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captainsolo said:
Something that's been nagging at me for some time: on LD, which sound track is preferable, Analog or Digital? If there is a Digital track present, is the analog usually sourced from this or is it possible to make an analog transfer of a higher quality bitrate than the encoded 16/44.1 of the Digital track? I've always thought the Digital track was preferable due to being presented discretely and typically cleaner, but after dabbling in LP needledrops and higher resolution audio I wondered about the analog tracks.
I'd love to find the original Raiders LD and make a 24/96 high res track of the original Dolby Stereo.
I'm not an expert on such things, but I recall hearing that the resolution of analogue laserdisc sound is comparable to that of FM radio. So it's good quality, but definitely not the greatest, with less dynamic range and a lower signal-to-noise ratio than can be found in 16-bit PCM. Capturing analogue tracks in higher resolution before downsampling gives better results than using CD quality from the start, due to the characteristics of digital audio (by minimizing rounding errors and using dither to mask quantization noise), but don't expect miracles in what you're going to get out of a limited source.
Belbucus' copy of the original stereo mix for Star Wars was done using very high quality analogue equipment, and yet the 1985 version in digital generally sounds better, with less noise and greater fidelity. True, part of this may be due to whatever remastering was done at the time, but I'm certain the difference in format accounts for part of it.
As always, the quality of the equipment used for capture and playback will have a major role in the end result of what is actually heard.
And according to this thread on TheRaider.net, there is an alternate line when Indy is sliding under the truck to lash his whip.
http://raven.theraider.net/showthread.php?t=21633
EDIT: Here it is. Indeed, Indy says something like "Do they think I'm dumb?" Plus the grunt he makes when flung out is louder, and some of the sound effects are different sounding.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvE5fhsytS8
It looks like the discussion there is about a tv broadcast version, and it's very likely that the sound is a remix and not the original. I saw an old 35mm print of Raiders a few years ago, and I'm pretty dang certain that line was not present.
As far as the DVD mix is concerned, Neil S. Bulk claims that it was made from the 70mm version, and given how similar most of it is to what I heard on the 35, I'm inclined to believe him. Whether the 70 ever had split surrounds back then or not I can't say, but since the rear panning is well done and not intrusive I'm really not worried about that.
The 5.1 does have a built-in flaw, however, and it's not one that I've seen pointed out anywhere: namely, that the surround channels are recorded 3 db too loud on the disc. Do a simple comparison with the alternate language tracks upmixed through Prologic II and the difference becomes instantly apparent; in the stereo tracks the rear portion of the sound is balanced and natural, blending seamlessly with the front, while in the 5.1 it is often overwhelmingly loud and calls far too much attention to itself. Panning between front and back doesn't work well because the surround portion can actually be distinguished as separate from the rest of the mix, which is very obviously just plain wrong for the sound.
Fortunately, there is an easy solution if you wish to hear Raiders with the proper balance—all you have to do is go into your receiver calibration and change the playback level of the surround speakers, reducing them each by 3 decibels. Doing this will allow the mix to sound like itself again, and it provides a much more satisfying listening experience for the movie. Just don't forget to put the levels back to normal when it's over! ;)
(This assumes, of course, that you have your 5.1 system properly calibrated already, with all channels level-matched to each other at the listening position. Many people set their surrounds and subwoofer too high, mistakenly believing that they should stand out as much as possible rather than blending into the system as a whole. Incorrect speaker placement is also a problem—get those surrounds further away and slightly elevated! How are you being 'surrounded' if the rear speakers are right next to your head?)
As for why the Raiders mix has this problem, I can't say with complete certainty, but I suspect it may be glitch and not a deliberate decision. Movie theatres are calibrated with the surround channels playing 3 db lower than in home settings, due to using arrays of multiple speakers rather single point-sources, so all surround effects are deliberately recorded 3 db louder as a result of this. Part of transferring film mixes to disc is supposed to involve lowering the rear channels to compensate, but it's entirely possible that someone forgot to do this and it simply didn't get noticed. Whether the Bluray will also have this problem, we'll have to see.
