Maybe nothing. :( Quite annoying. Every attempt I have made at reducing the hum results in the sound becoming either hollow or flat.
Normally laserdisc soundtracks are cream of the crop. However, a few of them (usually Hong Kong releases) have some hum or buzzing that is noticeable during quieter moments.
One such title is Jackie Chan's POLICE STORY. I have the Extended laserdisc and no doubt the audio beats the terrible DVD remixes all to hell. The only issue is there is a damn hum throughout and I am failing at removing it (without hurting the audio overall).
Here is a short clip. I have Soundbooth (CS5) and Audacity on my PC and would appreciate any help in finding a way to diminish the humming. It's not noticeable when there is music or lots of action going on. But during dialog it's quite pronounced.
Thanks in advance. Audio cleanup is not my thang. :)
https://mega.co.nz/#!LBQyVKDY!AtTJvlAUp4HjfDS9z8gKGUadi9sq4qCex9bm8PETAVQ
If it's from iTunes or Vudu etc. I imagine whomever got it then converted to lossless and then re-encoded for a BD25. That's my best guess anyway.
Gents! Please PM me if you want the download link for the synced audio. :)
I'm just having fun but I don't actually know where it came from. And I've seen plenty of 1080i transfers converted to 1080p so who knows.
Im just thrilled to have it. The DVD was just not acceptable on a large screen.
Gents, it's the U.S. cut as shown in U.S. theaters. I've never heard of a laserdisc for the Aussie version so there'd be no way to get good audio for it. I hope that one day we see an SE release of the longer cut (which I have never seen).
A friend of mine called me and said he had a 1080p source that was perfect 23.976 but couldn't divulge where he got it. All of the HD cable broadcasts I've seen of this film were cropped, but this is OAR.
So naturally I said "I want it!" and he sent it to me as a BluRay with 192kbps audio. I then used captured PCM to sync up and presto, a version that will look good and sound killer (especially in Pro Logic II mode).
I'll post screen shots tomorrow.
Already using my DVD as a coffee coaster. :)
Gents, my all time favorite romantic comedy is CROCODILE DUNDEE. I saw it in a packed theater upon its initial release and I cannot think of another experience where the audience broke out into applause and cheers of joy at the end. Not mild applause. We are talking about 400 people clapping, hollering, whistling and cheering.
Unfortunately, Paramount has not seen fit to release this blockbuster on Blu-Ray. The DVD is just dated, with a soft picture caked in edge enhancement and a soundtrack that’s flat and lifeless at a compressed 192kbps.
Enter… a mystery 1080p transfer and the PCM audio from the laserdisc.
Shockingly, the audio lined up exactly. I didn’t have to do any shifting at all. That’s never happened tome before.
The PQ is a huge improvement over the DVD, but it is filtered and DNR’d. Not waxification, mind you. But it’s clearly an iTunesish like master.
The final BD will be about 20GB in size. I’m not sure how I’ll be sharing it but I will absolutely get the PCM audio track hosted by tomorrow for anyone who wants it.
I've yet to sync up but am hoping to do so this weekend.
I have seen plenty of fan synced sountracks that to my eyes and ears, went out of sync. Some people are just more sensitive to this and many not at all. Anything I do has to be accurate to the frame.
For HARD BOILED, I actually made a Cantonese soundtrack that was more in sync with the video vs. the original audio.
I've yet to test the provided Halloween audio.
Well there is no video to play. So I don't know exactly what he said.
But he could mean the grain was minimized, which it was. NO DOUBT! That film was grain to the max. And the BluRay is not. But it still has grain and it looks like it was given DNR to reduce that grain. That is what DNR can do. I have seen it with my own eyes on my own films.
There is still ZERO evidence that the grain was removed and then fake grain was added. I am waiting to see that. When I do, I'll say OK.
NO NO NO!!! DNR is supposed to be used conservatively to remove spots on frames. Dirt, damage, etc. It was then found it can be used to remove grain and they went hog wild with it.
During the days of DVD it was no big deal. You couldn't really see grain all that defined. But with High Def the grain is visible. Some nimrod with a DNR dial and a crack pipe can then remove the grain, which results in wax dummies for actors.
DNR can be used properly to clean up certain shots that have more grain than the shots surrounding it. Films like CLASH OF THE TITANS can benefit from this. The British HIGHLANDER BluRay has a little too much DNR for my tastes, but it certainly wasn't a wax job and certain shots that were not exposed correctly and had huge grain are now minimized and match the shots before and after.
But then look at THE GOOD THE BAD & THE UGLY and you see DNR cranked way up, ruining the image. Meanwhile FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE looks incredible because they did not liberally apply DNR. It's night and damned day.
The Criterion IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE had some DNR properly applied. The grain structure is defined and looks exactly like film. I've had the pleasure of seeing that film privately on a large screen in 35mm (here in NYC) and the BluRay is as close as one can hope to get to the look of capturing what was on the print.
And again, I saw what DNR could do on my own Super16 short film. There is no question that DNR can help a transfer when those behind the dial know what they are doing and why.
Again, I'd like to see an actual quote from Cameron. A link. No one has ever provided me with one when I ask. If he said it, then please, let me see it so I can put Cameron in the fruitloop category.
dvdmike said:
It was on their website for like 3 years actually.......
Plus Robert Harris said the Bond movies had the wrong vintage grain
Plus DNR removes noise, grain = noise to the machine, they cannot just magic it back
Plus Cameron said they removed the grain
And who said the OG ghostbusters disc was better?? you are all over the place buddy
Please point me to a link.
How am I all over the place? It is well known that the GHOSTBUSTERS BluRay was a disaster of contrast boosting. It's one reason why it was redone. Massive thread on this at AVS with the new BD being talked about on the last page.
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1156395/ghostbusters-comparison-pix/180
DNR can reduce or remove grain. I sat in on a session as my 16mm short film was being worked on and ultimately decided not to remove any grain (because I liked it) but no doubt there were different levels of reduction. From minimal, all the way to full on grain rape.
I will say it again... Taking a currently released Blu-Ray and adding grain to it is just adding noise. To each their own by I think it's a mistake. I'll wait to next year and see what happens.
There is no evidence that Lowry erased grain and put fake grain back in. That is pure conjecture. No one has ever shown proof. And not for one moment do I believe James Cameron would accept that. Come on now.
Lowry is not Blue Underground.
The contrast boosted GHOSTBUSTERS BluRay was a complete disaster and has since been shamed by the new 4k master released on Blu and it looks so so much better.
Of course, to each their own. :)
The 99 THX DVD has issues in regards to the mono sound, primarily it being overly compressed DD. The Criterion laserdisc PCM blows it to pieces. It's like the 192k DD mono audio for The Terminator on DVD. It pales compared to the PCM audio on the laserdisc. Night and day.
I actually hate all the remixes for HALLOWEEN. They added some kind of weird reverb to the music so it sounds wonky.
Most early transfers to LD and VHS had to deal with a very limited color availability so they were not exactly accurate in their look.
FINAL UPDATE:
The 6th RAR finally downloaded correctly and last night I burned and tested the BD. Once again... Mucho Grande thanks! I must say that I kind of feel like I am dreaming. It was cool enough to have the Theatrical version, but adding the Extended cut is just gravy, baby.
By Crom, what is good in life? THIS is good in life!
dark_jedi said:
I am doing a bit accurate rip of the Criterion LD right now while watching the race, I will use Izotope RX II to make it 48000 from 44.1 for BD muxing but I just do not have the time to put it in sync with the 35th Anniversary BD, is anyone here interested in putting it in sync with this BD?
I know someone who is doing this. He has yet to rip the LD audio. The gentleman doing it is the same person who perfected the audio on a certain SUSPIRIA hybrid that is likely one of the most popular hybrids ever created. :)
StarThoughts said:
I just want to bring up that the original Image laserdisc had a beefed-up audio track that I don't believe has been replicated on any other release.
Too true. Too few sound remixes can match the dynamics of Laserdisc PCM. My SUSPIRIA Hybrid DVD with the old PCM LD sound still kills any of the DTS remixes. No contest.
I don't want added grain. *sigh* That's just added noise because it isn't real.
We need a proper Blu-Ray. If they screw that one up, well then we have to do what we can.
bigrob, I hope that's true and that next year we will see just such a release.
I don't think any of the HD versions are any good. This needs a proper 2k or 4k scan, without DNR and with the participation of Verhoeven. Until that happens any fan restoration will simply be subpar when it comes to the picture.
Yes, it shows 1GB. But every attempt at downloading it fails to be 1GB and I have even asked a couple of friends to download it. It's always under 700mb when it finishes.
UPDATE: RAR 6 is no longer valid after downloading. Can someone who successfully downloaded it offer it?
It should be 1GB in size but now it is under 700mb.
I am unable to use this. I spent a week downloading only to find one or more files are corrupted. I cannot take the time to keep my computer running 24/7 and download them one by one again.
EDIT: It may be rar #6. Will update when I can.
The problem with the tweaked shot is the sky is now completely blown out. No clouds are visible.
To re-create the 99 color timing one would have to be insanely careful and have damn fine color grading skills. There is almost no data to work with when dealing with 4:2:0 compressed imagery.