- Magnetar announces two new 4K Blu-ray players
- The two players are UPD900MKII and UDP800MKII
- Magnetar is the other company that announces new players this year after Sony
At CEDIA EXPO 2025, Magnetar revealed that it brings two new 4K Blu-ray players to the market, UDP900MKII and UDP800MKII.
Referred to the MKII series, the new players are successors Magnetar UDP900 and UDP800, the latter of which is our current choice as the best option for audiophiles in Techradar’s guide to the best 4K Blu-ray players.
Udp900mkii and UDP800MKII arrive with a stacked list of features: SACD playback, Dolby Vision and HDR10+ High Dynamic Range (HDR) and Dolby Atmos and DTS: X Audio Format Support.
Magnetar’s players stand out for their improved audio performance, and the MKII series is no different. UDP900MKII has double ESS 9038 Pro Dacs and a dedicated Lydhdmi port. It also has XMOS USB playback and supports up to 768 kHz PCM and 512 DSD high resolution sound.
The UDP800MKII has seven OPA1602 OP-AMPS for reduced noise and HDMI jites and improved EMI shielding. A redesigned chassis also means a more stable performance, including more quiet disk readings, according to company
Both players come with redesigned USB 3.0 ports for improved performance with connected devices and both are Roon Ready.
Udp900mkii and UDP800MKII are both expected to arrive at the state at the end of 2025 respectively, priced at $ 3,299.99 (approx. £ 2,440 / AU $ 5,050) and $ 1,799.99 (approx. £ 1,330 / AU $ 2,750). Information on accessibility in other regions was not provided in the company’s press release.
Good news for 4K Blu-ray
Here’s something I didn’t have on my Bingo Card 2025: Not another than thaw Brands that release new 4K Blu-ray players. Sony started things earlier this year and released a ‘new’ version of its UBP-X700 4K Blu-ray player, called UBP-X700K. However, the only real difference between the two players on paper is that network support has been removed in the new model.
Magnetar has also heard the call and releases his own new players in the new MKII series. On paper, the MKII series has undergone some serious hardware upgrades to ensure its dominance as the best audiophile 4K Blu-ray player setting. But most importantly we have two new 4K Blu-ray players!
While the MKII series is very much at the premium end of the 4K Blu-Ray Player market, this is still good news for 4K Blu-ray fans after a tough couple of years, with LG announcing its departure from the Blu-ray player market, followed by Reavon-after-Sony, Panasonic and Magnetar as the only big choices (other than the two next-games).
Retailers are also dropping 4K Blu-ray Disc sales (though Best Buy recently introduced a 4K Blu-ray online marketplace), even as good movies continue to get the 4K disk treatment from clothing like Criterion Collection and Arrow Video. Heck, we even started our own 4K Blu-ray feature called Blu-ray Bounty in November due to the formal popularity of the format.
Two new 4K Blu-ray players from Magnetar are excellent news and like a 4K Blu-ray fan it gives me hope for the future of the format.
