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Info Wanted: Haven't been here in a while and just need an update of site events since

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Although I knew of this site’s existence for quite a while, I discovered that it’s focus had changed to one of preservation once the official DVDs were announced and became a regluar visitor to these forums last summer. Then, sometime in October my dad was diagnosed with cancer and I ceased having the time to visit for the last five months. Now my dad has come through surgery and is doing quite well, but now I feel kind of lost and out of date when looking at the threads. Can someone update me as to what has transpired in the time since October? Are any of the newer transfers based on the “Faces” set (like Zion or MeBeJedi’s) finished yet? Are there any other new transfers finished or even unfinished that I should know about? Is TR47’s Definitive Collection letterboxed transfer still generally considered the best available? If anyone can update me on these basic questions to get me back up to speed, I’d really appreciate it because the sheer amount of threads and posts make catching up on 5 months of absence a very daunting task.

Thanks!

"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"
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Good to hear your dad is doing well.

I think I joined this forum round about October, so you probably won't have seen my name before. Here's a brief summary, then:

Zion and MeBeJedi are now both now working on "The X0 Project", basically Laserman was able to get a capture off a Pioneer X0 (the "ultimate" top-of-the-range laserdisc player) and provided the source to the two of them for their DVD projects.

A new transfer is available called the "Editdroid" set, picture is on a par with TR47's version but it also has menus, an isolated music score and a selectable Pre-ANH opening scrawl.

I'm working on a transfer from the PAL discs, a menu-less version of ANH is nearly finished, picture quality is looking good. Of course, you need to own PAL-compatible equipment to get the most benefit from this version.

"Cowclops"- the person who created TR47's version - has nearly completed another transfer with a better player. Expectations are high!

Zion's screenshot site appears to be down today, but you can see a small selection of images from each transfer on my site here.

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Hello Rattlehead,

I'm very new here as you can tell by my post count; so I'm glad you made this post as it has cleared up a thing or 2 for me. I'm annoyed though that the EditDroid set is so good, because I've got 80% of the ISOMIX version of ANH. :/ Oh well.

Moth3r's right though; there is a lot of anticipation for TR47v2/Cowclops, and even moreso for "The X0 Project".
BTW, Moth3r, your screenshot page doesn't refresh the image at all. No matter what I select.

To contact me outside the forum, for trades and such my email address is my OT.com username @gmail.com

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Originally posted by: klokwerk
BTW, Moth3r, your screenshot page doesn't refresh the image at all. No matter what I select.
Hmm, I've just tested it with Firefox and it doesn't seem to update.

Any Javascript programmers reading who can tell me how to fix the code?

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Wow, thanks for the quick response fellas! Everyone in this community is so helpful!
I feel much more "up-to-speed" now.

Klockwerk-- I'm glad my post helped you, but you really have Moth3r to thank for answering!

Moth3r -- Thank you for your kind words for my dad. And thank you for responding so quickly and filling me in on what's been going on here.

Just to clear things up though....

- So are Zion and MeBeJedi still working on two separate projects or are they now teamed up on one called "The XO Project"? Is Laserman involved with that DVD project, his own separate project, or did he just get the capture for them to work on? Basically, I'm a bit confused as to whether "XO Project" refers to one or more nascent versions. Oh, and this X0 capture is from the "Faces" discs, right? Are these (or this?) project(s) going to be anamorphic? Dual layered?

- This "Editdroid" set, is also known as the "Mysterious Mysteries" set I gather from your website. It also appears to be letterboxed, not anamorphic. Is this set Dual Layered? Does it have the Pre-ANH audio dub? You say the picture is on par with TR47's first set, how does the audio compare? Which set of Laserdiscs is this set from? Who would I talk to about obtaining a copy of this set?

- Your PAL set, is it compatible with NTSC at all? Basically, is it worth getting if all your equipment is NTSC like mine?

- The Cowclops/TR47 #2 version, will it be dual layered? Anamorphic? Is it all 3 films? Is it from the Definitive Collection Discs or the "Faces" discs?

- Lastly, Moth3r, I couldn't get the screenshots to change on your site either. Sorry I don't know anything about Javascript. I also have a question about the info on the site. For the specs of each transfer, under "Capture Source" you list "ADC." What does that stand for? And Why does TR47's version have a Digital8 video camera listed under ADC?

Anyway thanks for your help, both of you! Every time I look at the monumental tasks of restoration and of just keeping track of all the different footage to preserve (when you include all the docs and whatnot) I get mad at Lucas for not just making it easier on us and releasing what we want in it's original form on DVD, but having such awesome, talented, and dedicated fans like the people here really makes this tremendous undertaking at least somewhat manageable. Everyone is doing a great job. Keep up the great work!

"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"
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I believe I can answer at least some of your questions. Someone else please correct me if I get anything wrong.

Originally posted by: Rattlehead

- So are Zion and MeBeJedi still working on two separate projects or are they now teamed up on one called "The XO Project"? Is Laserman involved with that DVD project, his own separate project, or did he just get the capture for them to work on? Basically, I'm a bit confused as to whether "XO Project" refers to one or more nascent versions. Oh, and this X0 capture is from the "Faces" discs, right? Are these (or this?) project(s) going to be anamorphic? Dual layered?

The "X0 Project" refers to the utilization of the raw X0 capture that Laserman made. I'm pretty sure that it's from the "Faces" set. Zion's version will be anamorphic and dual-layered. I believe that MeBe's will at least dual-layered, not sure about anamorphic. MeBe is also working on an edition to compile 8(?) seperate audio tracks, for at least ANH. The other two will have fewer, as there have been fewer audio changes over the years.

- This "Editdroid" set, is also known as the "Mysterious Mysteries" set I gather from your website. It also appears to be letterboxed, not anamorphic. Is this set Dual Layered? Does it have the Pre-ANH audio dub? You say the picture is on par with TR47's first set, how does the audio compare? Which set of Laserdiscs is this set from? Who would I talk to about obtaining a copy of this set?


You are correct, the set is letterbox and not anamorphic. It is single-layered. There were two versions of the ANH disc: One with the mono mix audio of the film and one with an isolated score track instead. I believe there were different captures of the film for the two versions as well, the second ("revised") version with the score track being superior. Rik has copies of the whole set and the first two have been seeded as torrents on MySpleen. I couldn't tell you about the audio, as my sound setup is terrible (can't ask for much when you're a colelge student living away from home). Someone else will have to answer that one.

- The Cowclops/TR47 #2 version, will it be dual layered? Anamorphic? Is it all 3 films? Is it from the Definitive Collection Discs or the "Faces" discs?


It will not be dual-layered and I believe it isn't anamorphic. Not sure about which set it comes from.

Again, if I fudged any info, just reply and correct me.

I used to be very active on this forum. I’m not really anymore. Sometimes, people still want to get in touch with me about something, and that is great! If that describes you, please email me at [my username]ATgmailDOTcom.

Hi everybody. You’re all awesome. Keep up the good work.

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The X0 project isn't just from the faces set...
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Originally posted by: Laserman
The X0 project isn't just from the faces set...
So . . . does that mean you modded the X0 player to read PAL discs ? How many resistors did it take ?

However, in practice you must take into account the “fuckwit factor”. Just talk to Darth Mallwalker…
-Moth3r

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The new set will contain:
Anamorphic 2.35:1
PCM/commentary audio
Menus w/scene selection
4th bonus disc, redone from source-includes 3 pt Leonard Maltin interview from Faces set
Other notes:
A/V transferred from DC
CLD 97 used for capture
PC capture done with minimal image processing (color correction and minor noise reduction)

I have beta copies of the transfer (no menus or commentary), and it is a definate step up from the previous set. The colors are more correct, the blue/green tinge is gone and the brightness/contrast are set correctly. There is no longer a red shift due to DV format capture. The sound is much improved, the DV cam overdriven effect is no longer present. Overall, I can't see it getting much better unless you are using a better source.
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I believe Cowclops stated that he doesnt feel there is any significant quality gain going dual layer due to the source that its from

correct me if im wrong

-Darth Simon
Why Anakin really turned to the dark side:
"Anakin, You're father I am" - Yoda
"No. No. That's not true! That's impossible!" - Anakin

0100111001101001011011100110101001100001

*touchy people disclaimer*
some or all of the above comments are partially exaggerated to convey a point, none of the comments are meant as personal attacks on anyone mentioned or reference in the above post
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Originally posted by: Rattlehead
...Your PAL set, is it compatible with NTSC at all? Basically, is it worth getting if all your equipment is NTSC like mine? Good question, and difficult for me to answer because I don't have a lot of knowledge about playing PAL on NTSC equipment.

1. Worst case scenario is that it won't play at all, or it will play in black and white with a rolling picture - in this case then obviously it's not worth getting.

2. If your DVD player can do on-the-fly conversion but your TV is NTSC only, then you would get a stable picture in colour, but would lose some of the extra resolution and the playback might be jerky. If this is the case, you might want to take a look but personally I'd still recommend getting an NTSC version.

3. If you have a display device that is truly PAL-compatible, or if you use a digital display (e.g. a software DVD player on a PC connected to a LCD screen) then it would be worth getting.

Originally posted by: Rattlehead
... For the specs of each transfer, under "Capture Source" you list "ADC." What does that stand for? And Why does TR47's version have a Digital8 video camera listed under ADC?
ADC stands for Analogue to Digital Converter; this is the device that converts the analogue signal from the laserdisc player into digital form. Many digital video cameras have inputs that convert an analogue signal into DV for transfer into a PC via a firewire cable - this is the method used to create the TR47 version.

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Originally posted by: Rattlehead
...
I couldn't get the screenshots to change on your site either.
...
Think I've fixed it now. Try again.

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Wow, thanks again everybody for the quick responses! I wish I had been able to read and respond to them right away but I've been so busy lately that I hadn't had the chance to get back on the boards for a while. Sorry to keep resurrecting the thread. Thanks for all the responses, I think you answered all of my questions except this:

--Laserman and Zion said that part of the XO Project will be from the Definitives and not the Faces LDs...what parts of this transfer will be from which set of LDs? Is there a transfer out there purely from just the Faces set? And if so is it worth getting?

That's it, you guys have been great! Thanks again!!
"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"
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"Many digital video cameras have inputs that convert an analogue signal into DV for transfer into a PC via a firewire cable - this is the method used to create the TR47 version."

And it is an inferior method as well. Although it is wayyyyy more convenient (video and audio are kept in sync, much easier connections), it adds digital noise to the picture, and noticeably reduces the color pallete.

"Laserman and Zion said that part of the XO Project will be from the Definitives and not the Faces LDs"

The first version will be the Def. Col., but it won't stop there. The Faces set is my personal preference. Regardless, a variety of NTSC and PAL sources, as well as formats, are being seriously evaluated for each version. There have been a number of surprising findings when comparing versions and players.

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: Sadly, I believe the prequels are beyond repair.
<span class=“Bold”>JediRandy: They’re certainly beyond any repair you’re capable of making.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: You aren’t one of us.
<span class=“Bold”>Go-Mer-Tonic: I can’t say I find that very disappointing.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>JediRandy: I won’t suck as much as a fan edit.</span>

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Originally posted by: MeBeJedi
... Although it is wayyyyy more convenient (video and audio are kept in sync, much easier connections)... Not so convenient if you're trying to capture a macrovision protected VHS.

Originally posted by: MeBeJedi
... Regardless, a variety of NTSC and PAL sources, as well as formats, are being seriously evaluated for each version. There have been a number of surprising findings when comparing versions and players.
Such as? Tell us more...

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"Not so convenient if you're trying to capture a macrovision protected VHS."

Interesting. I've not tried that, so I wasn't aware that it had this limitation as well. One more strike.

"Such as? Tell us more..."

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: Sadly, I believe the prequels are beyond repair.
<span class=“Bold”>JediRandy: They’re certainly beyond any repair you’re capable of making.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: You aren’t one of us.
<span class=“Bold”>Go-Mer-Tonic: I can’t say I find that very disappointing.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>JediRandy: I won’t suck as much as a fan edit.</span>

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Originally posted by: MeBeJedi
"Such as? Tell us more..."

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Touchy, touchy.

Trust me, more information is coming.

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: Sadly, I believe the prequels are beyond repair.
<span class=“Bold”>JediRandy: They’re certainly beyond any repair you’re capable of making.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: You aren’t one of us.
<span class=“Bold”>Go-Mer-Tonic: I can’t say I find that very disappointing.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>JediRandy: I won’t suck as much as a fan edit.</span>

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Thanks MeBe.

How far along are the X0 Project transfers? Will there be sticky threads or something to announce their arrival?

Does anyone know if there is a decent pure transfer of just the Faces version?

Moth3r, where did you get that 3PO animation?
"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"
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Originally posted by: Rattlehead
Moth3r, where did you get that 3PO animation?
It's ripped off this UK DVD:
http://amazon.co.uk/o/ASIN/B000062V9W

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Say, that's from the Muppet Show. It's the episode for Mark Hamill staring. Are the collections content different from UK to US or just different DVD covers?
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Moth3r, that's cool. Isn't that episode of The Muppet Show on one of the discs Rikter is selling?
"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"