Star Trek Deep Space Nine - DVD to 1080pHD Upscale

STAR TREK DEEP SPACE NINE - AI-Upscaling Project (DVD to 1080pHD)

This project started back in March 2020 during the first Covid-related lockdown as a sort of “little thing on the side”, but has since become a serious “work I feel passionate about”; now, after many years of trial and error (and previous attempts at posting my results), I feel confident enough to try again.

Be aware: This version is a downsized/compressed version of my original 1080pHD-Upscales and intended for everyone who has to be mindful of his/herr HDD-space! The episodes have about 1 GB per standard episode.

And now, for the details:

1.) The Person Behind The Project

• I am a SciFi-fan and kid of the 90’s VHS era with amateurish video editing skills

2.) The Reasons & Goals For The Project

• “Enhancing” the quality of the DVDs and adapting them to modern HD-screens

3.) Details On The Source Material

• European PAL-DVDs (Region 2)

4.) Technical Specifications Of The Upscaled Episodes

• Format: mkv
• Size: 1 GB per 45-minute-episode
• Resolution: 1440x1080pHD (4:3 ratio, without black bars left/right)
• Framerate: 23,976 FPS (PAL-shift corrected)
• Audio: English & German AAC 5.1 @ 320 Kbps
• Encoding: HEVC, Main 10, Rec. 709, Gamma 2.4

5.) The Technology Involved In Realizing The Project

• Hardware:
  • Fast PC/Laptop (Intel Core i9 CPU @ 3,6 GHz & 32 GB RAM - best also add means of additional cooling)
  • Good Graphics Card (at least NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, better 4080)
  • Big SDD/HDD drive (storage space)
• Software:
  • DVD-Shrink (Freeware; extracting raw data from DVDs)
  • mkvToolnix (Freeware; working/merging elements like video- and/or audio-streams)
  • meGui (Freeware; adjusting audio-streams to slow down audio and correcting PAL-pitch-shift)
  • StaxRip (Freeware; Filtering for video: Deinterlacing, Noise Redcution, Deblock, Color Banding, Sharpening etc.)
  • Topaz Video Enhance AI (Paid-for; enhancing quality and upscaling resolution)
  • DaVinci Resolve (Paid-for; enhancing/filtering quality, encoding towards 1080pHD)
  • Handbrake (Freeware; compressing video to downsize final file)

6.1.) Workflow (short)

• a) Use DVD-Shrink: Extract raw data from DVDs
• b) Use meGui: Adjust audio stream (lower/correct pitch to adjust for PAL-shift towards 23,976 FPS)
• c) Use StaxRip: Apply various filters to enhance viceo quality and adjust from 25 FPS to 23,976 FPS
• d) Use Topaz Video Enhance AI: 3-step enhancement and resolution upscale (various models/parameters)
• e) Use DaVinci Resolve: Apply various filters to enhance video quality and encode to 1080pHD
• f) Use mkvToolnix: Merge video and audio-streams
• g) Use Handbrake: Compress/Downsize videofile

6.2.) Worflow (detailed)

• Link will be posted later on …

7.) The Benefits Of This Project

• You will get a possible workflow (in case you would like to try your own work)
• You can see samples of the restoration work
• PM me for more details

8.) Rules Of Conduct Regarding This Project

• PM me before accessing/using any material from this project
• Do not share material from this project
• Ask me for permission before cross-posting/linking this projects anywhere else or discussing it there

9.) How Can I Access Materials From This Project?

• PM me for more details

10.) Questions And Answers Regarding This Project

• Why Not Upscale To 4K?
  • I have found 1080pHD to be the “sweet spot” when it comes to balancing detail quality, filesize etc.
• Why Crop To 4:3 Instead Of 16:9?
  • That way viewers can have the option of “stretching” the image to fill the screen or watch in original format
• Why Are There No Subtitles And/Or Chapters?
  • After adjusting from 25 to 23,976 FPS I had trouble matching additional elements, so they were left out
• Why Upscale The Original VFX/CGI Effects And Not Create Your Own?
  • I am not technically-minded enough for that and don’t have the time
• Why Not Convert From SDR To HDR?
  • I am not technically-minded enough for that
• Why Do The Colors Look Slightly Different?
  • The various encoding software/programs occasionally adjust colors, but not much
• Why Do The Voices Sound Differently (Asked By German Viewers)?
  • Since the PAL-Shift is corrected (slowed-down from 25 to 23,976 FPS; so german voices sound a bit “deeper”)
• How Long Does The Work Take?
  • One standard episode (45 minutes running time) takes about 1 day to complete
• Will There Be Other Shows That You’ll Be Upscaling?
  • Next in line is “Star Trek Voyager”
• Do You Take Requests For Other Shows?
  • Unfortunately NO - I simply don’t have the time or resources to take on additonal projects

So, that’s it - Have fun with the project!

Regards,
Leland

Season 1, episodes 1&2, “Emissary” (Pilot) - is done.

Image Gallery (with slider): https://imgsli.com/MjkyOTAz

Images also below (PAL-DVD):

Images also below (1080pHD-Upscale):

More to follow - stay tuned!

@zombiedog:

PM me for access 😉

@rgstammer:

Just right click on my profile/name, then start a private topic.

Hello there community - Season 1, episodes 1&2 “Emissary” now available!

Thanks for the advice. I have also noticed the upscaler still not being “consistent enough” - it can’t hold on to fine details, sometimes even in the close-ups. Still the best I could come up with so far.

zombiedog said:

Leland Kovich said:

Thanks for the advice. I have also noticed the upscaler still not being “consistent enough” - it can’t hold on to fine details, sometimes even in the close-ups. Still the best I could come up with so far.

I’ve not watched it yet but I have a feeling that seasons 1-3 are going to be harder to upscale than 4-7 because the source videos are lower quality on the 1-3 DVDs. I think they used higher quality tape to edit from season 4 on as there is a noticeable increase of quality from season 4 onwards.

Unfortunately that’s true. Watching the DVDs, you can see noticeable quality differences as follows: Seasons 1 & 2 are visually just bad (some more than others), season 3 is better, but still not good, a markable improvement is season 4 (image is sharper, more grain is present and details are clearer) and from season 5 onwoards it’s good DVD-quality.
I think the reason is that (if I remember correctly) they used tapes for seasons 1-2 and went digital around the time season 3 came along, switching over completely in season 4.
It’s similar with Voyager, the first digital models were used during season 3 (the first completely digitally rendered Voyager model was used in the episode “Unity” I believe).

@zombiedog:

Well, it’s been a long time since I have been reading up about the way DS9 and Voyager were produced, worked on and stored on DVD - yeah, I think you are correct about the episodes all being composited on tape (post production was done on tape, adding the vfx and such).

I was also aware about the Grain option in Topaz, but for me it was kind of a mixed bag - I guess I’ll stick with my workflow so far. But I will have a look on season 3, possibly adjusting it, since the quality was slightly better there and would perhaps need “less aggressive work”. Season 4 onwards certainly will need modifications and I will have to do some trial and error again.

On a side note: Seasons 1 & 2 of DS9 are now finished and I am uploading - episodes will be available to those who ask and after each example post in the open topic is done.

But I wouldn’t call it a “lost cause”, possible a “difficult task” - but I am persistent.

@zombiedog:

No worries, you didn’t sound disrespectful or dismissive - everything’s good.

And I totally understand what you meant - many times in the past I thought about stopping or investing in the project, but I am to stubborn to stop 😉

Season 1, episode 3, “Past Prologue” - is done.

Image Gallery (with slider): https://imgsli.com/MjkzNDc2

Images also below (PAL-DVD):

Images also below (1080pHD-Upscale):

@zombiedog:

Yeah, the source material (PAL-DVD) had a “slight” quality increase as the episodes went on, unfortunately not much. The worst episode (visually speaking) is episode 8 titled “Dax” - the source (both PAL and NTSC) looks like a very badly recorded vhs-tape: It’s soft-focused, blurry and generally has a sort of “misty/gloomy” appearance.

Season 1, episode 4, “A Man Alone” - is done.

Image Gallery (with slider): https://imgsli.com/MjkzNjg3

Images also below (PAL-DVD):

Images also below (1080pHD-Upscale):

Have fun!

vranir said:

Yes, in my own upscaling attempt I was shocked by how bad Dax was. I thought for sure that I must have done something wrong when I saw how blurred the end credits were.

I guess something went wrong during the transfer from the tapes to DVD … since it’s present in both the NTSC and PAL version.

zombiedog said:

I always mix Dax and Invasive Procedures up.

Well, they’re both centered around the character, so it’s understandable