LaserDisc fans/collectors (1 Viewer)

[GaryCo]

How many people are still buying LD's? I recently picked up the SW, Indiana Jones series and BTTF. I also have been picking up other titles of movies not avaiable on LD.

I am starting to pick up some LD of movies that are on DVD due to the low price. Especially older movies not in 5.1, and where extras are not that important or where I may not watch very often. I also realize sometimes the LD has more to offer than the current DVD.

What are your buying habits and reasoning?

 

[Matt Stone]

Jim, RachaelB's LD Primer is exactly what you need to look at. It basically tells you what players you should (and shouldn't) get.

 

[Jim_C]

Thanks Matt!

 

[Matthew Todd]

I picked up a Pioneer 2400 LD player for $10 a couple weeks ago and just got the Definitive Star Wars Trilogy last week. These are currently my only LDs. I got them because it's unlikely that the original theatrical cut will ever be available on a better video format.

Matt

 

[Jesse Skeen]

Right now if it's the least bit interesting, still sealed and under $10 I'll buy it. If it's $1.00 or less (I've occasionally found laserdiscs thrown in with the LPs in thrift stores!) I'll grab it no matter what it is, unless it's something ridiculously worthless like a pan-and-scan version of a dual-inventory release (just how many pan-and-scan copies of "The Public Eye" are out there???) If it's used but still something I want desperately that isn't likely to come out on DVD I'll pay anything within reason- the most I've spent for a used LD is $25 on Ebay for The Cars Heartbeat City music video.

 

[John Sparks]

I'm only looking for a few lasers to complete my collection.

1) Golden Age of Looney Tunes Vol.5...will never get it, too expensive.

2) The Compleat Tex Avery...will never get it, too expensive.

3) Koko the Clown from Lumnivision.

4) Popeye from Lumnivision.

5) UA Sci Fi Matinee II...will never get it, too expensive.

6) UA Horror Classics I...will never get it, too expensive.

7) Song of the South...guess!

I haven't bought a laser in a few months, and still haven't watched at least 40 that I have!

But I am going to start selling some this weekend on eBay.

 

[Rachael B]

I'm collecting films from the 20's through the 50's on LD mostly theses dayz. I won, I was the only bidder, a copy of ASPHALT JUNGLE on E-bay this week. Oh, I also won a copy of THE GREAT MCGINTY too. Somebody actually bid against me on that one. The DVD age continues to short-change the films from the olden dayz. I have a couple of music LD's I'm looing for but they're rare and I'll be lucky if I ever find them or win the bidding.

 

[Jim_C]

Well, I just bought my first set of laserdisc's today, the 1995 version of the Star Wars trilogy.

I bought them because I want the unaltered originals and who knows if Lucas is ever going to give us them?

I may pick up the Indiana Jones set but I think that's about it. You never know though.

Now I'm going to buy a player. Any suggestions? I'm thinking Pioneer from what I've read in the last couple of days.

 

[Lars Vermundsberget]

Quote:

"I'm only looking for a few lasers to complete my collection.

1) Golden Age of Looney Tunes Vol.5...will never get it, too expensive.
2) The Compleat Tex Avery...will never get it, too expensive.
3) Koko the Clown from Lumnivision.
4) Popeye from Lumnivision.
5) UA Sci Fi Matinee II...will never get it, too expensive.
6) UA Horror Classics I...will never get it, too expensive.
7) Song of the South...guess!"

---

I'm the happy owner of #s 1, 2 & 7 on this list (brag brag).

What is the "problem" with LT Vol 5? Did they print ridiculously few copies of this particular set, or what?

 

[Philip Hamm]

Now I'm going to buy a player. Any suggestions? I'm thinking Pioneer from what I've read in the last couple of days.

Look for Ron-P's post from a few days ago, I put a long reply on there.

 

[Brian Kidd]

The reason I still pick up LD's here and there is because the extras on the discs tended to be much more informative and geared toward film buffs than most dvd extras are. I'm so sick of EPK crap I could puke. Ick, ick, ptui!

 

[John Sparks]

Lars,
I don't know why LT-5 is so expensive. Maybe it was a low print run or maybe because of the uncut cartoons it contains...who knows.
I'm satisfied with what I have. I'm glad you have yours... lol

 

[Britton]

I got bit by the laserdisc bug and I'm waiting for the Star Wars Trilogy THX CLV Laserdiscs and Raiders of the Lost Ark to arrive. I may or may not buy more.

 

[alan halvorson]

The Golden Age of Looney Tunes, Volume 5 came rather late in the LD game. Not as many were produced. It's the only Looney Tunes on LD I'm missing, box sets or single discs. I won't buy it either for the same reason as Lars - too expensive - but if someone has one they'd like to trade, for LDs (I have some highly desireable titles) or DVDs, I would make a deal very much in your favor.

 

[Ed Vandeweerd]

Hi
I bought a Laserdisc PLayer this year because there is a lot of very collectable material not yet available on DVD. Some of these will not see the light of day for DVD. I also have appreciated DTS more on Laserdisc thus far due to the lack of compression that laserdisc offers. Here are some of the Highlights of my Laserdisc Collection.

1. Star Wars Definitive Collection
2. Jaws Signature Series LD with Complete 2 hour Documentary
3. Hard Target (DTS)
4. Long Kiss Goodnight (DTS)
5. Broken Arrow (DTS)
6. Crimson Tide (DTS)
7. The Adventures of Ford Fairlaine
8. Criterion- A Hard Days Night
9. Criterion - Monty Python and the Holy Grail
10 Criterion - It's a Wonderful Life
11. Criterion - The Player
12. City Lights - Fox 2 Disc Special Edition Box Set
13 The Beatles First US Visit (MPI Apple Release)
14. Barbara Streisand - One Voice
15 Barbara Streisand- Live at Arrowhead Pond (1994)
16 Parent Trap (1998) With Original Lindsay Lohan Screentests

These are just some of the reasons I own a laserdisc player. My Laserdisc Player is a Sony MDP 600. Considered Top of the line For Sony in it's day

 

[Chris PC]

I have LD's but they are a mixed bag of collectable and not so important. I have lost interest in LD's and plan to eventually sell them. I doubt I will ask more than $10.00 USD for each Laserdisc except for the special ones like SW and the other stuff. I need to make some money cause all this laserdisc player and discs are partly responsible for putting me in debt. I am in the flip flop postion now, I have gone from being interested in collecting the Laserdiscs to now wanting to put them on eBay to get as much as I can for them. But I may entertain offers here first.

 

[Aaron Reynolds]

I bought my first player in 1991, and up to 1997 I had amassed about 150 discs. Since then I've doubled my collection, mostly used (though I picked up about 30 great discs at the Ken Cranes blowout sale last year), and managed to pick up another three players.

LaserDiscs rock. I'm still buying them for a few reasons, the biggest being uncompressed PCM digital audio. Particularly with older films that did not have a 6 track sound mix, 2 channel PCM is the way to go. There's nothing I hate more than a bad 5.1 remix.

 

[Jeff_HR]

I cannot find them at retail any longer, so I'm using eBay.I'm trying to pick up some favorites that are not TOO expensive that I'm sure I will not see on DVD for a long time if EVER!!!

 

[Chris PC]

My problem with laserdisc is that the coolness isn't enough to hold me any longer. I have seen anamorphic DVD's on front projectors and good RPTV's and I've been affected by that. If laserdiscs were anamorphic, that would have been enough to make me keep it. Really, I just want to simplify my stuff and I have lots of laserdiscs I'm just not interested in any longer. I want to eventually get an RPTV or front projector and I have seen laserdiscs on them and its only so-so. I am still amazed at how good laserdiscs can look on a standard interlaced TV though. To tell the truth, I first thought that laserdiscs were equal to the quality of DVD's. Many laserdiscs are great, but it depends on the player and comb filter. After watching quite a few DVD's, I have come to realize that DVD does look better.

I thought laserdisc was cool, I only wish DVD's could improve the sound quality aswell as the picture when they go to the HD DVD.

 

[Matthew Todd]

Chris, I have to agree with you about the LD picture quality. I've got a used 7" CRT front projector that I picked up at a university surplus sale that is capable of HDTV, and I use it for DVD viewing and now the Star Wars LDs I've got.

The LDs look great on a 27 or 32" set, but when I blow it up to 6 feet wide, there is a great difference between an anamorphic DVD and the LDs (but it still is the only way to watch Star Wars on a big screen).

This is so even when feeding the projector just 480i S-video DVD. The difference is huge if I scale the image up to something like 1280x720p.

I'm hoping to get an HTPC soon with a modified video capture card so I can scale the LDs up also. I know they won't look as good as the DVDs because there just isn't as much original info to work with, but it ought to look awesome still!

Matt