Panasonic DMP-UB900 Ultra HD Player

[RockyIII]

Originally Posted by ramzy1

The HDR to SDR conversion looks almost identical to playing a BD. You won't notice the resolution difference on a 40.' You won't be able to tell a them apart. In short, don't waste your time getting a UHD player for this TV.

The TV is temporary. I needed a small TV anyway to prolong lifespan of my projectors' lamps

[Crimsoncleaver]

Originally Posted by ramzy1

The HDR to SDR conversion looks almost identical to playing a BD. You won't notice the resolution difference on a 40.' You won't be able to tell a them apart. In short, don't waste your time getting a UHD player for this TV.

My findings with the Panny are that the HDR to HDR conversion is a big benefit.

I have a Sony 79X900B. However, I cant compare to Samsung as not yet available in UK.

Also I dont know if the colour improvement is same as mastered in 4k level blu-rays plus the resolution bump.

[RockyIII]

The specs for my 4K TV suggest to be 2.5 to 5 inches away from the screen to enjoy 4K quality...Wow just wow

[alebonau]

question guys, who is selling this in the uk that ships overseas ? while I was thinking of getting a philips from overseas it appears thats not going to be available for months. no eta on the philips or panasonic in australia. the samsung looks like a debacle. that leaves me wondering....

[Geoff D]

Got mine earlier today, I've been fiddling and nurdling and tweaking all afternoon (after doing a couple of hours of gardening, that is) and I like it a lot. I was dismayed by how drab the output looked at first, I don't just mean the SDR conversion but in general, the luminance was much lower than it should've been and it was screwing up the gamma big time. Thankfully the 1.02 firmware fixed all that, and once I started to play then I started to get impressed.

Take X-Men DOFP, it's every bit the upscale and yet I couldn't help but be taken aback by the sharpness when Logan awakes in 1973, there's so much texture without it looking forced or over sharpened. Sure, the regular Blu-ray is EXCELLENT so there's not a huge amount in it (especially once upscaled by the player, it does a terrific job) but the UHD just seems sharper somehow.

I spun a few scenes of Fury Road and again I was impressed. The regular BD has a kind of 'bitty' texture to it (Warners strike again) but the UHD is smoother and yet more refined at the same time. And yes, I can see the sun in the oft-mentioned screen grab.

[ray0414]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Got mine earlier today, I've been fiddling and nurdling and tweaking all afternoon (after doing a couple of hours of gardening, that is) and I like it a lot. I was dismayed by how drab the output looked at first, I don't just mean the SDR conversion but in general, the luminance was much lower than it should've been and it was screwing up the gamma big time. Thankfully the 1.02 firmware fixed all that, and once I started to play then I started to get impressed.

Take X-Men DOFP, it's every bit the upscale and yet I couldn't help but be taken aback by the sharpness when Logan awakes in 1973, there's so much texture without it looking forced or over sharpened. Sure, the regular Blu-ray is EXCELLENT so there's not a huge amount in it (especially once upscaled by the player, it does a terrific job) but the UHD just seems sharper somehow.

I spun a few scenes of Fury Road and again I was impressed. The regular BD has a kind of 'bitty' texture to it (Warners strike again) but the UHD is smoother and yet more refined at the same time. And yes, I can see the sun in the oft-mentioned screen grab.

You're basically saying the same thing I did a while back. That whole thing where it's hard to explain, "it's just better" is all u can come up with lol. But the true 4k stuff does shines even better.

[Geoff D]

UHD Blu-ray: It's Just Better™

[vincentric]

Originally Posted by RockyIII

I only have two issues with this player, and I am sure this is due to something I am doing wrong. The player is totally fine.

The k8500 has been working fine for me, too.

I have one minor issue - uhd signal dropouts that happens randomly in a few occasions. Otherwise, it's been all good (bd, uhd, 3d, etc.), I have it connected to a sony 55x850c. Am happy with both tv and player which will hold me over until I upgrade components again 2-3 years from now.

Edit: Can't stand the k8500 remote though. Have been using the 850c's remote for navigation instead.

[Geoff D]

Oh, and Crimsoncleaver was right: the Panny IS outputting SDR/2020 to my 2014 Sony TV, which comes as a massive bonus seeing as I was convinced these sets would be able to receive 709 only. There's no option for activating 2020 in the menus and nothing listed in the specs, only 601/709/xvYCC, and yet according to my colorimeter and the Sony UHD test patterns the gamut is falling well outside of 709. (The test patterns are AWESOME, with RGBCMY windows in 2020, P3 and 709 flavours plus a series of brightness ramps from 0.00 to 10,000 nits.)

It's not perfectly mapped but then what is at the moment? In any case, I'm not seeing huge colour discrepancies when A/B'ing HD and UHD discs. What a result, all I can say is 'thank you Sony!' for having the foresight to include the relevant 2020 EDID and native gamut mapping info inside the TV. Sneaky blighters.

[ray0414]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Oh, and Crimsoncleaver was right: the Panny IS outputting SDR/2020 to my 2014 Sony TV, which comes as a massive bonus seeing as I was convinced these sets would be able to receive 709 only. There's no option for activating 2020 in the menus and nothing listed in the specs, only 601/709/xvYCC, and yet according to my colorimeter and the Sony UHD test patterns the gamut is falling well outside of 709. (The test patterns are AWESOME, with RGBCMY windows in 2020, P3 and 709 flavours plus a series of brightness ramps from 0.00 to 10,000 nits.)

It's not perfectly mapped but then what is at the moment? In any case, I'm not seeing huge colour discrepancies when A/B'ing HD and UHD discs. What a result, all I can say is 'thank you Sony!' for having the foresight to include the relevant 2020 EDID and native gamut mapping info inside the TV. Sneaky blighters.

What tv do u have?

Also, what happens when you play with the sdr/hdr slider even tho your tv isn't hdr?

[Geoff D]

55X9005B. The SDR slider does what it says on the tin: it adjusts the range so I can strike a balance between hard clipping of highlights and overall brightness whilst still preserving more dynamic range than what's on the regular Blu-ray. And because the TV can kick out over 400 nits at peak (though I've got it nearer 300 for UHD) I'm still getting some benefit from the HDR along with the wider colour gamut.

If you look in the 'too dim for daytime' thread, those pics that Deci posted basically represent the different steps that the Panny can produce (though it's got more than 9 levels of adjustment), looking completely blown out at one end and far too dim and murky at the other. If I say so myself, I think I've got the conversion set at the ideal point for my TV, with a couple of taps on the player's contrast setting for good measure.

[gkolb]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

UHD Blu-ray: It's Just Better™

Sounds like you should make that your signature line

[Crimsoncleaver]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

55X9005B. The SDR slider does what it says on the tin: it adjusts the range so I can strike a balance between hard clipping of highlights and overall brightness whilst still preserving more dynamic range than what's on the regular Blu-ray. And because the TV can kick out over 400 nits at peak (though I've got it nearer 300 for UHD) I'm still getting some benefit from the HDR along with the wider colour gamut.

If you look in the 'too dim for daytime' thread, those pics that Deci posted basically represent the different steps that the Panny can produce (though it's got more than 9 levels of adjustment), looking completely blown out at one end and far too dim and murky at the other. If I say so myself, I think I've got the conversion set at the ideal point for my TV, with a couple of taps on the player's contrast setting for good measure.

Glad to hear it wasn't me imagining the vast improvement in colour!!

What setting on the Panny are you using?

As you have the gear to measure all this it will likely help me improve mine even more. Also could you share the pic settings of your 55X900B?

[wallE]

Don't be confused people. This Panasonic unit will play standard 1080p 3D discs. The 4K UHD specification does not support 4K 3D playback because the current TV technology is not capable of producing 4K 3D resolution. Remember 4K resolution is 4 times the resolution of 1080p.

[Wendell R. Breland]

Originally Posted by wallE

Remember 4K resolution is 4 times the resolution of 1080p.

Not true, it is 4 times the pixel density, big difference. UHD is just twice the H and V resolution of 1080. IOW, it can show twice as many fence post as 1080, not four times as many.

[tasker]

Just a heads up if anyone is on 02 you get £30 off this in Currys if you can find one in stock to collect as they won't let you order online and use the code, has to be used in store.
Still buys a disc and a half.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Crimsoncleaver

Glad to hear it wasn't me imagining the vast improvement in colour!!

What setting on the Panny are you using?

As you have the gear to measure all this it will likely help me improve mine even more. Also could you share the pic settings of your 55X900B?

Dynamic range conversion to -4, contrast to -4. Chroma format is YCbCr automatic, Deep Colour off.

Your TV has a different panel to mine so it may react very differently, but for UHD I've got backlight at 8, contrast at 90, brightness at 50, colour at 50, colour temp Warm 2, reality creation/motionflow both OFF, gamma at -2 and Live Colour to Low in the advanced settings.

[Mezzanine]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Dynamic range conversion to -4, contrast to -4. Chroma format is YCbCr automatic, Deep Colour off.

Your TV has a different panel to mine so it may react very differently, but for UHD I've got backlight at 8, contrast at 90, brightness at 50, colour at 50, colour temp Warm 2, reality creation/motionflow both OFF, gamma at -2 and Live Colour to Low in the advanced settings.

Which display mode do you use?

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Mezzanine

Which display mode do you use?

On the player? I leave it on Normal.

[Mezzanine]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

On the player? I leave it on Normal.

I was thinking on viewing mode on the TV.