Blu-ray and HD DVD Discussion Thread

Some of the posts throughout the forums have led me to believe that there is a genuine interest in HDM, so I thought I'd make this thread. You can post anything related to HD DVD or Blu-ray here, whether it be news, title reviews, technology, personal equipment and collections, or just basic questions. Of course, let's try to leave the format war bickering out of this.

I have just started building my HDM list on online, which you can check out at DVD Aficionado. Still working on the HD DVDs. Good tool to track who has what.

Anyway, based on recent events, it seems that it is finally safe to invest in one format...Blu-ray. Warner and New Line are now BD exclusive, and Paramount and Universal's exclusivity may come shortly. I know a lot of people have been on the fence because of the format war, but I hope these events will convince them to jump in. There's a massive amount of quality releases that simply trump the standard DVD in terms of video and audio.

For instance, I received my long-awaited copy of The Rock on BD last night, and was blown away by the transfer. Better than the Criterion Edition, and far superior to the standard DVD release. My receiver doesn't handle MPCM, so I watched a majority of the movie in standard DD, but the dynamics of the lossless track was a huge step up even in stereo.

This thread may also be useful in condensing any HDM-related deals. At the moment, there's a $20 off coupon at BB that you can use if you buy three BDs. Their prices are outrageous, but if you can manage to return two movies, you'll effectively get a huge discount on one title of your choice. That's because the coupon works by taking $20 off on the most expensive title, so you could get what you really want, then buy two other titles at a lower price and return them later. I'm heading out to try this now, and will report back if it works. Coupon is here:

BEST BUY® | Exclusive Member Offer

TRU is also doing a B1G1 for a couple of Disney titles this week. The great thing about this deal is that there are two coupons available that will stack.

$5 off Disney Blu-ray

This is the first coupon, which will work towards any BD. But you can use it twice since you are getting two titles because of the B1G1.

There's also another $10 off coupon for POTC: AWE here.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

The thing is that this coupon will scan for any BD, and if you get more than one Pirates BD, they will stack. I just came home with Meet The Robinsons and Open Season for only $6.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Any form of defect by Paramount or Universal will spell the end of HD DVD. It doesn't matter if they continue to support HD DVD...it wouldn't change the fact that Blu-ray has 100% support.

Blu-ray has won due to consumer ignorance and novelty, but I cannot consider the BDA's victory undeserved, since Toshiba did a HORRENDOUS job with marketing and deals. They practically sat on their ass as Blu-ray ads went for HD DVD's throat, and did nothing to combat the nearly weekly B1G1 deals offered for popular Blu-ray titles.

No problems with Blu-ray being the standard at my end, since the PS3 is vastly superior at playback in comparison to any HD DVD player. Ridiculously quick load times, and firmware is easily upgradeable to match HD DVD's features. Only concern is whether or not PS3 will be able to decode DTS-HD MA in the future, but that is practically irrelevant since it could be bitstreamed.

Had the opportunity to watch RE: Extinction and Transporter today...great quality on both, although the transfer was a little too soft in certain sports in RE. However, both had fantastic audio, the first having a TrueHD encode, and a DTS-HD MA for the latter. I recommend getting both just for the sound mixes, but not at their current prices.

I only picked them up because the Best Buy scam I had mentioned earlier does indeed work, so Extinction was only $10.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

The bass and dynamics of the lightsabers are going to be so ridiculous in the Star Wars BDs. I can't wait to hear the duels in Episode I. I'm hoping that Lucasfilm will go with DTS-HD MA, but they'll most likely stick with Dolby TrueHD.

Here's hoping that they actually fix the horrendous mixing job of the Episode III DVD.

How ya doing, buddy?

Just visit the web sites of some speaker brands. Most of them deal internationally. I know that Mirage has a dealer in CR, but I have no experience with their omnipolar design.

I'd rather go for a pair of neutral studio monitors myself.

Quote:

Bose. The only brand you need for the best sound.

Let's not talk crazy.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Matt

I knew Kingdom of Heaven was out on HD-DVD, but they brought it over to Blu-Ray too??
That's awesome.

I'm definitely going to get a BD player as soon as I upgrade my TV to an HD. I'm just waiting on the sub-40" wide screen TVs to go down in price now.

Are you confusing Kingdom of Heaven with The Kingdom? Kingdom of Heaven is a Fox title, and is Blu-ray exclusive.

Additional Spam:

Originally Posted by Tafer

Hmm... this may be a good place to make a small question...

Bookshelf vs Floorstanding speakers?

The decision between bookshelves and floorstanders can actually be complex. My recommendation is to stay away from floorstanders if you have a small room that isn't treated. Floorstanders are typically more bassy and overpowering...since low bass sounds best when it has room to travel, playing them in a small room may introduce nodes and a boomy sound, which I find intolerable. However, you could probably get away with it as long as you don't use a crossover lower than 80 Hz...at 60 Hz, you will most likely run into problems, since the seating position in small rooms is very close to the back wall...where bad bass is likely to be heard.

On the other hand, a surround set-up with 5-7 identical floorstanders is commonly seen as ideal. In such a design, you wouldn't have to crossover any of the bass from the main channels and sum everything up to the subwoofer...assuming that the speakers have a low and accurately spec'd F3. This means that the bass will be played from where it was originally intended when the sound was mixed. Theoretically, you'd get a fuller and more lively sound due to the increased presence of stereo bass (summed up bass sent to a subwoofer is mono). Your sub would only handle the LFE signal, as it was originally intended to do, and you wouldn't have to worry about any holes since there would be no crossover engaged.

...I think I'm making things too complicated, so here's a list:

Bookshelves:

+ Arguably better imaging.
+ Small size makes it easier to align tweeter at ear level.
- Bass response is typically limited.
- Lower power handling.

Floorstanders:

+ Low bass response.
+ Most designs are intricate and feature multiple drivers, such as seperate mid-range for cleaner dialogue.
+ High power handling, so they can easily hit reference levels.
- Placement more difficult due to size and bass capability, especially with ported designs.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Tafer

Heh... I was kinda lost.

But I think I get your point, I was thinking in going bookshelves anyways: I'm having some serious problems allocating my current small and cheap system, and the walls and windows have a nasty time when I put the volume at "bad neighbor" levels (= a room not made for this stuff).

And it's time for another question!
- Should I get the same speakers for everything? (7.1 setup)
Besides the center and subwoofer, Im not sure what to get for the surrounds. I was tempted to get something like these ones. (But cheaper )
And for the frontal and back the same stuff.

Absolutely. Identical speakers for all channels are ideal. You could try getting seven M3 v2 bookshelves. I wouldn't even bother with a typical center channel unless you must have a horizontal design due to placement issues. Even if the center channel is part of the same speaker line from the same company, it won't sound the same as the others, because the horizontal design is a compromise and changes the sound dispersion significantly.

Regarding surrounds, I prefer monopole (direct-firing), rather than dipole (dual out-of-phase output) or bipole (dual output) configuration. Dipole and bipole surrounds can create the sense of a more immersive surround field and a less localizable sound, but I can't think of any sound mixers who actually use them while mixing.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Wow. HD-DVD is dead.

Wal-Mart to Go Blu-ray Exclusive | High-Def Digest

Report: Toshiba to Drop HD DVD | High-Def Digest

To top it off, the year's biggest HD releases, such as Indiana Jones, Dark Knight, and X-Files 2, will all be Blu-ray exclusive. I guess it is over. Now I have to sound like a retarded jap whenever I ask if a movie is available.

Just give me my overpriced AVP: Requiem.

Most amazing jew boots

What are the specific models?

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Is it possible for you to audition the Polks? Nearly all speaker reviews are oddly positive, and for every good thing someone says about a speaker, there is always a bad thing that is said right alongside it. The bottom line is that you can only trust what you hear. But buying blind is fine if you can't audition...both my Infinitys and Mackies were bought blind.

I just don't buy any of this hype from internet dealers. I'm sure that the products are good, but most of the reviews are probably biased, as many of the customers are the type that purchase on faith, since they lack the privilege of going around different dealers and surveying multiple brands...thus, there isn't really a wide spectrum for them to dabble into when they make their judgements.

Most amazing jew boots

It depends which party you belong to. There are people who enjoy neutral sound, and then there are people who enjoy colored sound.

If you belong to the first group, you can bring an accurate pair of headphones to gauge the neutraility of the speaker's output. If you belong to the second, then you will just have to sit down and listen to determine what kind of sound you like.

Objectivity can be applied to the concept of neutral sound, but the quality of colored sound is always subjective. Since the majority of people are usually more concerned about "quality" rather than neutrality, I refuse to tell people what sounds "good," since ultimately, I can't. One man's emphasis on treble is another man's recipe for harshness, etc. Just sit down, listen to a few of your CDs, and stick with whatever sounds best to you.

EDIT: On the topic of CDs, I would bring a couple of movie scores or symphonies which feature a wide dynamic range. In my opinion, commercial pop/rock CDs are practically worthless to gauge performance. They are specifically mixed to sound good on even the most lowly equipment, since almost all dynamic range is compressed...meaning that you won't be able to gauge a speaker's ability to transition from low to high passages, or it's ability in maintaining a low noise floor (though most of the latter is influenced by amp/connections). I've found that scores like Episode III have sounded like complete trash on inadequate equipment, so it might be a good idea to pick a couple of scores that revolve around raw orchestrations, while ignoring more of the electronic-stuff, like Crimson Tide (which sounds oddly smooth and pleasant on almost all equipment).

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Toshiba Officially Drops HD DVD | High-Def Digest
Breaking: Universal Studios Goes Blu | High-Def Digest

Wonder if Universal will change their menu for the BD version, since they've become practically synonomous with HD-DVD. I'd like to say that I'm very excited to see the BD versions of stuff like Bourne Ultimatum, but they'll probably be identical to the HD-DVD.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Toshiba Cell Broadband Video Processor — Audioholics Home Theater Reviews and News

This is rather interesting. After the defeat of HD-DVD, Toshiba has decided to go back to maxing out the potential of DVD, and they've created some kind of super-upscaling technology, with the involvement of the CELL processor. Judging by the comparisons, it is a legitimate advancement in upscaling. I think it's a smart play.



If you look at the rope texture, you can see that it still isn't the level of HD, but I'm assuming this is even better than REON performance.

Most amazing jew boots