Panasonic DP-UB820EB, DP-UB420EB and DP-UB320EB Owners Thread

Putting a combined HDMI Audio: Off and Analogue Multi Channel: stereo button on the remote should have been possible for Panasonic (but they didn't bother). It may even be possible to program something this as a macro command sequence into a Harmony type remote.
Certainly a fairly big clanger dropped there. All actions should be able to be actioned from a remote and going from analogue to digital output is a fairly big one. A standalone CDP is going to be the right decision for @neuty in view of his misgivings and the lack of capable UD players on the market because of the current world pandemic problems.
 
Something seems a miss here with the audio issue of the 820. Why disable something on just one player when all others with the relavant connections have them enabled.

I will scream if a firmware comes out and I have returned mine. LOL
Decided I'm getting a dedicated CD Player anyway. It simplifies the whole process for me.
I'm on the latest Chinese fw 1.66 which isn't the official UK one but works fine.
I can get optical audio out fine.
If you just want spdif cd out to your amp it would work fine.
It's only analogue stereo that doesn't automatically output without changing the hdmi to off.
 
I'm on the latest Chinese fw 1.66 which isn't the official UK one but works fine.
I can get optical audio out fine.
If you just want spdif cd out to your amp it would work fine.
It's only analogue stereo that doesn't automatically output without changing the hdmi to off.
I was able to get digital audio and hdmi working fine no problems.

As posted and confirmed in the thread, analog audio and digital was a no go.

Carl
 
Finally managed to get a refurbished ub820 from Panasonic outlet for 179. If anyone's interested at the time of writing they have 2 in stock.
Will be pairing it with a c9 oled. Are there any settings I should change on the player or TV when I go through setup? Thanks
 
Finally managed to get a refurbished ub820 from Panasonic outlet for 179. If anyone's interested at the time of writing they have 2 in stock.
Will be pairing it with a c9 oled. Are there any settings I should change on the player or TV when I go through setup? Thanks
If your C9 is like my E8: TV UHD deep colour needs to be on for the HDMI port the player is connected to (will probably auto set to this when it first detects a UHD signal, TV will then reboot. )

Player
display type: Oled
If playing audio through something which can decode HD soundtracks
all audio types: bitstream
secondary audio: off

Apart from that 'automatic' or player set settings are usually OK.
 
If your C9 is like my E8: TV UHD deep colour needs to be on for the HDMI port the player is connected to (will probably auto set to this when it first detects a UHD signal, TV will then reboot. )

Player
display type: Oled
If playing audio through something which can decode HD soundtracks
all audio types: bitstream
secondary audio: off



Apart from that 'automatic' or player set settings are usually OK.

If your C9 is like my E8: TV UHD deep colour needs to be on for the HDMI port the player is connected to (will probably auto set to this when it first detects a UHD signal, TV will then reboot. )

Player
display type: Oled
If playing audio through something which can decode HD soundtracks
all audio types: bitstream
secondary audio: off

Apart from that 'automatic' or player set settings are usually OK.
Do I turn off tone mapping on the TV?
 
Do I turn off tone mapping on the TV?
Up to you. I usually prefer it off (I find it elevates the black levels) but sometimes have it on.
AFAIK the C9 DTM has improved over that in the E8 so always on may be fine to your eyes.

I have two HDMI cables going from my AVR to the E8, one to a port with DTM off and one to a port with DTM on. So it's fairly easy to flick between on or off by changing the HDMI port in use.
 
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I was able to get digital audio and hdmi working fine no problems.

As posted and confirmed in the thread, analog audio and digital was a no go.

Carl
It looks like you've made the right decision.
According to the following tests Panasonic DP-UB820 UHD Player Review the ub820 has sub par performance over the analogue stereo outs.
I'm glad I kept the 900 for its ability to play stereo analogue well because it has a better separate dac dedicated to the analogue section that is of a higher quality. So I can continue to enjoy my hi res blu discs via headphones unencumbered by the 48khz downsampling imposed via the spdif circuit.
I think I did notice an inferior sonic performance over analogue stereo when I first got the 820 and assumed it was merely a case of it being new and as yet not burned in.
This fellow also examined the 9000 and found its analogue stereo performance to be very good Panasonic DP-UB9000 UHD Player Review
On balance, I think the extra outlay for the 9000 to achieve the better analogue stereo would be justifiable if making a first purchase upgrade from something much cheaper. As a dac and cd transport to upgrade a standalone cd player and uhd player in one go, this would be a no brainer.
As it stands, I think I've convinced myself that I have a decent hi res analogue player in the 900 with a great av hdmi setup in the 820. I can use the spdif to the headphone dac/amp from the 820 and get decent stereo or mono performance whilst watching it.
(for serious hi res dsd listening, the pc wired to the pre amp via ethernet is superior - even the 900 is vastly inferior)
I also have the the 820's to my preamp through the spdif in the tv in pcm and so gain decent stereo audio over the stereo speakers or via headphones that way, even for dolby or dts encoded 2 channel material, without having to mess with any settings in the 820.
I do that regularly when watching older movies in stereo/mono rather than go through the av amp.
All bases covered then. No longer coveting the 9000 :0)
 
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I purchased one of the two refurbished ub820’s on eBay, that Doctor Smith advised above. Just testing it on my only 4K disc -The Revenant...I’m not exactly feeling any ‘pop’. Do all these ‘0 nit’ readings look right,& anyone any tips as to how to correct? Cheers
 

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I purchased one of the two refurbished ub820’s on eBay, that Doctor Smith advised above. Just testing it on my only 4K disc -The Revenant...I’m not exactly feeling any ‘pop’. Do all these ‘0 nit’ readings look right,& anyone any tips as to how to correct? Cheers
Yes. It's a disc without any metadata and 1000 nits. As such HDR Optimiswer can't do anything.
However The Revenant is one of thr best looking discs out there and shouldn't need any pop.
What is your TV?
 
Yes. It's a disc without any metadata and 1000 nits. As such HDR Optimiswer can't do anything.
However The Revenant is one of thr best looking discs out there and shouldn't need any pop.
What is your TV?
An ez952 65’. I think what you’re saying is that because the disc isn’t hdr10+, it’s regular hdr-that this section, regarding Metadata, isn’t relevant?
 
Hello.
Is there stil no dolby atmos support from mkv files from hdd ?
 
Hello.
Is there stil no dolby atmos support from mkv files from hdd ?
You can't use any high res audio format (Dolby TrueHD, DTS-MA) format with files played from hdds. If you try you won't hear anything. Only regular DD/DTS works.
 
Yes. It's a disc without any metadata and 1000 nits. As such HDR Optimiswer can't do anything.
However The Revenant is one of thr best looking discs out there and shouldn't need any pop.
What is your TV?
What makes you think the Optimizer 'can't' do anything?
It can reduce the 1000 nits output to 500 if used on the basic setting. In doing so it prevents clipping on my tv.
It 'won't' do anything if set above that and the 1000 nits native level will be output.
 
What makes you think the Optimizer 'can't' do anything?
It can reduce the 1000 nits output to 500 if used on the basic setting. In doing so it prevents clipping on my tv.
It 'won't' do anything if set above that and the 1000 nits native level will be output.
Because the TV would normally be placed as Oled i.e. 1000 nits. Yes, you can set it up at 500 nits but at the cost of throwing away some of the capability of the TV. The OP complaint was lack of pop, so why suggest hobbling the TV down to 500 nits max to give even less pop.
EZ952
....peak brightness on a 10% window at 620nits – that was in the Professional 1 viewing mode with Brightness and Contrast set to maximum – which is a bit lower than the EZ1002 and also lower than the competition. We use a 10% window based on the Ultra HD Alliance guidelines but the EZ952 measured 695nits on a 1% window, which means that the small specular highlights in actual content are probably hitting around 700nits in reality.
 
Because the TV would normally be placed as Oled i.e. 1000 nits. Yes, you can set it up at 500 nits but at the cost of throwing away some of the capability of the TV. The OP complaint was lack of pop, so why suggest hobbling the TV down to 500 nits max to give even less pop.
EZ952
....peak brightness on a 10% window at 620nits – that was in the Professional 1 viewing mode with Brightness and Contrast set to maximum – which is a bit lower than the EZ1002 and also lower than the competition. We use a 10% window based on the Ultra HD Alliance guidelines but the EZ952 measured 695nits on a 1% window, which means that the small specular highlights in actual content are probably hitting around 700nits in reality.
By pop, to clarify ...you’d think the fires at the beginning of the film would be the ideal scene to check if indeed displaying in hdr- but it didn’t exactly come across to my eyes as much different than SDR.
 
Because the TV would normally be placed as Oled i.e. 1000 nits. Yes, you can set it up at 500 nits but at the cost of throwing away some of the capability of the TV. The OP complaint was lack of pop, so why suggest hobbling the TV down to 500 nits max to give even less pop.
EZ952
....peak brightness on a 10% window at 620nits – that was in the Professional 1 viewing mode with Brightness and Contrast set to maximum – which is a bit lower than the EZ1002 and also lower than the competition. We use a 10% window based on the Ultra HD Alliance guidelines but the EZ952 measured 695nits on a 1% window, which means that the small specular highlights in actual content are probably hitting around 700nits in reality.
I get it.
I thought you were saying that the lack of content metadata meant the optimizer couldn't operate, rather than meaning that specific to the needs it wasn't going to make a difference.
 
I’m planing on resubscribing to cinema paradiso -is there a film anyone could recommend where I’d know, beyond any doubt ...if being displayed in hdr, I’d rent ?cheers
 
By pop, to clarify ...you’d think the fires at the beginning of the film would be the ideal scene to check if indeed displaying in hdr- but it didn’t exactly come across to my eyes as much different than SDR.
I wouldn't use that movie to see any kind of 'pop' or bright shiny shiny. It's a very natural looking movie specifically shot using natural light.
If you want shiny shiny, try Pacific Rim, Valerian, Lucy, Aquaman etc.- stuff with lots of cgi and effects - there's a lot to choose from for that kind of thing.
 
Because the TV would normally be placed as Oled i.e. 1000 nits. Yes, you can set it up at 500 nits but at the cost of throwing away some of the capability of the TV. The OP complaint was lack of pop, so why suggest hobbling the TV down to 500 nits max to give even less pop.
EZ952
....peak brightness on a 10% window at 620nits – that was in the Professional 1 viewing mode with Brightness and Contrast set to maximum – which is a bit lower than the EZ1002 and also lower than the competition. We use a 10% window based on the Ultra HD Alliance guidelines but the EZ952 measured 695nits on a 1% window, which means that the small specular highlights in actual content are probably hitting around 700nits in reality.
Not that it probably matters for this particular debate...but my tv settings aren’t pro1...they are the hdr calibrated settings that Vincent Teoh did. Don’t know if that affects anything ...
 
I have a weird problem with my 820 where I believe it is causing my TV to lose earc connection with my soundbar.

This problem has been going on for months and has led to Samsung replacing the TV and changing the motherboard on the soundbar. After the problem has still persisted we have started to investigate the various external devices plugged into the setup.

With the 820 not connected via HDMI the earc connection has been absolutely fine. Plugging the 820 into either the TV or soundbar via HDMI leads to the earc connection being lost, this happens whether the player is turned on or off. I have swapped out the HDMI cable with others and the problem still occurs.

I'm truly at a loss for how the 820 can be causing this to happen yet all of the evidence seems to support the case that it is to blame.

Anybody had this issue or have any suggestions?
 
I've recently just bought the player; after trying to find one that won't damage my discs. Have played few discs where can her occasional very faint click sound; but movies play perfectly with no freezes; and can only hear clicks when volume is low or at super quiet moments, as it's really faint. Is this normal?
 
I've recently just bought the player; after trying to find one that won't damage my discs. Have played few discs where can her occasional very faint click sound; but movies play perfectly with no freezes; and can only hear clicks when volume is low or at super quiet moments, as it's really faint. Is this normal?
Can't recall ever hearing anything like that on mine.
 
I have a weird problem with my 820 where I believe it is causing my TV to lose earc connection with my soundbar.

This problem has been going on for months and has led to Samsung replacing the TV and changing the motherboard on the soundbar. After the problem has still persisted we have started to investigate the various external devices plugged into the setup.

With the 820 not connected via HDMI the earc connection has been absolutely fine. Plugging the 820 into either the TV or soundbar via HDMI leads to the earc connection being lost, this happens whether the player is turned on or off. I have swapped out the HDMI cable with others and the problem still occurs.

I'm truly at a loss for how the 820 can be causing this to happen yet all of the evidence seems to support the case that it is to blame.

Anybody had this issue or have any suggestions?
Interesting issue you have.
I have my pc connected via my amp on the arc channel. If I have my 820 on the pc occasionally loses connection and I get a grey screen.
Sometimes toggling the inputs having switched off the 820 solves it. But sometimes, I have to just switch everything off at the mains and then on again. All the handshakes happen and it's fine.
I have always put it down to some glitch in the pc and its hdmi or video circuit/software..
Now I'm not sure.
It has happened far less since I turned off the Viera link and the Contents Type Flag. It is now very rare and seems only when I have the 820 on and switch to the pc hdmi 2 arc. I also have the 820 on quick startup.
It used to happen randomly more often and I had to use the switch off method. It now happens once a month-ish, rather than once a week or two, at its worst.
My 820 video is into the tv and the audio to the amp.
Have you tried switching off the link and contents settings, and perhaps try the tv type too - set that to 4k rather than automatic, to reduce the number of handshake stages with the tv?
You might find that you can reduce the issue to a tolerable level, even if you can't eliminate it.
I don't mind just switching the entire kit off at the wall - tv, 3 br players, av amp, cd and stereo amps etc. then back on. It's a matter of 30 seconds' inconvenience.
 
Interesting issue you have.
I have my pc connected via my amp on the arc channel. If I have my 820 on the pc occasionally loses connection and I get a grey screen.
Sometimes toggling the inputs having switched off the 820 solves it. But sometimes, I have to just switch everything off at the mains and then on again. All the handshakes happen and it's fine.
I have always put it down to some glitch in the pc and its hdmi or video circuit/software..
Now I'm not sure.
It has happened far less since I turned off the Viera link and the Contents Type Flag. It is now very rare and seems only when I have the 820 on and switch to the pc hdmi 2 arc. I also have the 820 on quick startup.
It used to happen randomly more often and I had to use the switch off method. It now happens once a month-ish, rather than once a week or two, at its worst.
My 820 video is into the tv and the audio to the amp.
Have you tried switching off the link and contents settings, and perhaps try the tv type too - set that to 4k rather than automatic, to reduce the number of handshake stages with the tv?
You might find that you can reduce the issue to a tolerable level, even if you can't eliminate it.
I don't mind just switching the entire kit off at the wall - tv, 3 br players, av amp, cd and stereo amps etc. then back on. It's a matter of 30 seconds' inconvenience.
After I made that post I trawled through the settings on the 4K player, one that I turned off was the Viera link. So far it hasn't lost arc connection again, so maybe that was it. I'll try watching a disk later and see what happens then.

Man, if this turns out to actually be a problem caused by the 4K player I'll be equally relieved to have solved and and pissed due to all of the effort I have gone through. Probably not as pissed as Samsung who have been out to my house four times, replaced the motherboard on the original TV, then replaced the TV and the motherboard on my soundbar. Although to be honest this shouldn't be causing such a problem on their equipment.
 

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