Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[danny24]

These Panasonic machines seem to have their own thing going on. They either work flawlessly or start having issues.

[danny24]

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

I feel like the UB9000 is crap.

Almost every other 4K i play is always have those digital blocking / freezing / and plays in a slow motion at times or completely jagged

Currently trying to watch VS Jade

It’s so friggin annoying. Never had issues so bad with my OPPO

And let me stress I have a direct power supply from the fuse box and i have my equipment plugged thru a Panamax power conditioner.

No player with this price tag should have disc playback this crappy.

The discs are MINT and just in case I will take them out and wipe them properly.

I wish some company would make a high end player that is worthwhile.

If you own a Blu-ray laser cleaning disc use it. If not get one. One that helps eliminate static. The UB9000 seems sensitive to static. I use a BD laser cleaning disc once a month and never have any issues with any of my players for playback.

[PowellPressburger]

Originally Posted by danny24

If you own a Blu-ray laser cleaning disc use it. If not get one. One that helps eliminate static. The UB9000 seems sensitive to static. I use a BD laser cleaning disc once a month and never have any issues with any of my players for playback.

Is there a brand you recommend? Sounds like its worth trying. My player is a little over a month old.

[Telemachus]

Static can be wild. Sometimes when I try to clean a disc the dust will just stick to it even after I wipe it off. In those cases I have to give it a bath under warm water and wipe it down, I think the water helps get rid of the static whether it was the cloth or the disc surface. If that happens inside a player there could just be a magnet effect of dust swirling around.

[PowellPressburger]

I just played Dark City - Theatrical CUT 4K with no issues.
Just really no rhyme/reason for its pickiness to play / not play discs correctly.

[medikoo]

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

I feel like the UB9000 is crap.

Almost every other 4K i play is always have those digital blocking / freezing / and plays in a slow motion at times or completely jagged

Mine UB9000 worked flawlessly for few years already, until recently starting to give very same issue (on otherwise perfect discs)

I suspect that some dirt,hair.. whatever got somewhere close the beam. I fixed it by blowing the air into the chamber, and that worked!
Now I keep this Dust blower handy: https://www.ifixit.com/en-eu/products/dust-blower

I guess real fix would be to give it to service for internal cleaning.

[danny24]

It does not say anti static but it works. After like 40 uses though you have to get a new one cause the brushes wear out. I would use it like 2 times in yours to let it clean the lens good. This is designed for Blu-ray players.
https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Innov...13&sr=8-1&th=1

I see Amazon is selling used ones, don't purchase a used one that is so stupid for them to sell that used.

You could also try what the user above mentioned it may work but probably not as good as a laser lens cleaning disc.

All it takes is some dust and tiny hairs to cause freezing and skipping. That is why I use the disc cleaning disc once or twice a month I never have playback issues.

[PowellPressburger]

It’s funny certain discs have no playback issues, but so far (so far) it’s always a Vin Syn disc that seems to cause the digital breakups/freezing.

Something tells me the cleaning disc for a player that is not even 2 months old is not going to fix anything.

I have never used a lens cleaner on my OPPO.

I may grab a lens cleaner disc ar Best Buy and see if it does anything for the 2 Vin Syn discs so far that give the issue. (Jade & The Golden Child)
Also had issues with The Abyss 4K

Update / Lens Cleaner disc may have worked I had issue at first but playback has improved. Fingers crossed.

[danny24]

Best Buy sells lens cleaning discs in store still? hmmm. I have not been in there in awhile since they stopped selling the movies. Which one did you get? hoping you see some improvement.

[Telemachus]

Never used a lens cleaner ever, I'm guessing most of the time it does nothing.

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

it’s always a Vin Syn disc that seems to cause the digital breakups/freezing.

Same on my 820 for some of their discs, doubt it's dust just the way VinSyn authors or something, one small reason I stopped buying them. All my current discs work, sometimes Rad gives the unrecognizable disc error

[danny24]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Never used a lens cleaner ever, I'm guessing most of the time it does nothing.



Same on my 820 for some of their discs, doubt it's dust just the way VinSyn authors or something, one small reason I stopped buying them. All my current discs work, sometimes Rad gives the unrecognizable disc error

I have not had any problems with any Vinegar Syndrome discs I have played on my UB9000. No freezing, skipping, pixelating.

[kevers7290]

Considering the cost of the UB9000 I would be too scared to use one of those cheap lens cleaning discs out of fear of damaging the delicate lens. I would sooner remove the top case and use one of those camera lens cleaning devices to clear dust from the laser/lens assembly. They look like a baby ear syringe, you can get them on amazon fairly cheap.

[jonam]

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

I feel like the UB9000 is crap.

Almost every other 4K i play is always have those digital blocking / freezing / and plays in a slow motion at times or completely jagged

Currently trying to watch VS Jade

It’s so friggin annoying. Never had issues so bad with my OPPO

And let me stress I have a direct power supply from the fuse box and i have my equipment plugged thru a Panamax power conditioner.

No player with this price tag should have disc playback this crappy.

The discs are MINT and just in case I will take them out and wipe them properly.

I wish some company would make a high end player that is worthwhile.

These players have been manufactured during two eras, pre covid and post covid. My 9000 has been fine so far, touch wood but this was bought pre covid when the world was plugging along normally. Since and after covid all I'm reading and hearing are problems with pixelating and playback issues. The only time I've had issues is when the disc is in fact damaged, like scratched or pressed whilst the disc was damaged in the first place. Most cases a light removal of dust and finger prints with a lint cloth has enabled playback perfectly.

I have purchased so many 4K discs on Ebay and mostly or few have finger print marks etc. Always make sure the discs are clean before placing it in the player as the laser's longevity will be tarnished much sooner.

[pjl69]

I bought my UB9000 a year and a half ago. Has played flawlessly so far. Altough, it's not been in a heavy use.

[eChopper]

my 9000 was bought pre covid

was pixelating and freezing from day one

went to Oppo and have been living in 4k bliss ever since

all the manufacturers use Nidec china to make their optical drives but i suspect Oppo had superior buffering , much superior , whereas the Panasonic and pioneer Lx-800 shitthemselves on a whim

for all those recommending a “lens cleaner “ disc with tiny brushes , they only wipe the top surface of the Objective lens

the obverse side and the many prisms used in beam refraction and focusing are never cleaned .

i still believe if the optical drives were made in japan we wouldn’t have a problem

[danny24]

It's quite something how people own the same machines and have problems and others don't. I use my UB9000 heavily. It had the F99 issue and it was a bad cap which I replaced. It's now working fine again. No issues with the optical drive though ever since I bought it. I think it froze on Zodiac 4K but I did not check if there was a finger print on the disc and there was from the factory.

Just really something. same machines, some work flawlessly others have issues.

[Telemachus]

Originally Posted by eChopper

i still believe if [all electronics] were made in japan we wouldn’t have a problem

Worst thing the world ever lost was "Made in Japan" electronics. Marty McFly said it best "All the best stuff is made in Japan"

[jblank]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Worst thing the world ever lost was "Made in Japan" electronics. Marty McFly said it best "All the best stuff is made in Japan"

Agree 100%.

[sa5150]

How long does one think someone should keep something boxed up ? I have the 9000p1k never opened for a backup , I plan on getting the new Sony when its on sale or a panny . Right now my Sony x800m2 is doing great . Also have a modded Oppo 103d for blu-ray and dvds.

[TheHistorian]

Relatedly, what do folks like for a second player/backup? It's sometimes nice to have a different manufacturer available to be able to test a disc if it's being fussy. So not a second Panasonic. I was looking at a used Oppo, but they just announced they're cutting off repair support, so that's less appealing. Are there any Sony players that are solid? My 700 hasn't been great. Any other manufacturers to look at? (No, I'm not budgeting for a Magnetar or similar for this project.)