Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[Bernardo A.]

Originally Posted by Hedrox

It also has the same "ability" to force Dolby Vision onto everything that's on the disc, if the movie is in DV. That includes menus and extras.

And how is the player able to create DV dynamic metadata when there is none?

[OG10]

I think the quality of discs being made is getting worse, I bought the Northman on 4K and my 820 kept saying cannot read disk, thankfully had a ps5 pro to double check and it didn’t work there either. Took it back to the retailer and he was like maybe you need a newer player.. thankfully got a replacement and it worked fine.

[HDTV1080P]

Originally Posted by OG10

I think the quality of discs being made is getting worse, I bought the Northman on 4K and my 820 kept saying cannot read disk, thankfully had a ps5 pro to double check and it didn’t work there either. Took it back to the retailer and he was like maybe you need a newer player.. thankfully got a replacement and it worked fine.

Hopefully this is being done by mistake and someone is not trying to sell more discs in order to increase the sells numbers. In the long run perfectly working discs with no defects is the best thing that can occur for any optical disc format success. This issue does not occur with BD-100 discs from Lionsgate Studios and Kino Lorber. Certain studios I have never seen a defective BD-100 disc.

My copy of Northman was not defective and played back perfectly fine in April of 2023 when I watched the movie from Universal Studios.

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...&postcount=586

[Hedrox]

Originally Posted by Bernardo A.

And how is the player able to create DV dynamic metadata when there is none?

It can't, all it really does is a rudimentary SDR-to-HDR conversion on the footage, making it overly bright and contrast-y.

[HippieDalek]

I recently picked up the UK release of The Nightmare Before Christmas and it's the first time I've ever encountered playback issues on this player. Looking on the thread for that title it sounds like it's a common issue with the UK and US discs, with some people saying a firmware update on the 820 fixed playback while others saying it hasn't. I'm definitely on the latest firmware; 1.82.

Can anyone confirm for certain that the UK disc is playable glitch free on this player? It's one of the favourite film's of my wife and I only have the 820, I'd rather not have to buy a PS5 just to properly play this one title!

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by HippieDalek

I recently picked up the UK release of The Nightmare Before Christmas and it's the first time I've ever encountered playback issues on this player. Looking on the thread for that title it sounds like it's a common issue with the UK and US discs, with some people saying a firmware update on the 820 fixed playback while others saying it hasn't. I'm definitely on the latest firmware; 1.82.

Can anyone confirm for certain that the UK disc is playable glitch free on this player? It's one of the favourite film's of my wife and I only have the 820, I'd rather not have to buy a PS5 just to properly play this one title!

Do you have DV turn on? If so, try turning DV off.

[HippieDalek]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

Do you have DV turn on? If so, try turning DV off.

Yes, I have DV turned on. This is a HDR10 only disc though, so will Dolby Vision have any impact? I'll certainly give it a try.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Hedrox

It can't, all it really does is a rudimentary SDR-to-HDR conversion on the footage, making it overly bright and contrast-y.

Bingo. With modern extras it mightn't look too bad, but with legacy stuff the forced DV can make it look horribly bright and blown out.

It's so bizarre that there's no one single player that doesn't do any DV monkey business.

Panny auto detects DV and HDR10, but forces everything on a DV disc *into* DV to keep the handshaking constant to the display (and has even done it on one or two HDR10-only discs that I have because it detected a stray flag left in during authoring maybe?)

Sony doesn't auto detect at all, you have to manually turn DV on and off otherwise you're just forcing DV on everything.

OPPO auto detects DV and HDR10 but has no easy on/off toggle for DV, if I want to check the base layer of something then I have to set it to forced and power cycle the player.

[the sordid sentinel]

Hello all..my 820 has recently stopped loading discs with DV content. Any ideas? I've ordered a lens cleaner disc, but have a feeling I may be looking to purchase a new player soon.

[Bernardo A.]

Originally Posted by the sordid sentinel

Hello all..my 820 has recently stopped loading discs with DV content. Any ideas? I've ordered a lens cleaner disc, but have a feeling I may be looking to purchase a new player soon.

It certainly has nothing to do with that.

[shrex]

Originally Posted by the sordid sentinel

Hello all..my 820 has recently stopped loading discs with DV content. Any ideas? I've ordered a lens cleaner disc, but have a feeling I may be looking to purchase a new player soon.

I'm currently having disc drive issues

[Herry Dunston]

Why do I get the feeling the benefits of Dolby Vision isn't worth the micro-management? And studios seem willing to continue selling old players with faults instead of making newer, improved models. This kinda breaks my heart as a physical media supporter.

[Hedrox]

Originally Posted by Herry Dunston

Why do I get the feeling the benefits of Dolby Vision isn't worth the micro-management? And studios seem willing to continue selling old players with faults instead of making newer, improved models. This kinda breaks my heart as a physical media supporter.

There are simply not enough new features they can add (read that as none) to justify making new models. Sure, they can tweak things and add some quality of life improvements, but that's not gonna be enough for people who already have players to consider upgrading.

I mean, just look at the market, most people aren't even upgrading their Sony releases for the Dolby Vision re-do, and that's just $25-30. Dropping $400 on a new 4K player just for the convenience of not having to micromanage the DV setting is insane.

[Bernardo A.]

Originally Posted by Hedrox

There are simply not enough new features they can add (read that as none) to justify making new models. Sure, they can tweak things and add some quality of life improvements, but that's not gonna be enough for people who already have players to consider upgrading.

I mean, just look at the market, most people aren't even upgrading their Sony releases for the Dolby Vision re-do, and that's just $25-30. Dropping $400 on a new 4K player just for the convenience of not having to micromanage the DV setting is insane.

Pannysonic makes a DV-automatic player that runs for less than $200.

[Hedrox]

Originally Posted by Bernardo A.

Pannysonic makes a DV-automatic player that runs for less than $200.

The UB450? Sure, but it's not a clear upgrade over the UB820, it has its own disadvantages.

If you're going to make a new model and expect people to buy it, it needs to either be a clear upgrade over what they have, or a cheap enough alternative for new buyers.

[Bernardo A.]

Originally Posted by Hedrox

The UB450? Sure, but it's not a clear upgrade over the UB820, it has its own disadvantages.

Well, it's a simple player, but a very competent little disc-spinner nonetheless.

Originally Posted by Hedrox

If you're going to make a new model and expect people to buy it, it needs to either be a clear upgrade over what they have, or a cheap enough alternative for new buyers.

I wish they would make a UB10000 with universal disc support. It would be the definitive player.

[danny24]

Originally Posted by the sordid sentinel

Hello all..my 820 has recently stopped loading discs with DV content. Any ideas? I've ordered a lens cleaner disc, but have a feeling I may be looking to purchase a new player soon.

Turn off Dolby Vision in the settings and see if that helps.

[Oscarilbo]

Guys a question:
Is there any visible difference in Dolby Vision PQ between the UB820 and any of the Sony 4K players? I already have the UB420 which I use for HDR and a sony X700 for Dolby Vision. But every time I use the Sony (HDR or DV) it looks like Sony to me, like a tiny bit less color saturation. The Panasonic tends to look a bit more vibrant.

I’m thinking on getting the UB820 and ditch the sony, but will Dolby Vision performance be the exact same, or will it exist a difference, even if minimal?

[MassiveMovieBuff]

Originally Posted by danny24

Turn off Dolby Vision in the settings and see if that helps.

Should we have to do this though? Shouldn't these features work without question? AFAIK they work just fine with streaming. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[mdhaus]

Originally Posted by Oscarilbo

Guys a question:
Is there any visible difference in Dolby Vision PQ between the UB820 and any of the Sony 4K players? I already have the UB420 which I use for HDR and a sony X700 for Dolby Vision. But every time I use the Sony (HDR or DV) it looks like Sony to me, like a tiny bit less color saturation. The Panasonic tends to look a bit more vibrant.

I’m thinking on getting the UB820 and ditch the sony, but will Dolby Vision performance be the exact same, or will it exist a difference, even if minimal?

I personally think that the video quality on the Panasonic 820 (and 9000) is better than what you get on the Sony players, Dolby Vision included. Panasonic's video technology is simply better.

Sonys are also notorious for having playback problems with triple-layer discs, among other issues here and there.