Technical Issues and Questions

Discuss North American DVDs and Blu-rays or other DVD and Blu-ray-related topics.
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markymark
Joined: Sat Dec 21, 2013 7:02 am
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1601 Post by markymark » Sat Jan 20, 2018 11:10 am

I have a Pioneer slimline BDR-XD05S that I use on both Mac and Windows. I will say that I can play different region blu-rays and I use VLC (mostly, I also have to involve MakeMKV) but it's a bit more work than simply popping in a disc (and the region issue has nothing to do with it...it's a PITA to play a single region).

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whaleallright
Joined: Sun Sep 25, 2005 12:56 am

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1602 Post by whaleallright » Wed Jan 31, 2018 2:08 pm

I have a question about playing video files (particularly MKVs) on a standalone Blu-Ray player. We have a Sony S5100 (purchased 2013) which was hacked by the reseller to make it region-free. For the past few years, the player has not been able to played MKV files properly—either it can't handle both the video and audio codecs or (more often) will play the video but can't read the audio codec. This is equally true of SD and HD files.

I'm wondering if there's a firmware upgrade that will both permit it to play newer codecs /and/ will retain the region-free hack. I don't know if anyone here can answer this precise question (related to this exact model), but maybe there's another site/forum somewhere that has folks who can help with questions like this?

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domino harvey
Dot Com Dom
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1603 Post by domino harvey » Wed Jan 31, 2018 9:10 pm

Strange, my Sony S3100 plays MKVs just fine. Wonder if your unit is faulty, as I can't imagine them removing video playback compatability in a newer model

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The Fanciful Norwegian
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 2:24 pm
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1604 Post by The Fanciful Norwegian » Sun Feb 04, 2018 10:19 pm

MKV is just a container format—there's effectively no limit to the audio and video codecs you can put in an MKV file, and even if a codec is supported by a particular player there may still be issues with playback (for example, certain high-bitrate encodes may be beyond the player's capabilities). It's hard to diagnose a particular problem without knowing more about the files that are causing the problems.

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Grand Wazoo
Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:23 pm

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1605 Post by Grand Wazoo » Thu Feb 15, 2018 10:11 am

Not sure if there was a specific thread tackling this, but I know I've seen it mentioned on the forum before so please move my post if necessary. I was finally hit with the Warner dvd curse, as my recently opened Clark Gable Signature box has not a single disc that will play properly as they either start freezing/skipping a few minutes in or cannot even load at all (giving me a message that what I put in the tray was a blank dvd-r). Does anyone know if the company has commented on this or offered replacements for affected discs? Presumably if they had it's only for in-print films, but I'm not even sure what is still technically in print anymore from the old Warner days. Now I'm nervous to check my film noir and other signature collections. And Val Lewton, and Forbidden Hollywood and and and...

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jedgeco
Joined: Tue Nov 23, 2004 11:28 am

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1606 Post by jedgeco » Tue Feb 27, 2018 2:04 pm

Anybody have any opinions on the various streaming devices? I had been using a PS3, but I've moved that to another TV for my kids, and my Oppo Blu-ray is limited to Netflix and a couple other apps I don't use.

Particularly, I'm interested in one of the devices that supports Filmstruck, which seems to be Roku, Chromecast, Fire, and Apple. I'd prefer something with an ethernet jack for better internet reliability. The Amazon Fire box seems like a good, reasonably priced alternative, but there's a lot of bitching in the Amazon reviews.

Any experiences to share?

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repeat
Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:04 am
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1607 Post by repeat » Tue Feb 27, 2018 4:38 pm

I'm playing Blu-rays on my Mac with an external Samsung BD drive, which has worked quite nicely for the most part. The other day I (finally) watched Los Angeles Plays Itself off the Cinema Guild BD, and noticed a strange phenomenon: some (not all) of the film excerpts would play very choppily, whereas others (and all of the original material shot for the film) would play smoothly. First I thought it was just some random/temporary memory issues, but as I watched I noticed the choppiness was confined quite precisely to specific film clips, disappearing instantly when the clip ended: I also noticed that all excerpts from the same film had this problem. Then I remembered I had this same issue with Daniel Bird's documentary on Second Sight's disc of Possession, where the documentary itself played just fine, but all the excerpts from Possession were choppy as hell. Does anyone have any idea what's going on here?

Pepsi
Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2010 1:01 pm

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1608 Post by Pepsi » Tue Feb 27, 2018 4:42 pm

I'm playing Blu-rays on my Mac with an external Samsung BD drive, which has worked quite nicely for the most part.
I have the same trouble, Mac and Samsung player. For most parts I can't even get the disc played. The Mac crashes often, or the disc don't open, It started some weeks ago.
Can it be something with updates ...

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repeat
Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:04 am
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1609 Post by repeat » Tue Feb 27, 2018 4:49 pm

What software are you using? Most of my discs work absolutely fine with the MacGo Blu-ray Player, but I haven't been able to get external subtitles to work since I updated the program a couple of years ago (haven't updated since for fear of something else going to shit - using version 2.16.10.2261 at the moment). I used to get choppy playback and hanging a lot before I got a RAM upgrade, but I don't think this issue with the film clips is a memory issue at all. Maybe someone who understands the technology could shed some light on this..?

Pepsi
Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2010 1:01 pm

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1610 Post by Pepsi » Tue Feb 27, 2018 4:56 pm

Usally Macgo MAC BLU-RAY PLAYER, but I have also installed Leawo Blu-Ray Player. First problem is that the disc won't upload, or the Mac (10.13.3) crashes.

David M.
Joined: Sat May 10, 2008 1:10 pm

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1611 Post by David M. » Wed Feb 28, 2018 2:23 am

There is no officially licensed Blu-ray playback software on the Mac. I don't know the software in question, but it probably violates some kind of spec rule that means compatibility will be spotty.
Then I remembered I had this same issue with Daniel Bird's documentary on Second Sight's disc of Possession, where the documentary itself played just fine, but all the excerpts from Possession were choppy as hell. Does anyone have any idea what's going on here?
The film clips are higher bitrate than the rest of the footage. That's probably tripping it up somehow.

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repeat
Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:04 am
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1612 Post by repeat » Wed Feb 28, 2018 2:43 am

David M. wrote:The film clips are higher bitrate than the rest of the footage. That's probably tripping it up somehow.
OK, so it actually probably is a memory issue after all! Before doubling the RAM on the computer, the only Blu-rays that would run more or less smoothly were the crappy ones (like the Spanish release of Cure). I don't know anything about the technology so I didn't even realize that the bitrate can vary within the disc, but this makes perfect sense now. Thanks!

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TMDaines
Joined: Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:01 pm
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1613 Post by TMDaines » Wed Feb 28, 2018 4:58 am

How much RAM have you got?

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repeat
Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2009 4:04 am
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1614 Post by repeat » Wed Feb 28, 2018 5:07 pm

Me? I got 4 Gb at the moment (old Mac Mini from 2009) and it seems to be OK for most stuff

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Oedipax
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 8:48 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1615 Post by Oedipax » Fri Mar 02, 2018 4:42 pm

Does anyone have a recommendation for a 4K/UHD blu-ray player (not upscaling, I mean to play UHD discs) that supports both HDR10 and Dolby Vision and isn't super expensive? I've got a few UHD discs hanging around now that have come with regular blu-ray editions, and since I did recently buy an LG OLED with 4K/HDR capabilities, I'd like to start using them. But most of the players that are in my range (say $300 max) don't support one HDR format or the other, and I'm not going to invest in a player I'm not sure will continue to play whatever I can throw at it within this generation of discs. Is this just a case of waiting for new players and prices to start coming down?

I saw that LG apparently put out one player that supported both formats - the UP970 - and would be within my range ($230 on special promotion), but then I read some stuff involving LG recalling the firmware that supported both formats.

Edit: Okay, some updates. It looks like the UP970 does support Dolby Vision again after some more recent firmware updates. And the noise issues mentioned in some reviews appear to refer to earlier manufactured models that by now shouldn't be a concern.

There is also the UP870 which you can snag for $80 off Amazon or even less, like $25-50 from Wal-Mart if you get lucky and find one there. But it's HDR10 only.

The promo price for the UP970 is only valid through tomorrow (March 3), then I suppose it might jump up to $300 again.

I'm kind of leaning towards just getting a UP870 for now and upgrading again once the dust settles a bit more.

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perkizitore
Joined: Thu Jul 10, 2008 3:29 pm
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1616 Post by perkizitore » Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:20 pm

My pick for best affordable player that supports both HDR10 and Dolby Vision is the Sony UBP-X700.

P.S. The only player that supports both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision is Panasonic DP-UB820.

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ermylaw
Joined: Tue Oct 15, 2013 10:58 am

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1617 Post by ermylaw » Fri Mar 02, 2018 7:27 pm

I’ve been doing some research into 4K this week considering getting a new television. So as I read your question, I thought, “I’ve just seen sub-$100 players that do this.” But...

In my research I hadn’t even noticed that most players don’t do Dolby Vision (although I’m not entirely sure what that even is) and I didn’t know there was such a thing as HDR10+.

I feel like making the technology indecipherable to consumers is probably not a great thing. It has a paralyzing effect: although I have the means to buy this stuff, I can’t get over the fact that it seems like whatever one buys today will be outdated tomorrow by the version with a higher number or a “+”.

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Oedipax
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 8:48 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1618 Post by Oedipax » Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:55 am

Thanks for the recommendations, perkizitore. The existence of HDR10+ is news to me - here I was, thinking if I could at least cover the two HDR formats I knew of, I'd be relatively future-proof for a few years.

It does seem like this kind of format battle always hurts adoption of a new format at least in the short term. Now more than ever, probably, given the dominance of streaming for most people these days.

It's kind of ironic that I'm only looking into getting one of these players in the first place because I want to rewatch Song to Song in 4K, and that disc isn't even HDR.


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ermylaw
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1620 Post by ermylaw » Sat Mar 03, 2018 10:34 am

Very helpful. Thank you!

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Adam X
Joined: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:04 am

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1621 Post by Adam X » Sat Mar 03, 2018 11:18 am

No worries. They’re a useful site when it comes to emerging home video technology.

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FigrinDan
The Immortal Dead
Joined: Tue Aug 16, 2016 2:43 pm
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Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1622 Post by FigrinDan » Sat Mar 03, 2018 3:15 pm

Adam Grikepelis wrote:They’re a useful site when it comes to emerging home video technology.
I do enjoy reading Bill Hunt's technical related articles and reviews. He seems to be at all the shows and conventions for the latest technologies.
I also like to use The Digital Bits for their "Release Dates & Artwork" page. Anyone use a similar website?

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Oedipax
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 8:48 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1623 Post by Oedipax » Sat Mar 03, 2018 4:59 pm

In case it helps anyone, just snagged the Sony UBP-X700 off Amazon for $228 shipped from a marketplace seller. It was $248 + tax shipped from Amazon a few hours ago.

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DeprongMori
Joined: Fri Apr 04, 2014 1:59 am
Location: San Francisco

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1624 Post by DeprongMori » Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:11 pm

Anyone have any experience with modded 4K UHD units for region-switching? Are such units supporting HDR10+ and/or Dolby Vision?

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Oedipax
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 8:48 am
Location: Atlanta

Re: Technical Issues and Questions

#1625 Post by Oedipax » Sat Mar 03, 2018 7:12 pm

Keep in mind that UHD is a region-free format (unless there's new developments I'm unaware of) - you would only need the region-free component for standard blu-rays and DVDs.

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