reluctant to add non-lossless to your collection?

[Silo5]

If the Stargate bluray is any example to go by, then there is hope for all lossy blurays. It was originally released with DD EX & DTS-HD Hi Res, but the 15th Anniversary re-release will sport the DTS-MA 7.1. Even the video codec has been upgraded from mpeg2 to mpeg4.

[RocShemp]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

The Dolby 5.1 on Superman really sounds great, despite not being a lossless mix. It's a 31 year-old film that was remixed 9 years ago. I doubt a lossless track would really sound that much better. The film looks marvelous and has quite a few extras, including Williams complete isolated score. For $10, that's a steal. Buy BD's for the movie, not the sound mix.

+1

[FendersRule]

Originally Posted by RocShemp

+1

+1 (but I think you guys already know that).

I picked up Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. I noticed that it doesn't sport a lossless track. However, it's suppose to be "reference quality Dolby Digital". In-fact, I've ever seen that it's claimed to be the best DD track out there.

I'll let you guys know later about it.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by FendersRule

+1 (but I think you guys already know that).

I picked up Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. I noticed that it doesn't sport a lossless track. However, it's suppose to be "reference quality Dolby Digital". In-fact, I've ever seen that it's claimed to be the best DD track out there.

I'll let you guys know later about it.

It sounds excellent. M:I-3 is another one that despite being "just" a Dolby Digital track, is real winner of an audio track. I find it hard to be disappointed with these audio tracks.

[repete66211]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

Sound is the last thing I look at for BD, I am always more interested in PQ then sound

Same here. I have failed to notice that much of a difference between HD and non-HD audio in the A/B tests I've done on my equipment. I have concluded that my equipment isn't hi-fi enough to notice the difference, but it's also possible that my less than perfect hearing is a contributing factor. And there's always the possibility that there isn't much of a difference between HD and non-HD audio.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by repete66211

Same here. I have failed to notice that much of a difference between HD and non-HD audio in the A/B tests I've done on my equipment. I have concluded that my equipment isn't hi-fi enough to notice the difference, but it's also possible that my less than perfect hearing is a contributing factor. And there's always the possibility that there isn't much of a difference between HD and non-HD audio.

It depends on the mix more than anything. On some films, there's a noticeable difference. On others, not so much. Standard DD and DTS are great formats that provide wonderful sound and just because they're lossy doesn't mean we should just throw them out with the garbage and dismiss them as lackluster.

[benricci]

Originally Posted by FendersRule

+1 (but I think you guys already know that).

I picked up Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. I noticed that it doesn't sport a lossless track. However, it's suppose to be "reference quality Dolby Digital". In-fact, I've ever seen that it's claimed to be the best DD track out there.

I'll let you guys know later about it.

I will say that T3 features probably the best DD 5.1 track I've ever heard.

[repete66211]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

[/b]

It depends on the mix more than anything. On some films, there's a noticeable difference. On others, not so much. Standard DD and DTS are great formats that provide wonderful sound and just because they're lossy doesn't mean we should just throw them out with the garbage and dismiss them as lackluster.

I agree. And I'm not knocking the HD codecs here. I do believe there is a difference. I mean, have you ever neglected to select the HD codec when watching a movie? The lossy format probably worked just fine, right? It's only when doing an A/B comparison that the HD codec sounds better. If given the choice we're all going to choose the HD over the non-HD, but I'm just not sure that difference is significant enough to dissuade someone from buying a movie he really likes.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by repete66211

I agree. And I'm not knocking the HD codecs here. I do believe there is a difference. I mean, have you ever neglected to select the HD codec when watching a movie? The lossy format probably worked just fine, right? It's only when doing an A/B comparison that the HD codec sounds better. If given the choice we're all going to choose the HD over the non-HD, but I'm just not sure that difference is significant enough to dissuade someone from buying a movie he really likes.

You're absolutely right. It shouldn't dissuade anyone from buying a movie they love regardless of how the sound is presented. Anyway you slice it, it's going to be better than the DVD in almost all cases. The difference in sound quality certainly isn't as noticeable as the difference in picture quality. The fact that some people don't notice that they're listening to lossy should be proof enough that the standard DD and DTS formats are more than suitable, even in this age of 6 mbps audio tracks, for viewing a motion picture.

Personally, with regards to Superman, I hope for a reissue with the theatrical cut and the original Dolby stereo audio track in TrueHD, much like the recent Creepshow release which features the original track in high-resolution. Although the DD track on the BD sounds great for the extended edition, I prefer the theatrical version as well as the original audio track.

[repete66211]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

Personally, with regards to Superman, I hope for a reissue with the theatrical cut and the original Dolby stereo audio track in TrueHD...Although the DD track on the BD sounds great for the extended edition, I prefer the theatrical version as well as the original audio track.

Are you the resident Superman expert? If so, any chance of seeing the Fleischer cartoons on Blu-ray?

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by repete66211

Are you the resident Superman expert?

That's a-okay by me.

If so, any chance of seeing the Fleischer cartoons on Blu-ray?

Not sure. I'm betting sales of the Fleischer set released earlier this year weren't that great considering they were just repackages from the Ultimate Collection where they were presented in beautifully restored transfers. They look marvelous on DVD, although be aware they're are a lot of scratches and grain inherent to the material. Not sure if BD would really benefit them that much to be honest, but they may be featured in a future Superman BD set should one come about I would think, perhaps remastered in 1080p. Don't hesitate to pick them up on DVD though. Very much worth it, although you should go with the Ultimate Collection over the standalone release for obvious reasons. Especially considering it's going for $7 to $23 on Amazon marketplace in like new condition.

[repete66211]

Thanks for the heads up Kryptonic. I was unaware Fleischer's cartoons had been re-released. They're in my Netflix queue now.

[Monkey]

Originally Posted by Silo5

If the Stargate bluray is any example to go by, then there is hope for all lossy blurays. It was originally released with DD EX & DTS-HD Hi Res, but the 15th Anniversary re-release will sport the DTS-MA 7.1. Even the video codec has been upgraded from mpeg2 to mpeg4.

Really, when is this coming out? Stargate looked pretty bad during the dark scenes. The movie has an awesome score as well that deserves the best treatment

[benricci]

Originally Posted by Monkey

Really, when is this coming out? Stargate looked pretty bad during the dark scenes. The movie has an awesome score as well that deserves the best treatment

re-release is out Oct 27

[Monkey]

Originally Posted by benricci

re-release is out Oct 27

Thanks! Love this movie and dumped my blu quite a long time ago

[JamesKurtovich]

No, because lossy sound can still be great... But when it's a musical (like PHANTOM OF THE OPERA), it should be lossless.

[cjones235]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

You're absolutely right. It shouldn't dissuade anyone from buying a movie they love regardless of how the sound is presented. Anyway you slice it, it's going to be better than the DVD in almost all cases. The difference in sound quality certainly isn't as noticeable as the difference in picture quality. The fact that some people don't notice that they're listening to lossy should be proof enough that the standard DD and DTS formats are more than suitable, even in this age of 6 mbps audio tracks, for viewing a motion picture.

Personally, with regards to Superman, I hope for a reissue with the theatrical cut and the original Dolby stereo audio track in TrueHD, much like the recent Creepshow release which features the original track in high-resolution. Although the DD track on the BD sounds great for the extended edition, I prefer the theatrical version as well as the original audio track.

wow are you people crazy i don't care how much i love a the movie. No lossless audio no buy. I love reservoir dogs and the punisher but i refuse to buy a blu-ray with lossy audio. If you look at my collection you can see i have no bd with lossy audio i mean c'mon lossy audio was made for dvd not bd. I can't beleive it's 2009 and were still using dolby digital and lossy DTS which came out in 1992 and 93'. it's time to move on.

[FendersRule]

Originally Posted by cjones235

wow are you people crazy i don't care how much i love a the movie. No lossless audio no buy. I love reservoir dogs and the punisher but i refuse to buy a blu-ray with lossy audio. If you look at my collection you can see i have no bd with lossy audio i mean c'mon lossy audio was made for dvd not bd. I can't beleive it's 2009 and were still using dolby digital and lossy DTS which came out in 1992 and 93'. it's time to move on.

Yes, however, even DD Blu-ray tracks are encoded at a higher bitrate if I'm not mistaken. So it's not necessarily "DVD" quality. A little higher.

A tleast DD+ tracks on HD-DVD are. I think the average encode is 1.5Mb/s

[benricci]

Originally Posted by FendersRule

Yes, however, even DD Blu-ray tracks are encoded at a higher bitrate if I'm not mistaken. So it's not necessarily "DVD" quality. A little higher.

Dolby Digital tracks on blu-ray are general of a higher bitrate than DD tracks on DVD. They are also higher quality than DD soundtracks presented at your local cinema (assuming your cinema uses DD as their surround format).

[ClaytonMG]

Originally Posted by cjones235

wow are you people crazy i don't care how much i love a the movie. No lossless audio no buy. I love reservoir dogs and the punisher but i refuse to buy a blu-ray with lossy audio. If you look at my collection you can see i have no bd with lossy audio i mean c'mon lossy audio was made for dvd not bd. I can't beleive it's 2009 and were still using dolby digital and lossy DTS which came out in 1992 and 93'. it's time to move on.

We're not still using the formats we heard in '92 or '93. These sound formats have evolved quite a bit (at least Dolby Digital did with a higher bitrate and VBR compression... but it's not like lossy DTS @ 1.5mbps really needed to evolve much).

I don't think it's right for someone to call others crazy because they enjoy a movie enough to make a compromise with the sound in order to view the movie in HD. Do you honestly think lossless audio will help Reservoir Dogs sound better? It's already a High Res track. It's also a very, very cheap title.

And just to clarify, I tend not to add lossy titles at this point because most (if not all) films that I want are actually in lossless audio. I believe I pretty much have all the lossy titles that I want from earlier in Blu-ray's life.