Hundreds of Laser Discs for *FREE*

[anm]

I second the lakozy idea. They can manage it better given the office space dedicated to hifi. It will also increase footfall in their showroom.

 

[Lakozy Electronics]

I second the lakozy idea. They can manage it better given the office space dedicated to hifi. It will also increase footfall in their showroom.

We are ready for it. Infact, Ashish is planning to pick up the stuff today itself.

Shitij.

 

[viper08]

@sanjay

Heard that the LD players were very expenssive and quite bulky and majority good were from pioneers stable. Just curious to know which player you watched them on and how much it costed that time?

 

[sanjay0864]

Those were the days of VCDs and LDs were like God when they arrived. However I always felt they were not practically feasible as they were extremely expensive and bulky to carry. Also, as Video was written in Analog form, it was vulnerable to variable quality issue like VHS, etc.

Actually VCD as a format came, much, much later than Laser Discs. You are right though about them being more expensive and bulky, but then again the reason for them being more expensive was simply due to the lower volumes. Also, you are right about the analog video being more susceptible to quality issues, but then again 'digital' video too has it's own set of vulnerabilities.

LDs carry UNCOMPRESSED Video, hence Video is SUPERIOR to DVDs. Audio as I remember was similar to what we have on DVD (DD and/or DTS - though might be of higher bit-rate than typically what we get in DVDs).

Actually 'uncpompressed' in itself does not guarantee anything. In fact all analog technologies, including VHS, Beta etc. are 'uncompressed' but they are not as good as 'compressed' digital video. In fact as long as 'compression' is done right, it in itself does not lower the video quality, rather compression makes digital video possible, for without compression no existing media format could provide enough space for digital video.

Do not think so ,also there were VERY VERY few DTS LDs

You are right, that there are very limited number of DTS LDs, but that is the case with DVDs too.

I remember comparison of LD and DVd where DVD was far superior..

The video quality of DVDs are far superior to their LD counterpart. But as far as audio is concerned, I assure you my friend a LD will outshine it's DVD counterpart in almost all cases and at times will actually put to shame the newer DVD format when it comes to audio.

I may be wrong here and Sanjay or others can correct me, but IIRC video in LD is encoded in MPEG format (same as VCD) however, the resolution and space available is much more than VCD and so the quality obviously is much better.
That said, DVDs were better with MPEG2 (better compression tech) and even more space.

I am sorry, but you are wrong abotu this. The video on LaserDiscs is always analog and thus does not involve any compression techniology. Although, you are correct about VCDs using MPEG compression and that DVDs use MPEG 2.

Dude MPEG is a DIGITAL VIDEO COMPRESSION FORMAT, it was "composite" NTSC or PAL (interlaced). Progressive DVDs MAY look better, however on complex action scene, LD will still have an upper hand as the image is uncompressed.

You are right about LDs having interlaced 'NTSC/PAL' video, but the quality of DVDs almost always and for all types of video, will be much superior to that of LDs. That is, as long as you use the same source and the authorer does not do something exceptionally stupid while making the MPEG2 encode for the DVD, it is almost impossible for the DVD to not be far superior to the LD. Believe me, I have some of the best authored (CAV) LDs and have compared them to their DVD counterparts and shockingly the LDs look almost unwatchable in comparison.

PS: I used what is considered to be the "holy grail of LD players", for this comparison.

 

[sanjay0864]

There seems to be quite a bit of confusion and myths regarding what exactly laser discs are (were). So for those who care, I will try to provide a basic overview.

Laser Discs aka 'LD's were the first commercially available optical disc format. Yes, even from before the audio CD. They were initially marketed in 1978 as Discovision, but it did not gain popularity until Pioneer Electronics purchased the format, redesigned it and marketed it as 'LaserDisc' in 1983.

The 'LaserDisc' is a 30cm (11.81") optical disc. There are 'TWO' types of LaserDiscs:
'Standard Play' CAV (constant angular velocity) - 54,000 individual frames or 30 minutes of audio/video could be stored per side, adding upto 1 hr per disc.
'Extended Play' CLV (constand linear velocity) - 60 minutes of audio/video per side, adding upto 2 hours per disc.
CAV discs for obvious reasons provided superior quality.
Although Laserdiscs are optical discs, they unlike CDs and DVDs stored only analog video and also initially only analog audio. It was only in the late 1980's that LaserDiscs incorporated 'digital' audio. Most importantly, the video on a LaserDisc always remained analog, right till the end of the formats life. In other words, LaserDiscs never, ever had 'digital' video. Thus due to the nature of analog, the video on a LaserDisc was always uncompressed and therefore the terms 'MPEG1', 'MPEG2' etc. etc. are not applicable. However, despite its analog nature, the Laserdisc at its most fundamental level is still recorded as a series of pits and lands much like CDs and DVDs are.
In terms of quality, the Laser Disc was far superior, both for audio and video, to the absolutely crap VCD format. VCD was the first format to have 'digital' video and it used 'MPEG1'.
A DVD on the other hand, unless the DVD is exceptionally poorly mastered/authored, has much superior video quality than LaserDiscs. But strangely enough, due to reasons quite mysterious, the audio quality of a LaserDisc is still quite a bit better than DVDs. This is not because of any inherint limitation of DVDs, but rather due to strange technical choices made by Dolby and the movie studios. Basically the difference lies in the bitrate used for encoding DD and DTS on the two formats. A Dolby Digital track on Laser Discs used to be encoded with a 640kbps bitrate, but for reasons known only to Dolby, the maximum bitrate for DVDs was capped at 448kbps. In the case of DTS also, Laserdiscs were encoded using fullbitrate DTS which is 1536 kbps, instead of only the "half" bitrate 768 kbps used for DVDs. There are a few, rare DVDs that have a full bitrate DTS audio track and these DVDs, do sound 'phenomenal' and definately as good as their Laser Disc counterparts.

 

[sanjay0864]

Heard that the LD players were very expenssive and quite bulky and majority good were from pioneers stable. Just curious to know which player you watched them on and how much it costed that time?

You are quite right about Laser Disc players being both expensive and bulky. They were bulky for the obvious reason that the disc itself was 30cm (11.81") and they were expensive because Laser Discs were a 'niche' market. Prices of consumer electronics only come down if and once the product becomes mainstream, which LDs never did. In India, LaserDisc players used to cost anywhere between Rs. 22000/- and Rs. 100000/- depending on make and model. Do keep in mind that the value of the Indian Rupee back then was atleast 3-4 times what it is today. The primary brands selling LD players, were Pioneer, Sony, Samsung, Yamaha, Denon & Onkyo. But, there were actually only 'three' LD player manufacturers, ie. Pioneer, Sony and Samsung. All others simply rebranded players that were manufactured for them by Pioneer.

Personally, I have had four or five players between 1991, which is when I bought my first LD player and now. All the LD players I have owned, including the one I still have, have been Pioneer players. I paid approx. Rs. 40,000/- for the player I still currently have, which is the Pioneer 'CLD-D704' player. This player was referred to, back when it first came out, as the "Holy grail of laser disc players". It was also the very last 'model' manufactured by Pioneer and in fact the model was 'current' until just a couple of years back when Pioneer finally decided to stop selling them. Second hand players in good enough condition can still be found on ebay for approx $350-$400.

PS: As strange and unbelievable as it may sound to some, I have some special edition LD titles that I actually paid Rs. 10,000 for. In today's Rupee terms, that would be approx. Rs. 40,000/-

 

[prankey]

Actually 'uncpompressed' in itself does not guarantee anything. In fact all analog technologies, including VHS, Beta etc. are 'uncompressed' but they are not as good as 'compressed' digital video. In fact as long as 'compression' is done right, it in itself does not lower the video quality, rather compression makes digital video possible, for without compression no existing media format could provide enough space for digital video.

I agree, however I felt that CAV LDs were the best quality analog source before DVDs arrive. I believe LDs were the best medium at that time as like in HiFi VHS, they were written in a TAPE which was susceptible to the quality of the "Head" and used to get worn out easily. However as there was no PHYSICAL contact (like in regular CD/DVD/BDs), this wear was not pronounced much in LDs.

You are right about LDs having interlaced 'NTSC/PAL' video, but the quality of DVDs almost always and for all types of video, will be much superior to that of LDs. That is, as long as you use the same source and the authorer does not do something exceptionally stupid while making the MPEG2 encode for the DVD, it is almost impossible for the DVD to not be far superior to the LD. Believe me, I have some of the best authored (CAV) LDs and have compared them to their DVD counterparts and shockingly the LDs look almost unwatchable in comparison. PS: I also used what is considered to be the "holy grail of LD players", for this comparison.

I personally liked LDs much more than the initial crop of DVDs I saw in 1990s. I might be wrong on this. I believe you are comparing with a well mastered DL DVD which do not loose much of a perceived PQ as the Video bitrate is high.

A Dolby Digital track on Laser Discs used to be encoded with a 640kbps bitrate, but for reasons known only to Dolby, the maximum bitrate for DVDs was capped at 448kbps. In the case of DTS also, Laserdiscs were encoded using fullbitrate DTS which is 1536 kbps, instead of only the "half" bitrate 768 kbps used for DVDs. There are a few, rare DVDs that have a full bitrate DTS audio track and these DVDs, do sound 'phenomenal' and definately as good as their Laser Disc counterparts.

Limits on bitrates are more to do with mastering standards which are globally followed than with Dolby or DTS. I believe we can master a 640kbps DD DVDs and they could still run fine on any DVD player (haven't tested though).

 

[venkatcr]

I have heard from Sanjay that a large number of members have PMed him for the LDs. As is clear after the last few posts, I see no value in keeping these LDs unless you have a LD Player. Sanjay, it may make sense to enquire the intention of the members with the LDs. I also appreciate it may mean a lot of work for you. The ball is in your court, so to say.

Cheers

 

[shershah]

hi sanjay0864,

you might want to look at this - this man is selling his laserdiscs at about Rs.200/- each!

iOffer Stores - tvaddict's Store

regds
shershah

 

[soundofmusic]

Sanjay, I would suggest not to give the LD's for free, Atleast charge a normal amount. People will not know the value of anything which is given free of cost. All your LD's which has been collected and preserved by you for so many years may be just a toy to some if given free. Or you can ask the people interested in the LD to donate the amount to an Orphanage.

regards

 

[gobble]

Sanjay, I would suggest not to give the LD's for free, Atleast charge a normal amount. People will not know the value of anything which is given free of cost. All your LD's which has been collected and preserved by you for so many years may be just a toy to some if given free. Or you can ask the people interested in the LD to donate the amount to an Orphanage.

regards

I agree :clapping:

 

[srinisundar]

Sanjay, I would suggest not to give the LD's for free, Atleast charge a normal amount. People will not know the value of anything which is given free of cost. All your LD's which has been collected and preserved by you for so many years may be just a toy to some if given free. Or you can ask the people interested in the LD to donate the amount to an Orphanage.

regards

Already our dealer member is picking it up for free.. Don't know Ashih/Sumit are going to circulate amount members who is willing to pick from them. I know it is not practically possible to dedicate time to send for outstation and also I doubt anybody in delhi region is having LD player other than Sanjay and Lakozy.:lol:

 

[sanjay0864]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. This whole excercise is turning out to be a lot more complicated and time consuming than I had originally anticipated. Anyhow, as mentioned earlier I have close to over a thousand (I think) LDs which are lying in different places and I have not even checked their condition in almost ten years. Thus, I think first I will try and get them all consolidated in one place, have an inventory list made and then try to figure out a rational, yet not too time consuming method by which the maximum number of people can benefit from the collection. The first and foremost thing that is important for me, is that the discs should go to someone who will appreciate their value and who would also make some use of them. In fact this whole excercise began in my mind, only because my wife asked me if she could give the Laser Discs to the 'raddi wala' (junk/salvage dealer), since they were taking up to much storage space and this inspite of the fact that majority of my laser discs are not even stored at my house. The very thought, of what once was a very prized collection of mine going to a junk dealer, made me cringe and I requested her to bear with the situation for just a bit longer, so as to allow me to atleast give them away to someone who would value them.

PS: I am not even sure if the majority of the discs will even work, since LDs had an issue of getting warped if not stored in the right conditions.

 

[venkatcr]

Anyhow, as mentioned earlier I have close to over a thousand (I think) LDs which are lying in different places and I have not even checked their condition in almost ten years.

Wow, that is a gold mine. I am making arrangements to get an LD Player. One of my friends has an unused one, and I am grabbing it.

Cheers

 

[viper08]

While searching on the net I found that the main difference betwee LD and DVD apart from the technical aspect was there were many titles which were never released originally on the DVDs for some copyright reasons may be. E.g: Star wars, Alladin etc. There is huge list available on the net. Some owners of the LDs are trying to copy them on DVDs to retain the collection for future

 

[sanjay0864]

By the way, I also have a collection of approximately 1900 English DVDs, all 'original' US imports. The DVDs though, are well packed and stored in the basement of a friend's office, all in alphabetical order with a full inventory list. I had packed and stored these discs a little over two years ago and have since never accessed them, let alone use them. Thus, I do need at some point, to figure out what to do with them too. Ofcourse, giving the DVDs away for 'free', is not an option I would consider.

 

[sanjay0864]

While searching on the net I found that the main difference betwee LD and DVD apart from the technical aspect was there were many titles which were never released originally on the DVDs for some copyright reasons may be. E.g: Star wars, Alladin etc. There is huge list available on the net. Some owners of the LDs are trying to copy them on DVDs to retain the collection for future

I am quite sure that I must have titles on LD, that are not available on any other format anymore, atleast not yet.

 

[srinisundar]

By the way, I also have a collection of approximately 1900 English DVDs, all 'original' US imports. The DVDs though, are well packed and stored in alphabetical order with a full inventory list, in the basement of a friend's office. I had packed and stored these discs a little over two years ago and have since never accessed them, let alone use them. Thus, I do need at some point, to figure out what to do with them too. Ofcourse, giving the DVDs away for 'free', is not an option I would consider.

Yep, giving away for free is not an option... I would recommend putting a price to cover at least partial amount to rotate for further purchase..

 

[anm]

it is going to be much more complex for the one handling it. I don't have an LD player and I won't buy one, unless I get it for dirt cheap. Though I would definitely like to watch a few movies on LD. Now how would people like me get around the hardware issue.

 

[square_wave]

I still have Onkyo LD player, image quality is awesome.



Anil

I used to have a pioneer long back. The LD was the REAL successor to the VCR