned it, tested it in my PS5. Tried in the UB820 again and it still freezes in the same spot.

Also, does anyone own the Terminator 2 2015 Blu Ray release? I’m having this issue between the 42 and 43 minute mark in the movie shortly after John falls to the ground. I’m curious if anyone can replicate the issue.

[Telemachus]

Hasn't happened to me so far on anything

[blue348]

Originally Posted by jtu128

Has anyone had an issue with the UB820 freezing and pixelating? I had it happen on a couple library rentals and thought it was just due to scratched discs but I had it happen again with one of my discs which is spotless. I cleaned it, tested it in my PS5. Tried in the UB820 again and it still freezes in the same spot.

Also, does anyone own the Terminator 2 2015 Blu Ray release? I’m having this issue between the 42 and 43 minute mark in the movie shortly after John falls to the ground. I’m curious if anyone can replicate the issue.

The first one I had did this a couple times. I was within the return period so I exchanged to be safe. Have not experienced it since.

[inseconds99]

Anyone know of a way to downgrade UB9000 firmware? Since upgrading I have lost TV-Led DV on my 77 A95L. Now the only getting LLDV. Very frustrating and I have no confidence in a solve from Panasonic at this point. Apparently this is effecting G3 as well due to higher peak brightness in the EDID. Any support would be appreciated, thanks.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by inseconds99

Anyone know of a way to downgrade UB9000 firmware? Since upgrading I have lost TV-Led DV on my 77 A95L. Now the only getting LLDV. Very frustrating and I have no confidence in a solve from Panasonic at this point. Apparently this is effecting G3 as well due to higher peak brightness in the EDID. Any support would be appreciated, thanks.

Not sure if you can rollback the firmware.

[ViscountCarnacki]

Hi everyone,

I’m just getting back into collecting physical media after a long absence, so I apologise in advance for two very basic questions about my 820 player! But this thread is 692 pages long and I just can’t find the info.

My two issues are colour mode and sound output.

For colour mode, do I need to use YCbCr auto? The player was previously set to RGB 4:4:4.

For audio, it doesn’t seem to be outputting Dolby Atmos. Does the output need to be PCM or Bitstream?

If someone could look me to the right part of this thread for the answers, that would be great.

Thanks again! I’m super excited to be in 4K world again!

[chip75]

Originally Posted by ViscountCarnacki

My two issues are colour mode and sound output.

For colour mode, do I need to use YCbCr auto? The player was previously set to RGB 4:4:4.

For audio, it doesn’t seem to be outputting Dolby Atmos. Does the output need to be PCM or Bitstream?

If someone could look me to the right part of this thread for the answers, that would be great.

I'd use Auto for pretty much everything, bitstream for Dolby Atmos to your AVR or sound bar.

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by ViscountCarnacki

Hi everyone,

I’m just getting back into collecting physical media after a long absence, so I apologise in advance for two very basic questions about my 820 player! But this thread is 692 pages long and I just can’t find the info.

My two issues are colour mode and sound output.

For colour mode, do I need to use YCbCr auto? The player was previously set to RGB 4:4:4.

For audio, it doesn’t seem to be outputting Dolby Atmos. Does the output need to be PCM or Bitstream?

If someone could look me to the right part of this thread for the answers, that would be great.

Thanks again! I’m super excited to be in 4K world again!

You want YCbCr.



Dolby output BITSTREAM
DTS output BITSTREAM
Secondary Audio OFF

[ViscountCarnacki]

Originally Posted by chip75

I'd use Auto for pretty much everything, bitstream for Dolby Atmos to your AVR or sound bar.

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

You want YCbCr.

Dolby output BITSTREAM
DTS output BITSTREAM
Secondary Audio OFF

Thank you so much! That works perfectly. No clue why the audio was set to PCM. Anyway I have Dolby Atmos now and the picture is looking great.

[lgans316]

Wondering if Panasonic will issue software update for DV brightness fluctuations with certain discs.

Face Off 4K plus DV Bright on my Sony 77A80J was a PITA. No issues with Face Off 4K DV iTunes.

I know some keep saying we don't need an upgraded player but we need one that fixes all these issues and is able to load the discs quick and stay silent during playback.

Media files playback also welcome.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by lgans316

Wondering if Panasonic will issue software update for DV brightness fluctuations with certain discs.

Hopefully we'll need periodic updates for such things. But I'm not sure what could fix the discs that have out-of-sync DoVi layers, that stuff should have been caught before pressing the discs.

[sapiendut]

Originally Posted by ViscountCarnacki

Hi everyone,

I’m just getting back into collecting physical media after a long absence, so I apologise in advance for two very basic questions about my 820 player! But this thread is 692 pages long and I just can’t find the info.

My two issues are colour mode and sound output.

For colour mode, do I need to use YCbCr auto? The player was previously set to RGB 4:4:4.

For audio, it doesn’t seem to be outputting Dolby Atmos. Does the output need to be PCM or Bitstream?

If someone could look me to the right part of this thread for the answers, that would be great.

Thanks again! I’m super excited to be in 4K world again!

I think there is something in my signature

[lgans316]

Originally Posted by chip75

Hopefully we'll need periodic updates for such things. But I'm not sure what could fix the discs that have out-of-sync DoVi layers, that stuff should have been caught before pressing the discs.

Chicken-egg situation IMO.

Is it reasonable to expect the authoring house to test the playback in every player end to end in front of real humans? I believe at this stage, it is almost impossible to achieve this via AI.

[shane01]

Just dropping in to report the craziest thing that happens to 98% of my Kino Lorber discs on my 820, 4K or Blu-ray: no sound! Discs fire up, menu comes up, but no sound. Kino menus usually have music. I hit play, no sound.

It’s only when I either remove the disc and play it again sound works, or I press the AUDIO button on the remote to cycle through the tracks. Every time!

Secondary audio is OFF, both DTS and Dolby set to Bitsream. Anyone else ever encounter this?

[ngower]

Howdy.

Recently purchased a Panasonic 420 after several years away from physical collecting. Recent streaming hikes and weird practices (HBO..) have me buying physical versions of "comfort" movies. Which is to say, I'm not back in the game as a completionist collector, but rather as a sort of specifically curated small collection.

My impetus for buying the Panasonic is that the PS5 is astronomically loud playing 4K discs. The Panasonic isn't quiet, but is quieter. I have read the 820 is even quieter.

I'm considering returning the 420 and using the PS5 while I wait for the 820 to return to the sale price from the holidays ($350). I don't have Dolby Vision on my TV, so it's really down to performance, build quality, stability, etc. Is this wasted money if I go this route, or is the 820 enough of a change over the 420 with respect to noise, longevity, etc that it makes this waiting game worthwhile?