I haven't got a calibration disc so I expect some more noise than typical on my CRT, but there seems to be more noise than typical on some discs when I play them.
This shows up as a generally noisy looking picture, pixelated and lacking in definition. For example I just received two new LDs the Deluxe Letterbox Editions of Moonraker and Octopussy. MR has this issue, where the definition is very lacking on my CRT screen but switching over to OP shows far better definition on that disc. Both titles were manufactured at the same time. If I turn down the sharpness it helps to lessen the effect but then I get an overly soft image.

Is this a comb filter related issue? I've been wondering if I might be better off getting an external one than simply running composite into my TV. S-video makes no difference on my set, if not slightly worse.

I have a 36" Sony Trinitron flat panel CRT, and I had little to none of these issues on my previous set, a little old 20" Sanyo with rounded corners.

others will be able to answer better than me.
but i have a 13 inch and play my cld-D503 on it, makes the discs look amazing, when i hook that
same player upto the 27 inch CRT they don't look as good.

so i think it's a combination issue, you may have a great TV now but a lower end player, so it won't be perfect.
if you had a nice image with the 20 inch how much lower in quality was that compared to the 36 inch now?

hope that helps a little from what i know

Discs could be noisy - it was an analog format and each disc pressed was different from any other. Some press runs were noisier than others - if the disc isn't rotted (and from your description, it sounds like it isnt) then it's just a poor pressing and your only option is to buy another copy. None of the Deluxe letterbox releases of the Bond films looked all that great - Moonraker is in an incorrect aspect ratio with credits falling off the sides of the screen, uses a worn looking print, and has a noisy and overly soft (but edge enhanced) transfer, etc.

That's just how LaserDisc is sometimes. Plus, you have a bigger set now which will show more of the noise than a small set, so expect that. You need to get a test disc - Video Essentials - it doesn't cost much and no matter what anyone else will tell you, you cannot set up a television by eye. Humans have terrible color memory and you won't get the black or white levels correct either - we just are not that good at judging pictures from memory. That's why the calibration discs were made, so you can know for sure that your television is set correctly and be able to judge a LaserDisc or film transfer accurately. Plus, see the film the way the director intended.

The problem sounds like the tilt and tangential alignments in the LD player. Has nothing to do with getting your TV setup. The player needs alignment.

My first guess is that your TV is set way too hot and it's amplifying all the flaws in the LD that a better calibration would minimize.

Wouldn't he be seeing vertical and horizontal crosstalk on many discs if the tilt and tangential systems were out of alignment? His description of Moonraker sounds exactly how that pressing and transfer looks - its an ugly disc, as are all of the "Deluxe Letterbox" series of the Bond titles. I've seen chroma noise caused by tangential and tilt problems but not HF noise and loss of resolution - I've had players that crosstalked on almost every CLV disc but didn't suffer from any loss of resolution. Please know that I'm not doubting your diagnosis, just wondering based on my experience with misaligned players and their visual symptoms. I can't fix player's like you can so further info to educate me on this would be welcome.

Regarding set up discs - I think everyone needs VE or AVS to set their TV up properly if they care about reproducing discs the way the director or producer intended. The settings most people choose when setting up a TV without test patterns are usually very far from correct and don't allow the disc/player/tv combination to convey the program properly. And the sharpness control is routinely abused - massively abused. Both AVS and VE can be bought now for less than $20 so there's no reason an LD collector shouldn't have their television set up properly. I don't mean that in any snobby way, just that it's so easy and low cost, there's no reason not to do it.

I agree that you need test patterns to properly setup the TV, especially the black level which most set too high.

As for the noisy picture I do agree that if the tilt and tang. are really bad you would also see the herringbone crosstalk but it can be close enough to not see it but on only on the worst LDs. It can still cause extra background noise until adjusted for peak performance. It is really hard to say what is going on without seeing the player.

Thanks for the responses. Forgot about my temperamental 702. I'll take some photos of some discs using both players and post them.

Disclord you are exactly right. I've been outbid so many times on Essentials it's not even funny. Time to bite the bullet and finally get one. At least it'll keep me from tweaking down to the last detail on my hands and knees in front of my TV.

My camera can't pick up much but it is definitely calibration and disc pressings. I A/Bed the same discs on my fussy 702 and DVL-700 to find the same issues with the 700 having the softer and less defined image.
It helped to take down the picture level a bit along with the sharpness. Definitely time for Essentials.

Ironically on the 007 films it's the older ones that look superior despite being more worn. Moonraker is one of the best shot in the series yet the old 1989 Thunderball outdoes it with a worn element.

Hello, I have had my share of experiences with the CLD-702 chassis, and Kurtis will agree also there are many adjustments mechanical and Electrical pertaining too this model and it takes a great deal of time to set this player to specs and crosstalk.


Once set, the 702 is pretty good in my books... Always keep a lookout for a 703/704 also as it cleans up the LD to the next level. But the 702 has always did a nice picture and good with not producing color smear that bothered me with some of the newer models.

Setting black levels and contrast helps a lot, like mentioned above,

Again, based on my experience and feedback of others with 702's..

Duane, MI

EAD used the 702 as the basis of their T-8000 Universal Disc Transport. They claimed to have reengineered the video signal path, upgraded passive components and added additional,shielding to reduce RF contamination. Each unit was also hand assembled and calibrated to strict NTSC standards for video output levels, differential gain and phase, resolution, noise, etc.. The digital audio was reclocked for lowest jitter (the same reclocking circuit board was used in the TheaterVision) and output as SPDIF, AES/EBU and AT&T ST Glass Optical. According to EAD they remanufactured the Pioneer 702 mechanism for maximum structural integrity, giving the T-8000 a great performance lead over players from companies like Theta who simply dropped an unmodified, low cost, Philips CD/LD player into a steel box and added a low cost digital output.

I never used or dealt with the 702 or any player based on it; did it have any type of Video DSP processing or VDNR like the later 703/704/79/99/S9 players? And for those that used both the 702 and the T-8000, did EAD's mods make any kind of visible difference?

All the 702 has is a single option called soft picture which allows for a general softening and I suppose DNR-ing of the image. Otherwise it seems very straightforward.

i was talking with my old buddy in the PA area who use to have LDs and a CLD-70X player.
he no longer has any LD collection but we talk from time to time about it, i used to trade discs and stories with him.

he told me that he bought it years ago from Grasshopper and that it was like a dream once setup right.
he had bought others as backups but none of them ever worked right like that one.

it would be nice to know which players might need a setup before getting a top quality picture out of it
so you might want to think about getting it serviced by ldservice, grasshopper or kahbar
IF the picture quality is that bad.

I have long told people that fine tuning is the alignments lowers background noise and sharpens the picture. I've had many say the player looks better after I worked on their player. Sometimes I do get players adjust correctly from the factory but more often not. Maybe it's time to list my 704's for sale.