INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Christmas is right around the corner and so people are already gearing up for black Friday since that's the best time of the year to spend money on anything electronic. However what do you do when your brand new (and probably quite expensive) 4k LCD TV with all its smart features is simply put unable to reproduce/playback your 4k media collection? Not many people are aware of this but last year converted two 4k Blu-ray titles to the H.265 HEVC MKV format (over 80GB in size each mounted on the Samsung T3 Portable SSD) in order to test a total of 12 UHD compatible screens (all of them were over 40 inches in size) located in a local electronics superstore (for obvious reasons we can't publish the name of that store) and not even one passed through our playback test without issue. This of course is nothing new since it has been happening like forever and even now there are Full HD TVs out there that can't handle 1080p material so it's not an issue exclusive only to 4k/UHD ones. This is where companies like Dune HD and their latest flagship media player the Duo 4k come in.

   Dune HD is recognized as a global leader in high-performance digital media players. Over the last five years Dune HD has received more awards than any other company in the category for delivering the very best in networked digital media devices. Dune HD products support the widest number of digital formats in use today, from Internet-based digital streaming and downloadable content, to disc based formats such as Blu-ray, DVD and CD. The Dune HD line of media players offers superior quality HD video and audio with support for IPTV, VOD, OTT, networked digital files and interactive services. Dune HD offers an array of high-quality digital media players for both consumer and commercial markets. The product line ranges from low-cost, compact set-top box (STB) designs to professional-grade universal media players with internal hard drive bays, optical drives and full internet and content connectivity. All products in the Dune HD line feature the powerful Sigma Designs chipset for extreme speed and performance. The Dune HD line allows for consumers or content operators to choose or customize a solution to best suit their unique requirements. Dune HD devices offer superior quality HD video and audio with support for IPTV, VOD, OTT, network files and interactive content services. This unique combination of home media player combined with an IPTV HD STB in a single unit allows operators to offer their customers the exact content, services and performance that will set them apart. Dune HD is headquartered in Taiwan, with engineering teams in Moscow, Russia, and Kiev, Ukraine. The company also has offices in the United States, and a distribution network that covers more 60 countries.

   Just like the now "old" Max 4k Media Player (which i had the chance to review back in 2010 in a previous publication) the Duo 4k is Dune HD's newest flagship media player model and it's also based on a Sigma Designs media processor chip paired with 2GB DDR3 RAM and 8GB flash memory. This time over the chip used is Sigma Designs top-end SMP8758 model (ARM A9 dual-core SoC clocked at 1.2GHz with a quad-core GPU) which features support for HEVC’s Main-10 profile (allows processing of up to 10 bit color samples), HDCP2.2 (ensures secure copy protection of high value 4K content), VXP™ display processing, Open GLES 2.0, HTML-5, JavaScript, OTT streaming and a wide range of codecs (HEVC H.265/ VP9/ H.264/ MPEG-4.2-ASP/ SMPTE 421M/ AVS/ H.261/ DV AAC/ HE-AAC/ Dolby MS-12/ DTS/ WMA9). The Duo 4k also features two 3.5" drive bays/racks (for use with HDDs up to 12TB in capacity - this should be updated as new higher capacity models are made available), DVB-T/T2/C digital tuner, 802.11b/g/n/ac Dual Band WiFi module and the ESS SABRE 32 Reference DAC (ES9018K2M) which can be used to output audiophile grade analog sound. In terms of available connections the Duo 4k sports an HDMI v1.4 port, three USB 2.0 ports, USB host port, SD card slot, optical and coaxial S/PDIF audio outputs, coaxial S/PDIF audio input, composite video output, RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet port, RCA stereo output, balanced stereo XLR connectors and two external removable WiFi Antennas. It took Dune HD almost 6 full years to launch a replacement for their old Max model so let's see why that is.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Duo 4k ships inside a white box that has a large product picture at the front right over the main product features.

 

 

The main product features are also listed at the top of the box.

 

 

Listed at the rear of the box are the product specifications, available connectors and bundle contents (a picture of the products rear is also present here).

 

 

The player is wrapped inside a piece of cloth and placed between two thick foam spacers while the rest of the bundle is placed inside another cardboard box.

 

 

Leaving out the Duo 4k media player you'll also get two detachable WiFi Antennas, remote control (batteries included), power cord, HDMI cable, Ethernet cable, IR extender, warranty information paper and the user guide.

 

 

THE DUO 4K EXTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The body of the Duo 4k is made primarily out of metal and measures 437mm in length, 300mm in width and 67mm in height (without the WiFi Antennas mounted).

 

 

Some of the features and supported formats are showcased at the top of the chassis.

 

 

The fascia of the player is made out of plastic and has an VFW screen at the center right over its media navigation buttons.

 

 

The SD card slot is placed on the right of the fascia right next to one of the three USB 2.0 ports.

 

 

Both sides of the player are perforated to allow hot air to exit the interior.

 

 

Almost all of the connectors are located at the rear of the player so from left to right we see the two DVB-T Antenna ports, WiFi Antenna mount, XLR balanced stereo connectors, RCA stereo connectors, S/PDIF coaxial audio input, USB host port, HDMI v1.4 port, S/PDIF coaxial and optical audio outputs, composite video output, RJ45 Ethernet port, two USB 2.0 ports, IR extender port, WiFi Antenna mount, AC in and an hardware on/off switch (the device also features an removable fuse right next to the AC in).

 

 

Here we decided to compare the old Max media player with the Duo 4k and as you can see the chassis used in both is identical. Their main external differences are the two 3.5" drive racks (the Max has a single 3.5" drive rack and a Blu-Ray player) and the different variety in available connectors.

 

 

THE DUO 4K INTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The interior of the Duo 4k is for the largest part empty due to the two 3.5" drive racks.

 

 

What we noticed right from the get go is the A12 PWM fan by our friends over at Noctua.

 

 

The 2GB of DDR3 RAM are provided by SKhynix (4 modules in total) while the dual-band WiFi 802.11 b/g/n/ac module is manufactured by Realtek.

 

 

Inside the Duo 4k we also find a 60W power supply unit.

 

 

Finally we see the ESS SABRE 32 Reference DAC (ES9018K2M) board.

 

 

We forgot to mention that the remote control bundled with the Duo 4k also features LED backlight for its keys (you have to turn it on however via the upper left button).

 

 

DUO 4K INTERFACE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As with previous media players by Dune HD the interface is nicely designed and very easy to navigate.

 

 

From the main menu you can check all the connected devices for media files, watch digital TV, listen to online radio, check the weather, login to your favorite social network sites, surf the web and more.

 

 

You can also install extra "features" into the Duo 4k like the Z-Wave controller app which allows you to make the unit part of your smart home.

 

 

The Duo 4k menu also allows you to watch music clips and movie trailers (most are available but not all).

 

 

Of course the device also gives you the ability to add all your media files into collections.

 

 

From within the setup menu you can change the interface language (26 languages are supported), set the time and date, setup video and audio settings, choose the available network connection (wired or wireless), check the installed apps, change the appearance of the interface/menu, setup playback related settings (such as subtitles) and configure various remote control functions.

 

 

There’s also a miscellaneous tab from where you can access the various available encodings, adjust the info displayed on the front VFW screen, set various system settings, perform firmware updates, clear the built-in flash memory (4.52GB is unused), initialize system storage, check the various installed plugins and take a look at the players information page.

 

 

AUDIO & VIDEO QUALITY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It seems that my Nikon D3300 doesn't like taking pictures of my new 55 inch 4k TV in total darkness (everything is blue even with the color temperature set to neutral) but since i was unable to grab screenshots directly from the player i thought I’d post them regardless. Now you may not be able to check the quality of the movies used (we have converted several blu-rays to H.265 HEVC MKV including Star Trek Beyond, Ghost In The Shell, Batman VS Superman and Guardians Of The Galaxy 2) but leaving out a couple of glitches while watching one of these movies via USB 2.0 (yes you can enjoy heavy bitrate 4k movies even via USB) the rest where reproduced from an 3.5" internal drive without a single issue. Detail is practically incredible (as expected from H.265 HEVC MKV files with bitrates exceeding 70Mb/s) both in terms of video (crisp with vibrant colors) and audio (clarity) while playback is smooth as if you're reproducing a regular Full HD file. Unfortunately my somewhat outdated 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound systems doesn't support Dolby Atmos (eventually i must upgrade to one) but the Duo 4k is perfectly capable of reproducing it.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Dune HD released the Duo 4k exactly one year ago and they send us a sample almost 5 months ago but the truth of the matter is that with the initial firmware (the one preloaded on the device that is) things didn't go so well and thus we had to wait until some issues were resolved in order to carry out our tests. Fortunately even with the preloaded firmware playback via internal HDD was flawless but that wasn't the case when you used one of the USB 2.0 ports. Another issue was with the WiFi connectivity since it was mediocre at best and didn't even allow for online firmware updating (connection would just drop for no reason even with the router placed just 6 feet away). Took a few firmware updates for Dune HD to resolve these issues and so it has been clear sail ever since. The only slight problem we still have is with the responsiveness of the remote control when you have several devices connected onto the Duo 4k. This is probably due to the fact that the device is always looking for media files and so sometimes although you may press several buttons these actions will take several seconds to complete. Leaving out the issues we’ve had with the Duo 4k we do think Dune HD could had done a better job. First of all using an HDMI v2.0 video output would allow for even 4k@60p playback (quite important for some people) and second USB 3.0 ports would potentially produce even smoother playback (we used 70Mb/s bitrate files but the Duo 4k can reproduce even 100Mb/s ones and for those USB 2.0 might not be enough). These are not serious issues but I have to admit that I was hoping Dune HD would implement them in the Duo 4k (unless they plan on releasing another flagship in the near future).

   Just like its predecessor the Max the Duo 4k UHD 4K & HEVC Enabled Media Player by Dune HD is considered to be a high-end media playback solution and just like every other similar model that means it doesn’t come cheap. To be more specific currently the Duo 4k retails for USD576 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 459Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) a price tag which places it right next to several similar models (mainly from OPPO). Unfortunately we haven’t had a chance to check the equivalent model by OPPO to see just how good their very own media decoding chip does (compared to the SMP8758 by Sigma Designs) so we can’t comment on picture quality (we will try to get OPPO onboard for this). What we can say with certainty however is that the Duo 4k by Dune HD is among the top 4K HEVC enabled media players in the market today and that along with its plethora of features secured our Platinum Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- 4K HEVC Support
- DTS: X & Dolby Atmos Support
- Two 3.5” Drive Racks
- Hardware Features (Digital Tuner / Dual Band WiFi Module / ESS SABRE 32 Reference DAC)
- 3 USB Ports
- Optical & Coaxial Audio Outputs
- Coaxial Audio Input
- Interface
- Product Support

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- HDMI V1.4 (Up To 4k@50p)
- USB 2.0 Ports