HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) - Page 3

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Sam: Yes, I have the same "issue" with audio - it is VERY quiet. I have to turn up the audio +10 db over the usual listening volume. It can be quite a shock when you go to the main menu after an episode finishes playing!

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Are you guys with the low volume issue listen with an old processor that cannot process the new audio? I have a very old processor and I listen with the downconverted DTS audio for the new audio track. It's lower for me too.

So I was wondering if you have the newest processors, it will give you sound levels on par with what you're used to.

For me, it's not that big a deal, I just turn it up.

Gary, thanks for the easter egg info. Wished you hadn't spoiled it, I would have liked to have found it myself! No worries as I wasn't looking for them.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Same audio issue here, as well... nothing wrong with it, but it does come out extremely low mixed down to a 2.0 stereo setup. Definitely have to keep an eye on it, I let it jump back to the main menu after forgetting I had turned it up so high, and I nearly had a heart attack.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

how do you access the bd live features ?

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Or if you put in disc 1 with the volume up so high and the trailer for the new Trek movie starts playing. You could wake up the whole city. If the episodes on disc 1 are well under volume then the trailer at the beginning is even more than that over volume.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Good point. Even I feel the DTS-Master 7.1 mix is very low for this release and the shift in audio range levels from the trailer to the shows audio is strange.
Nope. Looks like we're all in good company.
Same here. From one extreme to the next.
I have a newer receiver, Onkyo, which decodes the new formats and it's just low audio levels on the shows I think. I turn the volumn up as well and it does compensate, but, the menu is pretty loud by comparison.
Exactly. There has to be a reason for the lower audio levels. I wonder if something was wrong with the audio processed at higher levels or something? That may not make much sense, but I'm guessing here.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I have to turn all of my Blu-Rays to a much higher decibel than regular DVDs. Is that a compression related issue?

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

No. Usually, audio tracks with a higher volume are more compressed. What you're experiencing is moe likely due to the fact that many BDs use Dolby Digital (compressed, not lossless True HD) for trailers and special features, including menu audio. These items are mastered at a higher volume than the DTS HD MA tracks and so you'll find yourself cranking the volumeon the DTS tracks, only to go back to the menu and get blasted out of your seat. HSM3 is like this as well, as are Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio and Bedtime Stories. I haven't tested Bolt yey, but I suspect it is the same situation.

Widest disparity in volume I've ever encountered? Peter Gabriel's Play on SD DVD. The DTS 96/24 track is EXTREMELY quiet. I was nearly blasted out of my seat when the disc went back to the DD 2.0 track on the main menu. My wife was upstairs and screamed at me to turn it down; a valid concern @ just after midnight.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

I figured as much. Given how much I loathe the compression, clipping and other maximization placed on popular music CDs, I find the low volume mastering of Blu-Ray HD tracks pleasant. Unfortunately, I occasionally forget how loud I turned the receiver up when I switch back to cable TV. Yikes!

I'm surprised engineers have not gotten nasty letters complaining their DTS HD tracks are "too soft" and that they want their soundtracks "loud." Because you know LOUDER IS BETTER.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

how do you access the bd live features ?

BD-Live is on Disc 7 in the special features.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

[quote=Gary Seven]On the second disc there is a LED light with no header attached to it. Press it and you get the collection of new effects put together to music.[/QUOTE

You can also do this on Disc 5 for a very cool commercial.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I'm running a new receiver - Pioneer Elite SC-05, which can process DD+, TrueHD and DTS-HD MA internally.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

For what it's worth, I have Season 1 on HD-DVD, and the volume is especially low on that set as well.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

thanks karl.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I've been watching quite a few of the episodes on this set. Wow. I'm so impressed with the work that was done! Thank you CBS and Paramount!
It's so great to see the episodes carefully remastered and the picture is amazing. The audio is so rich too.
I noticed a few comments on the sound. I also noticed this as well. I've turned the volume up a bit when watching them.

When are sets 2 and 3 coming out?

I love having the option of original effects or remastered, if only CBS could handle the Star Trek films box set too!

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Could someone please let me know the apparently super-secret instructions for turning off the commentary?

I got my BD Star Trek set the other day and put in "Balance of Terror," because I wanted to rewatch the Romulan episodes before seeing the new Star Trek movie.

Within a minute a commentary started (by a female person) and I can't turn the dang thing off! It's on both the English tracks, the original mono track and the 7.1 track. I can't find anything in the menu about a commentary and an option to turn it on and off, and I've pressed every button I can think of and that still doesn't do it.

So at the moment I can't watch "Balance of Terror" without this woman coming on and commenting on things like why they're not wearing dress uniforms for the wedding, etc.

This is driving me nuts. Especially since it LOOKS so beautiful in Blu-Ray. But at this point I just want to watch the episode without commentary and there doesn't seem to be any way to do so.

But there must be... right? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Buy a new player?

There's no "super-secret instructions"; it just works on my BD-P1500. It sounds like your player isn't properly handling the picture-in-picture stuff (turning off the picture but not the sound).

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Paula, no secrets here. What you're experiencing is the Starfleet Access function.

It sounds like you player is defaulting to this function, I don't understand why. Once you start the episode, if this Starfleet Access is activated, just press the menu button, scroll to the left, you see 4 buttons there, scroll down to the bottom where it says Starfleet Access and press that. You get a new window that asks you if you want to watch with Starfleet Access on or off. Just turn it off there.

Good luck, great episode! It's a favorite of mine.

Edit: I checked a disc and after the menu first appears upon insertion of the BD in your player, you see on the left at the bottom of the screen, options for the set-up and play. On the left, on top is Episodes and below that is Starfleet Access. Perhaps you pressed Starfleet Access instead of Episodes. If you use the Episdoes button, the Starfleet Access should not be activated.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Andrew -- no way I'm buying a new BD player after all the money I spent just last summer on my high end Pioneer model!

Starship Captain Nelson Au -- thank you for your assistance. I finally was able to turn off the commentary.

Any instructions, Captain Au, on how to get rid of that annoying camera icon which pops up every time you're allowed to toggle between the original and enhanced version of the episode?

(Don't get me wrong, I love Star Trek in Blu-Ray -- the show looks like it was shot yesterday and I can make out every pockmark on the faces of Sulu and Spock. But the technical blips are less than thrilling.)

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Paula it sounds like you could likely use a firmware update.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

My player is a Sony and I don't see the Camera icon pop up. Sorry, Paula, I don't have a solution. Zack has a good suggestion, you could check to see if you have the latest firmware.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I've been wondering about the sets for Season 2 and 3.

When these sets were being prepared originally in 2007 for HD-DVD, I understand that they had prepared the Starfleet Access materials and other additional bonus materials for the Second Season set, or was nearly done with them when they had the plug pulled. So I am assuming that the level of extras will be similar to the First Season Set.

However, I don't think anything had been done for the Third Season Starfleet Access materials. I hope they'll be able to fund and prepare the final season at the same high level they've done for the first.

Of course the other materials are straight porting over from the SD discs.

I can't wait for the next 2! Perhaps they'll be on a 3 or 4 month schedule. After the HD-DVD set came out in November of 2007, there was a 9 month gap till S2 came out on SD format in August 2008. No doubt regrouping after the demise of HD-DVD. The Third season came out 3 months later.

Of course, if the BD of the new Star Trek film is out in 3 or 4 months, it could be coincidental.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

One thing that might help is to go into the blu-ray player's set-up menu and disable "on screen messages".

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Pretty decent set so far. This is the best the original series has looked in all of the times I have seen it. At the risk of being accused of sacrilege I admit preferring to watch the shows with the updated VFX.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Got mine yesterday and stayed up WAY too late watching many episodes! Just one more....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. LOL

I agree...they look remarkable! So colorful. And I'm a big fan of the new VFX in almost every case. Really updates the show nicely while keeping the vibe the same. I really like the touch of having the sublight engines glow red on the back of the saucer when they are in use like in the films.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I watched the first four episodes on disc 1. All in all, I am extremely impressed with how these look and sound. I probably prefer originals, but I don't mind the new effects. However, I wish they put more work into the CG of the Enterprise...it just looks too artificial.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Also very impressed with this set. I prefer the original VFX because they stay true to the original effects, and aren't just adding for "whiz bang" effect.

I also have to crank the audio up, and also find that even with the master volume level turned up I still have to turn the center channel up a few DBs.

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

I'm surprised how much I like the new effects - I had seen a couple of the episodes on television and thought they looked pretty terrible, but on a whim I figured I'd try watching them the new discs with the new effects at least the first time through. Some of them, particularly certain shots of the Enterprise, have a very fake, cartoon-y look to them which draws far more attention to the shots than it should, but for the most part, it's very solid work. A lot of them look very natural, as if they belonged there all along. It was the right decision, I think, to avoid replacing effects mixed with live action (like the transporter effect) and to just "tweak" the exteriors.

It's like a whole new Star Trek... this week, the Enterprise arrives at a different planet! That actually looks different!

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

UH-OH I'm starting to hear about some issues with this set that the reviewers appear to have missed. I'm more than a little disappointed since my set is still en-route...

So are these true?

1. Wrong main titles for the first 13 episodes

2. No original version theme for "Balance of Terror"

Re: HTF Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Original Series Season One (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Troy, thanks for the suggestion. I went into the home menu and yes, there was an option to turn off the angle indicator. So off it went.

Being a curmudgeonly purist when it comes to Star Trek, I have no interest in watching the updated CGI effects so I don't miss the angle indicator at all.

So, when is season 2 being released on Blu-Ray?