Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[rikraq]

I kind of want to buy the 820 over the 420 only because it has the display counter. I've become so used to that with my old Sony blu-ray player. The DV would be wasted since I have a Samsung tv, but I guess if I ever have to buy a new tv in the future it might support DV.

Sigh. Decisions, decisions...

ETA: I went ahead and ordered the 820 from BB. I was able to price match Amazon at 402.71 and use my 20.00 in BB rewards. Hopefully it works alright.

[tankryankr19]

I ordered the 820, figured I'd get myself a player for my bedroom. Also the longevity of it as well, lot's of hard thinking went into it (though I know it's one of the best players on the market) and decided why not and bought it, supposed to be here Sunday from Amazon.ca

[BijouMan]

Originally Posted by rikraq

I kind of want to buy the 820 over the 420 only because it has the display counter. I've become so used to that with my old Sony blu-ray player. The DV would be wasted since I have a Samsung tv, but I guess if I ever have to buy a new tv in the future it might support DV.

Sigh. Decisions, decisions...

ETA: I went ahead and ordered the 820 from BB. I was able to price match Amazon at 402.71 and use my 20.00 in BB rewards. Hopefully it works alright.

What's funny is that Best Buy does not carry discs anymore, but they still carry machines.

[Telemachus]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

What's funny is that Best Buy does not carry discs anymore, but they still carry machines.

Washing machines

[Yearbook]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Washing machines

But no detergent.

[Telemachus]

They would be too powerful if they had it all

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

Why does any TV come with 101 different things to adjust (most of which should be set to OFF)? Because people like to tinker. The Optimiser is no different.

You keep mentioning the word "dynamic" over and over and I'm not sure in what context. HDR as a system isn't any more or less "dynamic" in terms of what the underlying picture does between DV, 10+ and plain HDR10, it's merely the signalling to the TV which changes, not the actual content itself. And if a TV can't even display 1000 nit content without having to severely compromise it one way or the other then that's too flawed for me.

Coming back to this, I think you are confusing something. My LG C9 can display 1,000 nit content with ease. It's when you turn "on" the Dynamic Tone Mapping, things become a bit overblown.

As I have said before, the setting is flawed. Many people say that. It gets too bright/contrasty and blows out some of the HDR highlights in certain areas. But, in my opinion, it is necessary to use in order to get the best picture possible out of the C9 or any other LG OLED. I mean, why does Sony OLEDs have DTM "On" permanently? It doesn't make sense why it would be wrong for an LG OLED but right on a Sony OLED.

That's why I made it my mission to figure out how to compensate for the flaws of the DTM setting. And I believe I have, thanks to the Panasonic's HDR Options Menu Settings. This which is why I shared them. For others to get the best out of their LG OLED, because leaving everything on 0 just doesn't cut it for LG OLEDs, especially older models.

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by PUsokrJosh305

Coming back to this, I think you are confusing something. My LG C9 can display 1,000 nit content with ease. It's when you turn "on" the Dynamic Tone Mapping, things become a bit overblown.

As I have said before, the setting is flawed. Many people say that. It gets too bright/contrasty and blows out some of the HDR highlights in certain areas. But, in my opinion, it is necessary to use in order to get the best picture possible out of the C9 or any other LG OLED. I mean, why does Sony OLEDs have DTM "On" permanently? It doesn't make sense why it would be wrong for an LG OLED but right on a Sony OLED.

That's why I made it my mission to figure out how to compensate for the flaws of the DTM setting. And I believe I have, thanks to the Panasonic's HDR Options Menu Settings. This which is why I shared them. For others to get the best out of their LG OLED, because leaving everything on 0 just doesn't cut it for LG OLEDs, especially older models.

The only way to fix DTM is to have it turned off. End of story. If you like DTM, then good for you. Use it and keep it your own little secret. Is DTM good on the newer LG's? When it comes to accurate picture, NO. But again, use it, if you like it. Stop talking about the same thing over and over and over. Move on. Using you setting for DTM to make it look like your Not calibrated DV picture is just wrong. DV out of the box is not that accurate.

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

The only way to fix DTM is to have it turned off. End of story. If you like DTM, then good for you. Use it and keep it your own little secret. Is DTM good on the newer LG's? When it comes to accurate picture, NO. But again, use it, if you like it. Stop talking about the same thing over and over and over. Move on. Using you setting for DTM to make it look like your Not calibrated DV picture is just wrong. DV out of the box is not that accurate.

My LG C9 was calibrated by Value Electronics aka D-Nice.......

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by PUsokrJosh305

My LG C9 was calibrated by Value Electronics aka D-Nice.......

If it's calibrated, more the reason to turn off DTM. Again if you keep it on so that it can looked better to you then do it.

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

If it's calibrated, more the reason to turn off DTM. Again if you keep it on so that it can looked better to you then do it.

Yet when calibrated, the image still lacks what other TVs can provide. You look back at a lot of older review videos, and Sony OLEDs win in terms of picture quality because of its “always on” dynamic tone mapping. So wouldn’t it make logical sense to turn on DTM on an LG OLED, then correct the flaws of what the DTM function does by using the Panasonic HDR Options Menu? Why would this be wrong?

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by PUsokrJosh305

Yet when calibrated, the image still lacks what other TVs can provide. You look back at a lot of older review videos, and Sony OLEDs win in terms of picture quality because of its “always on” dynamic tone mapping. So wouldn’t it make logical sense to turn on DTM on an LG OLED, then correct the flaws of what the DTM function does by using the Panasonic HDR Options Menu? Why would this be wrong?

How can you fix DTM, with settings that doesn't do DTM? Doesn't make sense. DTM on the LG randomly boost and darkens the picture. It screws up the ETF. You may compare a few pause scenes in a movie and think it looks like your DV. But in other scenes it won't. It just doesn't make sense. I've entertained you long enough, I'm done. Happy New Year!

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

How can you fix DTM, with settings that doesn't do DTM? Doesn't make sense. DTM on the LG randomly boost and darkens the picture. It screws up the ETF. You may compare a few pause scenes in a movie and think it looks like your DV. But in other scenes it won't. It just doesn't make sense. I've entertained you long enough, I'm done. Happy New Year!

And this right there says you don’t understand it. DTM is an algorithm that tries to determine what the picture should look like. And yes, on an older LG OLEDs, it’s flawed. Sony does it better but nonetheless, it’s used on their TVs.

And as to a few scenes, it’s many, many, many scenes that look exactly or very close to its DV counterparts. I’ve seen a huge increase in picture quality and better retainment of speculate highlights where clipping is mostly due to the source (Harry Potter films come to mind). And with these settings, it changes the overall picture which in turns, changes how the DTM reacts to it. This, giving you the proper picture rather than something completely off the wall.

I don’t understand why you would be so ignorant on even looking at what I have come up with. I already have another member agree with me that these settings get you close to what DV has to offer. With how many people complain about not having DV on a disc, this would solve that issue and many would be happy!

That’s all I have to say about that (at least in this thread anyways).

[panasonicst60]

I'm done. ����

[teddyballgame]

Originally Posted by PUsokrJosh305

I’m using the word “dynamic” as like what Dolby Vision would be doing. Every frame or scene is changing brightness, contrast, etc. Obliviously, HDR10 is just static. However, TVs have an option for Dynamic Tone Mapping for HDR10 content. Sony and Panasonic do it the best. LG in the past, had issues with their Dynamic Tone Mapping as mentioned by Vincent from HDTV Test and a few others over the years. And when it came to judging the TVs, Sony would win out over LG when it came to tone mapping because Sony has Dynamic Tone Mapping built in. So, to me that seemed a little lopsided.

I think Geoff was right in his earlier post we have to be careful not to get caught up on the term dynamic. DV is only useful because of the dozen levels of metadata which tie back to the colorist and his mastering display. Without that specific information the proper translation can't take place. The DTM function on any brand of TV is largely just going to make guesses which it believes will flatter the panel. I know you have cooked up some settings that you believe match DV but with every title being different there's no way it can be right for all.
I have a C9 as well and still admire it particularly with DV content, but I want to be careful not have too many cooks in the kitchen when it comes to basic HDR. I'd rather just follow the eotf as close as possible and at the top you can allow for a gentle rolloff or simply hard clip.

[jess1581]

I'm still struggling with the whole HDR10 and the dynamic tone mapping setting on my tv(not the 820 which does nothing). I've tried different presets which boiled down between HDR Theater and Filmmaker Mode. From my eyes, HDR10 at times doesn't look right. If I can recall it mostly revolves around older 4K titles when the format began, but also with older movies in general. There are shadow and color details like on faces that don't blend naturally and look strange. When I have DTM on, it improves the image. Or in the case of say Dial of Destiny or Heat, scenes look too dark and dim... DTM remedies that issue.

I know that in general you don't want it turned on, but I see what I see. Should I try different means to improve the image or....???

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by teddyballgame

I think Geoff was right in his earlier post we have to be careful not to get caught up on the term dynamic. DV is only useful because of the dozen levels of metadata which tie back to the colorist and his mastering display. Without that specific information the proper translation can't take place. The DTM function on any brand of TV is largely just going to make guesses which it believes will flatter the panel. I know you have cooked up some settings that you believe match DV but with every title being different there's no way it can be right for all.
I have a C9 as well and still admire it particularly with DV content, but I want to be careful not have too many cooks in the kitchen when it comes to basic HDR. I'd rather just follow the eotf as close as possible and at the top you can allow for a gentle rolloff or simply hard clip.

I understand what you are saying here as well as what Geoff said but I’ve looked at HDR10 content without DTM “On” and without the settings changed on my Panny 820, and it just lacks in vibrancy. It’s rather dim, even in a dark room. I’m not talking about “pop” because not all films need to pop, but it’s more lacking in a lively looking picture. On top of that, specular highlights seem to get blown out a lot more without DTM. Turning DTM “On” brings out what you would expect in an HDR picture. Yes, there are flaws with algorithm, which is why I tried changing some things to sort of fix those issues. But it doesn’t make sense to me how it’s ok for a Sony OLED to have it but oh boy if you turn it on an LG OLED, you will be ridiculed!

In terms of my settings and how it looks from film to film: Most films have looked amazing and I think everything looks almost identical to their DV counterparts on streaming services, minus color saturation that only comes with the 12 bits of DV. Only movie I might be concerned about is Elf on 4K. It’s a little darker than expected but from what I have heard, it is supposed to be darker. I don’t have the digital copy so I can’t check the streaming version to compare. Even a movie like Hook, which is labeled a Sony Light Cannon movie, looks incredible and not blown out like it would be without my settings and DTM “Off”.

I’ve taken months, if not years to figure how all of this works. I went not having DTM “On” to having it “On” only, to having it on with the optimizer working at the same time, to going in the HDR Options Menu in my Panny 820 and figured out what the Dynamic Adjustment Slider does, to the Brightness, and then the final thing that made it almost perfect, adjusting the Tone Curve White setting to offset the blown out Whites the DTM was doing to the picture. And it all works!

Is it 100% perfect? Absolutely not. But it’s way better than I ever had it. I’m more than happy to send you the settings so you can see for yourself. If you have measurement equipment, I would be even more interested in what you find with the settings in terms of actual numbers.

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by jess1581

I'm still struggling with the whole HDR10 and the dynamic tone mapping setting on my tv(not the 820 which does nothing). I've tried different presets which boiled down between HDR Theater and Filmmaker Mode. From my eyes, HDR10 at times doesn't look right. If I can recall it mostly revolves around older 4K titles when the format began, but also with older movies in general. There are shadow and color details like on faces that don't blend naturally and look strange. When I have DTM on, it improves the image. Or in the case of say Dial of Destiny or Heat, scenes look too dark and dim... DTM remedies that issue.

I know that in general you don't want it turned on, but I see what I see. Should I try different means to improve the image or....???

This is EXACTLY what I was thinking a few years ago! It seemed with the picture was lacking. It didn’t have any life to it. DTM brings that out. Yes, it is flawed. I will 100% agree on that point. But it still has its advantages. And when you understand some of the settings in the 820 HDR Options Menu, it may improve your picture even more!

[PUsokrJosh305]

Originally Posted by teddyballgame

I have a C9 as well and still admire it particularly with DV content, but I want to be careful not have too many cooks in the kitchen when it comes to basic HDR. I'd rather just follow the eotf as close as possible and at the top you can allow for a gentle rolloff or simply hard clip.

I will also leave this here. This is a discussion Mierzwiak and I had about my settings late last year.

Originally Posted by Mierzwiak

Hi,

So I've done some testing yesterday and came to a surprising conclusion.

First of all, lowering the brightness in the Panny settings doesn't introduce black crash like I thought because it works different than lowering it on the TV (I'm talking about black levels on each device) and is much more subtle with each step. When I compared Half-Blood Prince in Dolby Vision on Max with its HDR10 disc counterpart the -4 (instead your -3) setting looked the best to me. I never thought about using this setting so thanks for the tip!

Second, from what I saw while checking The Goblet of Fire and Half-Blood Prince, I think I prefer Optimizer to... be disabled? I don't know, just check the infamous graveyard scene in The Goblet of Fire and those ghosts; if you use Optimizer, especially on the OLED setting, the ghosts (and spells) are muted and flat, while with Optimizer off (although keeping the Dynamic Range Adjustment at -2 and brightness at -4; these work independently from the Optimizer) they're much, much better. Even Super High Luminance LCD setting on Panny gives more muted appearance.

Of course these are specific and very demanding scenes, so on other title(s) Optimizer's help might give better result. Today I will check what is happening on Spider-Man 3, if Optimizer OFF and DTM ON fixes that weird issue with the highlights.

I never had a problem with HDR being dim, but yesterday I noticed, once again, how much better the Dolby Vision version looks compared to HDR10. Even simple scene from Half-Blood Prince (with Harry and Hermione in the library) with subtle highlight looks much richer and dimensional with the disc one being flat and uneven, although with DTM on and aforementioned settings at -2 and -4 it's much closer to Dolby Vision version now.

[rikraq]

What are the best settings on the 820 for watching regular blu-rays?

I'm also looking to buy new HDMI cables. What are good ones that aren't too expensive? I read that they should be 48Gbps. Is that right? I'm using a Best Buy Essentials from 2022 right now that is 18Gps. Is that still a good one or should I upgrade?