JayArgonaut

SilverWook said:

What reviews, where? Anybody and their aunt can write a "review" on the net these days. ;)

Show me something that saw print in 1977.

I personally don't think Lucas was a poor director in the 70's. (And if he was, he had an army of seasoned pros helping him.) THX-1138 is a dystopian masterpiece, and American Graffitti was a huge hit that has influenced Hollywood almost as much as Star Wars has.

It's hard to believe but Star Wars did have some negative reviews in '77. This is all from memory, so excuse any inaccuracies. On the eve of Episode I being released in the UK, a friend showed me an article from the British press that reported on the negative reviews the film was receiving stateside and the journalist contrasted them with quotes from bad reviews of Star Wars 22 years earlier. It ended with a quote from GL saying something along the lines of that he had learned to ignore the press because they had always said unfavourable things about his work.

Looking back now I wish I'd kept the article because some of the critics comments were cluelessly hilarious, such as one that described the film as lots of noise and lacking on the whole! Normally I'd never cite Wikipedia because it's usually a dubious source but their page on Episode IV does contain details of bad reviews written at the time which can be corroborated through further searching.

Personally I believe those people all lived to eat their words and I absolutely agree about THX and American Graffitti, they're both amazing films and illustrate his talent (and that of the team around him too).

Time for another update, my 4400 arrived and is fully working - you guys were definitely right about the build quality of industrial players, it's built like a tank! The picture quality is superb and hats off to you all who replied for helping me make the right choice. Some scenes suffer from slight ghosting, but from what I've read on the video forums it's a problem (or trait) with all Pioneer models to a greater or lesser extent and I can live with it. 

I've also picked up a D925, from which I can rip the digital audio output straight into my computer and of course it also means the option is there to get the AC-3 too. The only downside is to the LD collecting is that out of the 15 titles I've bought so far, virtually every disc seems to have some presence of laser rot. Even the more recent discs made as recently as the late 1990s and 2000. This is where the PR-8210 SilverWook recommended would've come in handy, but I couldn't find any sellers who'd ship to the UK!

All in all though, I'm happy that I managed to get what I wanted and look forward to sharing my projects with you once they're ready.

Jay

Ok, update time...

I've managed to get hold of a fully working 4400 for about $39.00/£25.00. The shipping costs are a killer, but at least I was able to get what I wanted. As it goes I did find an 8000 but the seller wouldn't ship beyond the US, ah well - good outcome on the whole. Thanks again for the advice and I look forward to posting details of my projects very soon.

Jay

Thanks very much for the suggestions and advice :)

I'm in the UK, so a PAL machine would've made my life less complicated but I'm resourceful enough to be able to sort out a step-down converter and an NTSC compatible TV (if required). I'll only be transferring NTSC material so having PAL disc playback isn't really that important. I remember seeing the V4300D/V2300D players many moons ago at school and my local library, takes you back! Yeah, you're right - they're very hard to come by.

The lack of a digital audio output is a minor disappointment but I can live with that. It looks like the 4400 is going to be my choice machine and right now I'm trying to negotiate the shipping costs. I'll post back with details once the deal goes through. Thanks again.

Jay

Hello everyone,

I'm in the process of acquiring gear to work on a few preservation/transfer projects (I'll post more details on them when they're closer to completion). One of the items I'll need is an LD player to transfer my source material. I've searched through the forums and read the suggestions by Moth£r, Laserman and others not to bother with PAL machines or consumer units. The Pioneer Elite range are out of my budget, but I've seen the industrial models and some seemingly high-end players going relatively cheaply.

Below is a shortlist of contenders, if anyone can give recommendations on which ones would give good results or to avoid, I'd really appreciate it as I'm itching to get moving with some projects.

*drum roll* DVL 919, 909, LDV4400, D925, CLD2950.

Cheers!

Jay