The TNG boxsets: How do you feel about the transfers? (1 Viewer)

[Jack Briggs]

Though I'm happy as a Ferengi in possession of a shipful of gold-pressed latinum to have the first six seasons of TNG in my library and though TNG never has looked this good before, the series by and large exhibits images on DVD that are a bit soft and washed out.

In contrast, the TOS discs look amazingly sharp, with richly saturated colors and good shadow detail and deliniation.

TOS, of course, was in 35mm film throughout the production process, whereas TNG was transferred to video before actual presentation. Too, TNG's special effects were video-composited.

In the thread accompanying Ron's review of the Season Six boxset, it was noted that TNG has always looked a bit faded (going all the way back to its original presentation in first-run syndication).

However, one thing I've noted with interest: The transfer quality of TNG's first two seasons tends to be superior to those that follow.

Of course I am happy to have these sets. But if I plan on including a TNG episode during an evening's screening program, Picard and crew start the festivities off. Going to the TNG discs after screening something else is something of a letdown in terms of picture quality.

Could these DVDs have been improved upon? Or are these the best we can hope for given the present state of the art? And are we generally happy with them?

 

[Michael St. Clair]

I haven't looked at the later seasons, but they should look better than the earlier seasons. Reason is they were mastered to component video instead of 'composite' video.

 

[Craig S]

The transfer quality of TNG's first two seasons tends to be superior to those that follow.

Wow, that's the exact opposite of my perception. I was very disappointed in S1, thought S2 was a bit better, and thought S3 and on were huge improvements.
OTOH, I did upgrade from a 16-year old 36" Mits to a Sony 16:9 57" in August (in between S3 & S4 I think), so that may have something to do with it...
I think I'll go back and do some direct comparisons.

 

[Greg_S_H]

I only have season one so far, but I'm happy with it. I notice a light sheen of "grain" over the image, but there is plenty of detail and sharpness. I have noticed a few stray defects--for instance, during a red alert on the Code of Honor episode, there is a red bar that briefly flashes across the frame--but I have to agree with Ron that this is much better than the TV broadcasts I've watched of the same material. I am disappointed to hear that later seasons are a step backward. I was thinking if the early going looked this good, I was in for a real treat later.

 

[Paul McElligott]

Season 6 seems a little "soft" compared to 4 and 5. Anyone else notice this?

 

[Paul W]

The problem I see is the color of Picard's uniform seem to vary wildly. In some episodes it is a natural looking deep red. Other times it looks purple.

I don't know if there was any serious attempt to monitor color correction during production (or DVD transfer). SOmetimes it looks good. Sometimes not.

 

[Jonathan Kaye]

I think the saddest thing about the TNG releases is the lack of remastering and restoring that has been done. There are noticeable tape dropouts and other picture defects that could have been corrected.
It's a shame Star Trek does not have a Restoration Team working on it the way Doctor Who has. The Doctor Who DVDs are all stunning, and the source material is mostly much older than TNG. The amount of restoration on the picture alone is phenomenal, especially for the most recent release of a story from 1964.

 

[David Lambert]

The Doctor Who DVDs are all stunning

Well, excepting the Key To Time set, which is just average-looking at best. But that's an R1-only release, which didn't go through the Restoration Team. Dammit.

I honestly have very little to complain about with the TNG sets so far (I'm midway through S4, by-the-way...work hitting me like an anvil the past two months - plus devoting entirely too much time to being online talking about DVDs instead of actually watching them!...has kept me from being current on these sets).

I agree that it's not "A" grade video material; it's a strong "B" at best. But it's definately better than average, and the defects (if you can call them that) are somewhat understandable given the source material, and really - in my opinion - more of the picky variety. I cannot look at this and say with honest conviction that Paramount should have slowed down the release schedule and jacked up the price of the sets by spending time and money remastering the video, for a result which would only see marginal improvement. It just wouldn't make enough sense.

That is how I feel about these transfers so far; sorry if I'm not agreeing with everyone here. I realize I could potentially change my mind when I catch up to the rest of you, though.

 

[JamesHromadka]

I like the transfer, as the signal from the local station that broadcast TNG originally was below VHS in quality.

It is annoying that sometimes during chapter changes the audio drops out.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Paul W is seeing what I am seeing. Last night I watched back-to-back Season Five episodes, "Cause and Effect" and the superb "The First Duty." Both were better than average for Season Five, especially "Duty," with its outdoor shots.

In both episodes, the red command uniforms were a deep red.

On other episodes, though, as Paul notes, the command uniforms look like a pale, washed-out purple.

Do not get me wrong: I'm tickled to have this show on DVD. I just wish more care had been taken with it, though.

 

[Seth_S]

Hmm, In my opinion, despite some problems, the video has gotten better with each season.

As for looking soft, I think that the DP(s) purposely did this trying to give the show less of TVish look.

It also looks like they used better film stock for the season finales and openers, suggesting that the show was filmed with some kind of budget stock. This probably contributed to shows soft look.

Over all, I'm quite happy with the a/v of the discs. Just compare them to the reruns on TNN.

 

[Ian Such]

I too thought that Season Six was soft, disappointingly so when you look at the quality of the earlier seasons.
Even so, they are still miles better than VHS

 

[Jeff Kleist]

I really think given how the show was produced, that unless they can locate ALL of the elements and go back, retransfer ALL of the film, and recomposite EVERYTHING that this is the best the show will ever look

 

[Osato]

I would really like to get some of these sets. They look great! Price tag is too much though. $100+ a pop. Ouch.

 

[Kwang Suh]

Well, I do remember watching season 6 when it first aired, and was struck by how they just loved to use soft lighting in that season - probably to make the actors look younger.

 

[Jack Briggs]

You may have a point there, Kwang.

Some of the episodes look very good, most look average, and a few look only slightly better than broadcast television.

 

[Joseph Bolus]

I haven't had an opportunity to view any of the Season 6 eps yet; but I've been generally satisfied with the way Seasons 3,4, and 5 appear on my FPTV system. (The overall video and audio presentation for the episodes Yesterday's Enterprise, Best of Both Worlds, and The Inner Lightis more than satisfying.) While they don't even begin to approach the quality of a modern Widescreen anamorphic presentation, they all look at least a thousand times better than their VHS counterparts when viewed on the same system.

Now, for some reason, Season 1 seems a little too dark on my system; with Season 2 only marginally better. (My FPTV is a 3-panel LCD with the black level enhanced by a FL-D filter, so this may have something to do with it.) But with some adjustment, even those Seasons provide a competent presentation.

Are they a little soft? Yes ... But they're still so much better than VHS that I'm not complaining ...

 

[Jeremy Allin]

Do you guys believe the less-than-perfect picture quality is the trade-off that has occurred from releasing the sets in such rapid succession?

 

[Jeff Kleist]

No. They've been working on these sets since at least early 2000. Plenty of time to do it properly

 

[Jeff_HR]

Are they a little soft? Yes ... But they're still so much better than VHS that I'm not complaining

I've watched a few season 6 episodes & they do seen a bit softer. But as the quote says the quality is better than the VHS tapes I had, so I'll live with it.