Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[Tok]

Originally Posted by ronand

I've just done a test with "Smiley's People" on my Rattlebyte modded UB820

https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Smile...lu-ray/279633/

I enabled 60Hz output

The actual episodes play fine at 60Hz - these are 1080i 50Hz content

One of the special features (an interview with John le Carré) gives a black screen with audio at 60Hz - this is 576i 50Hz content

The other extra is a restoration feature which plays fine as expected as it is 1080i 50Hz


Try pressing the PLAYBACK INFO button when playing back PAL content to see what resolution it is in and what the player is trying to output. If nothing comes up on the screen then most likely the TV cant handle the 50Hz output

It’s the resolution and scanrate that’s the issue. Many NA displays and content devices don’t support 576i. I use to have a DLP with a Matterhorn chip that was native 576. Unless the player and source were designed to support legacy PAL features you’re probably out of luck.

[ronand]

Originally Posted by Tok

It’s the resolution and scanrate that’s the issue. Many NA displays and content devices don’t support 576i. I use to have a DLP with a Matterhorn chip that was native 576. Unless the player and source were designed to support legacy PAL features you’re probably out of luck.

Most likely its a TV limitation with 50Hz content. Some region free mods get around this by forcing 60Hz output as I mentioned but even that is not foolproof. Without knowing exactly the hardware the poster is using (as well as the disc) we are only guessing.

[senseabove]

I'm limited since I'm asking as a proxy for the friend with the Bombay-modded 820 and it's a bit moot using a stock US player myself, but fwiw, with the 576i director interview on the Uncle Boonmee disc:
• Oppo BDP-83 (region-free mod) -> Denon AVR -> Sony A80J: Plays 576i video and audio. Oppo says "BDMV PAL" source but does not specifically list scanrate. Denon AVR reports 1080/60 -> 1080/60.
• Panasonic UB820 (US Stock) -> Denon AVR -> Sony A80J: Plays 576i audio, no video. Panasonic says "720x576/50i" for source and "4k/60p" for HDMI Video ouput. Denon AVR reports 4k/60 -> 4k/60.

Looks like the Panasonic is telling the receiver it's exporting 60 but not actually converting 50 to 60, which is odd but not surprising given that's a stock US player that also can't play PAL DVDs, unlike my friend's Bombay-modded US 820.


Would still appreciate definite confirmation that someone actually has played 576i/50 content from a BD on a stock UK 820, however obvious it seems that it would.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by senseabove

Would still appreciate definite confirmation that someone actually has played 576i/50 content from a BD on a stock UK 820, however obvious it seems that it would.

I don't think I've had any issues.

My discs are spread about a bit at the moment, but I'll try and find a UK release with that content. I think some of the Doctor Who discs should have some.

[ronand]

I've already posted this - 576i content cannot output at 60Hz on the UB820. It plays back fine at 50Hz on a UK player. Making a player region free will not automatically make it play 50Hz PAL content on a crippled US TV.

[senseabove]

Originally Posted by ronand

I've already posted this - 576i content cannot output at 60Hz on the UB820. It plays back fine at 50Hz on a UK player. Making a player region free will not automatically make it play 50Hz PAL content on a crippled US TV.

Except the Bombay-modded player handles a PAL DVD on a US TV just fine. Isn't that converting 576i/50 to 60?

One of the things that brought this whole kerfluffle up is all the extras on the Draughtsman's Contract DVD playing fine on the modded 820, and those same extras on the new BD playing audio only. It is strictly an issue with 576i content on a BD, which presumably could be fixed with firmware.

[ronand]

Rattlebytes notes that the issue relates to BD content at 576i (DVD seems OK). Its been a while since Panasonic released any updates for this player so highly unlikely the firmware is going to be fixed. Bombay don't rewrite the firmware - it just removes the region lock.

[Vindicator89]

So far so good still with this particular unit in terms of it still being in working order. I did have one disc though it would refuse to play. For some reason it wouldn't play Shout Factory's Big Trouble In Little China properly. It would glitch and freeze before the start of the second chapter of the film.

I checked the disc and it was clean with no visible scratches. I then put the disc into my Sony 4K player and it played all the way through without any issues whatsoever. Other than that? I have had no issues with this player since I bought it last October.

[jaxroll1981]

Just anyone who has had the issue with the stuck disc tray on the Ub9000, I just had the same issue this evening and I tried the whole remote reset to no avail. I checked the underneath of the player and there is a slot with a grey tab inside the unit that is connected to the disc drive/tray, if u get a long piece of wire and you slide the grey tab sideways it will free the tray so that when you plug it back in it will open and close normally again! Hope this helps anyone who has the same issue as it appears to be common.

[Snikt]

So I’m really torn about getting the 820. I could get it for $288; but I already own the 420.

My tv is a Samsung QN65Q90T; so I don’t have access to DV. Do any of you prefer the 820 to the 420; besides having DV?

[sschen]

Originally Posted by Snikt

So I’m really torn about getting the 820. I could get it for $288; but I already own the 420.

My tv is a Samsung QN65Q90T; so I don’t have access to DV. Do any of you prefer the 820 to the 420; besides having DV?

Just my two cents. $288 is such a great price. Why not buy the 820, and offload the 420? This way, when you do "upgrade" to a TV that has DV, you are covered.

[deathshead1987]

I lost my Ub820 AC Cord. Does anyone knows where can I find an original substitute?

[danny24]

Originally Posted by deathshead1987

I lost my Ub820 AC Cord. Does anyone knows where can I find an original substitute?

You don't need the original AC cord. See if you have one around your place that fits.

This should work fine though:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/234068874717

[drush9999]

Yeah any figure of 8 power lead will do

[Broken_Dust]

Does the external subtitles feature work in firmware ver 1.69?

I can see it was discussed at page 310 back in 2020 with firmware ver. 1.66 (China), some users had success with it.

My device has ver. 1.69 Europe/UK (out of the box or wi-fi download, not sure) and I can't get external subtitles to work. I tried to download ver. 1.69 (China) from Panasonic's website and install it through a usb. I can't tell for sure if it made a difference but the external subtitles feature is definitely still not working.

Can anyway help please?

And if anyone has it working can you please confirm if the device displays Arabic font properly? I want to put subtitles for my parents-in-law. If Arabic is not displayed properly I can save the trouble of trying to make external subtitles work.

Thanks in advance!

[ronand]

Originally Posted by Broken_Dust

Does the external subtitles feature work in firmware ver 1.69?

I can see it was discussed at page 310 back in 2020 with firmware ver. 1.66 (China), some users had success with it.

My device has ver. 1.69 Europe/UK (out of the box or wi-fi download, not sure) and I can't get external subtitles to work. I tried to download ver. 1.69 (China) from Panasonic's website and install it through a usb. I can't tell for sure if it made a difference but the external subtitles feature is definitely still not working.

Can anyway help please?

And if anyone has it working can you please confirm if the device displays Arabic font properly? I want to put subtitles for my parents-in-law. If Arabic is not displayed properly I can save the trouble of trying to make external subtitles work.

Thanks in advance!

What player do you have? If its the 820 then the only way to get external subs working is to use a region-free modded firmware (currently only rattlebyte available). The 9000 was supposed to be able to do this with 1.66 Chinese firmware but there are few testimonials of this and none that I am aware of with 1.69

[Broken_Dust]

Originally Posted by ronand

What player do you have? If its the 820 then the only way to get external subs working is to use a region-free modded firmware (currently only rattlebyte available). The 9000 was supposed to be able to do this with 1.66 Chinese firmware but there are few testimonials of this and none that I am aware of with 1.69

Correct, I'm using a 820

Now that's a disappointment... don't think I want to go the mod route on my device just for a few movies and especially that it doesn't guarantee Arabic font.

My other option now is to rip the discs, insert the subtitles and play them through other means to the tv. Might not get the full picture and sound quality out of the discs, but I'll settle with this.

Thanks for the reply!

[ronand]

I hadn't even thought about the arabic subs either. Its quite fussy on the file encoding in any case so that might be tricky.

[chip75]

Unfortunately if you need something funky you're better off using a PC. But then you might run into issues with HDR/DV content.

[hifi59]

Originally Posted by wxman2003

The Top Gun Maverick 4K review is up, and apparently it wont play on the UB9000 according to the review. Played just fine on the X-Box Series X. Thats not good news at all.

Maverick play fine on my 820. No issues.