Yes, your system is perfectly capable of UHD BD playback.

You can read more in previous threads in this forum or you may follow the link in my signature and read the long thread about this subject at blu-ray.com.

In short - you must use the HDMI output of your mobo, not your graphics card. Even then you may be experiencing some troubles. Do not forget to enter BIOS and flip the SGX switch to Enabled.

When you receive the drive, return to one of the forums for more help if necessary. .
FOR THE LIST OF ULTRA HD BLU-RAY COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARDS CLICK HERE
My hardware: Aorus Z270X Gaming 8 motherboard + i7 7700 CPU + Pioneer BDR-S11J-BK

Hi triffid; thanks for your reply.

OK....you're saying that from what you can tell from the specs of my system that I've listed, that I should be able to play 4K UHD BD discs? But the stipulation is, that I have to use the HDMI output of my motherboard?

You're not kidding? Jeez....why can't I use my super-duper EVGA nVidia graphics card?

Does having to use the on-board HDMI ports on my motherboard have anything to do with HDCP?

If I attempt to do what you're saying and use an HDMI port on my motherboard, won't I have to Disable my EVGA graphics card in the BIOS? Or would I have to remove it completely? That would be a pain in the......

As of now, I use the Display Port on my EVGA graphics card to connect it to my monitor. If I try this motherboard HDMI thing and connect it to my monitor.....my monitor does not have built-in speakers, it's just a monitor for display purposes only; will audio still come out of my system speakers if I try this? (I have a set of Z906 LogiTech 5.1 Surround Sound speakers.)

Thanks for any more info,

Pez

P.S. I noticed in your signature that you and I have the same motherboard and CPU!! Well, almost the same CPU; I have the i7 - 7700K.

No, you can't use the discrete card. You must enable IGPU in BIOS and I also recommend to set it as your primary graphics for a while to avoid confusion before you learn how to switch between the two. Once your setup is finished and everything working allright, you can return to the graphics card and switch to IGPU only when you want to watch an UHD disc.

Yes, I have i7-7700, i7-7700K and i7-7700T plus Aorus Gaming 8 and Gaming 9, all combinations are OK. .
FOR THE LIST OF ULTRA HD BLU-RAY COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARDS CLICK HERE
My hardware: Aorus Z270X Gaming 8 motherboard + i7 7700 CPU + Pioneer BDR-S11J-BK

Hi triffid; thanks again for your reply.

So, it has to be the onboard graphics to view a UHD disc, eh? You haven't said as much yet, but I have a feeling that it's due to HDCP (who knows, maybe it'll change one day and we'll be able to use our discrete graphics cards....like my EVGA nVidia 1080 SC!!!).

1.) So you're saying that if I do this (purchase the Pioneer BDR-211UBK drive), you recommend setting my onboard graphics as primary, yes? I have a .pdf version of my Aorus Gaming-8 motherboard, and in the BIOS section/ Peripherals, there's the Initial Display Output. The PCIe 1 slot is Default (which is, of course, where my EVGA card is right now). But I should select IGFX as my first display, correct?

2.) You say you recommend this for a while so as to avoid confusion before I learn how to switch between the two. Umm....is there some fancy way I don't know about to switch between onboard graphics and my discrete EVGA graphics card? Isn't the only way to do this is in the BIOS? Is there another way? A way to do it when you've reached your desktop?

And, perhaps it was a previous motherboard I had before the Aorus (I believe it was an ASUS), that if you had a discrete card installed in the PCIe 1 slot, then you could not just switch to the onboard graphics: it was going to Default to the discrete card since it was installed into the PCIe 1 slot, and the only way you could use the onboard graphics was to first remove the installed discrete graphics card in the PCIe slot.

And the last thing: I mentioned this in my previous post but you did not address it.

3.) You said that when I use the onboard graphics, to use the HDMI output of my motherboard, correct? I mentioned in my previous post that my monitor has display/ video capability only, no built-in speakers. I have a separate 5.1 surround sound system by LogiTech, the Z906. If I use the HDMI onboard output....will I still get sound from my external surround sound system since my monitor has no built-in speakers?

4.) And it HAS TO be the onboard HDMI output? The Aorus Gaming-8, as you probably already know, has a DisplayPort output.

You'll notice that I numbered my items up above (1, 2, 3, and 4). If you could address these four points/ questions, that'd be way cool . This way, it'd save us a lot more back-and-forth posting on this board .

Thanks; I look forward to your reply,

Pez

1. Correct.


2. Yes, but I cant explain my workaround now, I am driving a car. Definitely no removing the card or switching cables.


3. Same here. You just need to correctly set your SoundBlaster output.


4. Yes, see PowerDVD requirements.

Hi again, triffid; hope you're still out there.

OK, finally got the Pioneer BDR-211UBK drive for a Christmas gift; it came with CyberLink Media Suite 10.

I installed the drive & the software, booted into my BIOS to make the Intel graphics my initial display, and connected it to my 4K monitor via an HDMI cable.

Booted into my desktop, inserted a 4K Ultra HD disc, and......it won't play.

So, I ran the CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor once more, and, according to the results, I'm Not Passing:
HDCP 2.2 (GPU/ Display)
Advanced Protected Audio/ Video Path (GPU)

So, how is this possible? I'm using the Intel on-board graphics, and I'm using an HDMI cable to connect it to my 4K monitor (not the Display Port like I had been previously).

And also, in the Advisor results, there's a section labeled "Optional", and in there I'm Not Passing:
HDR - High Dynamic Range (GPU/ Display)
PowerDVD 17 Ultra (Retail version) or above

So how is it I'm failing these, too? The GPU/ Display thing again?!?! I'm using the on-board Intel graphics.

And PowerDVD 17 Ultra? I realize this is coming under the "Optional" section, but the drive came with CyberLink Media Suite 10, and right on the disc is printed the words "Ultra HD Blu-ray".

Anyway.....what's going on? Remember within this thread I mentioned that you & I have similar hardware components, the same Aorus motherboard, and I have the Intel i7 - 7700K processor. What gives? I thought I'd be enjoying my Star Trek (2009) 4K Ultra HD disc by now

Thanks for any more info,
Pez

@Pezzy - Did you enable SGX in the BIOS?

bear_in_mind: Yes, that's enabled in the BIOS. Using the CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor, I "Passed" that; the items I did not pass are mentioned in my previous reply [HDCP 2.2 (GPU/ Display); Advanced Protected Audio/ Video Path (GPU); HDR - High Dynamic Range (GPU/ Display); PowerDVD 17 Ultra (Retail version) or above].

Before ordering/ purchasing this Pioneer drive, I made sure I had all the hardware requirements; what gives?!?! I should be passing everything with flying colors and watching 4K discs by now
Pez

Ahhh, yeah, you're right. Since there's really nothing to lose right now (IMO), I'd suggest upgrading to the F8 BIOS and trying again. (It also has a critical update for some possible security bugs.) If that still fails, I suppose you could pull the graphics card and see what that does, or wait for triffid.

Quote bear_in_mind: Yes, that's enabled in the BIOS. Using the CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor, I "Passed" that; the items I did not pass are mentioned in my previous reply [HDCP 2.2 (GPU/ Display); Advanced Protected Audio/ Video Path (GPU); HDR - High Dynamic Range (GPU/ Display); PowerDVD 17 Ultra (Retail version) or above].

Before ordering/ purchasing this Pioneer drive, I made sure I had all the hardware requirements; what gives?!?! I should be passing everything with flying colors and watching 4K discs by now
Pez

Several suggestions here for you to try:

1. Ensure your HDMI cable is 2.0 version compliant or above.


2. Turn off Freesync feature on LG display


3. Update BIOS to F8 version that resolving the Intel ME driver security issue, and reboot PC to take it effect:
   https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270X-Gaming-8-rev-10#support-dl

The motherboard is OK, any BIOS since F4 will do.
Set SGX to Enable, not to Software controlled.
The software is OK. The Advisor asks for PowerDVD 17, that is right. You have the next best thing, a special OEM UHD BD version of PowerDVD 14. It just does not count as PowerDVD 17 for the Advisor. No problem.
Your monitor does not support HDR technology, you can't expect to get PASS here.
The CPU is obviously OK as well.
The graphics card must not be connected to any other monitor/TV.
Upgrade Intel VGA driver.
Upgrade Intel ME.
Then there are only two possibilities:
A) Wrong cable, as suggested above - be sure the cable is marked as HDMI 2.0a or 2.0b certified (although many people would say to you that all HDMI cables are the same, which is partially true).
B) There is something wrong with the monitor. Does it have HDMI 2.0 / HDCP 2.2 input?
My cable is certified and my LG monitor 27UD68 has HDMI 2.0, all ather components are identical. Freesync setting does not matter at all. .
FOR THE LIST OF ULTRA HD BLU-RAY COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARDS CLICK HERE
My hardware: Aorus Z270X Gaming 8 motherboard + i7 7700 CPU + Pioneer BDR-S11J-BK

Hmm, according to this product page: http://www.lg.com/uk/monitors/lg-27UD58-B the monitor should be allright. Try to renew the HDCP handshake between the monitor and the PC by removing the cable and pluging it in again (with both devices ON).

Hey, triffid, you're back!!

Wow, I started this post almost two months ago (Nov. 4). Back then, I hadn't even purchased the Pioneer drive yet, just wanted to check some things out first ahead of time.

Finally got the Pioneer drive for a Christmas gift, installed it, also installed the OEM Cyberlink software, popped in a 4K Ultra HD disc of Star Trek 2009, and expected to be rocking & rolling, and.......nope.

You've chimed in on my thread post here since the beginning, so you know that my system hardware, etc., should be able to handle this 4K stuff.

OK, from your recent reply, let me make sure I'm clear:

1.) You're saying my BIOS of F4 will do? I had downloaded the F8 BIOS from Gigabyte's web site, just hadn't updated yet [you know how they say there's always a little inherent danger when attempting a BIOS update....]

2.) I checked my BIOS, and yes, my SW Guard Extensions (SGX) is already set to Enable (not Software Controlled).

3.) And while I was in the BIOS, let me ask you this: Since I'm not using the 4K feature of the Pioneer drive at this moment, I am back using my add-in discrete card (EVGA/ nVidia GeForce GTX 1080 SC), not the on-board Intel graphics. But when I do attempt this again, let me make sure: In the BIOS, on the Peripherals tab, on Initial Display Output, I want to choose "IGFX", correct? But what about this: On the Chipset tab, there's Internal Graphics; right now it's on "Auto"; should I switch this to "Enabled" or leave it as is with "Auto"?

4.) You mention this: "The graphics card must not be connected to any other monitor/TV". When I was attempting to use the Pioneer UHD drive, I connected the on-board Intel graphics from an HDMI port from my motherboard to my monitor. From my add-in EVGA graphics card (PCI-e slot 1), I have a Display Port cable connecting it to the monitor. So when you say "The graphics card must not be connected to any other monitor/TV", are you referring to the on-board Intel graphics? Or my add-in graphics card, too? It's not like I have an additional monitor, it's the same LG monitor, it's just that two of its ports are being used: the Display Port (coming from my EVGA graphics card) and the HDMI Port (coming from the on-board Intel graphics).
Could that be causing any kind of an issue, do you think? Preventing the 4K playback? It's just that the Display Port cable connection/ port is not receiving a signal at that moment (the EVGA card in the PCI-e 1 slot is Disabled at that moment when the on-board Intel graphics is Enabled).

5.) You mention to upgrade the Intel VGA driver? VGA?!?! Isn't that kind of "old"? I had already gone to Intel's web site and upgrade the HD graphics drivers.
And upgrade the Intel ME, too? I can get that from Gigabyte's web site in the Support section for my motherboard.

6.) As far as my HDMI cable goes: It's not as though I grabbed some old one I had had lying around the house for years; I purchased a new one recently, and on the package, besides having 1080p, it also had 4K (plus, the connector ends are gold-plated and also Ethernet). Shouldn't this recently-purchased HDMI cable be 2.0?
On the web link you gave for my monitor (http://www.lg.com/uk/monitors/lg-27UD58-B), if you scroll through the pictures of it, there's one where you can see the rear of the monitor, and you can see that it has two HDMI inputs, and one Display Port.

So, if you'd be so kind, triffid, please read through my numbered list and let me know if I'm on-target.
Pez
P.S. And if I can finally get this 4K thing going, then from way back in this thread's post, you can let me in on your secret, the part where you hinted at a workaround on switching between the two graphics, on-board Intel & my EVGA graphics card, with no card removal or switching cables.

Hi
1.) Yes, I tested all BIOS versions with this mobo. Only F3 did not work (no SGX setting in BIOS). Do not update it.
2.) OK
3.) IGFX and Enabled.
4.) IGPU = integrated graphics core inside the CPU. Graphics card (also discrete or video card) is a CARD, a thing you plug into the motherboard (you can have a LAN card or sound card too for example). Yes, this double connection is breaking the secure environment. Your graphics card is not Disabled, it is just not the Initial output. Remove the cable.
5.) Intel itself calls it VGA driver, yes, it is an old abbrevation but still valid. Lets save Intel ME for later if nothing else helps.
6.) HDMI 1.4 can't do 4k in 60 FPS, that is why they invented HDMI 2.0 (and later HDMI 2.0a adds HDR). Do you have the LG cable which came with your monitor? Maybe it looks less sophisticated and not gold-plated, but it is definitely 2.0. Lets assume your new cable is OK for now. Unplug and replug it few times on both ends after you fail the HDCP check to renew the HDCP handshake (one device tells the other that both are HDCP 2.2 compatible).
Also, from other users came an advice to always install PowerDVD last (i.e. after updating all drivers) but since you received the drive with the software only this week, I guess your PowerDVD actually is the last thing installed... .
FOR THE LIST OF ULTRA HD BLU-RAY COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARDS CLICK HERE
My hardware: Aorus Z270X Gaming 8 motherboard + i7 7700 CPU + Pioneer BDR-S11J-BK

OK, I'm back after another try, making sure I followed what you said/ suggested.

Annnnnddddddd.......this stinks. This really stinks.

It still won't load & play my Star Trek (2009) 4K Ultra HD disc.

Here's what I've done since your last reply to my post:

• Went into BIOS, and of course on Peripherals tab, on Initial Display Output, I chose "IGFX"


• - On the Chipset tab, there's Internal Graphics; I switched it to "Enabled"


• - I had mentioned to you that when using the Intel graphics/ HDMI port from my motherboard to my monitor, that I had still had the Display Port cable connected from my add-in EVGA graphics card going to my monitor; you said this "double connection" was breaking the "secure environment", and to "remove the cable"; so, I disconnected the Display Port cable from the back of my monitor so only the HDMI cable is going into the monitor (the Display Port cable is still connected to the back of my EVGA card, but the other end goes nowhere, it just dangles since it's not plugged into the back of the monitor anymore)


• - The Intel VGA driver: I went to Gigabyte's web site, then to the Support section for my Aorus motherboard; there is a very recent version of this Intel VGA driver, a date of 11/13/17 (about a month and-a-half old), version # 23.20.16.4849. After booting my system with the Intel graphics, I went to install this latest Intel VGA drivers.....but a message popped up on-screen telling me that the drivers I was about to install were OLDER than what was already in my system; do I want to continue? I chose "No".....is that OK?


• - I went and retrieved another HDMI cable I have in the house; it's one that was in my livingroom connecting our Blu-ray player to our widescreen TV (even though the one I had just been using was the one I had just bought recently with packaging mentioning "4K" on it).


• So....I now put in the Star Trek 4K disc, launch PowerDVD14 OEM that came with the Pioneer drive, press the Play button, and I start to see this:


• http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll217/PezzyDude/PowerDVD14-A_zpsbgi7ytas.jpg


• This seems to be progress, but, very quickly, I see this:


• http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll217/PezzyDude/PowerDVD14-B_zpsregnvezr.jpg


• I did a quick Google search on this error code, and nothing enlightening came back in the search results.


• I then even tried that suggestion of yours: I unplugged then re-plugged the HDMI cable a few times from the back of my monitor to renew the HDCP handshake....but attempting to play the 4K disc again just gets me that error code that I showed in the picture above.


• I also ran the CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor again. The results window cannot be expanded; you have to scroll though the results, so, I took two screenshots of it:


• http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll217/PezzyDude/UltraHD-Advisor1_zpsvgxpgo5w.jpg


• http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll217/PezzyDude/UltraHD-Advisor2_zpsjqiz2lxz.jpg


• So....in the "Minimum Requirements" section, the one result that's "Not Available" (that I DON'T PASS) is: "HDCP 2.2 (GPU/ Display)"


• I understand what HDCP is (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection); it's digital copyright protection. But the result's wordage is a little ambiguous: in parentheses, it has "GPU/ Display". Is something wrong with the GPU? My on-board Intel graphics which they say I MUST have and I DO? My Display? It is a 4K monitor with 3840 × 2160 resolution.


• Or, is it the "path" between the GPU (Intel graphics) and the monitor, and by "path" I mean the HDMI cable? I've now used two different HDMI cables, and even tried unplugging & re-plugging them while everything was still turned on to re-establish the HDCP handshake.


• Why is all this so difficult? Not that I'm necessarily looking to point a finger of blame.....but who's to blame here? The CyberLink software? The Pioneer drive? The movie companies that have these stringent protections embedded in their media which legit customers can't get through?


• Triffid: from all the info & pictures I've given.....can you think of anything else?


• Thanks, Pez

Quote OK, I'm back after another try, making sure I followed what you said/ suggested.

The Intel VGA driver: I went to Gigabyte's web site, then to the Support section for my Aorus motherboard; there is a very recent version of this Intel VGA driver, a date of 11/13/17 (about a month and-a-half old), version # 23.20.16.4849. After booting my system with the Intel graphics, I went to install this latest Intel VGA drivers.....but a message popped up on-screen telling me that the drivers I was about to install were OLDER than what was already in my system; do I want to continue? I chose "No".....is that OK?

Yes, you can use the newest drivers from Intel. The drivers shouldn't be motherboard-specific. Mine aren't, even though I started with a version put up by my motherboard manufacturer (ASRock) when I initially set up everything.

I went and retrieved another HDMI cable I have in the house; it's one that was in my livingroom connecting our Blu-ray player to our widescreen TV (even though the one I had just been using was the one I had just bought recently with packaging mentioning "4K" on it).

That's a problem. It's probably an HDMI 1.4 cable. I don't believe HDMI 1.4 cables can handle HDCP 2.2. At the same time, 1.4 cables can technically carry 4K video. Unless you remember where you got the cable and what exactly you bought, there's a chance you got a cable with packaging that tries to trick people who buy it. The packaging wouldn't be lying to you. It just wouldn't be telling the whole truth.

Regarding the cable - which is almost certainly why HDCP 2.2 is failing - you have two good options I can think of offhand.

Go to Best Buy and get one of those 4K Rocketfish cables. They're way too expensive but they do work, and you can troubleshoot everything very quickly.

Go to monoprice.com and get an HDMI 2.0 cable from there. It'll take longer but the cables are dirt cheap and work great.

Good luck!

Uff.. bear_in_mind is right. If you installed Intel VGA driver from Intel site (or it installed itself via some kind of auto-update), it should be OK. However since you are still experiencing problems, it is the right time to experiment a bit. If I were you, I would try to uninstall the current driver and replace it with the one from Gigabyte website. The package is optimized for Gigabyte mobos and this may (or may not) make a difference. For your information, my driver I am currently using is 21.20.16.4664, you may try this one, because it 100% works. I disabled the auto update and I keep this version. Also, the OLDER pop-up message may be wrong because the universal Intel drivers and manufacturer-specific drivers may not recognize each other correctly.

I must admit I am not an expert on HDMI cables. From what I read, there is no such thing as HDMI 1.4 cable or HDMI 2.0 cable, the internal configuration is still the same. The difference is on the female side - i.e. what the devices can/can't send/receive. HDMI 2.0 connector can send/receive 4k video with 60 FPS and it is required for UHD BD playback. On the other hand the truth is the cables can be cheap or expensive based on the quality of the materials used (which affects the signal and maximal lenght of the cable) and the manufacturers themselves mark the products as HDMI x.x certified. As I told you before, the cheap-looking HDMI cable which came with your monitor is definitely HDMI 2.0 capable. However if you want to be sure, go ahead and buy a new one. 4k logo does mean nothing because HDMI 1.4 is enough for 4k; look for HDMI 2.0, 2.0a certified logo. A man who bought $400 mobo can afford to buy $30 cable. .
FOR THE LIST OF ULTRA HD BLU-RAY COMPATIBLE MOTHERBOARDS CLICK HERE
My hardware: Aorus Z270X Gaming 8 motherboard + i7 7700 CPU + Pioneer BDR-S11J-BK

cont.:

Anyway my guess is the cable is not the problem. Try again the handshake with the devices shut down - unplug/replug, then start monitor first, and try again and start PC first. Always consulting the Advisor.

Next: I do not know what the error message means. What happens when you press play next time? Does it start the initiation with CyberLink server again? This step is required and must be succesfully completed. If PowerDVD initiate again every time, then it is not good. Few months ago the server was down and many peole complained here that the initiation does not work. But nobody complained lately. *NOTE

Assuming the initiation DOES NOT start again, the error may mean only one thing you already know - in order to play the disc, you must pass HDCP check. GPU/Display means "something is wrong in the chain" which is not very helpful. It may be the mobo, the cable or the monitor or the handshake between them. The mobo is certainly OK unless there is something wrong with the drivers. The cable you can replace. The monitor should be OK as well, however it is not the same model I have. LG UK site promises HDCP 2.2, LG US does not specify the version. I do not know how much different the SW/HW can be?

Yes, it is complicated. AFAIK CyberLink is still the only company with the licence for UHD software. In order to get it, they needed to agree with the requirements, that is it.

What to do next? The easiest way which can save lots of time: Find somebody near you with UHD TV (with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2), bring your PC there and try the Advisor. You will instantly know if the monitor is the weak spot or not. Or ask LG support if this model actually supports HDCP 2.2, the description on UK website may be wrong. Download Win10 driver from LG site http://www.lg.com/us/support-product/lg-27UD58-B#manuals . It is probably pointless, but you can do no harm. The monitor will now be identified in Windows by its name and not as "monitor plug-and-play". Download HDMI 2.0 FW update for your mobo if you did not already https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270X-Gaming-8-rev-10#support-dl (this is important, do it!). Ask CyberLink support what that error message means. I am out of ideas for now.

*edit: there is a new tread about this issue, maybe the initiating actually does not work???

bear_in_mind & triffid: thanks for all your input thus far.

And just to let you know: in all this time I've been posting messages here in this thread/ forum, I've also been submitting Support Tickets to Cyberlink Tech Support. I don't mean back on November 4, 2017 when I originally started this thread; I mean more recently, when it was getting closer to Christmas.

And.....I have to say.....they're not always so forthcoming with their responses. On my initial contact/ submission of a Support Ticket, it took 10 (ten) day before I received a reply. And even then, it was like a "form letter" of a reply, as if it were a standard, generic response, a "Copy/ Paste" of some form they keep handy. I'm pretty sure that just about any company that offers tech support get all kinds of submissions from customers, and these customers have varying degrees of technical know-how. Me? Yes, I know how to word a support ticket, I give explicit detail and don't gloss over things, don't speak in generalities.

As my Support Ticket with them started to go back-and-forth, some of the replies started to get a little better; not a whole lot better, but somewhat better. It's almost like they don't know their own product inside & out and can't support it properly; coming here to these message forums sometimes garners me more informative answers than the support tickets.

OK, so here's where I am at:

I didn't really want to do this, but another thing I tried was to completely remove my EVGA Nvidia graphics card from my system: Yes, disconnected its 8-pin power connector, removed the Display Port cable, then removed the card from its PCI-e slot. This way, ONLY the on-board Intel HD graphics were there. Tried the 4K disc of Star Trek (2009) again.....and it failed; same error message as before (as in that pic from my previous post).

NOTE: In my most recent update with my Support Ticket with Cyberlink, I included a screenshot picture of that error message/ error number, so, if they truly know their software programs' product's specs, that error number should be able to tell them something....and then maybe they'll be able to tell ME something.

And bear_in_mnd: I ended up going to Bestbuy and got a Rocketfish HDMI cable; yes, they're way too expensive. But, it appears like a rock-solid, superduper HDMI cable, but guess what? I tried it aaaaannnnnddddd.....still won't play the 4K disc; same error message.

triffid: I did as you suggested and went back to the 21.20.16.4664 drivers; it didn't work.
I also took your other suggestion and went and downloaded/ installed the HDMI 2.0 FW update for my Aorus motherboard; it didn't work. I even did system reboots after all of these things, just to make sure.

Know what I even tried, just in-case there was a glitch on the original install? I un-installed then re-installed the Cyberlink Media Suite 10 software that came with the Pioneer drive; that didn't do the trick, either.

The last thing I've done (or, should I say, is "in the process") is to contact LG Tech Support regarding my monitor. I submitted a support ticket with them asking if my model of monitor is compliant with HDCP 2.2

It seems like the only thing that's holding me back is completing the "handshake" with HDCP 2.2 (according to the CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor). I'm pretty sure it's not on the GPU end (Intel HD graphics), and it's not the HDMI cable itself (I've tried three HDMI cables at this point, with the most recent one being the superduper Rocketfish HDMI cable), so I can only think that it's on the receiving end of the monitor itself.

When I hear back from LG Tech Support, I'll post back and let you know.

This shouldn't be this hard.....uggghhh.
Pez