I own various editions of Terminator 2, one of the few movies I really could watch each week and still enjoy it.
All these versions have their advantages and drawbacks.
From left to right, 1st row
- USA Extended THX Release
[LD 82997-2WS] : Great LD, but no CC, so I'll choose the Japanese edition, with LD-G
- Japan 1st SQZ/AC3 Release
[PILF-2187] : Again, great LD, good SQZ picture quality, but no CC nor LD-G, so I'll choose the 2nd edition.
- Japan 2nd SQZ/AC3 THX Release
[PILF-2555] : Perfect LD. From far the best version on Laserdisc ever.
- USA AC3 THX Release
[LD68952-2DD] : Great LD, but inferior to the 2nd SQZ japanese version.
2nd row
- Japan 8" making of
[PIMF-1001] : Just for the fun of owning a 8" LD with some stuff about T2 on it !
- Japan Hi-Vision A-Mode Release
[PILH-1001] : Good Hi-Vision release, but picture seems to be inferior to the 2nd SQZ japanese version.
- Japan Extended THX Release
[PILF-1800] : Great & solid box set. Extended Version with LD-G.
So what I'll try to do here is a comparison between:
Standard
[LD68952-2DD], SQZ
[PILF-2555] & Hi-Vision
[PILH-1001]I've always wanted to do it, I'll just need some time, but I think it could be interesting for those out there with interest for the odd LD formats.
I start with the Hi-Vision release, to raise the bar a little high and see if the other version can still compete with it.
A simple but still beautiful packaging, with a double digipak holding the 2 discs.
This version has both A-Mode 3.1 and Dolby Surround EFM Tracks.
The SQZ version is also very classy with it's black top obi perfectly matching the cover.
It offers Dolby Digital, CC & LD-G and a very good picture quality.
I've tried to find some scenes that I will compare between the 3 version.
1st picture = Hi-Vi
2nd picture = SQZ
3rd Picture = Standard
Scene A - OpeningHi-Vi: Picture quality is good, but not great.
SQZ: Great picture quality, maybe inferior in definition than the Hi-Vision one, but it moves better.
Standard: [...]
Scene B - ArrivalHi-Vi: Mostly in the dark, here also, we have a good picture but not surprisingly great.
SQZ: Dark scenes are not a problem for the SQZ version, no visible quality loss like with the HiVi. Picture seems to be blue when compared to the grey of the Hi-Vi.
Standard: [...]
Scene C - ScanningHi-Vi: As the background is not looking great and seems to be a little blurry, the foreground with all the terminator Data is always clear and perfectly readable.
SQZ: Lower resolution as the HiVi picture, but still very good. Here we can cleary see that SQZ has a wider AR than Hi-Vi. See Picture 5 for example.
Standard: [...]
Scene D - JohnHi-Vi: Daylight = Better picture quality. The small computer "PIN Cracker" screen gives a good opportunity for MUSE to show off. Once again: if it's not moving, it's good for MUSE
SQZ: Here also, you can see that SQZ is wider than Hi-Vi. Pictures of the small computer shows it well.
Scene E - LightSpecial request from laserbite
... I'll be back.