I'm a laserdisc owner and have been since 1994. Most people have no idea how special that format was. One of my prized laserdisc and favorite films is Tron. Disney came out with a $99 box set of Tron called the archive collection CAV with tons of special features...The transfer was taken from the 70mm. It's Dolby Surround and it sounds and looks amazing
After having laserdisc for a few years I finally modded my demodulator and been hooked on AC-3. Now I go for AC3 copies of movies when available and also trying to replace the current ones.
People just don't know how awesome laserdiscs sound, especially DTS and Dolby Digital discs with a good audio system. Ever since DVD debuted, consumer home video formats have used what is called a Home Theater mix - a very tame, bland version of what you get at the theater. Laserdisc soundtracks, on the other hand, were nearly identical to the theatrical mix. Plus, they didn't need very much compression. Since laserdiscs are so big they have the physical real estate to store the audio. By contrast, DVDs are very small and have to use a ton of compression which results in very, very tame and lackluster sound. Not even modern Blu Rays and 4Ks with lossless audio formats can compete with a Dolby Digital or DTS laserdisc track. Not even remotely close, again because of the Home Theater mix they give us. It's ironic that in 2024 the best audio format for movies, by far, is the laserdisc. I highly, _highly_ recommend to you the laserdisc DTS edition of Jurassic Park - one of the best audio experiences of my entire life....
I 💯 agree and the Jurassic Park is on my list for sure that and the lost world even though the first one is my favorite. Thank you for your comment dude ! 👍
Well, it's ironic that Dolby Digital on DVD is capable of having a higher bitrate (up to 448kb/s) than Dolby Digital on LaserDisc ... though, on the flipside, the bitrate for AC-3 on DVD can vary, depending on the program contents. Even more ironic is that Dolby Digital on 35mm film was among the lowest for bitrate (320kb/s constant). So just because it's lower bitrate and may have required more "compression," that alone doesn't necessarily mean that it can't sound good, so it's really more about how it was mixed rather than the format. As for LaserDiscs being "so big they have the physical real estate to store the audio," not exactly. What you're referring to is areal density, and LaserDisc certainly has that. And if the format was purely digital, the disc could store tens of gigabytes of data per side for the laser wavelength that it typically used. If the laser wavelength were shorter, like blue instead of infrared, the amount of data a single side could store would be greater. But, that's all academic because LaserDisc ... or LaserVision, to be precise ... is not a digital format. Digital sound was an afterthought on LaserDisc, added because it could be done in spite of the limitations of working within an existing format specification and where digital audio became commoditized enough to economically incorporate into a consumer product. The problem is that the digital audio all had to work within an existing analog signal format. The PCM tracks for two channel CD-quality audio ... or a DTS bitstream in its place ... is stored just below the analog audio track signals within an analog subcarrier around 2 MHz ... just barely enough for it ... while AC-3 took up the right analog audio track at 2.8 MHz, between the video baseband signal above it and the left analog audio track below it at 2.3 MHz.
@@Watcher3223 So, it's the mix that they give us nowadays more than anything else. That makes sense. Yeah, a lot of people never knew laserdisc was an analog format that was nonetheless able to implement a digital signal.....at least for the audio. My understanding of DVD tech is they had to cram a lot of information on a tiny disc so it has more lossy compression than the other formats. They were much more successful with video than the audio, imo. In any case, I highly recommend anyone with the capability to listen to the surround mix on the DTS laserdisc for Jurassic Park (or, really any movie on laserdisc with a Dolby Digital or DTS audio track) and compare it to the 4K surround mix. The 4K audio doesn't even touch the hem of the garment....
I have a DVL-90 and 200 disc. Bought it new 1999. It was connected to a Sony 5.1. B&W speakers with a M&k Sub. No room in my rack for that big boy now. Maybe one day. 😊. My favorite LD….Jurassic Park
Hell yeah I have a lg blu ray 3d home theater system also and I use hdmi arc and optical and I played my dvd and blu ray I watched jurassic world on it it sounded great
It’s great when you get uncompressed audio at 348 kilobytes a second or dts at 11000 kilobytes per second it. Just can’t be beat for real theater audio
The dvd is also great! 👍 but I was really shocked at the AC3 digital track… the difference mainly being that dvd, Blu-ray, 4K all typically use a “ near field “ mix while the laserdisc digital surround tracks use what they used in the theatrical releases… bigger dynamics. Thank you for the comment 👍
I have a Pioneer Elite CLD-79 that I used to have connected to my older receiver which had an AC-3 RF input. I don't have a demodulator for my new amp, so I don't get AC-3 anymore. I still get DTS, as it was passed over the standard digital out. I've been looking or a demodulator, but they're so stupid expensive for a niche hobby. The soundtracks on LD are *amazing*. They have to be heard to really understand.
The prices on the demodulators are definitely up, I got a good deal on mine but still paid more than I would have liked… but I’m really enjoying the set up and the LD hobby 👍 Thank you for the great comment
Your system looks really nice. Have you looked at the Retro Tink 4k or the cheaper 5x ? They're built for retro games consoles and certainly the new 4k (not sure on the 5x) has a really high spec 3d Comb Filter and would do all the processes needed so your OLED would just take the picture via its native HDMI socket. That could work wonders and using an old high quality composite RCA cable will make a difference to the analogue image. Also.. can I ask? Is that your bipole surround speakers sitting on the far left and right? Or are they running as front "wide" and I have spotted your rear channel speakers in the videos?
Yes! I have… I currently have a retrotink 2x and I have tried the 5x as well…. And il be honest.. really honest. In my case, for my eyes… the Sony A8H oled tv running straight composite into the tv looks BETTER 🤷♂️ and as far as the retrotinks go they are great but even with the 5x the Notch filter looks better than the “better” comb filter 🤷♂️ The tv in most cases does an over all better job with some dialed in settings.. I’m constantly working on and trying different things bc im curious by nature 😂.. the TVs x1 ultimate chip is a beast. Now with laserdisc you have to accept certain things but overall it looks really acceptable and some laserdiscs look very very very close to a well mastered dvd.. sometimes I’m shocked. As far as my speakers everything is set up as a standard 5.1 and I have everything at the front…. Bc I don’t have a a good way of running and hiding the wires…not without getting complicated. And the way my livingroom is I don’t have ideal places the put the rears.. I have another door off to my seating position that leads to the kitchen and downstairs. It’s just an inconvenient room to be honest. I do have a theater room downstairs but I want the laserdisc upstairs and I have work to do on the theater downstairs and haven’t gotten to it yet. I did have it down there for experiment sake briefly though. And the rear speakers are on speaker stands from Amazon 👍. I did have front height speakers up at one time but not anymore. Thank you for the questions I really appreciate it 🙏
@@StarWarsSyndrome anytime on the question. It's always fun to study and ask questions on anyone's set up and there are so many variables on the players, the displays etc. And it's great to know the power of the Sony chip set for the future. I'm running the last THX reference 1080p VT plasma from Panasonic and that has a great comb filter for my CLD D925 which is similar spec to your 909 and like your OLED some of the great mastered discs look excellent and more than pass as a DVD. ET from the signature collection and the AC-3 Aliens and the Abyss special edition spring to mind as incredible Laserdiscs. Can't wait to see more videos and will continue to hit the thumbs up buttons
Klipsch reference premiere my friend, caught them on sale and also picked up a couple as scratch and dents but can see anything on them. 🤷♂️ worked out though 🤣
I like also Laser Disc. I've the same LD Player . This player is connected to my Sony TA-E9000es preamp via AC3-RF Input and also opitcal for Dolby Pro Logic LDs. The Preamp is also connected to my STR-DA 9000es AV Receiver via the mulitchannel input. I've the movie Outbreak on a NTSC LD. The sound from the LD is better than the sound from a Blu Ray. The movie OUTBREAK reminds me from my childhood. I got my LDs from Ebay. Greetings from Austria
I understand and get the vintage and nostalgic espect of it and trust me i love to collect em but Reality is u can get double or even quadruple quality in modern remastered version in truehd or atmos tbh
To each their own.. I have dvds and Blu-ray’s and 4K Blu-ray’s I absolutely love. But I’m enjoying laserdisc a lot and it’s been fun for me. And as I’ve said… there are certain cuts and sound mixes that will never be released again unless you have them on these older formats… that’s a big part of it for me. But it is much much easier and more convenient to buy them on modern platforms. It’s all good as long as folks are enjoying them.
You picked a good one to demo AC-3. The track on Mortal Kombat is just nuts. In my opinion, it's one of the few AC3 titles that are better than the DTS pressing.
I sense the same denial as I experienced when I purchased a twin drawer Toshiba dvd player in the 90s. Luckily I had RGB, svideo, and component, as well as composite. Composite is really bad, especially if processed as you say. I had a 37"Dolby digital 100 watt 4:3 TV which accepted optical digital and RCA digital, and I held it in such high esteem, until LCD TV came out. Good luck on your quest, I wouldn't be bothered turning discs over though. You are a martyr to the cause 👍🏼
Thank you, I’m just having a good time with it, I think that’s the most important thing. Whatever you are into and whatever you enjoy…. It’s all good. I still have the other formats as well so I’m not out anything, it’s a fun hobby for me. Thank you for your insight and your comments.
I'm a laserdisc owner and have been since 1994. Most people have no idea how special that format was. One of my prized laserdisc and favorite films is Tron. Disney came out with a $99 box set of Tron called the archive collection CAV with tons of special features...The transfer was taken from the 70mm. It's Dolby Surround and it sounds and looks amazing
I’m gonna have to get that bc I love tron 👍
After having laserdisc for a few years I finally modded my demodulator and been hooked on AC-3. Now I go for AC3 copies of movies when available and also trying to replace the current ones.
People just don't know how awesome laserdiscs sound, especially DTS and Dolby Digital discs with a good audio system. Ever since DVD debuted, consumer home video formats have used what is called a Home Theater mix - a very tame, bland version of what you get at the theater. Laserdisc soundtracks, on the other hand, were nearly identical to the theatrical mix. Plus, they didn't need very much compression. Since laserdiscs are so big they have the physical real estate to store the audio. By contrast, DVDs are very small and have to use a ton of compression which results in very, very tame and lackluster sound. Not even modern Blu Rays and 4Ks with lossless audio formats can compete with a Dolby Digital or DTS laserdisc track. Not even remotely close, again because of the Home Theater mix they give us. It's ironic that in 2024 the best audio format for movies, by far, is the laserdisc. I highly, _highly_ recommend to you the laserdisc DTS edition of Jurassic Park - one of the best audio experiences of my entire life....
I 💯 agree and the Jurassic Park is on my list for sure that and the lost world even though the first one is my favorite. Thank you for your comment dude ! 👍
@@StarWarsSyndrome How much is Jurassic Park DTS laser going for these days?
@@batman.darthmaul You can get one for $75 on LDDB right now
Well, it's ironic that Dolby Digital on DVD is capable of having a higher bitrate (up to 448kb/s) than Dolby Digital on LaserDisc ... though, on the flipside, the bitrate for AC-3 on DVD can vary, depending on the program contents.
Even more ironic is that Dolby Digital on 35mm film was among the lowest for bitrate (320kb/s constant).
So just because it's lower bitrate and may have required more "compression," that alone doesn't necessarily mean that it can't sound good, so it's really more about how it was mixed rather than the format.
As for LaserDiscs being "so big they have the physical real estate to store the audio," not exactly.
What you're referring to is areal density, and LaserDisc certainly has that. And if the format was purely digital, the disc could store tens of gigabytes of data per side for the laser wavelength that it typically used. If the laser wavelength were shorter, like blue instead of infrared, the amount of data a single side could store would be greater.
But, that's all academic because LaserDisc ... or LaserVision, to be precise ... is not a digital format. Digital sound was an afterthought on LaserDisc, added because it could be done in spite of the limitations of working within an existing format specification and where digital audio became commoditized enough to economically incorporate into a consumer product.
The problem is that the digital audio all had to work within an existing analog signal format. The PCM tracks for two channel CD-quality audio ... or a DTS bitstream in its place ... is stored just below the analog audio track signals within an analog subcarrier around 2 MHz ... just barely enough for it ... while AC-3 took up the right analog audio track at 2.8 MHz, between the video baseband signal above it and the left analog audio track below it at 2.3 MHz.
@@Watcher3223 So, it's the mix that they give us nowadays more than anything else. That makes sense. Yeah, a lot of people never knew laserdisc was an analog format that was nonetheless able to implement a digital signal.....at least for the audio. My understanding of DVD tech is they had to cram a lot of information on a tiny disc so it has more lossy compression than the other formats. They were much more successful with video than the audio, imo. In any case, I highly recommend anyone with the capability to listen to the surround mix on the DTS laserdisc for Jurassic Park (or, really any movie on laserdisc with a Dolby Digital or DTS audio track) and compare it to the 4K surround mix. The 4K audio doesn't even touch the hem of the garment....
I have a DVL-90 and 200 disc. Bought it new 1999. It was connected to a Sony 5.1. B&W speakers with a M&k Sub. No room in my rack for that big boy now. Maybe one day. 😊. My favorite LD….Jurassic Park
Jurassic Park is definitely a good one 👍
Hell yeah I have a lg blu ray 3d home theater system also and I use hdmi arc and optical and I played my dvd and blu ray I watched jurassic world on it it sounded great
It’s great when you get uncompressed audio at 348 kilobytes a second or dts at 11000 kilobytes per second it. Just can’t be beat for real theater audio
I 💯 agree… it’s been so fun to hear these movies like this.. a real treat.
Love Mortal Kombat!! Have this on DVD!
The dvd is also great! 👍 but I was really shocked at the AC3 digital track… the difference mainly being that dvd, Blu-ray, 4K all typically use a “ near field “ mix while the laserdisc digital surround tracks use what they used in the theatrical releases… bigger dynamics.
Thank you for the comment 👍
Hello From Belgium
Recently fan of the support, I love it
Thank you for your videos and have a good Sunday
I subscribed 🤘
Thank you so much I really appreciate it! More to come
@@StarWarsSyndrome With great pleasure
I'm ok for the rest..... yessssssss
thanks to you
I have a Pioneer Elite CLD-79 that I used to have connected to my older receiver which had an AC-3 RF input. I don't have a demodulator for my new amp, so I don't get AC-3 anymore. I still get DTS, as it was passed over the standard digital out. I've been looking or a demodulator, but they're so stupid expensive for a niche hobby. The soundtracks on LD are *amazing*. They have to be heard to really understand.
The prices on the demodulators are definitely up, I got a good deal on mine but still paid more than I would have liked… but I’m really enjoying the set up and the LD hobby 👍
Thank you for the great comment
I have the DTS laserdiscs of both Mortal Kombat movies.
Your system looks really nice.
Have you looked at the Retro Tink 4k or the cheaper 5x ?
They're built for retro games consoles and certainly the new 4k (not sure on the 5x) has a really high spec 3d Comb Filter and would do all the processes needed so your OLED would just take the picture via its native HDMI socket. That could work wonders and using an old high quality composite RCA cable will make a difference to the analogue image.
Also.. can I ask?
Is that your bipole surround speakers sitting on the far left and right?
Or are they running as front "wide" and I have spotted your rear channel speakers in the videos?
Yes! I have… I currently have a retrotink 2x and I have tried the 5x as well…. And il be honest.. really honest. In my case, for my eyes… the Sony A8H oled tv running straight composite into the tv looks BETTER 🤷♂️ and as far as the retrotinks go they are great but even with the 5x the Notch filter looks better than the “better” comb filter 🤷♂️
The tv in most cases does an over all better job with some dialed in settings.. I’m constantly working on and trying different things bc im curious by nature 😂.. the TVs x1 ultimate chip is a beast. Now with laserdisc you have to accept certain things but overall it looks really acceptable and some laserdiscs look very very very close to a well mastered dvd.. sometimes I’m shocked.
As far as my speakers everything is set up as a standard 5.1 and I have everything at the front…. Bc I don’t have a a good way of running and hiding the wires…not without getting complicated. And the way my livingroom is I don’t have ideal places the put the rears.. I have another door off to my seating position that leads to the kitchen and downstairs. It’s just an inconvenient room to be honest. I do have a theater room downstairs but I want the laserdisc upstairs and I have work to do on the theater downstairs and haven’t gotten to it yet. I did have it down there for experiment sake briefly though. And the rear speakers are on speaker stands from Amazon 👍. I did have front height speakers up at one time but not anymore.
Thank you for the questions I really appreciate it 🙏
@@StarWarsSyndrome anytime on the question. It's always fun to study and ask questions on anyone's set up and there are so many variables on the players, the displays etc.
And it's great to know the power of the Sony chip set for the future. I'm running the last THX reference 1080p VT plasma from Panasonic and that has a great comb filter for my CLD D925 which is similar spec to your 909 and like your OLED some of the great mastered discs look excellent and more than pass as a DVD. ET from the signature collection and the AC-3 Aliens and the Abyss special edition spring to mind as incredible Laserdiscs.
Can't wait to see more videos and will continue to hit the thumbs up buttons
great sound....what speakers are you using??...sounds very clean...keep'em coming
Klipsch reference premiere my friend, caught them on sale and also picked up a couple as scratch and dents but can see anything on them. 🤷♂️ worked out though 🤣
I like also Laser Disc. I've the same LD Player . This player is connected to my Sony TA-E9000es preamp via AC3-RF Input and also opitcal for Dolby Pro Logic LDs. The Preamp is also connected to my STR-DA 9000es AV Receiver via the mulitchannel input. I've the movie Outbreak on a NTSC LD. The sound from the LD is better than the sound from a Blu Ray. The movie OUTBREAK reminds me from my childhood. I got my LDs from Ebay.
Greetings from Austria
Awesome! Set up 👍 thank you for watching and commenting, very welcome here to pass on the knowledge ☝️
Holy S@#t!! The tv looks too small dude 😆
Welcome to the club, Brother. 👌
Thank you, I have been enjoying it very much, really cool format.
Yup, amazing, holy shit!
😁😁🤣🤣
I understand and get the vintage and nostalgic espect of it and trust me i love to collect em but Reality is u can get double or even quadruple quality in modern remastered version in truehd or atmos tbh
To each their own.. I have dvds and Blu-ray’s and 4K Blu-ray’s I absolutely love. But I’m enjoying laserdisc a lot and it’s been fun for me. And as I’ve said… there are certain cuts and sound mixes that will never be released again unless you have them on these older formats… that’s a big part of it for me. But it is much much easier and more convenient to buy them on modern platforms.
It’s all good as long as folks are enjoying them.
You picked a good one to demo AC-3. The track on Mortal Kombat is just nuts. In my opinion, it's one of the few AC3 titles that are better than the DTS pressing.
I sense the same denial as I experienced when I purchased a twin drawer Toshiba dvd player in the 90s. Luckily I had RGB, svideo, and component, as well as composite. Composite is really bad, especially if processed as you say. I had a 37"Dolby digital 100 watt 4:3 TV which accepted optical digital and RCA digital, and I held it in such high esteem, until LCD TV came out. Good luck on your quest, I wouldn't be bothered turning discs over though. You are a martyr to the cause 👍🏼
Thank you, I’m just having a good time with it, I think that’s the most important thing. Whatever you are into and whatever you enjoy…. It’s all good. I still have the other formats as well so I’m not out anything, it’s a fun hobby for me. Thank you for your insight and your comments.