Is this a HDR TV and is it really this dark?
Yes, it's an LG OLED65B6V and no, the phone's camera cannot cope with the high contrast.
Thank you all for testing!
I think I heard enough voices now to convince me that there is something wrong with my box...
The only thing left trying is Android.
Do you know if there is a Nougat build out there that I could flash on my Mini M8S II?
All my 1080p content is fine too.
Your TV only understands 1080p so I assume the player downscales 2160p?
No, I used the same input. I also tested all 4 HDMI inputs with "HDMI deep color" on/off (different, untouched HDR picture mode presets as well)...
I cannot really expect you to address something that only I experience - I understand that. 
I am wondering if maybe my power supply is the root cause, but then why would it cause flicker and macroblocking only on very specific videos...
Pure desperation, I know. 
I already tried a different power outlet, different HDMI cables, fresh install with default settings...
Definitely running out of ideas.
Unfortunately I know nobody else who has an S905X box that I could test...
I know it must seem like it but trust me, you would see this too.
It's not a hint of a subtle thing that nobody would notice...
For instance, I admit that the vertical lines are subtle in most content. They become obvious in large, bright, smooth areas.
But those artifacts I see in the Samsung demo are on a different scale.
You're immediately annoyed.
I don't want you guys to think I'm mad so I took a video of it...
Have a look:
20170629_175231.mp4 - Google Drive
At least the flicker should be visible in the video.
I have no other explanation.
Maybe one more idea, I'm grasping for straws here...
Does anyone of you testers of my issue use a EU power supply for their box?
I compared the clip on Samsung KS8500, nVIDIA Shield, Minix U9-H, Mecool M8S Pro and internal players on Samsung KS8000/JS8500 TVs. I didn't see any obvious flicker or macroblocking in the skies in any of the scenes.
Thank you very much for testing.
It really seems like a hardware defect in my box then... I have no other explanation. I'm not imagining things... 
However, I did notice fine chevron like almost transparent vertical lines in some of the sky scenes.
Those are definitely the vertical lines we mentioned.
I have the Mini M8S II. I have not seen vertical lines or other artifacts. I have compared it with nVIDIA Shield and the only thing I have noticed is the ringing associated with Amlogic's aggressive edge enhancement (look at the mountain edges).
Thanks for your input.
Edge enhancement might be there too, but I doubt it's the root cause for what I am seeing.
The affected areas in my case are mainly smooth gradations in skies, where edge enhancement should not have a big impact.
I also have the Samsung UBD-K8500 Ultra HD Blu-ray player, but haven't yet compared this particular video on it.
Would you be so kind as to do that for me?
It's only a matter of 5 minutes.
This video is particularly severe regarding the flicker and macroblocking in the skies. This is minor in other videos I tested.
I think the reason is the fact that it's mainly stills with very smooth gradations at a low framerate. Normally, these artifacts seem to be hidden by moving pictures or more obvious content/color changes.
The vertical lines are not very present in that demo, I'd have to look what other video is suited to see those.
That is so nice of you, thank you very much! 
I asked a friend to lend me his UBD-K8500 for a day, that should help to see if the issue comes from player or TV.
However, I'm still glad for any suggestions / help.
I have the K8500 here now and I just tested the HDR Wonderland demo on it.
As expected, there is no flicker or macroblocking visible in the skies whatsoever, everything looks great - just as with the TV's internal player.
That rules out my TV (and it's HDMI inputs) as root cause.
I know I am being annoying with this but I am still struggling to believe that my S905X box behaves differently from others.
Does anyone of you guys by any chance have a Mini M8S II as well?
Even if not, those who have not looked for it yet, could you do me the favor and look if you see those artifacts too?
The demo in question can be downloaded here:
Uploadfiles.io - 9.-samsung_hdr_wonderland_2160p_hevc_10bit_23.976hz_bt.2020_hdr10.ts
I see blockiness + flicker easily here:
- The sky above the Saddledome stadium (~1:20 min in)
- The sky between moving clouds above river + mountain range (~1:42 min in)
Any help is greatly appreciated!
This cannot be stressed enough.
OK. 
Try "Hybrid", that works well for audio conversions.
Hmm the 24bit FLAC files I tested back then played fine, so it might be a more recent issue.
On a side note, i'd also recommend either opus or FLAC 16bit - the savings from FLAC 24bit are a bit disappointing in my opinion and you would not hear any degradation by using 16bit anyhow.
I reported a FLAC decoding issue a while back, do you mean that?:
[BUG] S905X Jarvis and Krypton: FLAC decoding issues
I decided to use opus instead of FLAC in the meantime, so I have not tested if anything changed since then...
No vertical lines either.
Well, at least those have been confirmed by others, including john...
The HDR Wonderland demo is not the best test video to see those lines though.
Anything with really bright, light grey or white content is more suited to make out the lines.
Maybe there are different revisions of S905X floating around and this is a hardware issue?
I am starting to wonder that myself.
It seems unlikely but at this point I'd believe that it might be a hardware issue...
Just downloaded your file, and I'm "sorry" to say... There is no macroblocking or flicker of any kind. The picture is perfect.
LOL, don't be sorry!
Thank you for testing!
I also don't see any macroblocking or flickering, then it could possibly be a TV thing.
Thank you for testing as well.
A "TV thing" does not really makes sense to me, since everything looks perfect when I use the TV's internal media player via USB.
...however there's no need to force 4:2:2 which goes against the default behavior of the box (switching to 4:2:2 at >=50hz).
The default behavior of the box should be to switch to 4:2:0 at >= 50Hz, not 4:2:2...?
Afaik, 4:2:2 at >= 50Hz would be more than the HDMI 2.0 bandwidth can handle...
I am really out of ideas with these artifacts I'm seeing. 
I tried everything, even a completely fresh install without changing any setting whatsoever.
BTW, using "testing7" for a fresh install does not work johngalt, only update is possible.
I used "testing1" instead and updated to 7 right after that...
Does anyone have any more ideas where this could be coming from?
Edit:
I asked a friend to lend me his UBD-K8500 for a day, that should help to see if the issue comes from player or TV.
However, I'm still glad for any suggestions / help.
Are we talking small dots and lines like dust on a old movie?
No. I don't know how to better describe it than "macroblocking and flicker".
Can someone explain, where / how I can see those vertical lines you are talking about? Haven't noticed them so far.
Get a little closer to your TV and look for fine vertical lines in bright, ideally light grey or white areas.
Also the Wonderland Demo has been removed from demo-uhd3d.com apparently. Does anyone have a mirror?
I uploaded my copy for you, here is the link:
Uploadfiles.io - 9.-samsung_hdr_wonderland_2160p_hevc_10bit_23.976hz_bt.2020_hdr10.ts
On the latest "testing6" build I can't see these in that demo video and watched it a few times. There are still the vertical lines occasionally visible, but I'm really not sure about those.
Would you mind giving it a try?
I tried testing6, the artifacts are still there.
I also tried a few different scenarios to exclude noise, still no success...
Played the demo from USB, used another HDMI input on the TV (both deep color enabled), tried the second (good) new cable...
That all does not change it unfortunately.
I think another scene of the demo is even better suited to look for the artifacts...
Starting around 1:42min, there is a river and a mountain range.
If I look at the blue sky between the moving clouds, I can see the artifacts very easily.
I also compared to the TV's internal player again to make sure, but none of the macroblocking or flicker is visible there.
Do you see no difference (apart from the vertical lines) to your TV's internal player at all?
Even if you move close to the TV?
I just tested the "Samsung HDR Wonderland" demo in the "testing5" build.
Unfortunately, macroblocking and weird flicker are still there - easily visible in most skies, very obvious in the one above the stadium, approx. 1:20min in.
Output mode is set to 444, 10bit. Box directly connected to TV.
Just reporting that unfortunately I do see the 2160p/10bit vertical lines at normal viewing distance (3m to 65") after all - especially on bright content.
I don't want to annoy you, it's just an observation.
I assume you have not had any epiphanies on how to get rid of them?
