Sony Bravia XR Z9J Master Series 8K HDR TV Review
Sony Bravia XR Z9J Master Series 8K HDR TVs
RRP $ 6,500.00
"The Z9J is one of the best televisions of all time."
advantages
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Incredible brightness
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Excellent control of the background lighting / black levels
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Spot-on color
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Excellent movement
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good sound
disadvantage
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It lacks high-end gaming features
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Very expensive
The Sony Master Series Bravia XR Z9J is one of the most emerging TVs that you can buy today. Sure, LG has its $ 30,000 worth of $ 30,000 8K OLED TV, but among the LED / LCD TVs, the Sony Z9J is the most expensive commercially available TV you can buy. At around $ 6,500 on the street, the 75-inch Sony Z9J makes Samsung's $ 2,600 flagship 75-inch 8K Q900R look like a budget buy in comparison.
Do you need the Z9J? No. Do you want the Z9J? Yes sir. Will you ever own one I doubt it. But here's the thing: none of this really matters.
Allow me to explain.
Pure Sony flex
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
The Sony Master Series Z9J is the successor to a line of Z-Series TVs that represent the best that Sony can make. When we talk about "setting the bar" that is the purpose of the Z-Series. If the Z9J could speak on behalf of Sony, I think it would say something like, “Hi. I am the Z9J. I'm the best LED / LCD TV Sony has ever made, and I'm the best LED / LCD TV money can buy. Sony knows TV technology better than any other brand and I am proof of that. "
This Z9J – such a racket. But does it have the means to back up these claims? In most cases, yes.
While the Z9J doesn't quite reach TV nirvana (it seems to have too much self-esteem for an inanimate object), it comes very close to it. I've tested TVs that can get brighter, TVs that can get darker, and TVs with more advanced gaming features, but all in all, the Sony Z9J outperforms them all with the right…. Perhaps more importantly, though, the Z9J is just plain fun to see.
Oh, and the fact that it's an 8K TV? That's just a bonus.
How does Sony do it?
The XR processor is key to the Z9J's outstanding performance.
Details about the Sony Bravia XR Z9J
While we tested the 75-inch model XR75Z9J, our test also applies to the 85-inch model XR85Z9J.
| Screen size | Model no | RRP |
| 75 in |
XR75Z9J |
$ 6,499 |
| 85 in | XR85Z9J | $ 8,999 |
Again with the processor
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
The latest generation of image processing chips from Sony is called the Cognitive Processor XR. For the sake of brevity – and undoubtedly to the chagrin of Sony – I will simply refer to it as the “XR processor” in the following. This processor is key to the Z9J's outstanding performance. In some ways I understand how it works and in others I am completely amazed. Look, I'm not an engineer, I just play one on TV.
What I understand is that the processor is supposed to understand how the human eye / visual system works and then actively maximize the performance of a television by using cognitive intelligence and doing a lot of processes per second. It's not just about how quickly this processor can make decisions, it's also about how meaningful those decisions are. For example, if we see an image of a cheetah on the screen in the grassy plains of Africa, with the cheetah in the foreground and the grasses in the background, the XR processor is likely to put its effort into resolving fine details in the cheetah coat for each Image it appears in instead of trying to add detail to a blurry grass background. That is smart decision making.
Another way to express the importance of this TV's processor: if the Z9J were a car, the XR processor would be its engine. Several other brands build TVs with many of the same parts as in the Sony Z9J, but they don't look like the Z9J because they don't have the Z9J's motor. In other words, you could build the shell of a McLaren 720S to specification, right down to the wheels, tires, mirrors, seats, and steering wheel – and it would look just like a McLaren 720s. But throw a Toyota Camry engine under the hood and that car has no hope of doing anything remotely like a McLaren 720s.
Now that I'm immersed in that auto metaphor, let me go ahead and beat her to death. If I put a McLaren 720s engine in our 720s-looking shell, but gave the car a Chevy Malibu drivetrain and suspension … well, you get it. It still won't work like the McLaren 720s. Likewise, Sony's XR processor needs some other premium mechanics to work its magic. That brings us to the backlight system.
Proven backlighting system
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Sony used to call its fancy backlight system "Sony Backlight Master Drive". This is the marketing language for Sony's Secret Sauce lighting system. While LG, Samsung and TCL are promoting mini LED backlight systems, Sony is sticking to a tried and tested system that remains a mystery to anyone who cannot physically disassemble and analyze it – it has simply left out the fancy name. Ask Sony what's going on behind the curtain and it will respond with something like, "We don't say, but it looks great, doesn't it?"
All right, Sony. You won't tell. And you are right. It looks great.
HDR images, both in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, look spectacular.
I don't know how it can be that Sony can use a fraction of full-size LEDs with far fewer dimming zones than the competition and somehow create a TV that looks better than TVs with much more impressive specs on paper, but the company pulls that trick year round for year through. The result is excellent backlighting with minimal blooming and halo effects, excellent black levels, very impressive shadow details and really impressive brightness – all where it matters. HDR images, both in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, look spectacular.
That brings us back to the XR processor. Thanks to the intelligent decision-making of the XR processor, the backlight system does what it does when it has to. At least I think that's what happens. I end up seeing a stunning TV, and with Sony keeping its approach so secret, I can only make one smart guess.
Masterful color
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Since it's not enough for me to simply say that the Z9J has impeccable color rendering, I use a Spectracal C6 colorimeter profiled on an X-rite i1 Pro spectrometer and Calman Ultimate software to measure TV performance to eat. In terms of color, the Z9J is an exemplary performer. I've only seen two other TVs with standard color accuracy that can stand up to the Z9J, and these two TVs were also made by Sony (the A90J and the A80J).
Flawless movement
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Historically, Sony's strength, cinematic and fluid movement with a minimum of artifacts, is one of the Z9J's more admirable features. There's a fine line between breaking down motion blur and introducing gross motion smoothing that makes an image appear artificial or what I believe to be the dreaded “soap opera” effect, and I've never seen a brand tread that line as neatly as Sony it does. Although to be honest, many of Sony's premium TVs do equally admirably in this category at a much lower price point.
Superior upscaling
With so little 8K content to enjoy (thanks, YouTube, for some amazing 8K footage for 8K TVs, albeit heavily compressed), it's important that every 8K TV is capable of 4K To upscale 1080p and 720p material to 8K resolution without it looking worse than its native resolution. While I feel like most TV manufacturers offer solid upscaling, I'll have to leave it up to Sony as it is cut off from the competition in this area. Pictures just look cleaner on Sony 8K TVs, regardless of the original resolution. But no TV is a miracle worker, and I contend that no 75-inch or taller TV looks good when playing 720p cable or satellite content.
Sound of stars
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
For those of you who regularly read my TV reviews, I'm going to sound like a broken record here. I think a premium TV like the Z9J deserves an equally high quality sound system. Really, a television just doesn't have to sound terrible to be passable in my book. After that, an immersive, immersive audio experience is best delivered from a high quality soundbar (we have more than a few amazing suggestions for the best soundbars you can buy) or even better, a multi-speaker audio system powered by an A / V Device powered is receiver (an admittedly dying type of sound system).
All in all, the Sony Z9J delivers a surprisingly satisfying audio experience with punch, grunt, clarity, and musicality. It's one of the best sounding TVs you can buy. And it should be the price.
Performance metrics
In SDR without adjustments to the user-defined picture mode (automatic local dimming to medium and peak luminance to off). I measured 389 nits of peak brightness from a 10% window. With Auto Local Dimming on low, I measured 431 nits, and with that setting on high, I got 381.
With automatic local dimming to medium and low peak luminance, I achieved 784 nits. With medium peak luminance I reached 1422 nits and with high setting 1902 nits. This is for SDR folks. This is an incredibly bright SDR picture. You shouldn't take this TV outside with you, but you could take this TV outside and still see it in full sun.
With HDR there were variations depending on where the auto local dimming setting was, but the advanced contrast setting had a big impact on the TV's brightness output. At the medium setting, I have a peak brightness of 2,500 nits. Impressive.
I assume that the Z9J is likely to be able to achieve a peak brightness of 4,000 nits with small HDR highlights.
I just went into Vivid mode to grin and it zoomed in to 3,600 nits. Impressive.
Keep the following in mind: Measuring a test pattern with a 10% white window is not a fair measure of real content performance. I assume that the Z9J is likely to be able to achieve a peak brightness of 4,000 nits with small HDR highlights.
Is there something it can't do?
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Given the mountain of praise I've given the Z9J, one might wonder what its weaknesses might be. It has a couple.
First, the Sony Z9J is not the best choice for gamers who want the latest features supported by next generation game consoles like the Xbox Series X / S or PCs with hot rod graphics cards like the RTX-3000 series. At the time of writing, variable refresh rate (VRR) is not yet supported (at least not in the US) and firmware updates for VRR support in markets outside the US have been less than warmly received. The auto-low-latency mode was only recently (somehow) offered in a firmware update and is supposedly buggy.
While I don't see hardcore gamers opting for the Z9J, with so many other standout gaming TV options available at a fraction of the cost, I think anyone who pays that much for a TV should get everything. All the bells and whistles. The Z9J falls short in this regard.
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
In all honesty, I think the Z9J's biggest weakness is that it can't be enjoyed by very many people at home. To say it is prohibitive is a gross understatement. Fortunately, I expect the Sony X95J to match 95% of the Z9J's performance at a much more accessible price point (relatively speaking, of course – it's still pretty expensive). Does the Z9J really have to be that expensive? That's the harsh reality with luxury products, I suppose.
Why i love it
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
By the time I saw the Sony Z9J, I would have told you that the TV I was going to buy this year would be either the LG G1 Gallery Series OLED or the Sony A90J OLED – and it would be a tough call between the two. Now that I've seen this TV I'm not sure. No TV stopped me from OLED like the Sony Z9J. I think it's the HDR brightness beat and the way the image seems to jump off the screen into my room in a way I haven't seen from OLED before. Don't get me wrong, OLED is still the king of contrast thanks to its perfect black levels, but the Z9J does so well that I don't have to work too hard to forgive him for suffering a bit in the blacks department. It's just that good.
I spent hours just watching it because it was such an incredible joy to see.
The greatest validation I can give this TV is that I spent hours just watching it because it was such an incredible joy to see. Sure, I probably should have done other work, but I got myself a passport and watched for sheer pleasure knowing it would be a year or so before a TV like the Z9J crossed my test room again.
After all the hours I've spent watching, I want to see it even more. I said that about the few televisions in my life.
Our opinion
Is there a better alternative?
In terms of picture quality, in my opinion only the LG C1 and G1 OLED TVs, the Sony A90 or the Samsung Q900R can hold a candle to the Z9J, and for different reasons. Unfortunately, the blanket answer to this question is yes, as the price of this TV is unjustifiable.
How long it will take?
The Z9J is only held back by the lack of support for some functions related to HDMI 2.1, and these are reserved for advanced gaming problems. In terms of product quality and relevance, the Z9J will still be talked about in five or more years, just like the Z9D is today. Sony offers a one-year parts and labor warranty against defects in televisions used in the home.
Should you buy it?
If you have the resources, beat yourself up. The Z9J is a standout television. Just invite me to a watch party.
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