By: Dipin Sehdev
In a year marked by uncertainty for disc-based home entertainment, Magnetar has stepped in with a bold vote of confidence. At CEDIA Expo 2025, the high-end AV brand unveiled two new universal disc players — the UDP900MKII and UDP800MKII — promising reference-level audio and video performance for enthusiasts who refuse to let physical media fade into obscurity.
A Bright Spot in a Dark Year for Physical Media
Let’s be honest: 2025 has been a rollercoaster for Blu-ray collectors and home theater fans. In just the last 18 months, LG walked away from the Blu-ray player market, leaving Sony, Panasonic, and Magnetar as the only serious manufacturers standing. And only weeks ago, the audiophile favorite Reavon shuttered operations, seemingly confirming what many feared: the end of dedicated 4K Blu-ray hardware.
Then, out of nowhere, Magnetar dropped this bombshell announcement at CEDIA Expo 2025 in Denver — not one, but two brand-new 4K Blu-ray players designed for high-end residential installs, audiophiles, and cinephiles alike.
This is more than just another product launch. It’s a statement: physical media still matters.
Why Physical Media Still Matters
It’s easy to dismiss Blu-ray discs as relics in the streaming era. But ask any home theater enthusiast, and you’ll hear the same story: streaming doesn’t come close to physical media quality.
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Bitrate: A 4K UHD Blu-ray can deliver up to 100Mbps or more, while most streaming platforms hover between 15–25Mbps. That’s a huge difference in fine detail, color gradation, and motion handling.
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Audio: Discs carry lossless Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio tracks, often with full-fat Dolby Atmos and DTS:X mixes. Streaming services typically offer lossy Atmos over Dolby Digital Plus — a noticeable downgrade for serious systems.
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Ownership: Discs don’t disappear from your library because of expired licensing deals. You buy it, you own it, forever.
Magnetar’s new MKII Series is arriving at a time when enthusiasts are rediscovering these benefits. Collector editions from Criterion, Arrow Video, Kino Lorber, and StudioCanal continue to sell briskly, even as some retailers scale back shelf space. Best Buy, for example, has reduced in-store disc sales but recently launched a dedicated online 4K Blu-ray marketplace.
The message is clear: there’s still demand, and Magnetar is betting big on it.
Meet the MKII Series: UDP900MKII & UDP800MKII
Magnetar’s new lineup consists of two models, both successors to existing players, now refreshed with upgraded hardware and refined engineering.
Magnetar UDP900MKII – The Flagship Beast
Price: $3,299.99 (≈£2,440 / AU$5,050)
Availability: Q4 2025, U.S. launch
The UDP900MKII is designed for no-compromise performance. Here’s what sets it apart:
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Dual ESS 9038 Pro DACs – among the best in the business, offering world-class audio decoding.
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Dedicated Audio HDMI Port – with TMDS retiming to reduce jitter and preserve signal integrity.
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XMOS USB Playback – supporting up to 768kHz PCM and DSD512, making this a high-end standalone music player as well as a disc spinner.
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Roon Ready Certification – integrates seamlessly into modern hi-fi ecosystems.
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Sound-Dampened Optical Drive – quieter disc reads and more accurate playback.
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Dual-Layer Shielded Chassis – suppresses EMI/RFI for a cleaner signal path.
It’s no surprise this model already snagged the EISA Award for Best Home Theater Disc Player 2025–2026 before it even ships.
Magnetar UDP800MKII – Premium Performance at a Friendlier Price
Price: $1,799.99 (≈£1,330 / AU$2,750)
Availability: Q4 2025, U.S. launch
The UDP800MKII brings much of the same DNA at nearly half the price. Magnetar clearly designed it for serious enthusiasts who don’t need absolute flagship specs but still want uncompromising playback.
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Seven OPA1602 Op-Amps – reduce noise and provide precision analog audio output.
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Precision HDMI Jitter Correction – ensures accurate timing for video and audio signals.
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Enhanced EMI Shielding & Copper Wiring – more stable operation and cleaner signal delivery.
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Redesigned Chassis – vibration-resistant, quieter disc reading, improved heat dissipation.
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Roon Ready & Network Playback – keeping the player future-ready for hybrid disc + digital libraries.
For those who want “flagship-adjacent” performance without the $3K+ price tag, the UDP800MKII looks like a smart investment.
Shared Features Across the MKII Series
Both players come stacked with features that set them apart from budget players and consoles:
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Universal Disc Support – 4K UHD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD, CD, and SACD playback.
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High Dynamic Range – Dolby Vision and HDR10+ alongside HDR10 and HLG.
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Dolby Atmos & DTS:X – full support for immersive soundtracks.
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Refreshed Magnetar Video Engine – enhanced upscaling, color accuracy, contrast, and noise reduction.
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USB 3.0 with Isolated Power Supplies – improved stability for external storage.
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Premium Build Quality – aluminum chassis, dual-layer shielding, and precision connectors.
The Market Context: Who’s Left Standing?
The Blu-ray hardware landscape has thinned dramatically:
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Panasonic: Still produces a handful of high-end players, but releases are few and far between.
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Sony: Earlier this year, released a minor revision of its UBP-X700 (now the X700K), but that model dropped network features rather than added new ones.
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Consoles: The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X play 4K Blu-rays, but neither is designed for audiophile-grade playback.
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Oppo: Long since exited the market, though Oppo’s UDP-203 and UDP-205 are still sought after on the used market.
That leaves Magnetar in an enviable but also pressurized position: it is now the premier brand carrying the banner for physical media enthusiasts.
Why This Matters for Collectors & Integrators
Enthusiasts aren’t the only ones who should be excited. For custom installers, premium Blu-ray players remain an important part of high-end home theaters. CE Pro’s 2024 Home Entertainment Deep Dive reported:
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Median value of dedicated theater installs: $62,500 (up 43% year-over-year).
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Yelp data: 562% increase in home theater installation requests in the past two years.
Clients paying six figures for private cinemas don’t want to stream compressed video. They want the best possible source material, and that means discs played back on hardware like Magnetar’s MKII series.
Physical Media’s Future: A Rebound in Sight?
The narrative of physical media’s “death” has been circulating for over a decade, yet here we are in 2025 — still seeing collector demand, boutique studio releases, and now fresh hardware.
Streaming is convenient, but it comes with compromises: compression artifacts, disappearing titles, inconsistent metadata, and uneven HDR mastering. Discs, by contrast, are fixed reference-quality versions of the film. For enthusiasts, directors, and archivists, that permanence matters.
Magnetar’s launch, combined with Sony’s modest update earlier this year, signals that hardware makers aren’t ready to abandon disc playback entirely. And as long as collectors keep buying, companies like Criterion, Arrow, Kino, and major studios will continue pressing discs.
Availability and Pricing
Both the UDP900MKII and UDP800MKII will ship in Q4 2025, available through Magnetar’s authorized dealer and distributor network.
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Magnetar UDP900MKII: $3,299.99 MSRP
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Magnetar UDP800MKII: $1,799.99 MSRP
International pricing for the UK and Australia has yet to be confirmed.
Attendees at CEDIA Expo 2025 in Denver can demo both models at Magnetar’s booth (#4137).
Final Thoughts: A Welcome Surprise
After the shock of Reavon’s closure, many feared the premium Blu-ray player market was on life support. Magnetar’s announcement not only disproves that fear — it reinvigorates hope.
The UDP900MKII and UDP800MKII aren’t just machines for spinning discs. They’re statements of intent. They say: “Streaming isn’t enough. Physical media still deserves the best.”
For collectors, audiophiles, and cinephiles, this is as good as news gets. Magnetar isn’t just making Blu-ray players. They’re keeping the format alive.
