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Which version is better for the OT? Laserdisc or the limited edition 2006 2 disc dvd (GOUT)?

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Which version is better for the OT? Laserdisc or the limited edition 2 disc dvd?

Just want to know because I got a chance to but the laserdisc of all three right now. I already have the limited edition dvds, so is it worth it?

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It depends, there were lots of Laserdisc versions.  IIRC the Limited Editions (GOUT), video-wise, match the Definitive Edition LD's, except for the opening crawl of Star Wars.  Lots of people prefer the Japanese Special Collection LD's over the Definitive Editions, for example.  Also, the GOUT does not have theatrical English audio, so any pre-93 Laserdisc would be an improvement in that regard (but you might get 85 audio mix for Star Wars).  But no Laserdisc version has the theatrical crawl for Star Wars, so the GOUT is best in that respect.

Basically all home video releases of Star Wars fall short in some regard or another, even if you don't count the video quality that maxes out at Laserdisc-quality. You have to mix-and-match to get the best result. And that's why we're here.

Project Threepio (Star Wars OOT subtitles)

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But if I were to buy these laser disc, wouldn't the only way to watch them be with the yellow/white/red video cables? Whereas the dvd's can at least be viewed in HD, even though the transfers are far from HD. Anyway to upgrade the laserdisc input into my TV?

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fullmetal777 said:

Anyway to upgrade the laserdisc input into my TV?

There are many ways. What's your budget like? Are you looking for an all-in-one solution or are you willing to mix-and-match components to achieve the best results?

Most importantly: What kind of LD player do you intend on using? This will have the greatest overall impact on your end result due to the crap-in=>crap-out principle.

JEDIT: Also, please mention what TV you plan on using.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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fullmetal777 said:

My budget is infinite. Which Ld player is the best?

I'd say many here would recommend the Pioneer HLD-X0. You should be able to get a used one for less than $10K if you shop around.

Project Threepio (Star Wars OOT subtitles)

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fullmetal777 said:

My budget is infinite. Which Ld player is the best?

Cool! A Pioneer HLD-X0. I suggest purchasing one from Nicholas Santini since he brings each one to Pioneer Japan to be looked over and aligned to spec. He's been doing this for a looonnnnggggg time and does his packaging really, really well.

Prior to his passing, my buddy Ty purchased one from him for ~$5K. IIRC, Nicholas gives you back ~$1K if you ship the original box back to him.

http://home.q03.itscom.net/nsa/

If you're going to get an X0, then I suggest you pair it with a PMS Crystalio II and then you'll be set.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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If your budget is infinite, I'll sell you the best LD player ever, for infinite minus 100 dollars.  That way you have enough left over for cab fare and dinner.

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fullmetal777 said:

My budget is infinite. Which Ld player is the best?

If your budget is infinite, buy a 16/35mm projector with a couple of films and spend the rest on hookers.

Fanrestore - Fan Restoration Forum: https://fanrestore.com

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Nah, but only because I don't have time to maintain it anymore.   It's certainly worthy!

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AntcuFaalb said:

fullmetal777 said:

My budget is infinite. Which Ld player is the best?

Cool! A Pioneer HLD-X0. I suggest purchasing one from Nicholas Santini since he brings each one to Pioneer Japan to be looked over and aligned to spec. He's been doing this for a looonnnnggggg time and does his packaging really, really well.

Prior to his passing, my buddy Ty purchased one from him for ~$5K. IIRC, Nicholas gives you back ~$1K if you ship the original box back to him.

http://home.q03.itscom.net/nsa/

If you're going to get an X0, then I suggest you pair it with a PMS Crystalio II and then you'll be set.

 So I'm just curious, is it really worth it to pay $5k for a Laserdisc player? How much more quality could you possibly pull out of a Laserdisc? Isn't it still going to top out at lower quality than DVD? I mean, Laserdisc is awesome, but not THAT awesome.

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If you have an infinite budget try for 70mms xD

"Right now the coffees are doing their final work." (Airi, Masked Rider Den-o episode 1)

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Wazzles said:

So I'm just curious, is it really worth it to pay $5k for a Laserdisc player? How much more quality could you possibly pull out of a Laserdisc? Isn't it still going to top out at lower quality than DVD? I mean, Laserdisc is awesome, but not THAT awesome.

Not worth it to me, no.  But everyone has their priorities (and budgets).

For Star Wars, the Laserdiscs would top out at less than DVD-quality, but remember that the DVD we're talking about (the GOUT) also tops out at less than DVD-quality, so it's closer than you'd think.  And since the DVD has issues other than resolution where it's bested by some Laserdisc releases (DVNR, color accuracy, theatrical audio, uncompressed audio), a Star Wars fan could quite reasonably prefer a Laserdisc to that particular DVD, and sometimes you just have to have the best.

It's not really that Laserdisc is so awesome, so much as that Laserdisc was awesome for its time, and some DVDs are so bad that the Laserdiscs can still compare quite favorably to them.  Kinda like when there's a Blu-ray release that's so bad people still prefer the DVD for that particular title.  Doesn't happen a lot, but it happens.  The GOUT is one of those releases that's so bad the previous generation media format is at least arguably better.

Also, for your amusement, look up MUSE Laserdiscs, which the $5K X0 can play, not that this applies to Star Wars.

Project Threepio (Star Wars OOT subtitles)

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Please forgive me for sounding naive when I ask this:

If there are laserdisc versions that are superior to GOUT (when using top-notch equipment), then why doesn't (for example) Team Blu use them instead of the GOUT as the source for their preservation project?

I thought the idea behind their project was that the GOUT, even for all its flaws, is the best version of the unaltered trilogy that has thus far been officially released, but some comments made in this discussion are making me think otherwise

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deepanddark20 said:

I thought the idea behind their project was that the GOUT, even for all its flaws, is the best version of the unaltered trilogy that has thus far been officially released, but some comments made in this discussion are making me think otherwise

Here's the thing: If you consider MPEG-2 artifacts and halved chroma resolution to be negligible*, then the GOUT is demonstrably better than the DefCol/Faces LDs since it was derived from the D-1 master used to create said LDs.

With that being said, the crux of this debate is the DVNR. Many—myself included—consider the JSC to look better than the DefCol/Faces/GOUT since it resolves a hell of a lot better in motion, doesn't have DVNR artifacts (e.g. four-eyed stormtroopers), and has much better colors overall.

On the flip-side, the JSC shows much more dirt and film damage, has wonky breaks in 3:2-pulldown cadence, and doesn't resolve as well as the DefCol/Faces/GOUT in still and low motion shots. Plus, you need good equipment to get good results.

This whole thing reduces to "pick your poison" and many choose to take the Harmy antidote instead. That's cool.

(* MPEG-2 YV12 simply isn't enough given the source.)

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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Wazzles said:

So I'm just curious, is it really worth it to pay $5k for a Laserdisc player? How much more quality could you possibly pull out of a Laserdisc? Isn't it still going to top out at lower quality than DVD? I mean, Laserdisc is awesome, but not THAT awesome.

The best you can get with an excellent LD player and a well-mastered LD is PQ roughly equivalent to a 90s non-anamorphic DVD.

I'm not unrealistic and I wouldn't pay $5K for an LD player, but everyone has different priorities. If one has 10,000 LDs, for instance, then I can totally see the logic in purchasing an X0 to play them.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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CatBus said:

It's not really that Laserdisc is so awesome, so much as that Laserdisc was awesome for its time, and some DVDs are so bad that the Laserdiscs can still compare quite favorably to them.

Well said.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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deepanddark20 said:

I thought the idea behind their project was that the GOUT, even for all its flaws, is the best version of the unaltered trilogy that has thus far been officially released, but some comments made in this discussion are making me think otherwise

AntcuFaalb already answered this pretty completely, but I wanted to add that most of the issues with the GOUT are fixable, and indeed are fixed in our preservations.  The colors can be corrected so that they're even better than the JSC.  You can replace the lossy '93 stereo GOUT audio with the lossless theatrical audio of your choice.  The only thing you can't fix is the DVNR--and even though the DVNR is occasionally awful, for most people that's not enough to counteract the resolution advantage of the GOUT, or other advantages like the theatrical crawl, etc.  Most people, including myself, do consider the GOUT to be the best official release, but the point is arguable, depending on your priorities.  And frankly, the fact that it's arguable at all shows that there are very serious problems with the GOUT, because a half-decent DVD release would have been hands-down better across the board.

Project Threepio (Star Wars OOT subtitles)

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Can anybody explain the crazy amount of grain present in the tantive hallway shootout scenes on the gout?  It's not present on any other release afaik.

Luke threw twice…maybe.

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Some have conspiracy-theorized that the GOUT went through an extra "add video noise" step to ensure it looked bad compared to the Special Editions. I don't think that's true, but it would provide an explanation.

Project Threepio (Star Wars OOT subtitles)

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althor1138 said:

Can anybody explain the crazy amount of grain present in the tantive hallway shootout scenes on the gout?  It's not present on any other release afaik.

Is this also in DefCol/Faces? I'm not home, so I can't check.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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It is not present in the DC.  I can't say for sure about the faces.  I only own esb(faces).

Luke threw twice…maybe.

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althor1138 said:

It is not present in the DC.  I can't say for sure about the faces.  I only own esb(faces).

Can you post a screenshot? It might just be MPEG-2 compression badly interacting with the noise in the D-1 master.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Post 102 is worth more.

I’m late to the party, but I think this is the best song. Enjoy!

—Teams Jetrell Fo 1, Jetrell Fo 2, and Jetrell Fo 3

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 (Edited)

Here is a  couple random shots.

Gout on the top. DC on the bottom.

Luke threw twice…maybe.