Should I Get Laserdisc? (1 Viewer)

[Eric Emma]

I absolutly love movies to death, and it my understanding there are things on Laserdisc that won't see the light of day on DVD(which I own)... These are things I want get

-Who Frame Roger Rabbit-Little Extra Footage
-Nightmare on Elm Street Sequels- Extra Commentary adn Behidn the Scenes
-Orignal Star Wars Trilogy

So should pick one up off ebay?

 

[Michael Reuben]

Well, before you do anything, be sure to read the laserdisc section of our Beginner's FAQ (use the link in my signature). It's pretty comprehensive.

M.

 

[SteveP]

I'm planning to hold on to many of my laser discs for some time to come. Some examples:

GONE WITH THE WIND (CAV Boxed Collector's Edition) This has a much more pastel pallette then the rather brown-hued DVD. It also carries the isolated music as well as trailers from 1939, 1961 and 1967 and 1939 and 1961 Atlanta premiere newsreel footage.

SHOW BOAT (1936 CAV Criterion Collection Edition) Although I'm experiencing some possible laser rot with this box set at the moment, this title has yet to be issued at all on DVD and has a ton of extras and a feature-length commentary track.

THE EGYPTIAN not available on DVD--cheesy early CinemaScope epic with great score by Bernard Herrmann AND Alfred Newman!

MARY POPPINS the color on which I'm told by others here on the forum is FAR superior to the DVD.

So all in all, I'm still VERY glad I have Laser Disc!

 

[Jeff_HR]

So should pick one up off ebay?

I'd say yes, get one if you can. I've owned a LD player since the early 1980's & have well over 400 LDs, including a lot that will probably never see the Laser Light of a DVD Player. I've been bidding on LDs & winning on eBay for over a year now.

P.S. I have the CAV GWTW set & "The Egyptian" LD also + a CAV "Ben-Hur" set.

 

[Charlie Essmeier]

I own about 500 laserdiscs, and about 20 DVDs. The sound quality of laserdisc vs DVD is reason enough to hang on to laserdiscs. Plus, with the right equipment, the picture quality of LD is just fine.

I have, to date, replaced none of my laserdiscs with DVD.

One caveat: There is a greater difference in picture quality between cheap and expensive laserdisc players than there is with DVD players. You get what you pay for. Plus, only a relative few laserdisc players support Dolby Digital, although most can be modified to do so. Look for Pioneer models CLD-59, 79, 97, 99 or CLD-704. They'll cost more, but they produce much better sound and picture quality than you'll get from other players.

The list of titles that are not available on DVD is a long one. Many titles may never be available on DVD (original versions of Star Wars and Blade Runner come to mind.)

Charlie

 

[greg_t]

Charlie is right on. If you do get a player, get the best one you can afford. I first bought a Pioneer Elite CLD 52, and was pretty disappointed with the picture quality on star wars. Then I got a brand new Elite CLD 79 off ebay, and it makes a big difference. If you do get one, I'm sure you'll love it.

 

[Eric Emma]

ya I htink I want start off wiht a cheap one first and buy some LDs and if I really like it, I'll get a real nice one...

 

[John Alderson]

Someone should sell a good quality laserdics packaged with the original Star Wars films (in widescreen of course), all for a reasonable price. I would seriously consider it, but it would have to be a good price, as these are the only films I'd consider getting on LD.

 

[Eric Emma]

i have a couple on my list, Star Wars Definate Edition is one of them and that is 150 bux on ebay... lol and I'll pick up the SEs on DVDs...

 

[Al Shing]

If you're serious about this project, you should consider getting an AC-3 RF Demodulator sooner rather than later. Nobody is manufacturing them anymore, and the only place I could find one was on eBay. There is a guy in Taiwan who seems to have cornered the market on brand new Yamaha demodulators, and he keeps putting a few of them at a time up for bid at $130 plus shipping. He doesn't seem to have any trouble selling them.

I do wish Pioneer would make a replacement player that is LD only. I doubt that anyone buying a DVL-919 is buying it for the DVD player, since better progressive scan models are available for less than $200. Make an LD only player with a built-in AC-3 RF Demodulator for about $300-400 and people will stop cursing Pioneer under their breath.

 

[SteveP]

Saw the first show of STAR WARS in 70MM on opening day at Loews's Astor Plaza in Times Square in May of 1977 and have had no big desire to revisit that story or those characters or the warmed-over FLASH GORDON-ripoff style of filmmaking since.

Actually when I saw STAR WARS, it had made about $100.--from the people in line IN FRONT OF ME!

 

[Tim Glover]

yes, as others have said, a really good player will provide a wonderful image and make even the lesser quality titles look good. And the Original Trilogy of Star Wars is reason enough! There are many wonderful titles to find and can still get good deals on. Good Luck!

 

[greg_t]

Eric,

Be a little careful with the Star Wars definitive box set. It has been known to have some problems with laserrot, some of the early sets are missing a few seconds of the empire strikes back, and the set is in the CAV format, which means that there will only be 30 minutes of video per side, which will mean a lot of side changes. On the plus side, It has tons of great features on the films. If you go to buy one off of ebay, make sure to ask the seller if it is exhibiting any signs of laser rot.

 

[Rob Cooper]

I have had a Laserdisc player for a few years now but I've only got about 30 Laserdiscs. I do have the Star Wars Special Edition set though. I'd love to listen to these in Dolby Digital but I just rang a Home Theatre store and the guy could hardly stop laughing. He reckons It'll be virtually impossible for me to find an RF Demodulator. Dangnammit.

I used to love Laserdiscs so so much. I didn't have a 5.1 setup back then but having the films in OAR and with the occasional special feature was like home video heaven.

Now I like it for the films and features not available on DVD and for the bargains I can pick up.

 

[Matt Stone]

Speaking of rot on the definitive collection, I just noticed some rot on the first disc of ESB the other day. Rats! I was planning on getting the SE anyway, but it still pisses me off.

As others...I also recommend getting into laserdisc. I bought my first player last May (a Pioneer CLD D505), and I've already picked up a second (a Pioneer CLD D704). I've also bought about 50 laserdiscs since then too...and I'm always looking for more.

...esp Lost Highway, if anyone can help!

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Could we cease the Star Wars bashing here? That
was not the purpose of this thread, and any sort of
bashing is just rude thread farting.

Thank you

 

[Geoff_D]

The multitude of Criterion discs with exclusive content and the myriad Star Wars sets are well worth tracking down on eBay. My LD player was given a new lease of life about a year ago when I picked up a demodulator and the Star Wars SE AC3 set for a hundred quid (roughly 70 dollars in your American currency ) simply by advertising in a home cinema magazine. And I've been snapping up AC3 discs on eBay ever since, with many titles outdoing their dvd counterparts. But that's a whole other thread...

 

[GregoryP]

The only reason I have a Laserdisc player is for the suppliments. I have a really cheap player that does not have excellent picture quality but that doesn't bother me at all. It depends on what you're going to use the player for. I wouldn't spend a lot of money on one unless really good picture quality is important to you.

Gregory

 

[Declan]

have about 70 ish LD's compared with around 300 DVD's. But if i had the choice that figure would be reversed.

Dont get me wrong i love DVD. But i'm a sound guy and the audio off some LD's are incredible. I had a pioneer 515 (with AC-3 out), after the disc tray broke i got a Pioneer 925 which has digital frame store and s-video out. The picture quality went up considerably from my old machine.

Now i watch as many LD's during any one week as i do DVD's.

Plus the 12" covers (gatefold, boxsets, etc) are friggin cool and works of art in themselves.

 

[Brent Avery]

I cannot stop myself from purchasing laserdiscs since starting the habit about 2 years ago. It was just a bit before getting involved with dvd and the inevitable home theater upgrade. Speaking of which, if you have a seperate power amp(s) you may want to consider the bargain priced Denon AVD 2000 digital surrround decoder which even a couple of years ago could be had new for $200.00 or so.I believe it retailed for approx. $800.00 when it came out. It has an AC 3 rf input just for laserdiscs and has had very high praise for above average build quality and very good sound compared to more expensive processors against which it held its own. I like mine very much and even if I step up to DTS (doubtful) all I need is an external DTS processor with 5 channel output as the Denon has 5 channel inputs for just such an arrangement. Personally, I can live with Dolby Digital. What others have said about getting the best possible laserdisc player you can afford holds true. If it wasn't for the cost of bringing one into Canada I would jump at replacing my Sony MDP 333 with a Pioneer CLD 704 or Elite CLD 79 etc. Anytime one shows up on ebay the bidding is aways strong. Oh well. Not having been able to compare picture quality the Sony still does a decent job. And yes, there are going to be many, many titles that never will be re released on dvd.....problem is, which ones? But that is not the reason we collect them right? Why, I bet some of you can't resist buying them just for the gatefold jackets with their photographs and/or artwork ...and those BOXSETS!! Had to catch myself there. That is why I ended up with approx. 150 titles (with 195 dvds at present) including Bad Day At Black Rock, The Blue Max, Operation Crossbow, Stategic Air Command, Lonely Are The Brave, Wreck Of The Mary Deare, Up Periscope, Where EAgles Dare, Blackboard Jungle etc. and quite a few more recent films that are not out. Worse, I am sure a few of you still have laserdisc versions of films that came out on dvd not in their OAR but....in wonderful full frame. I still have Forever Young and Vegas Vacation as just two examples. I have been trying to get a hold of Matilda on widescreen laserdisc because the dvd isn't. It just makes you wonder, doesn't it? I have slowed down buying laserdiscs from ebay because there are enough films from the '50's & '60's that are scheduled for release between now and June that I have my hands full just keeping up! (I'm not complaining!)