Panasonic UB9000 thread - no price talk please

[sapiendut]

I don’t think it’s a regular slim drive. Slimmer perhaps. Or it can be an open-case full sized drive. I never opened the 9000 so I can only speculate based on photos I’ve seen.

[RalphoR]

Looks like video quality might favor the 9000 but audio and build quality favor the 500. Still no true reference 4k player.

[fusion_400]

I have now received the UB9000. The build quality is a large improvement compared to the UB820.

The remote is also much better compared to the UB820. The remote on the UB820 was horrible with no back lighting and constantly pressing the Netflix button by mistake. On the ub9000 remote the netflix button is much smaller.

Also more functions like subtitles are directly accessible.

Also the main menu interface looks slightly different and more professional.

It's certainly more quiet then the UB820. But still i had hoped for more noise isolation on the drive. The disc rotation noise is certainly still noticable on Passengers 4k uhd bluray disc. There is also some slightly annoying high pitched sound that is even noticable on regular blu-ray playback.

For this price i think they should have worked even harder to isolate any noise.

But it is still a very premium product and i will keep it.

The german review was true the UB9000 player is certainly not silent. But i am not willing to go with the LX500 i have heard reports that it is quieter but the upscaling is worse.

[jwort93]

Originally Posted by fusion_400

I have now received the UB9000. The build quality is a large improvement compared to the UB820.

The remote is also much better compared to the UB820. The remote on the UB820 was horrible with no back lighting and constantly pressing the Netflix button by mistake. On the ub9000 remote the netflix button is much smaller.

Also more functions like subtitles are directly accessible.

Also the main menu interface looks slightly different and more professional.

It's certainly more quiet then the UB820. But still i had hoped for more noise isolation on the drive. The disc rotation noise is certainly still noticable on Passengers 4k uhd bluray disc. There is also some slightly annoying high pitched sound that is even noticable on regular blu-ray playback.

For this price i think they should have worked even harder to isolate any noise.

But it is still a very premium product and i will keep it.

The german review was true the UB9000 player is certainly not silent. But i am not willing to go with the LX500 i have heard reports that it is quieter but the upscaling is worse.

Could you put your ear close to the fan on the back of your UB9000 and let me know if there is a high pitched noise coming from it? I returned two different UB820's to Best Buy because of a high pitched buzzing noise (didn't sound like a normal fan) coming from the fan, and I worry that that is the noise you are hearing. If that's the case, I'm not sure I'm still interested in the UB9000.

[King Crimson]

Originally Posted by jwort93

Could you put your ear close to the fan on the back of your UB9000 and let me know if there is a high pitched noise coming from it? I returned two different UB820's to Best Buy because of a high pitched buzzing noise (didn't sound like a normal fan) coming from the fan, and I worry that that is the noise you are hearing. If that's the case, I'm not sure I'm still interested in the UB9000.

Damn, 2 820's? Strange I wonder if mine came from a distribution facility or you have had bad luck cause my fan with the big giant java logo is virtually silent. Unless inches from it.

Originally Posted by TheEqualizer

The difference in the menu style results from the use of flat icons on the DP-UB9000.

The optical drive on the DP-UB9000 is the same cheap plastic construction as on the DP-UB820. The only difference is a thin sheet metal plate that has been mounted on top of the drive on the DP-UB9000 but that doesn't result in better noise isolation at all. The reason for the reduced noise level on the DP-UB9000 is the bigger and heavier case compared to the thin sheet metal construction of the DP-UB820.

I don't think the DP-UB9000 is worth 500 bucks more than the DP-UB820.

Is it really for the comfort of knowing the player is idiot proof? Less so I guess for the 820? What I mean is if you spend 1k or 500 $$ on a player surely it will be stored (in a place safe and secure) where the slightly fortified construction is going to make nothing but a cosmetic difference?

[TheEqualizer]

Originally Posted by fusion_400

I have now received the UB9000. The build quality is a large improvement compared to the UB820...

Also the main menu interface looks slightly different and more professional.

It's certainly more quiet then the UB820. But still i had hoped for more noise isolation on the drive. The disc rotation noise is certainly still noticable on Passengers 4k uhd bluray disc. There is also some slightly annoying high pitched sound that is even noticable on regular blu-ray playback.

For this price i think they should have worked even harder to isolate any noise.

The difference in the menu style results from the use of flat icons on the DP-UB9000.

The optical drive on the DP-UB9000 is the same cheap plastic construction as on the DP-UB820. The only difference is a thin sheet metal plate that has been mounted on top of the drive on the DP-UB9000 but that doesn't result in better noise isolation at all. The reason for the reduced noise level on the DP-UB9000 is the bigger and heavier case compared to the thin sheet metal construction of the DP-UB820.

I don't think the DP-UB9000 is worth 500 bucks more than the DP-UB820.

[tbessie]

Originally Posted by fusion_400

...

It's certainly more quiet then the UB820. But still i had hoped for more noise isolation on the drive. The disc rotation noise is certainly still noticable on Passengers 4k uhd bluray disc. There is also some slightly annoying high pitched sound that is even noticable on regular blu-ray playback.

For this price i think they should have worked even harder to isolate any noise.

But it is still a very premium product and i will keep it.

The german review was true the UB9000 player is certainly not silent. But i am not willing to go with the LX500 i have heard reports that it is quieter but the upscaling is worse.

Well that's a big shame; I've ordered one from Value Electronics, and I was hoping it would be dead silent. Many have said it is, but I've found that I'm especially sensitive to electronic, motor and fan noise... on forums discussing noise from various computer parts (hard drives, optical drives, power supplies, fans, etc.), that people have sworn up and down made no noise, I've almost always heard noise. Either I'm more sensitive to noise than most, or perhaps it just bothers me more than it does others. I tend to think that people must live in more noisy environments than I do, or they only test with sound coming from some source, because I almost always hear whines, whirs, motors, etc.

- Tim

[gkolb]

Originally Posted by tbessie

Well that's a big shame; I've ordered one from Value Electronics, and I was hoping it would be dead silent. Many have said it is, but I've found that I'm especially sensitive to electronic, motor and fan noise... on forums discussing noise from various computer parts (hard drives, optical drives, power supplies, fans, etc.), that people have sworn up and down made no noise, I've almost always heard noise. Either I'm more sensitive to noise than most, or perhaps it just bothers me more than it does others. I tend to think that people must live in more noisy environments than I do, or they only test with sound coming from some source, because I almost always hear whines, whirs, motors, etc.

- Tim

I am sensitive to several noise frequencies like crowds in big noisy rooms (just one example) due to some hearing loss/ sensitivity. Not saying you have this, just that you could be sensitive to certain frequencies. Might want to see a hearing specialist.

EDIT: I have an Oppo 203, no fan needed, the drive seems DEAD quiet as far as I can tell. Sorry to say they went out of production, the no fan is just one of their great features.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by fusion_400

The disc rotation noise is certainly still noticable on Passengers 4k uhd bluray disc. There is also some slightly annoying high pitched sound that is even noticable on regular blu-ray playback.

Oh for GOD sake...

The UB9000 makes "high-pitched" sounds, too?

Jesus Hartcourt Christ on a saltine cracker...I JUST went through this with my Cambridge CXUHD.....

The german review was true the UB9000 player is certainly not silent. But i am not willing to go with the LX500 i have heard reports that it is quieter but the upscaling is worse.

[danny24]

Originally Posted by IntelliVolume

Oh for GOD sake...

The UB9000 makes "high-pitched" sounds, too?

Jesus Hartcourt Christ on a saltine cracker...I JUST went through this with my Cambridge CXUHD.....

Not true, I have played DVD's, BD's, UHD's on it and it's silent pretty much. All players will make some noise from time to time, not what you had with the CXUHD but some noise is normal.

[IntelliVolume]

Originally Posted by danny24

Not true, I have played DVD's, BD's, UHD's on it and it's silent pretty much. All players will make some noise from time to time, not what you had with the CXUHD but some noise is normal.

Danny,

I understand that "some" noise is normal -- there's always going to be mechanism/drive sounds when an optical disc playback device is in motion. The problem is, what someone calls "normal/nominal" is sometimes different from what others call an "annoyance" (it's EXACTLY what I'm going through with the Cambridge repair center right now and what they are describing they're hearing).

In my case, though, in particular, it would be difficult to call the samples I took in my room from 12 feet away "normal" operational sounds, even though the repair center rep claimed he "couldn't believe" that we're hearing this from that distance (and why I was so pissed in my response to them; I wish I could post the samples here so you can hear them...not sure if .WAV files are allowed as attachments).

However -- all of that being said, the member I quoted claimed he was getting high-pitched noise with regular Blu-ray playback (which would constitute part of the bulk of our viewing with this machine)…

This isn't true?

[Gretiem]

Originally Posted by RalphoR

Looks like video quality might favor the 9000 but audio and build quality favor the 500. Still no true reference 4k player.

I can’t decide what to get. At least the pioneer is available. Will the pioneer get hdr10+ though?

[RalphoR]

Originally Posted by Gretiem

I can’t decide what to get. At least the pioneer is available. Will the pioneer get hdr10+ though?

As of now no, according to the Pioneer engineers, but that could change down the road.

[sapiendut]

For a unit to not have any drive sound is impossible. I had the 203 (and also the 2205, and still have the 103D), and the drive noise is there. In fact, I have never experience any UHD player that is completely silent.

[MEB]

I'm still waiting to find out if I made it into the December allocation for the UB9000 or if I'll have to wait until January.

Mark

[REPLAY]

Originally Posted by MEB

I'm still waiting to find out if I made it into the December allocation for the UB9000 or if I'll have to wait until January.

Mark

I called Robert and asked, and I am in the December allocation. Just waiting for payment request.

[RalphoR]

Here's a more recent review of the Pioneer:

https://www.trustedreviews.com/revie...x500-4k-player

Seems to corroborate that if you're into video and streaming only the UB9000 has the edge. If you love music as much as movies the LX500 is the way to go (plus it's build quality is much better).

[Robert Zohn]

We're factory direct authorized dealers for Pioneer Elite and Panasonic and I've been working with and comparing these two BD player nest to each other.

In my opinion Pioneer's LX500 does have a slightly better build quality, but it only moderately better. I don't see anything in the construction that would make me fell it's more than a moderate difference. Both players enjoy a premium design and build quality.

Pioneer' SLX500 does have better 2-channel audio which I hear when playing SACDs on the LX500 vs. the same disc in the CD version on our UB9000, but that may be the advantage of playing the SACD pressing.

Regarding video performance/picture quality, if you have a projector, OLED TV or any LCD that's not one of the 2017-18 highest end models, e.g. Q9FN, Z9F or Z9D, you would want Panasonic's UB9000 as the HDR Optimizer does a superior job in preserve all of the tonal range, detail and color volume of UHD/HDR BD discs and for all UHD/HDR streaming.

My take on the best mach for Pioneer's LX500 over Panasonic's UB900 would be if you want to play SACD's and or DVD-A and or have a reference 2-channel system connected to the player you would want Pioneer's LX500.

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

We're factory direct authorized dealers for Pioneer Elite and Panasonic and I've been working with and comparing these two BD player nest to each other.

In my opinion Pioneer's LX500 does have a slightly better build quality, but it only moderately better. I don't see anything in the construction that would make me fell it's more than a moderate difference. Both players enjoy a premium design and build quality.

Pioneer' SLX500 does have better 2-channel audio which I hear when playing SACDs on the LX500 vs. the same disc in the CD version on our UB9000, but that may be the advantage of playing the SACD pressing.

Regarding video performance/picture quality, if you have a projector, OLED TV or any LCD that's not one of the 2017-18 highest end models, e.g. Q9FN, Z9F or Z9D, you would want Panasonic's UB9000 as the HDR Optimizer does a superior job in preserve all of the tonal range, detail and color volume of UHD/HDR BD discs and for all UHD/HDR streaming.

My take on the best mach for Pioneer's LX500 over Panasonic's UB900 would be if you want to play SACD's and or DVD-A and or have a reference 2-channel system connected to the player you would want Pioneer's LX500.

What about the 500 drive noise, given it is a full PC optical drive? Is it quieter or noisier?

[RalphoR]

If one does own a higher end TV/projector would you say it's a wash between the 9000 and 500 in terms of picture quality? I have the Z9D and it's loaded with streaming apps and doesn't require the optimizer so I'm still debating which way to go. In my scenario I feel the only difference would be SACD/DVD-A utilization. In the LX500 I'd be paying 1k for needed tech vs. the UB9000 that I'd be paying for cool tech I don't need for the same price.