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| strikemrb1 |
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Posted: 09 Oct 2020, 09:58
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Hi all, I new nothing about LD's until I purchased a faulty CLD-1750 on Ebay in March but liked the technology. I have a background in Analogue electronics and have successfully managed to breath life back in to several players including a player that was dropped by a courier!
I look forward to visiting these forums frequently. :-)
Martin. |
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| je280 |
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Posted: 22 Nov 2020, 12:24
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Nice when people pop their heads above the parapet.
Enjoyed the intro & looking forward to any future posts.
Cheer  |
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| takeshi666 |
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Posted: 22 Nov 2020, 15:03
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Laserdisc is the format where all the dodgy mid-90s action/horror/sci-fi/martial arts/any combination thereof movies really come to their own.  |
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| signofzeta |
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Posted: 22 Nov 2020, 16:47
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I got into LD at almost the same time you did. I had less money probably but I could buy US releases in my local mall so we were about even. I always wanted LD but what made me blow the $$$ was being an anime fan and realizing that US releases were were garbage that took forever to come out and import VHS is not only VHS but %50 again more expensive than the already ¥¥¥ LD versions. It had to be LD.
I still buy a movie I want to see on LD above any other format unless the LD is really expensive or if I think I’ll appreciate the HD. I basically skipped DVD. LD had an incredibly deep library for the years it existed so really there are still so many movies I have yet to see even now, not only anime but almost any genre. I’m mainly into indie films, silent, classic, European, etc as well as HK action, F1, and music. LD really is the best. I use it almost every day and have for many years.
The actual act of using a DVD or BR sort of drives me nuts. The...waiting for approval to use something I own...drives me nuts. |
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| benmbe |
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Posted: 23 Nov 2020, 14:46
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Good day Davidb_sk,
Time in the UK is now 13:34 pm Monday 23rd of November.
Thank you for reaching out to all of us here, as it's always a pleasure to read from members here, as each unique experience is truly recognized.
After just reading your introduction and Shared Experiences, I for one can relate to how you feel about the LD Discs and Players 98%.
1% I also like the other disc formats however nothing can ever match the tangible quality and size of laserdisc.
1% I Can no longer return to VHS as a video medium however recording music on SVHS tape was preferred for me personally.
I need to spin a disc as it has been a while and for many reasons ''mostly to do with busy work schedule and various life trials''
David Please keep sharing with us here as we appreciate your time to write and convey.
Kindest Regards
:thumbup: :wave: :thumbup: :wave: |
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| takeshi666 |
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Posted: 25 Nov 2020, 11:31
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I don't know how historically accurate the movie was, but I had the impression that Bligh was more of a tyrant than depicted in the movie.
That's kind of what's supposed to be a big deal about the 1980s Bounty; this was very much the case with past films about the story and it created this impression in the mind of the public, but none of them addressed the fact that in reality, Bligh and Christian had actually been good friends in the past, something the 1984 movie explores.
Also speaking of weird international alternate titles, guess what The Silent Running is called in Italy? https://media-cache.cinematerial.com/p/500x/xlxc0ij1/silent-running-italian-movie-poster.jpg?v=1456507996 |
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| je280 |
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Posted: 26 Nov 2020, 17:39
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| Thanks - every cover counts . |
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| rein-o |
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Posted: 28 Nov 2020, 16:11
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I know very little about this but do remember some stuff when these were new, the discs that had the THX logo not these earlier discs like this or Apocalypse Now.
I believe from what I remember the beginning was something that was great, a standard that others hadn't used at the time.
But then it became more of a money grab and people would just buy THX. |
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| signofzeta |
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Posted: 28 Nov 2020, 18:58
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It was possible to build an all THX home system back in the day. IIRC there was one (1) THX LD player made, one of those boutique models. There are THX VHS tapes...which is a joke in itself...and there are no THX VCRs...two jokes.
As for the label itself...people like Star Wars a Lot. I think that was %90 of it. It’s also a real bummer to spend $20,000 on a home theater and find out the LD you just bought looks like crap so it would be nice if there was some sort of minimal standard. However, for at least two reasons this doesn’t make a ton of sense here. One is that the LDs are really just LDs. The other is that the only movies that get a THX treatment are mega budget blockbuster stuff that never really had a bad transfer in any of the dozen or more LD iterations that existed before and after a THX versions.
I also think that when we watch LDs on massive HDTVs many of the extra touches they put into these transfers are invisible or make the image look worse because they were made to game CRTs. |
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| substance |
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Posted: 28 Nov 2020, 20:18
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THX certification meant the material and/or the equipment were above a certain quality but this threshold was not very high. Manufacturers had to spend extra money and time to obtain THX certs which meant they only included this on their higher end models with higher price points. One major criticism for THX cert equipment was that they performed very poorly on music. (Because they were highly tuned for movie soundtracks and cinema style seating). People that spent the money on the higher end models wanted great sounding (musically) speakers and amplifiers. So the target customer didn’t care for it. As a matter of fact ignored THX cert equipment (especially THX speakers).
After this you started seeing statements in the magazine from high end gear manufacturers that their equipment would far exceed THX standards but they choose not to go through the THX certification. For instance, Runco LJRII was the first and only THX certified LD player (which is a modified Panasonic 900u in essence). One magazine reviewed this player along side with a Pioneer CLD-97. The 97 and the LJRII were extremely close. The 97 actually performed better than the LJR in multiple tests. Pioneer rep claimed they could have gotten the THX cert if they wanted but they didn’t want to pay THX for royalties which would mean a required increase on their MSRP.
On the video side, THX titles often had digital video noise reduction applied. This was the next best thing at the time and taken as progress. Now we know better and we are better off without it. THX certification on content was never fully explained. It perhaps required a base signal to noise ratio. The content below this ratio needed noise reduction with at the time state of the art but right now antiquated equipment.
I bough my first AV receiver in 1998 which was a Denon AVC-1D. It was the first THX certified DD/DTS capable receiver. At the time I looked at KEF, B&W, and M&K for THX certified speakers. They all sounded terrible for music. B&W and KEF had non-THX certified speakers and they sounded great for music. I ended up building a 5.1 set with non-THX Definitive Technology BP30 fronts, BP10 as rears, CLR1000 center, and a PF1500 subwoofer. I tried using the THX mode on the Denon but never liked the sound. |
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| cplusplus |
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Posted: 10 Dec 2020, 19:39
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davidb_sk wrote: Anyway, here's a link to the article. I hope it's useful to someone.
Absolutely. Thanks for this. I will give it a go next time I submit a cover. |
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| admin |
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Posted: 21 Dec 2020, 02:40
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L.A. Times gives hints that it was a PC software piloting a LD player used as picture/video storage I suppose
More information here:
https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1991-11-11-1991315112-story.html
IBM PC 386SX (not Intel) dedicated to a Multimedia IBM PC called PS/2 Ultimedia Model 57 SLC .
The version we saw had external speakers and was attached to a Pioneer laser disk player. Its operating system was a pre-release version of OS/2 with special multimedia extensions.
US$6,000 for the PC, US$2,500 for the Columbus contents.
That could buy you a brand new HLD-X0 few years later!
Julien |
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| cosmoza |
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Posted: 05 Feb 2021, 07:55
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For me it's mostly nostalgic reasons. I never had LD player/discs back in the day, i was many times close getting one but never did. It was just too expensive for me at the time. But now, there's no such limits when you're almost 50. I love the whole works, specially the cover art, the whole process of physical disks (it's just not the same with DVD's or BR's) as there's obiously something similar with vinyl records (sold my collection in early 2000's... sadly). As well, watching LD's doesn't count it out watching other formats or even, streaming, what you want to see. It's just one part of the whole experience - even more collectable.
I had stopped buying pretty much DVD/BR's after we got our first child, as no time as well career things. That's something like 12 years. Yes. Bizarre. I do have atleast 600+ DVD's so it's not like i'd run out anything to watch.
I've had LD player for almost two weeks and i've bought... almost 60 discs. Where all this will end to? |
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| signofzeta |
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Posted: 27 May 2021, 18:56
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If a format like LD is prone to certain problems but only if it’s stored in 200 ct stacks in Zartan’s dumpster for 20 years...then is it really a problem?
Most of my collection is comprised of stuff from other OG collectors, Japanese sellers, or just whatever I’ve been able to buy in person in shops when LD was still active. Rot is very very rare in my history with the format and warping may be totally nonexistent. I’ve had a lot of warped records but I’m not sure I’ve ever encountered a warped LD.
Here’s some good advice: buy stuff from LDDB stops. Search by shop and find a highly rated seller you like. |
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| ldfan |
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Posted: 07 Jun 2021, 06:36
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Interesting. I read several years back in a technical printing that the laserdisc video output was a composite video and S-video was not any better. Love to hear the other side of that conclusion. Thanks
You are correct about that but there are exceptions to every rule. The application of S-Video for LD can be looked at from this perspective.....
The comb filter in the TV is superior than the Y/C Separator in the LD player; you use the composite output of the player.
The comb filter in the TV is inferior than the Y/C Separator in the LD player; you use the S-Video output of the player.
Also, many LD players from 1993 and later (like the Pioneer CLD-D703) actually has a re-processed composite video out post Y/C separation so it may have a compromised quality to it. With this in mind, it just keeps making it more complicated deciding which is better. So, If you are not sure which device has the better video processing circuit, you try both and see which one has the more pleasing picture to you. |
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Thanks list