pal movies on NTSC PS3...?

[Ex-CON]

Hello everyone, first off I would like to say that this is the greatest forum that I have ever had the pleasure to read.

With that said, I have one simple question, are you able to play "pal" blue-ray movies on a NTSC ps3? I bought a console on my vacation in the US along with some NTSC titles, but I'm not sure If the movies I buy in Poland will work.

I searched these forums for my answer but I could not find a clear yes or no answer.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[koontz1973]

Your PS3 is Region A. Any film that is Region A of Region A/B/C (Region free) will play on machine. You will not be able to play extras that are in PAL (non Hi-Def) format.

Find films with no extras,HD extras or if you just do not watch them, you will be good.

[steve_dave]

To elaborate further...

Blu-ray Discs are either going to be 1080i or 1080p. Check the specifications for the main feature. If you see 1080i and you bought it from Europe, it is more than likely going to be 1080/50hz or 1080i and will not play on a US player. US titles that are 1080i are 1080/60hz.

The major studios when they release their own films will generally use 1080/24f (the P in 1080p) for films so these will work on any player worldwide. The major studios will also choose to include extras in 480i/p so these will work on US players.

Local distributors for the major studios (Dutch Filmworks, for example) will use 576i/p extras so these will not work on US players.

You may also find that some titles have either 576i/p or 1080/50hz content before the film or the menu is 1080/50hz. If the menu is 1080/50hz then you will not be able to control movie playback. In some cases, the player will default to playing the film. In other cases, the player will not play them back.

[Ex-CON]

So pretty much it will be a hit or miss unless for sure the title is in 60hz refresh rate.

Just to add, the TV is a new gen 50" 1080p plasma (plays both NTSC and PAL signals). But from what I read, I guess that doesn't matter, it just comes down to the player..?

k00l, I will look into more closely when I get back to Europe,

Thanks again.

[retablo]

There is no PAL anymore with blu-ray. Everything is 1080p (or i). Its all about the region coding. You probably wouldn't want an 1080 i encode anyway, so as long as its 1080p, and region free, or region ab or abc, it'll play.

The one thing people have run into is foreign transfers using PAL trailers before the film. Sometimes that'll cause the player to reject the disc, but some players have ways around it.

[GGX]

PAL/NTSC is a product of standard definition content.

[Clark Kent]

The only Region A PS3s that can play PAL material are from Hong Kong. Those are the only Region A PS3s in the entire world that can play both PAL and NTSC. That country got lucky because both formats are popular there.

[Lyle_JP]

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

The only Region A PS3s that can play PAL material are from Hong Kong. Those are the only Region A PS3s in the entire world that can play both PAL and NTSC. That country got lucky because both formats are popular there.

Yes, but as a DVD player it is locked to Region 3, making it useless for many of us who also use our PS3s as our primary DVD player.

[Ex-CON]

thanks again every1 !

[Kyo28]

Originally Posted by retablo

There is no PAL anymore with blu-ray. Everything is 1080p (or i). Its all about the region coding. You probably wouldn't want an 1080 i encode anyway, so as long as its 1080p, and region free, or region ab or abc, it'll play.

The one thing people have run into is foreign transfers using PAL trailers before the film. Sometimes that'll cause the player to reject the disc, but some players have ways around it.

That's a bit of an oversimplification. PAL is still an issue for some discs and not just trailers but also extra's encoded in PAL SD will not play on a region A player. One such example is Origin: Spirits of the Past (giniro no kami no Agito) UK release. The movie plays perfectly but I can't watch the extra's (fortunately, they weren't much of interest to me)

Another issue that you can have is that some menu's can be encoded in PAL. One such example is the UK release of Zatoichi. The movie can perfectly be played but you can't access the main menu.

To sum it up, when buying region free Blu-rays from region B, make sure to check reviews, websites and forums to confirm if it has parts in PAL, namely:
- menu
- extra's
- trailers

The movie itself however will always be playable, except perhaps for rare cases of 1080i instead of 1080p, IF they are encoded in PAL

[Mobe1969]

If you have a region A HK PS3 you will be able to play both PAL and NTSC. It is a fake limitation imposed on the machines

[Kartoon]

Originally Posted by Kyo28

Another issue that you can have is that some menu's can be encoded in PAL. One such example is the UK release of Zatoichi. The movie can perfectly be played but you can't access the main menu.

*In theory* it can be played, but you NEED the menu to watch the movie there's no way to skip it so technically it can't be played.

[jw]

Originally Posted by Kartoon

*In theory* it can be played, but you NEED the menu to watch the movie there's no way to skip it so technically it can't be played.

WELL there are tricks that work on some with the PS3

[richieb1971]

The reason PS3's do not support 50hz/1080i or PAL playback is because absolutely no TV in the USA has ever been released with the ability to playback PAL or 50hz encoded programming.

Sony decided its better to omit the feature since it might damage the TV causing them lawsuits to deal with.

In Hong Kong, even SDTV's were sold as Multisystem. Therefore it was a risk worth taking, since both NTSC and PAL software is sold there.

Other players such as the Oppo, convert the signal on the fly. So even when your playing 50hz content, its being displayed as 60hz.

[Blacklac]

Wow, LOTS of BS in this thread.

There are a handful of TV's in the US that can play PAL. PAL is still around with Bluray. I have 2 Bluray movies that are 1080i50, not to mention some imports can have PAL trailers and extras.

[Homerx]

I would like the PS3 to do it. I don't see why not. other then a need to keep PAl movies out. As converting on the fly should be easy. the xbox does it. which is something I love about it...

I will get a OPPO at some point to play the imports I have that have 50i or PAL issues

[Clark Kent]

Insiders at Sony have basically admitted the reason why U.S. PS3's do not play PAL material. It is a form of export control, so that EU citizens do not import cheaper PS3's from the U.S. Companies love to control their territories individually because of currency fluctuations and accounting differences.

We will never see a U.S. PS3 legally play PAL content.

[steve_dave]

Yet, oddly some Sony LCD TVs support PAL resolution.

Mine does so I have my multi-region DVD player set to output to multi system so Japanese and most Hong Kong & Thai DVDs show up as 480p while the European, Australian, and remaining HK & Thai DVDs display at 576p.

I have the imports of Almost Famous and Kung Fu Hustle from Hong Kong and they everything plays fine on my US PS3 because they are Sony HK releases. However, my Danish import of Tristan and Isolde & UK of I'm A Cyborg play the movie just fine but the extras do not work because they are formatted for 576i/p televisions. Isolde was from Dutch Filmworks while Cyborg is Tartan UK.

The Public Enemies UK release has extras in 1080/60hz so they will work on both US and UK players.

[KubrickFan]

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

Insiders at Sony have basically admitted the reason why U.S. PS3's do not play PAL material. It is a form of export control, so that EU citizens do not import cheaper PS3's from the U.S. Companies love to control their territories individually because of currency fluctuations and accounting differences.

We will never see a U.S. PS3 legally play PAL content.

Then why do they release their games region free? Seems like an odd thing to do if you want to protect your own territory.

[richieb1971]

Originally Posted by KubrickFan

Then why do they release their games region free? Seems like an odd thing to do if you want to protect your own territory.

Thats not quite true. Whilst differing standards of TV system will control export/imports, it has nothing to do with PS3 not having PAL playback.

In most places in the world, TV's have 50hz and 60hz compliance. An internal switch reads the clock frequency of the codec/disc and switches accordingly to the one that is used by the media in question.

Since all TV's in the USA are cheap and nobody in the USA would theoretically/historically speaking go to another continent to buy a movie. All TV's in the USA only have 60hz/24hz compatibility. The switch does not exist in the TV. Therefore outputting PAL or a 1080i/50hz signal to that TV will cause damage to it or just not display correctly.

All PS3 games run at 60hz no matter what the territory. It is an HDTV standard that is globally accepted. Therefore PS3 can be region free. PS2/PS1 cannot. Because those 2 formats used PAL and NTSC in their respective regions and the same caboodle applies here as well.


A standalone blu ray player will play 50hz. Most of them will not work on the TV though. Only those players like the Oppo which do internal 50-60hz conversions on the fly. Meaning that before the player outputs the signal, it is already converted to 60hz so that the TV can understand it. Not cheap though.