Panasonic, "Ultimate 4K Recorder" and "DMR-ZR1" in pursuit of picture and sound quality [comment]

Panasonic will launch the 4KDi high-end model "DMR-ZR1" in pursuit of high picture quality and sound quality on January 28th, 2022. Although the price is open, the actual sales are expected to be about 360000 yen after tax. [photo] as the advanced model of the company's tape recorder, the internal composition of "DMR-ZR1" pursues the "ultimate tape recorder" of "the highest level of high sound quality and high picture quality design in the history of Diga". In addition to using the same high rigidity and low center of gravity chassis as the most advanced player "DP-UB9000", newly developed power supplies and digital circuits are also used. In addition, the real machine impression of Mr. Hongchi Kenzo, a critic of AV, was also sent in the second half of the report. As a premium model in the past, there is a 2015 release of "DMR-UBZ1", which supports Ultra HD Blu-ray, but does not support 4K broadcasting or even high-definition picture quality as a tape recorder. In addition, the UHD BD regenerated picture quality of UBZ1 was later released with more UB9000, and the new premium model is said to have been developed. In addition, in recent years, the expressive force of the display has been improved under 4K, and the audio environment has also become better through Dolby Atmos, which is also the process of development. ZR1 is at the center of the system in an era like this, and the goal is to handle the recording and player of all content. In addition, it is said that there is an idea of "surpassing UB9000" when developing. The results show that the company has realized the ultimate 4K video player with much better playback performance than UB9000. Launched in 2006, Blue Reddick "DMR-BW200" has accumulated 15 years of self-developed LSI and other key equipment technology, in addition to the company's advanced player / UniPhier/ Hollywood cooperation / technology cooperation to cultivate the active use of DNA. As a recorder, three ground waves / BS/CS are used as tuners to record three programs broadcast at 4K at the same time. The capacity of HDD is 6TB, the recording time of 4KDR is about 390hours, and the recording time of 4K8-12 times is about 4680 hours. The upper limit for the number of video shows is 10000 titles. Although it does not support YouTube and Disney+, it also covers major Internet services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, hulu, U-NEXT and so on. At the same time, it carries a variety of new functions adopted by 4K Diga in the autumn of 2021. The 90-day "record" of TV series animation, the display field and the amount of information have been improved by "a list of different types of videos", 1.3pm 1.6 times faster regeneration is available. In addition, support 4K resolution room jump link, 4K move ripping. HDR10+ and Dolby Vision are also supported in HDR. For basic picture and sound quality housings that exceed the UB9000, it is common with UB9000, with a double-layer top panel, a three-layer driver base with a central driver, a 7-mm thick front panel and a four-layer base. The shape size is also the same, 430W × 87H × 300Dmm. The mass is 13.6 kg heavier than UB9000. The overall configuration has changed a lot. The ZR1 uses the same four separate configurations as the UB9000, while removing analog power supplies and analog audio substrates. By abolishing the analog output, what is needed for this purpose is concentrated into the digital / drive system. Specifically, UB9000 is a digital / driver power supply and analog power supply, and ZR1 adopts the structure of digital power supply and driver power supply. By separating the power supply for driving the optical disc and the HDD, the noise generated by rotation is prevented from entering the digital circuit. In addition, because the power capacity of the digital part is the same as before, it also has the effect of reducing the circuit load. By increasing the margin of the power supply, the SN ratio is improved, which helps to have the margin of image quality and sound quality. In addition, in the development, in the process of forcing the sound, the technician of the image confirms whether the image is getting better or not. When UB9000 was originally based on digital / drive power separation, the redundant sound came out of the matter "so that UB9000 overrides the certainty". Due to the absence of the analog part, many improvements have been made to the digital parts, such as the enhancement of the coaxial circuit and the power supply of the drive system, and the power enhancement around the grounding. The clock accuracy is improved by enhancing the digital circuit. In the system clock, the ultra-low phase noise crystal oscillator is improved with a UB9000 ratio of about 15dB. It is said that there are export controls because its performance is so high that it can be used militarily. In addition, with regard to the power supply of the clock, in addition to the local regulator, the high frequency noise is suppressed by the active use of sheet thin film capacitors used around the analog DAC. The AV clock uses fs ultra-low jitter PLL with higher precision than normal ps. The power supply is also strengthened here, using a local regulator and a sheet thin film capacitor. In order to improve the SN ratio of the circuit, the USB power regulator circuit with ruby mica capacitor and carbon film resistor is built in. The same circuit as the USB memory type of the UBZ1 accessories of the previous model. In UB9000, one place increased to four, one at the front and one at the back of the USB, one for video / sound HDMI and one for sound HDMI. In addition, the HDMI terminal has a thorough noise countermeasure. There is a path through the image terminal to make the digital noise enter the sound and the sound becomes worse, which can be dealt with by modifying the path of the power supply or reducing the high frequency noise by using the chip bead / chip thin film capacitor. In addition, if the noise is too low, the sound will become docile, so while optimizing the components and circuits, aim at both force and less noise. Through the enhancement of LAN terminals, the quality of network regeneration such as Netflix and room jump links is also taken into account. UB9000 uses the IC clock for Ethernet. In this work, an ultra-low jitter crystal oscillator is used as the external clock. The clock power supply also uses local regulators and chip film capacitors. In addition, the coaxial output uses the same output circuit as the technical advanced network player "SU-R1". By separating the output transformer from the chassis GND, the influence of high frequency noise is reduced. It also improves the sound quality when combining external DAC. As a measure of other hardware parts, HDD also uses high-quality hard drives. From those that meet the company's standards, choose things with low speed, low vibration and good sound quality. It is fixed at 4 points to the base of the HDD special driver that holds the steel plates of 3.2 mm and 0.8 mm together, thus suppressing the vibration that "I almost don't know if I'm moving even if I touch it." In addition, for the installation method of the rear panel and roof, the fastening accuracy is improved by cutting and fixing the millimeter screw of the lower hole. Take into account the details of the sound quality, for example, by extending the screws used to tighten the drive base to optimize the sound quality. For the unique digital AV signal processing, ease of use and the pursuit of image functions, it is equipped with "4K/24p or 30p transform output" for the first time, which can restore the original frame for output. In 4K broadcast, the program is sent as 4K60p, but if it is a movie, it is 24p, if it is a TV series, it is 30p, and the user can choose according to his preference. Output at 4:4:4, you can make full use of the chromaticity sampling performance of DIGA. In addition, in addition to broadcasting, only Amazon Prime Video corresponds to 24p movie output. In addition, like UB9000, it corresponds to the adjustment of picture quality and sound quality when VOD is reproduced. As a function to solve the problem of "dazzling subtitles" when watching dark scenes in a dark room, it is equipped with the newly developed "reducing the brightness of image subtitles". Packets containing subtitle data can be adjusted before, but not as video integrated subtitles as 4K broadcasts. This time, through the real-time analysis of the image, 4K broadcast can also adjust the brightness. The reduction of the brightness of the subtitles can be adjusted in two stages. The brightness of the subtitles is also added to the image, which is adjusted to the bright scene and the dark scene respectively. In addition, through the optimal design of the subtitles at the bottom of the screen, for the subtitles displayed longitudinally on the right, the brightness can not be reduced through this function. Settings for optimal adjustment of dynamic range / system gamma associated with dynamic range / system gamma in previous adjustment projects have also been added. For example, bright and high contrast display can be made by increasing the dynamic range and reducing the gamma of the system. You used to need to adjust this manually, but by turning on the ganged setting, you can use it more easily. In addition, the gamma of the system is refined from ±6 to ±12. With the improvement of hardware SN ratio, the digital signal processing of broadcast / VOD system is optimized. By making noise reduction and 4K super resolution weaker than UB9000, tuning in the original direction is more fully utilized. In addition, for 4K long-time mode, the image quality algorithm is improved. Even in images with low motion, the bit rate is not too low, and good image quality with resolution and defects is pursued. In addition to the previous 1.5x (22 Mbps), a 1.3x (25.4Mbps) pattern has been added to the BD-R1 layer (25 GB), which can replicate for exactly 2 hours. On the audio side, it supports MPEG-4AAC stream output (2/5.1/22.2ch). In addition, the industry adopts the function of converting 4K broadcast 22.2ch to Dolby Atmos for the first time. There are few 22.2ch-compatible AV amplifiers, but by converting them to Dolby Atmos, Immasibu sound can be reproduced on many devices. It is said that through the technology jointly developed by Dolby and Panasonic, it can be confirmed that the transformed sound field can be played as good as that of Panasonic. In addition, the company's recorder also includes past models that record 22.2ch streams in 4KDR mode, so you can also enjoy Dolby Atmos playback during replication. Structurally, the data of the 22.2ch is decoded into the linear PCM of the 22.2ch and sent to the AV amplifier together with the metadata. For data sent to the AV amplifier, because metadata is used to render according to the speaker configuration, it is not recoded and the quality is not degraded. In addition, Dolby MAT, a specification of Dolby Atmos, is used to embed PCM in the container of Dolby MAT for transmission. In terms of ease of use, unlike ordinary Diga, it is improved from a fanatical point of view. Change the menu display from a white base to a black base to allow for glare. In addition, by using a design that can see the center of the picture, it is easy to make adjustments while confirming the image. The information display function has also been enhanced, not only to encapsulate disks, broadcast and copy disks, but also to confirm in VOD. As long as you press the I button of the remote control, you can toggle simple display / detailed display / detailed display of metadata. For the remote control, the newly designed "self-illuminated remote control" is adopted. The button arrangement is also changed, and when the button is pressed, the button that invokes the reproduction end function moves to the vicinity of the operation button associated with the reproduction. If the regeneration / compilation concentration does not stop temporarily, the family and program can not be pressed, and the countermeasures of misoperation can also be carried out. "DMR-ZR1" Fast break impression by Kenzo Hongchi first got the opportunity to experience ZR1 at the DIGA development base in Osaka. The equipment is: the audio-visual room with complete sound insulation and tuning used in the product research, the display is 65-type organic EL "HZ2000", and the loudspeaker is 7.1.4ch. In addition, under the same conditions, audio-visual comparisons are made with UB9000, so the differences are made clear. First of all, even the audio DAC does not have a built-in cut-off and is attracted by the configuration that should be called "4K pure digital transponder". Play CD in the small hand survey to confirm the coaxial digital output. UB9000's analog output is fascinating, but in terms of coaxial numbers, ZR1 is an overwhelming victory. The analog output information of ZR1 varies by an order of magnitude, especially the low frequency and high density, and the resulting dense air feeling is the area of high-end audio. As a DAC connection to the WADIA company CD player strength and personality, there is no regret to play the impression. HDMI sound output is also an amazing improvement in taste, coaxial digital output differences are easier to understand, everyone can feel the real value of ZR1. The image also improves Sstroke N, and the number of colors increases and the texture is more precise. As a whole, the sense of air and depth increases. The UB9000 is also a highly completed model, but the tape recorder is above the regenerative special plane, which makes people feel. In addition, in terms of functions, the Dolby Atmos conversion of 22.2ch voice is new, and NHK radio programs with all their skills can be called super-on-the-spot experience, which is of epoch-making significance. Unlike UHD BD and others, in addition to the sense of sound field in the image world, I also appreciate the clarity of the positioning and movement on the top of my head. I would like to assert that ZR1's Immersib voice is the highest quality that the average family can experience right now.

Document webpage editorial department / comment: Kenzo Hongchi