Panasonic 4K Player - DP-UB820-K - Banding/Blocking issues (1 Viewer)

[BornOfAJackal]

My DP-UB820-K exhibits blocking and banding on just a few titles (standard Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray) while everything else plays rock solid. I've checked all the discs for surface interference; not present. And when these anomalies pop up on a certain disc, they keep happening without fail.

Anyone else having this issue?

Could these discs have picked up a static electric charge that interferes with playback?

 

[Robert Crawford]

List the titles please so other people can try them.

 

[BornOfAJackal]

Not a complete list. Off the top of my head...

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (4K)
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (4K)
Grease (4K)
Midnight Cowboy (Criterion Blu-ray. Not during program. Only on the menu loop.)
Batman: Soul of the Dragon (4K)
Brazil (Criterion Blu-ray)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (Blu-ray)

 

[BornOfAJackal]

Could this anomaly be a wrong setting with the color bit depth?

 

[JohnRice]

I have an 820 as well as the SW, Brazil and M&C discs. Where does this happen on them?

 

[JohnRice]

Could this anomaly be a wrong setting with the color bit depth?

What TV do you have? It could be a miscalibration of the black level. Is it only in shadow areas?

 

[BornOfAJackal]

What TV do you have? It could be a miscalibration of the black level. Is it only in shadow areas?

Now that you bring it up, these anomalies do occur in shadow streaks or bands after swift object movement. They also occur in the darkest areas of the menu screens. It's a possibility.

TV: LG OLED65E7P

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

In the case of the two Star Wars prequels listed above, they were shot with very early 24p digital cameras at 1080p resolution. Attack of the Clones was shot with 4:2:2 chroma sampling. So some of the issues for those might be baked into the source.

 

[JohnRice]

Ah! Definitely could be a black level that is passing “darker than black” levels. So, it would be the calibration of the TV. The best solution is with a calibration disc or pattern to get the black level right.

 

[BornOfAJackal]

Ah! Definitely could be a black level that is passing “darker than black” levels. So, it would be the calibration of the TV. The best solution is with a calibration disc or pattern to get the black level right.

That sounds like an accurate assessment of the situation with my TV. Can you point me toward the relevant settings?

 

[BornOfAJackal]

Also, what's the most widely accepted calibration disc? I understand these adjustments are most accurately made with a calibration sensor attached to the screen, but maybe I can resolve the issue without one.

 

[JohnRice]

That sounds like an accurate assessment of the situation with my TV. Can you point me toward the relevant settings?

Usually the Brightness setting. You could pause a menu that has it, then lower the brightness until the blocking disappears. Then just see how things look.

 

[JohnRice]

Also, what's the most widely accepted calibration disc? I understand these adjustments are most accurately made with a calibration sensor attached to the screen, but maybe I can resolve the issue without one.

Spears & Munsil for 4K.

 

[BornOfAJackal]

Usually the Brightness setting. You could pause a menu that has it, then lower the brightness until the blocking disappears. Then just see how things look.

Thanks!

 

[JohnRice]

Just to note, I’ve never used an OLED and the settings are different. There might be a setting to limit the range to the correct black level.

 

[JohnRice]

Paging @Sam Posten for help setting the correct black level on an OLED.

 

[BornOfAJackal]

I adjusted the brightness level up and down during the first problematic section of SW EPIII: Revenge of the Sith. Note that these blocking anomalies sometimes begin earlier-or-later, and are keyed in varying shots, but always after a quick pan or rapid movement within the frame. The brightness adjustments did not eliminate the blocking. On the most recent test, the blocking began on a close-up shot of Count Dooku as he jerks slightly while at the mercy of Anakin Skywalker, and the initial blocking formation was of the entire Dooku silhouette area.

 

[JohnRice]

"Blocking" is far too general a term. You need to describe it more completely or we'll just end up guessing what the problem is.

It also sounds like it could be a motion setting on the TV that should be off/lower. A lot of processing adjustments cause more problems than they solve.

 

[Sam Posten]

Paging @Sam Posten for help setting the correct black level on an OLED.

Keep in mind I'm color blind, but my process has been to start with the consensus settings that early adopters have posted, usually at RTings and AVS Forum, and to modify to taste (BABY STEPS) based on test patterns. DV is particularly tough to modify since it generally goes to baked in settings on LG OLEDs.

The one thing you MUST get right is making sure your panel and media device are getting the right 'extended blacks' setting right.

 

[BornOfAJackal]

By the term "blocking", I'm describing the replacement of intended imagery with a formation of small squares, all roughly the same 3/4 cm. dimension, with differing color and pattern images within. Sometimes they manifest in bands, sometimes they replace whole images within the frame. They're intermittent, but always afflict the same individual movie titles. "Grease" (4K) is the worst and most predictable offender. Invariably, at about 20 minutes in, never in exactly the same place, but always after a particular point in the movie, the block patterns will invade and sometimes even the sound will become misaligned. The Dolby Vision implementation is dodgy on that one too. Much different than "Lawrence of Arabia".

I'll check out those settings on RTings and AVS Forum.