Should I buy a z9x to replace my shield?

My 2 cents on subtitles:

1. I'm using that first beta firmware update that made the Dolby Vision black levels more correct and have yet to experience any subtitle problems from MKV's I've made from BD/4K discs with PGS subtitles.

2. Sometimes, subtitles that are forced when a disc is spun in my Sony 4K player won't appear when the MKV is played via the Z9X but I'll hit the Subtitle button on the remote and scroll through the list to select the correct PGS subtitle. The Z9X remembers which subtitle you selected for subsequent viewings of the same MKV too.

3. I've also noticed that when a non-English language is spoken for a brief time on a disc spun in my Sony 4K player, subtitles sometimes won't appear. In these instances, I would have previously just thought "Oh well, I guess English speakers weren't supposed to know exactly what was said then" but when I've played the MKV via the Z9X and checked what subtitles are available, I've found one that displays what was spoken. So the Z9X has revealed subtitles that would have otherwise been hidden by a conventional disc player.

4. The Z9X remembers the subtitle position you selected for subsequent viewings of the same MKV too. So, if you move subtitles down to the "black bars" area so they don't obscure any of the picture on a 2.35:1 movie, they'll appear there next time you watch it too. Handy.

 

You say you are on the first beta with correct black level.

is there a reason? The problem is back?

 

No, it's fixed. I just haven't updated since the first FW update that fixed the black levels cos I'm an if-it-ain't-broke-don't-fix-it guy.

 

I have shield and Z9X, both are amazing - my only reasons for switching to Z9X is better (works 60-70% of the time) support for Menus and comprehensive and well polished poster wall of HT4.0.

 

Also Zidoo displays Dolby Vision profile 7 colors correctly. Shield does not

 

Hmm... I didnt know that. Does Zidoo play all DV profiles successfully? I feel like there's always some FEL stuff every player is missing when it comes to DV.

Side question - Does OPPO play all DV profiles?

 

Zidoo can't do FEL. It falls back to MEL, just like the shield. The issue the shield has is that profile 7 files have a reddish tint to it. It's subtle, but if you do a comparison, you'll see it. No idea about the Oppo. I don't have one.

 

Tracked it down for Fun - Looks like OPPO can play em all and Z9X like you said have some color accuracy issues.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...a5hEyongYMCDlUiLHU9n1f_S74/edit#gid=427220017

 

You mean Shield has color accuracy issues? Zidoo shouldn't have any issues

 

I dont know if Z9X does or not but per the sheet, they both do. Then again I am sure sheet has not been updated in a while.

 

@Markswift2003 any thoughts on that spreadsheet? Is it massively outdated? I wasn't aware of any color innacuracies with DV with the Zidoo. Do you know anything about that?

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...a5hEyongYMCDlUiLHU9n1f_S74/edit#gid=427220017

 

http://forum.zidoo.tv/index.php?threads/dolby-vision-bt2020-realtek-1619-bug.94604/

This thread makes it sound like it doesn't matter at all that there is a bt. 2020 flag sent with TV Led.

 

It's possible the people who complain about wrong colors are using super old LG TVs that added DV via firmware updates and never really supported it correctly

 

No, colours are fine and the BT.2020 flag is irrelevant (my Sony BluRay player does the same).

 

Thanks. Yea I mean compared to the Shield, DV looks a lot better. I never really noticed the "red tint" on the shield until I started watching on the Zidoo, ha.

 

I also switched from a shield pro 2019 to a zidoo z9x. And my reason is that recently a new strange issue come out with Shield's playback, there's might audio broke when playing videos with TRUEHD audios(with q990b soundbar and x95ek TV eARC passthrough), and I tried everything I know to fix the issue, but it won't work.
In the end I bought a z9x days ago and everything works fine, and I agree with this:

The colors are better, the HDR are better.

 

The shield is basically abandoned at this point. And Plex on android is absolutely broken in every way possible. The zidoo is so much easier.

 

The problem with forced subtitles is that MakeMKV doesn't reliably detect them and never writes the forced header flag in the MKV. The trick is to rip all the sub tracks in your preferred language and then determine which track is the forced one and use MKVToolNix to set the forced flag in the header. The teh WILL honor the forced flag once you have it set correctly in the MKV, however it will not indicate the sub track is selected in the subtitle menu, but the correct sub will be used in the movie.

 

I've found that once you identify the correct subtitle to display via the Zidoo, it'll remember it for subsequent viewings which has so far, prevented me from having to do any MKVToolNix surgery. Less time in front of a computer suits me!

 

True enough. I just like things to be buttoned down.