Recommended Settings and other useful stuff for AML S928X Players (HT PDF updated Feb 26)

The Zidoo AMLogic 8K players have a whole new level of flexibility when it comes to Display and Audio settings.

Below are my recommended settings for most users, but as you'll see there are a multitude of ways to configure this device to match the capabilities of your display and your personal preferences.

These are provided as a starting point.


VIDEO SETTINGS

Playback/Auto frame rate/Local playback: Match frame rate and resolution (1)
Playback/Auto frame rate/Third-party APP online playback: Match frame rate and resolution (1)

Display/Resolution: Auto switch to best resolution (2)

Display/Color Settings/8K: Priority YUV420 10BIT
Display/Color Settings/4K 50~60Hz: Priority YUV420 10BIT
Display/Color Settings/4K 23~30Hz: Priority YUV422 12BIT
Display/Color Settings/Non-4K: Priority YUV422 12BIT
Display/Color Settings/HDMI Signal format: Enhanced format (3)

Display/HDR/UI Display Mode: SDR
Display/HDR/Dolby Vision Output Mode (if available): TV Led (4)
Display/HDR/HDR Output Mode: Auto (5)

Display/AI image process/Enable AI PQ: Off (6)
Display/AI image process/Enable AI SR: Off (7)

Display/UI interface resolution: 4K (8)


(1) Personal preference. You can use "Match frame rate only" and the Zidoo will scale if necessary (which can reduce HDMI resyncs). DO NOT turn this off.

(2) Personal Preference. This is the UI resolution only (depending on Frame Rate setting above) and setting to 3840x2160p 23Hz for example can reduce resyncs because the majority of content is 23.976fps

(3) If the display EDID dictates, this allows up to 12-bit 4:2:2 output which can be the full 48Gb/s for 8K.

(4) Personal preference - this is only available if your display (or EDID) supports both TV Led and Player Led Dolby Vision. If you see stutters then try LLDV

(5) This will output the HDR mode according to the content and EDID

(6) Personal Preference - AI PQ is Picture Quality, processing colour, sharpness, luminosity etc based on image analysis. AI-SR is "Super Resolution" - essentially an upscaling alogo

(7) Personal Preference - UI performance drops slightly by employing a 4K interface. Note that this is different to Display/Resolution as it defines the actual resolution of the UI and not the HDMI output resolution.

(8) Personal Preference - you may find a 1080p UI is faster but the 4K one works great in my experience and looks way better.


AUDIO SETTINGS

Audio/Source Output: HDMI
Audio/HDMI Setting/Decode: Auto
Audio/HDMI Setting/Volume passthrough mode: On
Audio/Pass-through compatible mode: On (1)

(1) Pass-through compatible mode mitigates an issue with non compliant TrueHD soundtracks causing stuttering and/or sound loss due to excessive use of audio keyframes in the TrueHD stream which is outside the TrueHD specification. Thanks to @signde for suggesting including this!


The above settings assume standard bitstream audio over HDMI but there are other options depending on the player model and your own personal setup.


ADVANCED HDR SETTINGS

If you set Display/HDR/HDR Output Mode to "Advanced Settings", you can chose the output mode for each type of content - SDR, HDR10, HDR10+, HLG and DV.

Output options available will depend on the content selected and the Display/EDID capabilities.

You can also specify whether the VS10 engine is used in any conversions or whether the AMLogic engine is used.

Note that the VS10 is required in certain circumstances - for example if DV is output, VS10 has to be used and if Profile 5 DV is converted, VS10 must also be used because the AML engine does not process DV itself.

Below is a full expansion of all modes in Advanced Settings assuming an EDID that supports TV Led DV, Player Led DV, HDR10, HDR10+, HLG and SDR.

​

3D Playback

Frame Packed MVC 3D is not supported in the AMLogic S928X so MVC 3D will fall back to a standard 2D video signal.

It seems that SOC manufacturers are finally following TV manufacturers and dropping 3D support.

SBS (Side by Side) and OU/TAB (Over Under, Top and Bottom) 3D will still work because this is just a standard video signal and the player has no role to play in 3D "decoding".

The TV just recognises that the video has two images either side by side or on top of each other (Actually, it recognises the disparity in video image on the join rather than the images themselves).


Web Interface

Just a reminder here - to access the HT5 web interface on all Zidoo boxes, you use the IP address of the box on port 9528.

For example, if the IP address of the box is 192.168.0.153 (as mine is), the URL for the web interface is:

http://192.168.0.153:9528

If you're not sure what the IP address is, you can see this information on the "About" acreen in HT5

​

HT5 Backup and Restore

I thought a couple of notes here would be handy for those moving from older boxes and wanting to maintain their library.

There are a couple of ways of doing it:

1. Standard Database Backup and Restore

You can backup and restore the database from HT5/Settings/Library

This just saves a backup of the SQLite database so your library and all settings return as previously but it uses online resources for poster and backdrop images, so they may end up being different to your previous library.

2. Standard Local NFO and Local Artwork Export

You can export all your current artwork and NFO files containing all the current metadata from HT5/Settings/Library/Export.

This creates artwork and Kodi compatible NFOs in each movie folder so if you then scrape with the new box and set local NFO and local art priority in HT5/Settings/Preferences, your library will return exactly the same as previously with the same artwork when you scrape the with new box..

There are two caveats - you'll lose any watched info and relational links for cast members to other movies are lost.

3. Hybrid Database Backup and Local Art Import

This allows you to backup and restore the database and maintain the same artwork.

Make a backup of the database as in 1. above and then export art and NFO as in 2. above.

On the new box, make sure you tick "Use Local Images First" in HT5/Settings/Preferences.

Now restore the database and you should be back where you started...


4. Upgrading your Source(s)

If you want to upgrade your Source(s) - larger hard disc, new NAS drive etc and want to simply copy your existing files and keep the library intact, use the "Synchronise Data from Other Source" option from the Sources screen:

1. DO NOT DELETE your old source(s) from HT!!

2. Once the old source is disconnected/removed and the new one is set up with EXACTLY the same movies etc, add it as a new source but DO NOT SCAN IT (press <Return> when prompted to scan).

3. Now select it, press <menu> and choose "Synchronise data from other source"

4. Choose the old source and the old library will be applied to the new files

5. Once this is done and confirmed working, you can delete the old source

More details here:

http://forum.zidoo.tv/index.php?threads/rebuilding-collection.97790/#post-215870


HT5 Web Interface Password Recovery

Access to the HT5 web Interface is from:

http://IP_ADDRESS:9528

To recover and rest a lost password:

Get Password
=========

http://IP_ADDRESS:9529/ZidooControlCenter/getpassword

Returns:

{"status":200,"password":"<password>"}


Set Password
============

http://IP_ADDRESS:9529/ZidooControlCenter/setpassword?password=password

Returns:

{"status":200}



You can also enter "17777777" as the password in the UI to reset it.

 

Mark thanks for sharing the settings for the new 8k models. As soon as I have positive information on the use of ZDMC with the internal Zidoo player I will purchase a Z3000 Pro. It will be available from August 2nd in Italy.

 

Thank you for all these new settings, not so easy to assimilate!
For example on my TV I want everything in VS10, how do I do it?

 

It'll make sense if and when you get one, but unlike the 1619DR and BPD models you can set any content to output in any mode whether using VS10 or not.

 

So......let's be patient!

 

Hi Mark. Does the UI particularly the poster wall look significantly sharper when the UI output is set to 4K? A bug bear of my Z2000pro is that the poster wall images are "soft" on a 130" screen.

 

Yes it does.

 

If I use one these devices with 2 different displays, that present different EDIDs i.e a TV and protector will it persist 2 different settings mostly regarding the HDR output options? Or will they reset to default each time switch displays?

 

Settings will change to reflect the EDID of the current display.

 

But will it remember different settings for each display? for example my TV and protector both support HDR but the projector I want to output HDR10 as SDR and the TV to output HDR10 as HDR10. With previous Zidoo devices all settings reset to default whenever the display is changed, would be great if this could restore previously used settings when changing display instead.

 

If I understood correctly.....no!
It is certain that fixed memories following the edicts used regularly would be a plus.
But you shouldn't ask too much.

 

Sort of, but not in the situation you describe above.

HDR settings are EDID driven, so if both EDIDs advertise the same HDR modes and you switch between them then the box will just keep its settings. So in your example above, the box will just stick to one set of settings between the displays - it won't "reset" though - if you have Auto enabled, it will remain enabled, and if you have "Advanced" enabled, it too will remain enabled with the same selections.

If the HDR modes are different - for example if the PJ only supported SDR and the TV HDR, then yes you could kind of do what you want using Advanced mode in HDR settings - you could set specific HDR output modes per HDR content mode per device and the settings would stick between devices.

What you can't do though is specify whether VS10 is used between EDIDs - so if you want VS10 to be used on HDR content to output SDR with the SDR EDID, then VS10 would stay enabled for HDR10 with the HDR EDID.

 

Do these boxes have an audio offset function? Don't need it often but occasionally useful.

 

Nope.

 

Can someone give me the setting to connect to my PC!
I've been trying for a while without success.
Thanks in advance.

 

Bit more info...

 

In fact I enter Windows: 192.168.0.076:9528/pc/
and no connection??

 

Try http://192.168.0.076:9528

You need to set a password before you can access the actual web page.

 

I'm trying to see the 2 internal drives and a connected hub on my UHD8000 without much success either. I have been reminded to turn on the Samba Server in network settings as it is off by default. I had it turned on already but nothing is showing up. @Nice Monkey is helping me

 

The Samba server is for share access via SMB, not web access via http.