Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[sa5150]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Crutchfield is backordered but you can still get one in for $350 that will ship in January. Crutchfield does have the 9000 and 420 which will be in stock sooner. Amazon doesn't even have it listed now. Seems like everyone is dry atm, I'd either wait or grab it from Crutchfield if you want a guarantee on price. That price was too sweet it seems like everyone bought one. Would be funny if they announce new players in February after blowing out the older models.

That's what I was kind of thinking , New players coming in 2024 .

Thanks, but I have $200 in gift cards from best buy . I just wanted the 820 for a back up to my Sony & Oppo . I might as well get another Sony and it would be about free since its only $228 . I wouldn't get anything under the 820 for Panny and the 9000 is way over priced and can't afford that , If it had a better upscaler then the Sony x800m2 & Oppo 103D then I possibly consider , But add the tax and its way too much even minus the $200 in gift cards . And for $1,000 player I have heard some nightmares that are unexpectable . If it was $300 player well I can deal with some issues but not at $1K .

I would attempt to try and get a like new 203 (it would have to be around $800 ) on ebay over a Panny 9000 .

[VikingTerror73]

I just purchased the all-region Panasonic 9000 from Bombay Electronics a few months back, and don’t regret what I paid for it. I also picked up the all-region 820 model as well. I was able to get the 820 for around $600 shipped when they were running a sale with 20% off. The only downside is that they didn’t offer the 9000 with the 20% off. Either way I’m good for the next few years, hoping that there’s new players being offered.

[danny24]

As much as I love the UB820 and UB9000 they definitely need to be updated. It's time for Panasonic to launch new players in 2024.

Originally Posted by sa5150

That's what I was kind of thinking , New players coming in 2024 .

Thanks, but I have $200 in gift cards from best buy . I just wanted the 820 for a back up to my Sony & Oppo . I might as well get another Sony and it would be about free since its only $228 . I wouldn't get anything under the 820 for Panny and the 9000 is way over priced and can't afford that , If it had a better upscaler then the Sony x800m2 & Oppo 103D then I possibly consider , But add the tax and its way too much even minus the $200 in gift cards . And for $1,000 player I have heard some nightmares that are unexpectable . If it was $300 player well I can deal with some issues but not at $1K .

I would attempt to try and get a like new 203 (it would have to be around $800 ) on ebay over a Panny 9000 .

If you have a Sony and Oppo you definitely can sit and wait for the UB820 to come back in stock or an open box buy on Best Buy's site. Keep checking Best Buy's site for the 820 every day and see what happens.

[s2mikey]

Originally Posted by klingsor

Keeping a backup player is a wise move, if you can afford it. I just bought the Panasonic UB820 because of positive reviews about picture quality and physical build. I already have the Sony X700 and will keep it as a backup (hoping not to have to do that, but my experience going back to CD, DVD and Bluray player is that they don't last more than a few years with frequent use.

Yep - I am the king of backup players, LOL. Panny 820 for 4K, Sony BDPS1700 for blu-ray and any DVDs, then I have a Panny 420K and an LG UBK90 for backup players. .

Really like the 820. Excellent player with great PQ and is built decently at tjis price point.

[FilmFreakosaurus]

I very much doubt any more updated 4k disc players will be forthcoming. These are the last hurrah.

[sa5150]

Originally Posted by danny24

As much as I love the UB820 and UB9000 they definitely need to be updated. It's time for Panasonic to launch new players in 2024.



If you have a Sony and Oppo you definitely can sit and wait for the UB820 to come back in stock or an open box buy on Best Buy's site. Keep checking Best Buy's site for the 820 every day and see what happens.

Good Idea , Thank you .

[sa5150]

Originally Posted by s2mikey

Yep - I am the king of backup players, LOL. Panny 820 for 4K, Sony BDPS1700 for blu-ray and any DVDs, then I have a Panny 420K and an LG UBK90 for backup players. .

Really like the 820. Excellent player with great PQ and is built decently at tjis price point.

Yup , You can never have too many players . never know when one blows and all the discs we have .. Gotta have those back ups . I just need another 4K , I only have 2 of those .

I just hope that Panny is still making the 820 , well unless a new player is in the works . nothing wrong with the Sony too , But I like Variety .

How often does it drop to $349.98 ?

Funny thing is that used to be regular price before the so called inflation . So it not really a $500 machine . I would expect a better build quality for that kind of money. But nothing can do about it now .

[Telemachus]

Two players is enough for me, because the 3rd will be either a PS5 or Xbox that's around, and you will be able to buy those way longer than consumer UHD players probably

[sapiendut]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

I very much doubt any more updated 4k disc players will be forthcoming. These are the last hurrah.

Four years in production and it’s still the best selling player 6:1 ratio compared to Sony and still selling like hotcakes. No company in the right mind will release a new player.

[stvn1974]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Two players is enough for me, because the 3rd will be either a PS5 or Xbox that's around, and you will be able to buy those way longer than consumer UHD players probably

Are BD100 discs choking on the PS5 like they do on standalone Sony players?

[sfmarine]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

Two players is enough for me, because the 3rd will be either a PS5 or Xbox that's around, and you will be able to buy those way longer than consumer UHD players probably

I worry about 4K player production with its niche market. The consumer is very limited these days when it comes to options. It’s why I’ve been going after the higher end units which will hopefully last a long time.

I’m trying to join the Trifecta Club-

OPPO 203
Pioneer LX500
UB9000

I just need the Panny which ironically is the easiest to acquire these days.

Of course, now there’s the Magnetar option to consider.

[Joqqe]

Since this is the primary UB820/UB9000 thread, maybe someone can help me out.

When playing certain 4K discs, e.g. The Mask of Zorro and The Fugitive, I get audio dropouts at particular points. This is repeatable and always happens when using Dolby Atmos (through soundbar or tv speakers). This happens at 00:30:03 with The Fugitive (DTS-HD works just fine). The disc is in great condition but I still cleaned it with a microfiber cloth. Other things I've tried is updating the SP11RA soundbar and UB820 to the latest firmware, as well unplugging the blu-ray player for a while.

I'm using a LG C1 which has the SP11RA connected to HDMI 2, and the UB820 connected to HDMI 3. I'm using HDMI Ultra High Speed certified cables.

My settings are the following:
LG C1

• Select HDMI Input Audio Format: Bitstream
• Digital Sound Output: Pass Through
• eARC sSupport: On

UB820 (Digital Audio Output)

• Dolby Audio: Bitstream
• DTS/DTS-HD: Bitstream
• MPEG Audio: PCM
• BD-Video Secondary Audio: Automatic

What else is there to try? I'm thinking the blu-ray player might just be extra sensitive to certain discs. Maybe I'll have to buy a second 4K Blu-ray player of a different model or brand

[sfmarine]

Try it with BD-Video Secondary Audio to “Off” and see if that does anything.

[Joqqe]

Originally Posted by sfmarine

Try it with BD-Video Secondary Audio to “Off” and see if that does anything.

Forgot to mention I tried that. Unfortunately, it didn't help.

[Scorxpion]

Originally Posted by Joqqe

Forgot to mention I tried that. Unfortunately, it didn't help.

Can you connect your soundbar directly to HDMI audio output from ub820 and see if the problem persist

[Joqqe]

Originally Posted by Scorxpion

Can you connect your soundbar directly to HDMI audio output from ub820 and see if the problem persist

Well, would you look at that! No more dropouts when connecting from HDMI Audio output straight to the soundbar

[danny24]

@sa5150 Look like it's back to full price on Best Buy's site now and miraculously they have stock again. Sorry you missed out but maybe it will go back on sale for Christmas.

[pbz06]

Just curious, what would a new player offer in terms of technology? The Panasonic UI is dated and clunky, but in terms of resolution and chroma upscaling, could it improve things beyond doing them slightly different? I don't know.

[Telemachus]

Seemless branching discs cause dropouts a lot, you need to switch to PCM and it will solve that

[Cowman]

Originally Posted by pbz06

Just curious, what would a new player offer in terms of technology? The Panasonic UI is dated and clunky, but in terms of resolution and chroma upscaling, could it improve things beyond doing them slightly different? I don't know.

Better cpu that is capable of upscaling and image processing that can compete with the current best TVs. The current players on the market are becoming dated in this regard.

And that can handle the H.266 codec standard:
"The new standard has about 50% better compression rate for the same perceptual quality compared to HEVC"

So they would be able to release todays 100gb discs on 66gb discs. And not having to split long movies on two discs. one 100gb disc would do.

i doubt 8k is coming, maybe a 4k+ format?

not sure old players would be able to play new discs with the new codec