Zidoo Z3C PRO 8K Media Player User Manual

Table of Contents

• Introduction to the Device
• Startup Wizard
• System Introduction
• Settings
• OTA System Update

Introduction to the Device

Interfaces

The ZIDOO Z9X 8K is equipped with a wide variety of audio and video input/output interfaces and data transfer ports.

1. Front Panel

The front panel features an IR receiver, an LED display, and USB 2.0 ports.

2. Left Side

The left side features USB 3.0 ports.

3. Right Side

The right side features a HDD bay.

4. Rear Panel

The rear panel includes ANTENNA, COAXIAL, RS-232, POWER (ON/OFF), DC 12V input, OPTICAL audio output, L/R audio output, HDMI output, GIGABIT LAN port, RESET button, and USB 3.0 ports.

Specifications

Hard Drive Installation

The Z30 PRO features a 3.5-inch hard drive bay with high-speed SATA transfer interfaces. Gently insert the hard drive to ensure a perfect connection with the internal SATA interface. No tools are required. The maximum capacity of the hard drive (not included) should not exceed 16TB.

Note: Do not load or replace the hard drive while the device is powered on to avoid damage to the device or the hard drive data. New hard drives must be formatted before loading. This device supports the following hard drive formats: EXT3, EXT4, NTFS, FAT32, EXFAT.

Connection Example

1. Connect HDMI to TV

1. Turn off the power of the devices. Ensure the TV and player are unplugged.
2. With the TV and player off, insert the HDMI cable into the output port of this device and the other end into the HDMI input of the TV.
3. Power Connection: This device comes with a power adapter. Connect the tip of the adapter to the power input of this device, then plug the AC power into a 110-240V outlet.
4. Select the corresponding HDMI input on the TV.

2. Connect Audio Cable to Amplifier or Active Speakers

Use a 3.5mm jack to dual RCA cable. Connect it to the 3.5mm audio port of the Z30 PRO and the other end to the RCA input of an amplifier or active speakers.

3. Assembly Sequence for RS232 to 3.5mm Connection

Connect the 3.5mm jack to the RS232 connector using the provided adapter. The wiring is as follows: Tip-TX, Ring-RX, Sleeve-Gnd.

Startup Wizard

1. Language, Screen Zoom, Time Zone Selection

Select the desired language from the list.

Press the UP and DOWN buttons on the remote control to adjust the screen display area.

Select the appropriate time zone for your location.

2. Network Settings

Configure network settings according to your specific network conditions.

• Wi-Fi: Select the SSID, enter the password, and connect.
• Ethernet: Connect the Ethernet cable for automatic network connection.

3. Connection Modes

Choose the corresponding connection method suitable for your audio and video equipment.

Note: The effects presented depend on different connection methods.

• HDMI port connected to AV receiver's HDMI 2.1 or 2.0 port, then the receiver connected to the TV: In this configuration, the Z9X 8K will prioritize pass-through output for all audio. The AV receiver supports more than 7.1 channels.
• HDMI port directly connected to the TV: In this configuration, the Z30 PRO will pass through or decode the audio for output according to the TV's audio decoding capability.
• HDMI port connected to the TV, optical or coaxial port connected to the AV receiver: In this configuration, the AV receiver supports up to 5.1 channels and will attempt to downmix all audio to 5.1 output.
• HDMI port connected to an AV receiver with an HDMI version lower than 1.3, then the AV receiver connected to the TV: Choose this configuration. The Z9X 8K will attempt to downmix all audio to 5.1 output.

4. Key Definition

Define the corresponding functions for the numeric keys, timing keys, subtitle keys, audio keys, up/down keys, and page turning keys on the remote control according to your preferences.

5. Phone Control

Scan the QR code to download and install the ZIDOO Control app. Launch the ZIDOO Control app and scan the QR code on the right to pair it with the ZIDOO media player. Ensure your mobile device and the player are on the same LAN.

System Introduction

1. Media Center

ZIDOO offers extensive media center functions with rich and intuitive management features:

• Supports direct access to external drives and automatic or manual scanning of all NFS or SMB network drives within the local area network, providing more flexible access to media on the same local network.
• Offers various file management methods such as multi-selection, cut, copy, delete, sort, etc.
• Supports the UPnP local network sharing protocol and mounting and playback of various cloud drives such as WebDAV.

2. Poster Wall

ZIDOO is equipped with a movie management system that uses a new algorithm, featuring a simple yet effective navigation interface, personalized classification based on data, and highly customizable display of viewing records, genre classifications, intelligent recommendations, etc. The highly customizable modular management significantly enhances the convenience of movie collection, fully meeting users' needs for efficient management of a large number of movies.

Instructions for adding videos:

1. When launching the Poster Wall for the first time, you can configure language and child safety settings. If not needed, you can skip this step.
2. On the Poster Wall homepage, click "Open Sources".
3. Click "Add Source" and select a video folder (supports adding multiple folders). Paths support internal and external storage, SMB, NFS, etc.
4. After configuring the scanning options, click "Start Scanning" and wait for Poster Wall to finish loading. Note: It is recommended to use smart data sources for the Poster Wall.

3. Music Player

The Z30 PRO player offers powerful local music playback and management functions, allowing you to add music files from local hard drives or network storage across multiple platforms. The music player automatically retrieves music information, matches musical artists, album covers, local CUE files, etc., to create an exclusive music database for you. It supports custom classification display of music genres, sampling rates, albums, artists, etc., and supports functions such as creating favorite playlists.

3.1 Instructions for adding music

1. Navigate to the "Library" section on the music player's homepage.
2. Select and click "Add Library".
3. Choose a music folder (supports adding multiple folders), with supported paths from internal and external storage, SMB, NFS, etc. After selection, click "OK".
4. Finally, wait for the music player to complete the scan.

3.2 CD Playback

The Z30 PRO supports CD playback via an external CD-ROM drive.

3.3 Introduction to Music Player Settings

Access Guide: Scroll down from the music player homepage to access the settings menu.

Playback: The playback menu includes features such as album playback skipping, folder playback skipping, playlist skipping, automatic playback queue on startup, and accessing the playback interface once playback begins.

Scanning: The scanning menu includes features such as matching method, prioritizing local images, not scanning songs under 500KB, automatic source update, and music format scanning.

Display: The display menu includes features for displaying playback details with a background image.

General: The general menu includes features such as backup and restore, resetting the music library, and clearing cache, etc.

4. Applications

Displays all installed applications on the player, including built-in and third-party apps. By pressing the app icon, you can access the function menu, which supports settings like launch on startup, clearing data, and uninstallation (for third-party apps).

Settings

Access Guide: From the home screen, click the settings icon on the right side.

5.1 Playback

Playback settings include features such as automatic frame rate, bookmarks, subtitle and audio, function keys, playback mode, forced subtitles, Blu-ray region, subtitle download, digital display mode, and other features.

Automatic Frame Rate

ZIDOO media players support precise automatic switching of native resolution and frame rate (supporting 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.94, 60) for local and third-party app playback. It uses a new automatic switching algorithm.

ZIDOO supports automatic frame rate settings for "local playback" and "third-party app online playback". You can choose to disable automatic frame rate; alternatively, you can select "match frame rate only", when playing a video, the player will automatically switch to the same frame rate as the source. Additionally, you can choose "match frame rate and resolution". When playing a video, the player will automatically switch to the same resolution and frame rate as the source.

Note: Enabling this option will require a new HDMI link at the beginning and end of video playback, resulting in a few seconds of black screen.

5.2 Display

In the display settings, there are options for resolution, color settings, HDR, custom EDID, screen scaling, picture settings, AI image processing, UI resolution, screensaver, wallpaper, and other settings.

(1) Color Settings

Set the player's color gamut and color depth priority for output at 8K, 4K, and below 4K resolutions, as well as the HDMI signal format. The HDMI format can be set to Standard or Enhanced format.

Notes:

• When selecting the Enhanced format, if your display device supports it, you can achieve a maximum output of 8K 4:2:2 12-bit.
• Please ensure you are using an Ultra High-Speed HDMI cable that supports 48Gb bandwidth.

(2) HDR Settings

• UI Display Mode: The UI display mode can be set to one of three options: SDR, HDR, or DV (Dolby Vision).
• HDR Output Mode:
  • Auto: The player adapts to display the optimal image mode based on the source and display device capabilities.
  • Dolby Vision Output Mode: When the display device supports Dolby Vision TV and LLDV modes, this option will appear in the menu and allow for custom switching. If the display only supports TV-led or LLDV, this option will be hidden and the player will automatically adapt its output. If the display does not support Dolby Vision, this option will be automatically hidden and will not be functional.
• Advanced Settings: The advanced mode allows for converting different types of content into another format as needed. Additionally, the VS10 Dolby Vision engine can be customized to activate based on content. This feature offers greater flexibility for professional users; we recommend setting it to automatic for other users.

Advanced HDR Settings

3 Image AI Processing

• AI Image Enhancement: Utilizes artificial intelligence to identify scenes and adjust color saturation, brightness, sharpness, dynamic compensation, and intelligent noise reduction frame by frame based on different scenes, thereby improving overall image quality.
• Enable AI SR (Super Resolution): Using upscaling technology and learning capabilities to achieve image super-resolution, AI SR can intelligently enhance the resolution of content presented from streaming media, cable TV, and local files, making the image clearer. Combined with MEMC dynamic compensation, it can provide a more spectacular 4K visual experience. Note: AI image enhancement applies only to videos with a resolution of 1080P or lower and is effective when the device's output is higher than 1080P. Please disable the "Match frame rate and resolution" function when enabling this option.

5.3 Audio Settings

• Audio Output: Decodes and plays audio and video with the internal player. Supports HDMI, Optical/Coaxial, and USB output.

• Audio Delay: When the HDMI port, audio port, OPT/COAX connection to the AV pre-amp, and USB connection to the pre-amp are connected, changes in sampling rate may cause the first few seconds of the track to be silent due to the audio recognition speed of the pre-amp. This option can be set to delay playback to avoid this situation. Please adjust the appropriate delay time based on the response speed of your pre-amp. Note: This feature applies only to pure audio, supporting delay adjustment from 0 to 5000 ms.

5.4 Network Settings

This menu provides settings for Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Bluetooth, Samba server, hotspot, and other functions.

5.5 Other Settings

This menu provides advanced settings such as languages, HDMI CEC, power mode, HDD standby, fan control, front display, keyboards, date and time, weather, update, recovery and reset, etc.

HDMI CEC

CEC, short for Consumer Electronics Control, is a control method performed via HDMI. CEC control allows users to enjoy many conveniences by using a single remote control to operate multiple CEC-compatible devices such as TVs, set-top boxes, etc.

Note: When HDMI is set to pass-through output, this function will send the speaker control signal via CEC to the AV receiver or TV and other devices. Please ensure CEC is enabled on other devices when using this function. This function may have compatibility issues, and not all devices can be controlled.

Macro Customization

1. Access Guide: Press any undefined color key on the remote control or open shortcut keys from the applications.

2. This function allows you to customize the red, green, and blue color keys of the remote control as shortcuts for specific functions; supports customization such as music playback queue, music now playing, AI image processing, etc.

OTA System Update

ZIDOO updates firmware as needed. Look for the update icon in the applications and click on it. Online update and local update are supported. After checking "Automatically check for online upgrade", you will automatically receive update alerts.

1. Online Update

Click the "Online Update" option to receive online update information and proceed with the update.

2. Local Update

1. Users can manually download the update file from the forum or official website and update the system locally. Copy the downloaded update file to a USB drive (no need to decompress), then click the "USB Update" option to select the update file.
2. After downloading the update file via online or USB update, the system will automatically check the integrity of the system file and start the update.

Note: The system updates automatically, please do not turn off the device during this process!

Once the update is complete, the device will restart automatically.

Special Note

To ensure the user experience, ZIDOO occasionally updates the firmware. Therefore, this manual may not be up-to-date according to the changes made.

Safety Instructions

1. This device should not be exposed to splashes or drips, and no objects filled with liquids, such as vases, should be placed on the device.
2. The AC power plug of this product is equipped with a disconnect device. The socket intended for use with this product should be installed near the product and should be easily accessible, without being obstructed by other objects.
3. This product is a Class II device, and the internal chassis should be grounded during use.

Trademark Information

• The terms HDMI and HDMI High-Definition Multimedia Interface, along with the HDMI logo, are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing LLC in the United States and other countries.
• Dolby, Dolby Audio, and the double-D symbol are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation.
• For DTS patents, see http://patents.dts.com. Manufactured under license from DTS Licensing Limited. DTS, the Symbol, DTS, and the Symbol together are registered trademarks, and DTS 2.0+Digital Out is a trademark of DTS, Inc. © DTS, Inc. All Rights Reserved.