logo Sign In

Info Wanted: on attempting to preserve my laserdiscs to DVD

Author
Date
Author
Time
 (Edited)
Post link

hi i just bought a canopus advc110 and my ld player still works great and now i want to preserve my star wars ld’s onto dvd the ld’s i have that i want to preserve are:
the original trilogy when it first came out(not real good quality but want to preserve anyway)
the faces THX trilogy set
the definitive collection
the FIRST special edition set
now my question is when i transfer to my hd through my canopus in widescreen will it be in widescreen on the finished dvd or is there more to it i already did the first set but it wasnt widescreen and it turned out pretty good,but i am curious if it will remain widescreen for me or are there more steps to make it anamorphic widescreen
thanks in advance for any advice

oh and by the way HELLO everyone i am new to the site and it is great

Author
Time
Post link
I think you'd be better off downloading an already existing LD to DVD transfer that we can offer (for free of course!) and burning that.

I have some, and they look great!

My stance on revising fan edits.

Author
Time
Post link
that would be great but where do i find to download? and it couldnt be at a better time i just got broadband.
thanks for the reply
dark_jedi

also what is the best sets to download that are widescreen i have a 62 inch widescreen hidef tv and want to take full advantage of it.
Author
Time
Post link
MySpleen has the pre-existing LD -> DVD availible via bittorrent.

As far the widescreen issue, all the widescreen versions of the LD's are just a 4x3 image of it with black above and below, nothing special.

some transfers upres'd the video to create the anamorphic widescreen image, but, this adds false detail to the image and can soften video.

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabris, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam.

Author
Time
Post link
Originally posted by: dark_jedi
now my question is when i transfer to my hd through my canopus in widescreen will it be in widescreen on the finished dvd or is there more to it i already did the first set but it wasnt widescreen and it turned out pretty good,but i am curious if it will remain widescreen for me or are there more steps to make it anamorphic widescreen
The laserdiscs are letterboxed widescreen, if you don't do any resizing then the resulting DVD will be letterboxed widescreen too.

If you want to make it anamorphic widescreen, you must crop then resize vertically by 33.3%. The exact method depends on your choice of post-processing.

Regarding the "softening" misconception, see this thread.

Guidelines for post content and general behaviour: read announcement here

Max. allowable image sizes in signatures: reminder here

Author
Time
Post link
"If you want to make it anamorphic widescreen, you must crop then resize vertically by 33.3%. The exact method depends on your choice of post-processing."

In Vegas, I just set the frame to 16X9 and zoom in on the picture. Nice and easy.

"Regarding the "softening" misconception, see this thread."

It's not a misconception. When converting a letterbox transfer straight to anamorphic, it does make the picture softer. It can't be helped, since you are simply taking the existing image and making it larger (unless you use some super-duper scaler in the video chain, and I don't know anyone who has done that). However, an anamorphic transfer from the film master creates a higher resolution than a straight letterbox transfer.

Of course, if you watch the anamorphic DVD on a 4X3 television, you lose the extra resolution and risk introducing video artifacts as well.

<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>

Author
Time
Post link
Originally posted by: MeBeJedi
It's not a misconception. When converting a letterbox transfer straight to anamorphic, it does make the picture softer. It can't be helped, since you are simply taking the existing image and making it larger (unless you use some super-duper scaler in the video chain, and I don't know anyone who has done that).
Check the sreenshots I posted in that thread - I can't detect any softening. But I use an Avisynth function called LimitedSharpen(), which supersamples the video to 150%.

Guidelines for post content and general behaviour: read announcement here

Max. allowable image sizes in signatures: reminder here

Author
Time
Post link
"I can't detect any softening. But I use an Avisynth function called LimitedSharpen(), which supersamples the video to 150%."

No offense, but just because you can't "detect it" doesn't mean it isn't happening to some extent. The fact that you felt it necessary to supersample the video is a pretty big clue that you understand that simply blowing up the image to 16X9 degrades the image, thus necessitating extra work.

<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>

Author
Time
Post link
OK, I see your point. Upsampling does degrade the picture - but if you use the best possible algorithms, the effect is practically negligible. (Similarly, compressing BMP to JPG is lossy, but if you use the highest quality setting then the majority of people wouldn't notice the difference.)

And the 150% supersampling is implemented in the default settings:
ss_x = default( ss_x, 1.5 )
ss_y = default( ss_y, 1.5 )
I just left it unchanged.

Guidelines for post content and general behaviour: read announcement here

Max. allowable image sizes in signatures: reminder here

Author
Time
Post link
thanks guys for all the input i just finished my first one Faces Star Wars and it looks pretty good on my 62inch hidef tv i am also using a toshiba HDMI dvd player,but it looks just a tiny bit soft on the video how can i sharpen it alittle bit?
this is how i did it
played ld on my rca home theater series player(with monster s-video out and monster thx ceritified sound cables)
then into a canopus advc110 using firewire connection
capturing with scenalyzer live(i do each side separately)
then i use virtualdub to crop and attach the avi files and also save the wav file(using direct stream copy)
then i use adobe audition 1.5 and take the wav file and normalize the sound to 110%(to make it just a little louder and crisper)
then i use TMPGenc plus 2.5 to encode i set rate control mode to 2-pass VBR,and motion search precision to highest quality (very slow& only do video)all other settings i let it set itself
then i use DVDit PE to author the dvd i use the default start up and i convert all audio to dolby digital 224 stereo
and then i burn with either with clonedvd(latest version) or nero(latest version)
i read above about avisynth but i dont understand how to use it i downloaded it but cannaot figure it out will this sharpen my video sound is pretty good on my dvd but i am open to any suggestions on anything.

sorry for rambling on but really could use some expert advice,also someone mentioned above downloading these sets already done where are they at?

thanks in advance

dark jedi



Author
Time
Post link
"played ld on my rca home theater series player(with monster s-video out and monster thx ceritified sound cables)"

You might want to try it with composite cables and compare the difference. More often than not, you will get a better picture with the composite (for various reasons which I won't get into unless you ask. Try it with a few key scenes before asking, and then get back to me. )

The Canopus device looks pretty good, but does it only save to DV? You may be losing some color range when you do this with an analog source. Is it possible to change the codec at all? Just for comparison's sake? (Not that it's necessarily a huge deal, but it can be noticeable to a trained eye.)

"then i use DVDit PE to author the dvd i use the default start up and i convert all audio to dolby digital 224 stereo"

Will it let you author the audio strictly as stereo WAV?

"i read above about avisynth but i dont understand how to use it"

Don't worry - neither do I. I've been able to do everything I need with VirtualDub and such. Then again, I try to use as little video adjusting (filters, etc.) as possible.

"sorry for rambling on but really could use some expert advice"

Ask away. I learned a great deal from these boards as well. We're all happy to share.

<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>

Author
Time
Post link
thanks for the quik reply but my ld player does not have component hookups and i am not sure about the canopus i just got it a few weeks ago but it does have a switch in the front "input select"to use either analog input or digital input but the output is the firewire to the pc,dont know if this means anything but if it does by all means please fill me in,i am not sure about the stereo sound,is that better than converting to dolby digital?
thanks again
dark jedi

i just checked dvdit pe and there are 2 settings:
convert all audio to PCM
convert all audio to Dolby Digital
then it has bitrate set and channel set
so which one of these should i use i have been using convert to dd
Author
Time
Post link
Composite, not component.

COMPOSITE: Yellow RCA plug

COMPONENT: Red, green, blue RCA plugs
Author
Time
Post link
"thanks for the quik reply but my ld player does not have component hookups"

As ChainsawAsh pointed out, it's composite video (the single, yellow RCA plug - though it may not be yellow.) The few LD players that had component video were LD/DVD combi-players, but only the DVD unit utilized the component video (though some ingenious and resourceful folks have been able to modify this.)

"i just checked dvdit pe and there are 2 settings:
convert all audio to PCM"

Go ahead and stick with this setting. Without getting too technical, WAV and PCM are close cousins, and you'll get better fidelity (though it takes up more space.) Unless you have a program that allows you to adjust the Dolby Digital values, the resulting soundtrack usually doesn't sound as good. For regular home videos, this isn't much of a problem, but if you want a good copy of your SW LD's, then stick with PCM.

<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>

Author
Time
Post link
dark jedi:
you said you want to preserve the old Official released in DVD format.
You list

the original trilogy when it first came out(not real good quality but want to preserve anyway) Is this the 1986 versions or the 1992 versions?
the faces THX trilogy set 1995
the definitive collection 1993
the FIRST special edition set 1997

This seems like a great idea, although one of the versions plugged on this site is a pretty faithful represetation of the Definitive Collection. I don't remember which one. While the various releases are going to be cool to preserve, what I think will make a great set is preserving the extra junk that came along with each of those versions. For instance, the 1995 Faces release would need the Leonard Maltin interviews on there as well as menu pages reflecting the Faces stylings. One of the early versions (1986?) had a small montage about "Star Wars: The First Ten Years".
And of course, covers matching the disc or tape covers are a must (and one of my projects on the side, I have a small number at Grisan's page).
Author
Time
Post link
"For instance, the 1995 Faces release would need the Leonard Maltin interviews on there"

* yawn *

If only for completeness' sake.

<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>