Pioneer & Onkyo Europe announced its new UDP-LX500 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc player at IFA 2018.
For more information visit: www.pioneerelectronics.com
Unedited press release follows:
A Universal Disc Player that delivers the highest quality UHD Blu-ray Disc playback
29 Aug 2018 — Onkyo & Pioneer (Tokyo, Japan) is pleased to introduce the “UDP-LX500”, a universal disc player, engineered to provide the highest standard of UHD Blu-ray playback, leveraging Pioneer’s decades of accumulated expertise in optical disc technology.
The UDP-LX500 is an incredibly low resonance design, achieved by applying engineering techniques specifically optimised for UHD Blu-ray, a medium that necessitates very high rotation speeds in order to deliver a new standard of video and audio. The UDP-LX500 is the latest in a long line of premium disc players from Pioneer, machines that have previously set new playback standards for Laserdisc, DVD and (non-UHD) Blu-ray media.
Robust mechanical construction for high-quality disc playback
With the arrival of UHD Blu-ray Disc, players now need to be able to handle high-speed rotation speeds of up to 5,000 rpm. The UDP-LX500 delivers supremely stable high-speed rotation of discs by virtue of its remarkably rigid construction, as well as a lower centre of gravity. Both of these attributes help suppress vibration transmission occurring inside the player, minimising any potential resonances generated and so improving disc playback.
– Rigid & Quiet UHD BD Drive
– Acoustic Damper Tray
– Ultra-Rigid Construction
– Double-Layered Chassis with a 3mm steel plate for rigidity and a low centre of gravity
Enjoy the full potential of 4K Content
With 4K video, there’s a huge increase in the amount of image information which, in turn, also requires the use of ever more effective noise reduction techniques. The UDP-LX500 achieves further video quality improvements by applying a low noise design ethos throughout the player, minimizing noise loops in the circuitry to guarantee high-quality signal transmission.
– Main board design configured to achieve a high S/N ratioOn the main printed circuit board, digital noise has been further reduced in order to do full justice to the high speed signal transmission capability of UHD Blu-ray Disc. By adopting a six-layer IVH (interstitial via hole) construction technique for the main board, Pioneer has been able to fully optimise the routing of digital signal wiring and minimise ground impedance, by dramatically improving S/N (Signal to Noise ratio) during the processing of video and audio. This also improves the precision of the high capacity transmission speed of 18Gbps which this latest HDMI standard now makes possible.
Designed to faithfully reproduce the incredible sound quality of UHD BD
To deliver the full potential of the sound quality contained in UHD Blu-ray Discs, the UDP-LX500 employs audio boards designed with a focus on preserving signal purity, S/N, and tonal subtlety. It also features a host of advanced sound enhancing facilities, such as a direct function for analogue connection and Pioneer’s PQLS (Precision Quartz Lock System) for HDMI connection.
An audio board that also excels at high-quality analogue 2ch playback
As well as delivering superlative movie sound, the UDP-LX500 has also been engineered to be a superb audio-only player. With analogue 2ch playback, spurious noise around the power supply and GND have been suppressed as much as possible, and the circuit tuned to give a rich, fulsome tone of sound.
Direct Function for Pure Analogue Audio Output
The UDP-LX500 is equipped with a “Direct function” which turns off the digital audio and video circuits. This allows listeners to enjoy high resolution sound sources and CDs with enhanced purity.
Video and Audio separated output via 2 HDMI Outputs
The UDP-LX500 supports three HDMI output modes: “Separate” mode which enables high-quality transmission by separating video and audio via the main/sub HDMI outputs, “Single” mode routes both video and audio output via the main HDMI output, and “Pure Audio” mode which delivers an audio-only output from the sub HDMI terminal.
Jitter-free Sound Transmission with Pioneer AV receivers＊
The UDP-LX500 achieves incredibly high-purity, jitter-free transmission when connected (via HDMI) with an PQLS-equipped AV receiver＊. By improving the precision of signal information, the player delivers a very high standard of multi-channel sound quality.（＊SC-LX701, SC-LX801, SC-LX901）
Other Notable Features
Zero Signal Terminal for audio/video tuning
The Zero Signal Terminal is an original Pioneer-developed feature that is designed to optimise audio and video quality. By connecting the Zero Signal Terminal to a suitable audio/video input terminal on an AV receiver etc., the reference ground level (GND) of audio/video signals between the two devices is matched and aligned, with any potential differences suppressed, allowing owners to enjoy audio and video with an even further improved S/N and performance level.
SDR/HDR Preset Mode for optimal performance for the display
Media/HDR Information On-Screen Display
Dolby Vision (Low Latency Compatible)
Self-Illuminating Remote Control