Picked Up My First 4K UHD Blu Rays

[Jagosaurus]

... know I'm late but have to say I'm impressed with the image quality and colors in HDR.

I ended up with new copies of The Martian and Total Recall (recent remaster) for $30 total. Yes, sticking with the Mars theme I guess

I've been tempted to try the format since 2019 or so and finally gave in as I've had some streaming service fatigue lately. I also read Microsoft had patched their BD app on XB and the 100G multi layer disc were less problematic than before.

... if you're not aware, even some standalone players will have hiccups with these multi layer BD-100 (Gb) disc.

I'm just going to play it conservative and make sure any I pick up on this list are combo packs with original 1080p BD.
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=294596

My OG Sony BD player even had problems with later BD releases. Assuming a similar issue. Had to update the firmware and mostly fixed it.

I'm not going to go all in with how I did on DVD & BD (later ripping via MKV and drastically pairing down), but I can see 20 or so key movies I'd enjoy experiencing in 4K & HDR with loss-less audio at full bit rate vs streaming.

Any one else enjoy the format or collect for it? Any recommendations for movies that look exceptionally great?

Reminder that if using a XB as player - HDR10 only, no Dolby Vision lics. Didn't matter to me personally. My sets only support HDR10.

[Ziggy]

Nice!

A while back, I had a cousin give me his 4K BD player to look at for him since it wasn't reading discs. It was his spare, I never got around to looking at it, and he ended up getting another player anyway. So technically, I own a 4K player. Maybe all I have to do is clean the lens and it works? Or maybe it's toast.

And I do actually own a few 4K BDs. They're all combo packs that include the 1080p BD as well. I bought the 4K release for Hook because it has a substantial amount of deleted scenes. Although it turns out all of the deleted scenes are on the 4K BD but not the regular BD, so I can't watch them LOL. I got Air Force One on 4K BD because the combo pack was the cheapest option at the time I purchased it. And I have the Ghostbusters films on 4K because I purchased the latest box set, again for the bonus material that came with it. I think those are all of the ones I have.

The problem is, I don't have a 4K TV. My philosophy was always "I'll get a new TV when my current one breaks." The problem is, this TV is going strong! It's pretty old at this point. I'm too lazy to get the model number from the back of the TV to Google it, but IIRC I got it before 2014. So, it's at least 10 years old! Since they're so cheap now, and since I'm not currently using my HDTV for retro gaming, I have thought about upgrading. But should I? My one sticking point is that 99.9% of the time I'll be watching sub 4K content. So is the expense worth it for the few times I'll put on a 4K movie?

There's probably a few more movies I wouldn't mind getting on 4K BD. Definitely Terminator 2. Maybe the first Jurassic Park. And I would like to download Star Wars 4K77, 4K80 and 4K83 (fan made 4K scans and restorations of the original theatrical films). Other than that though, I'm not sure how many movies I'd really care to go out of my way to get on 4K BD, especially since they'd probably be movies I'm purchasing for the umpteenth time. If I get a 4K TV though I'd probably bargain hunt movies, I've seen quite a few that are $15 or less.

I probably could have gotten more 4K/BD combos, but I've usually been opting to get BD/DVD combos when possible. I have an old computer on the workbench, and sometimes I like to play DVDs on it. I also have a portable DVD player. It's rare, but it's nice to have if the electricity goes out.

I did not no that about multi layer UHD BDs, thanks for mentioning that. I've always thought about getting a more "high end" BD player, but jeez they can be expensive. Streaming has spoiled us with many things. I find that I now sometimes get annoyed with how loud my BD player is (especially if the volume isn't up very high). I've thought about investigating if a high end player is quieter.

I thought it was really lame when I found out that the PS4 Pro doesn't play 4K BDs. It outputs 4K video, has a BD player, but is not a 4K BD player. Lame. I'd say that was a giant missed opportunity, but I suppose even by that time how many of the kiddies are watching physical movies? Or even people out age, for that matter. Physical UHD movies seems to be mostly for the enthusiast. Which is fine by me, as long as physical sticks around!

edit: Oh, and I forgot. My AVR was on the fritz so I had to purchase a new one. My last AVR was purchased along with the HDTV that I still currently have, so it was also at least 10 years old. My new AVR supports the latest 4K standards, so I'm all set if I decide to upgrade.

[Jagosaurus]

Let me know if you get it running! It does look like you can get a Xbox One S for ~$120 if you're looking for an entry level player. That's what I have in 1 room, Xbox Series X in another. Both tested and working well with recent BD app patch. I hear you on upgrading the TVs...

In 2017, I had an early (Dec 2008) Sony 1080p set get popped by lightning (yes, was in a surge protector) so I decided to go new vs sink into repair costs. The new 4K Vizio set purchased actually wasn't HDR compatible upon release (not yet fully standardized) but it was added via firmware to 1 HDMI port. She's still going strong! HDR10 looking great.

Then had a similar scenario in my gameroom. Had another early HDTV, Vizio (Jan 2008) that was technically 1366x768 PC resolution and not true native 720p. The color started getting super distorted couple years back. I went with a 4K TCL Roku TV upgrade there. I just set my parents up with the current 2023 version of this TCL set but it's now Google TV equipped. Picture looks amazing.

Don't get me wrong, the resolution bump is impressive with ~4x the pixel count. To me, the screen technology (better blacks & contrast, multiple dimming zones, etc) and the HDR color pops make an even bigger difference.

Terminator 2 & Jurassic Park were on my short list to purchase! Some others staples were Blade Runner & Ghostbusters. I read Top Gun Maverick looks amazing. Then the original 2001 Fast & Furious is a guilty pleasure of mine...

Looks like many movies haven't received conversions yet. Tombstone & original Terminator come to mind. Others are getting limited runs like Pitch Black:
https://www.arrowvideo.com/pitch-black- ... 77552.html

I do think it's pretty niche ... when we look back one day, I can see UHD BD being in a similar camp as Laser Disc for enthusiasts.

[Ziggy]

That's funny! Back in 2019, I purchased a 55" 4K TCL for my parents. Every time I see it, I'm very impressed with how it looks. They don't have any 4K sources, but it's still a very nice looking TV. The only complaint is that the screen doesn't handle glare very well, it's actually terrible, but I've heard TCL has improved their screens since then. I just purchased a 40" 1080p TCL as a Christmas present for my parents for their bedroom. The 55" TCL was Roku equipped. The 40" had the option of Google or Fire TV for the same model, I went with Fire. After you posted this thread, I looked up some 4K TCLs and they're so cheap! Now I'm considering a 4K upgrade.

Yeah, T2 and JP are still two "benchmark" movies for me. Not only do I consider them amazing movies, that I can watch a million times and still love, but they're always great for testing out new home theater equipment. Funny story, T2 was the first and second Blu Ray that I ever purchased. When I got my first HDTV, a 720p screen, I picked up T2 to test it out. But at that time, BDs were still pricey and knowing that I didn't have a full HD screen I decided not to purchase any more BDs. But after I got a 1080p screen, they had released the Skynet Edition so I ended up picking it up. I mean, how can I pass that up?

BD prices have been reasonable for years now, so I've mostly been purchasing BD over DVD. Unless it's something that I really don't care and/or the price isn't justified. But UHD BD, the prices are still kind of all over the place. One trend I've noticed though, for the most part, is that the really popular movies are over $20 and the common movies are under $15. I mean, you're gonna purchase your favorites no matter what the price is. So I don't care if T2 or JP are over $20. But I was just looking up UHD BD on Amazon and some of the prices seem nuts. Like Fargo for $30 and Groundhogs Day for $25. I mean, Groundhogs day isn't a movie I'm gonna go out of my way to get on 4K. Heck, I didn't even bother to get it on BD. And I don't care what work goes into a remaster, or which rights need to be licensed, I'm not paying $30 for a movie.

But there are lots of great priced movies. Some that I've come across: The Mummy (1999) for $10.49, E.T. for $11.25, Casino for $10.13, and The Fast and the Furious for $9.99. Those are prices that I could impulse buy at. For $15-20, I have to think about it and/or really like the movie. Over $20, it has to be one of my all time favorites. I've always thought E.T. was a visually stunning movie. And the first Fast and Furious movie is a classic at this point. I'm not a huge fan, but I would definitely get it at that price.

But yeah, I doubt many people outside of real home theater enthusiast are collecting UHD BD. Laser Disc might be a good comparison. Now might be a good time to start getting UHD BD before it's too late. Best Buy announced that they will stop carrying DVD and BD in early 2024. Not that a big retailer can't make a misstep, but this might be the writing on the wall.

I've thought about getting an Xbox One, but I don't think I'd like to use it as a BD player. I like to keep as much wear and tear off of game consoles as possible. I feel like I could wear out an optical drive prematurely if I used it for movies. Entry level stand alone UHD BD players aren't too much. That said, it kind of sucks that things aren't built to last these days. Go back to the 80s or 90s, and you could buy a JVC or Sony VCR and as long as it wasn't abused it most likely still works today. But even when you stick to trusted brand names, I feel like DVD and BD players can just die without warning. It makes me worried about an investment in the media if I might have issues with playback in the decades to come. That is, unless playback becomes a cinch on PC with unofficial software.

Dammit, now I'm seriously considering getting a 4K TV! I'll wait until I set up that TCL for my parents. Even though it isn't 4K, I'd like to see how the newer TCL screens deal with glare. If they've improved, I might be getting a 4K TCL for myself!

[Anapan]

My parent's den TV lost backlight on the top 1/3rd and they asked me what to get; They wanted it on a budget, but I told them that you have to upgrade to a bit bigger - their eyes are getting worse, and all. I convinced them to go with a 55" TCL QLED 6 Series after having watchedLinus Tech Tips' video on the new LCD tech. I told them that Roku or Google TV would be fine. Glad my mom decided to go with Google TV so I could install Projectivy Launcher to avoid the huge ads, and allow me to sideload a few more apps for them.
The brightness is there, as is the anti-glare - it's not anywhere near what my C1 OLED does to absorb light sources, but it's sufficiently diffusing it as far as frosted front-diffusion goes. Certainly much better black level while off compared to my old plasma. I'm a bit disappointed in the angle viewing - blacks go bright blue. I guess I'm spoiled since I went from Plasma to Oled avoiding LCD entirely, but I gotta say, the tech to price on these is really impressive.
It even has a dedicated game mode, and supports 120hz.

[Ziggy]

To be fair, the 55" TCL that I bought for my parents is a 2017 model. And I knew about the glare issue when I was buying it. They don't really watch TV during the day, so they don't have to worry about the sun. But if you turn on the lamp in their living room, the glare is horrible. Fortunately, the glare from that lamp isn't an issue due to the position of the lamp and where they sit. But from the adjacent couch, the glare from that lamp is awful. Also, they have an open floor plan. If you turn on the chandelier in the dinning room, it makes the TV unwatchable. But I have to say, glare is the ONLY issue with the TV. Otherwise, it looks beautiful. Even without any 4K sources. I've hooked my Switch up to it a number of times and that also looks beautiful. And I don't notice an input lag issue.

Speaking of input lag, I see on the newer TCLs that they auto switch to game mode. That's neat, but I suspect it probably only detects and switches for the newer consoles. My new AVR will detect and display the name of some consoles, but not all. So I suspect the TCL is using the same detection method, and thus wont work for everything. And I think it's safe to assume it wont work for the Retro TINK or an HDMI modded console, for example. My current 1080p TV, when I first got it I used Disney's WOW to calibrate it. I put it in game mode and turned off all processing. I've left it as such ever since. It was easier to prioritize gaming, and I didn't see a benefit for any of the image processing the TV had (in fact, some of it hampered the image). But have things changed? I must admit, I haven't been keeping up with the TV tech. For sets that are 4K with HDR, do you want to use the various image processing settings?

For the heck of it, I was window shopping some 4K BD players on Crutchfield. One of their (currently) highest rated players has an interesting description...

Ever since Oppo stopped building their fantastic Blu-ray players in 2018, we've been waiting for another player that could match their reference-quality picture and sound. Panasonic's DP-UB820 is definitely a contender. In head-to-head tests, some reviewers have found that the DP-UB820 slightly outperforms the Oppos, at least when it comes to 4K Blu-ray playback and upconversion of 1080p Blu-rays.

I know you can get 4K BD players around the $100 mark. And at $500, this player is roughly double the cost of the 4K TV I was looking at. But honestly, I'm kinda sick of mediocre players. I can see myself spending less on an average TV, and spending more on a better player.

[Ziggy]

OK, I just pulled the trigger on a 4K BD player. I ended up getting the Sony UBP-X800M2. It seemed to me to be the best bang for the buck, possibly the best priced mid-tier player.

Rant about drive noise...

One thing that I've really gotten sick of is optical drive noise. I haven't used my PS3 or PS4 in a while because the drive noise is now so freaking loud in the shelf that I built for them (I have to figure out a solution for that). I don't remember my old DVD players being very loud. I currently have an old Sony 5-disc DVD player, and aside from the carousel when changing discs, it isn't very loud. But my Blu Ray player, which is also my main DVD player, has been a Sony BDPS1500 and it can be very annoying at times. During playback, when the disc is spinning at its full RPM I guess, it can be very loud. I guess it depends on its position on my TV stand. I have to go over to it and try to reposition it to make it quieter. And after streaming for so many years, it can be very frustrating when I want to watch something at a moderate to low volume. Has streaming really spoiled us? I've been watching a lot of VHS tapes the past few months (I have a TV/VCR combo on my work bench) and I forgot how loud a VCR can be. And is it just me, or are BD players louder than DVD players? Do BD drives spin at a higher RPM than DVD or CD? And I've read a few posts that suggest 4K players might be even louder still than standard BD players. Jeez.

Anyway, long story short (too late) a lot of my consideration for a 4K player went into how loud or quiet it will be. This doesn't seem to be a thing that video reviewers really cover, but at this point it might be my most important spec to look at. It would be all too easy if the $1,100 Panasonic DP-UB9000P1K was an actual option for me, I've read that the drive noise is pretty minimal. But I did take a long hard look at the Panasonic DP-UB820 for $500. I just wasn't convinced that that I would be happy with my purchase at that price. The Sony UBP-X800M2 that I ended up getting retails for half of that at $250, and it looks like they have put some effort into how well it's built. I looked at tear down pics of Sony's X700 player and the drive definitely looks cheaper. Not only does the X800 model have a beefier looking drive, Sony put in extra effort to design the chassis and drive in a way to reduce vibrations. They even go as far as to market it as such, including shots of the chassis and drive in the stock photos (you can see them in the Crutchfield link above).

I ended up purchasing it from Crutchfield. They had a scratch and dent model at a reduced cost, and I had a few reward bucks as well. Now I just need a 4K TV

[Ziggy]

Can we talk about the varying quality of 4K BD releases?

On one hand, it's kind of neat in a way. If you only modestly buy 4K BDs, you can research specific releases and really nerd out over things. On the other hand, if you just want to casually buy movies then you might get a really nice looking remaster, a real stinker, or anything in between.

So, what the hell? Apparently some UHD BD releases aren't from actual 4K scans of the film. Rather, there are some that are upscaled from the 1080p masters. Of course, there are some situations like the Star Wars prequels being shot in digital 1080p (what a short sighted shame that is). But otherwise it's kind of shitty to put out a fake 4K release instead of a proper remaster.

Then, even when a movie was remastered in "real" 4K, the quality can still vary. So for example, Terminator 2 is a real 4K scan of the film but a lot of people think this release is horrible. The two things I find people call out the most is color correction and too much noise filter to remove film grain which ends up making people's skin look like wax. I tried looking up some comparison videos, but it's hard to tell what people are talking about. I mean, the color correction is easy to notice. But as for the noise filter and waxy looking skin, I'm viewing the comparison of the 4K and 1080p releases on a 1080p screen and also with whatever compression YouTube adds. So I don't think I'll really be able to get a sense of what people are talking about without viewing the actual UHD BD on a 4K screen.

[bmoc]

I just got my first 4K BD as well. My wife got me the 4K LotR Trilogy for Christmas. This is now the 3rd time I've owned these movies lol. I got rid of the theatrical DVDs when the Extended Editions came out. I'm not complaining because The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition DVDs won't play in a PS4 or PS5 which is inconvenient. Anyway, this set seems to be fairly well received so I'm excited to try it out soon.

Can we talk about the varying quality of 4K BD releases?

So annoying though not unique to 4K BD. I've got plenty of bad to mediocre remasters in DVD and 1080p BD form. Anybody messed around with AI upscaling software? I feel like in some instances, it might produce a better result than a lazy 4K remaster.

[Ziggy]

Nice! The LotR trilogy is on my list of movies that I must one day watch, I've never actually seen them! But damn, there's EXTENDED editions! The theatrical cuts weren't long enough?

Right, I forgot to mention the varying quality of other formats. But it was mostly isolated to budget releases. I can remember some VHS tapes looking especially fuzzy, which was mostly public domain stuff. And I definitely had a few DVDs that must have been (really bad) VHS transfers, but again it was usually budget releases from independent companies. And I have even seen 1080p Blu Ray with varying degrees of quality. But talking specifically about the major motion picture studios, where there any 1080p Blu Ray releases that were 480i DVD upscales?

4K UHD Blu Ray feels like a premium product, and for the price that they cost I feel like there's no excuse for something substandard. I mean, I get it, the big movie studios are happy to see the physical movie format die off. But why bother doing a half ass release? It reminds me of the early days of HD cable broadcasts. When all of the major networks started broadcasting in HD for the first time, FOX came out with "FOX Widescreen." Which was a standard definition 16:9 broadcast, because they figured most people wouldn't know the difference. So do these movie studios figure most people wont know the difference between an HD upscale and a true 4K scan? It just feels like anyone who is gonna go out of there way and spend more money to get 4K BDs versus 1080p BDs would be the exact group of people to notice something like this.

But I've also read things that make it sound like you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between 2K and 4K. Or even that a 1080p upscale isn't as bad as the internet makes it out to be.

edit: For example, I was just reading about Empire Strikes Back. Some people are bashing it because Disney didn't opt to use BD100 discs. And the review I read on Blu-Ray.com makes it out to sound kind of bad. The review sums it up by saying the 4K BD release is a disappointment but it's the best looking home release we've ever had of the movie LOL.