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  1. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - Faithless -- in Blu-ray

    This one wasn't on my radar, but it is now! Pre-ordered. Thanks again Robert!
  2. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - Our Town -- in Blu-ray

    Wasn't aware this was coming out. Only seen it in terrible condition. Ordered! Thanks Robert!
  3. gregstaten

    UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) -- in 4k UHD

    I will also note that not all UHD HDR TVs are created equal and unfortunately the majority of them do a rather poor job of rendering HDR, especially dark scenes, star fields, etc. But when you have a good transfer/HDR grade and a very good or great TV the results are sublime.
  4. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - The Last Warning -- in Blu-ray

    Robert: The affiliate link to purchase The Last Warning is for the Eureka R2 release. Is it is the same transfer and quality as the Flicker Alley?
  5. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ - Laurel & Hardy: Year One -- in Blu-ray

    This is a set I've been eagerly waiting for since it was announced. What a herculean effort to put these sets together! Can't wait to watch - and to show to my kids.
  6. gregstaten

    Emotiva releases BasX MR1 11.2 channel AVR

    I'm about to pull the trigger on one. I'm upgrading from 5.1.4 to 7.1.4 and need a new AVR. I'm very impressed that it can drive 100 W at 8 Ohms into all eleven channels simultaneously. I've definitely noticed my current Onkyo AVR struggling when trying to drive really active Atmos mixes.
  7. gregstaten

    UHD Review Halloween (1978) Shout! Factory UHD Review

    Quick correction to the review. The SD elements are not "upscaled" but are mastered to disc as 480i assets. The upscaling (to Full HD or UHD) will be done by your player. -greg
  8. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    I headed out to the AMC Deerbrook on Friday to watch Tomorrowland in Dolby Cinema. The biggest problem with the presentation was that the red (not blue) aisle lighting dimmed to only about 50% and as a result there was a very annoying red illumination of the bottom corners of the screen - it...
  9. gregstaten

    Win an Onkyo TX-NR1030 9.2 channel Dolby Atmos AV Receiver

    When I relocated from New Hampshire to Houston I lost my custom theater installation and am steadily - on a greatly reduced "two kids" versus single guy budget - and am currently using my old Yamaha 3090 due to my Integra Design (Onkyo) processor being taken out by a lightning strike. While the...
  10. gregstaten

    Assigned seating in movie theaters

    Reserved seating is starting to be the norm where I live. Santikos Theaters in Tomball (18 screens, two Dolby Atmos/4K screens and one film IMAX (15/70 film)) is now all reserved seating. As is the Alamo Drafthouse in The Vintage. And even the AMC Willowbrook 24 has gone all reserved seating...
  11. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    I'm sure you're right. The color scientists at ILM, Pixar, and DreamWorks that I speak with frequently disagree with you, but what do they know...
  12. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    I think you have a misunderstanding about what High Dynamic Range is in the motion picture / VFX industry. First off, ACES and OpenEXR are 16-bit log, not linear. 16-bit log is equivalent to well over 20 bits per channel - and arguably more - linear. Plus, a digital cinema camera has many more...
  13. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    First off, regarding HDR, the Digital Cinema Initiatives spec, version 1.2, specifies 12 bits per component (XYZ) for a total of 36 bits per pixel. This means instead of 256 tones for each primary you have 4096 tones. Early DCP projectors were only ten true bits per pixel (plus two bits FRC)...
  14. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    Hey Andrew, Premiere Cinema - what a total pit they are. Honestly, they run their theaters like a second-run house of old. Regarding the price of popcorn, keep in mind that concessions are basically what keep theaters in business in this front-loaded releasing world. A typical studio...
  15. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    Okay. I have more information regarding Dolby Vision. According to my contacts at Dolby when a film is being played all internal "blue" lighting is to be turned completely off. Indeed, their goal is to have zero ambient light in the room, with the understood exception that local fire regulations...
  16. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    I know that DCP files can be in different aspect ratios, what I meant by "one size fits all" is that they can use a single "prime" lens for all showings. Admittedly, to do that means that 2.39 AR films lose a bit off the sides - or there's a slight black edge left/right on 1.85:1 presentations...
  17. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    I agree, Bobby, that common width screens are problematic and I certainly miss the screen that "opens up" for anamorphic films. The reality, though, is that Digital Cinema, more than anything, is driving the move to common width screens. When projecting a DCP you only have a single lens to deal...
  18. gregstaten

    Dolby Cinema

    Surprised to not find a discussion about this yet. Dolby Cinema was first announced back in December of last year, but details didn't really come out until NAB last week and CinemaCon this week. The technology is the first to bring HDR (high dynamic range) technology (i.e. Dolby Vision) to the...
  19. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review The Dick Van Dyke Show The Complete Series Blu-ray Review

    Don't know if I'd say "on the fly," but certainly I'd agree that it is likely symptomatic of early multicamera shoots. They were still learning how to do it back then - both the camera operators / focus pullers and the talent - and it is very likely that the focus puller either...
  20. gregstaten

    Blu-ray Review The Dick Van Dyke Show The Complete Series Blu-ray Review

    Have made it all the way through the first two seasons and have been having a blast doing so. What I found interesting, especially in the first season, was how often a shot was just slightly out of focus. Probably noticed this on the Moviola in the edit bay, but certainly it was never noticeable...
  21. gregstaten

    A Few Words About A few words about...™ That's Entertainment: The Complete Collection -- in BD & HD

    Note that this was just re-released by Warner Bros. I'm presuming this is just a repackaging for the holidays with a new SKU. Not sure if there's anything different with the transfers or features. -greg
  22. gregstaten

    The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Complete Series (Blu-ray) available for preorder on Amazon

    Just checked a few episodes and there don't appear to be any subtitles in any language. Not entirely surprising considering the age of the show. Haven't caught DVDS on television lately, but it wouldn't surprise me if the episodes have never been captioned. Not entirely sure what the FCC rules...
  23. gregstaten

    The Dick Van Dyke Show: The Complete Series (Blu-ray) available for preorder on Amazon

    The transfers really are spectacular. Just startede watching these and holy cow are they gorgeous. Image knocked this one out of the park. I picked it up for under $200 pre-release from Deep Discount and that was my threshold point. (Unfortunately my wife doesn't like the show, but then again...
  24. gregstaten

    Raiders of the Lost Ark: The IMAX Experience

    The IMAX theater nearest me in Tomball Texas (Santikos Silverado) did the opposite early this year. They have been digital IMAX since opening nearly four years ago and just added a 70mm IMAX projector to the booth (for Dark Knight Rises). Not sure what format they'll use for Raiders, but will...
  25. gregstaten

    The 2011 American Idol #10 HTF TOP TEN CHALLENGE: All details here....

    I'm in as well. Thanks for helping out here!
  26. gregstaten

    American Idol - Season 10

    Anyone notice that Steven Tyler looked like he was a cross between a senile grandfather and a man who was sucking on lemons? Repeatedly he had an expression that seemed to be a combination of dour and checked out. My wife and I also found the tepid judge response to Adam Lambert's performance to...
  27. gregstaten

    American Idol - Season 10

    Considering the general off-key and tentativeness from a lot of the performers last night, I have to wonder if they couldn't really hear themselves over the stage monitors. Idol has definitely had issues with their in-floor monitors over the years - especially last year. I honestly don't know...
  28. gregstaten

    So You Think You Can Dance - Season 7

    Huh? Fox promoted the hell out of it and not just during American Idol. And apparently the promotion worked as the overnights show it winning the night handily and growing in audience every half hour. IMO good start to the new season.
  29. gregstaten

    The 2010 American Idol #9 HTF TOP TEN CHALLENGE: All details here....

    Hi RAF. Please put me down for a placeholder as well. Thanks! -greg **NO ENTRY SUBMITTED**
  30. gregstaten

    Monty Python Almost the Truth on IFC

    I've been DVRing it. Been too busy of a week to watch much TV. I suspect that it may sit on the DVR for a while before I get a chance to watch it - but I'm definitely looking forward to it! -greg
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