Video Asylum

Posted by bassbinotoko (A) on June 12, 2009 at 15:17:53

In Reply to: RE: upconverting laserdiscs posted by Joe Murphy Jr on May 19, 2009 at 15:57:29

The question was whether the comb filter in the player was any better than the one in your TV. They're both processing the same composite video signal. I would expect that modern TVs have much better comb filters than were practical in the '90s, so don't worry about finding a player with S-video out.

I watched Natural Born Killers (the boxed set) recently, upconverted on a 720p Sony 16x9 CRT, and I was impressed by how good it looked and sounded.

Now, S/PDIF output is a rare and useful feature which I have not found on any thrift store laserdisc player. My Hitachi (really a Pioneer) had provision on the circuit board for an "export" version with S/PDIF out, so I just had to add a buffer circuit and drill a hole in the back panel. It means I can enjoy DTS laserdiscs at higher bitrates than (probably) any DVD. And it avoids an extra digital to analog to digital conversion stage for Dolby Surround or Prologic sources, which can't be a bad thing.

It also means I can potentially capture the PCM or DTS audio stream, which is valuable if the DVD or Bluray versions of a movie have been mutilated because of music licensing.