Star Wars in High Def

[stratman]

Has anyone been tuning into Spike's Star Wars weekend marathon? All episodes in in 1080i, better than regular TV, but I'm still not decided as compared to DVD, somehow my DVD looks a bit better, but then again this can be a placebo????

Have you guys seen any difference?

 

[MUDSHARK]

I have often thought that DVd looked better than the HD HBO movies including Star`Wars. Perhaps it is the Hd lite that Brighthouse (Directv is just as bad by all accounts) transmits. The sports are a huge step up but movies, well I just don't see it.

 

[stratman]

I have often thought that DVd looked better than the HD HBO movies including Star`Wars. Perhaps it is the Hd lite that Brighthouse (Directv is just as bad by all accounts) transmits. The sports are a huge step up but movies, well I just don't see it.

Yes, ESPN has beautiful PQ, I don't have HBO so I can't say, but Star Wars on Spike is better than regular TV, but the jury is out versus regular DVD.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

The reason is because those movies are not actually in HD. They are upscaled to "1080i" and played on a HD station, but they are not HD movies.

 

[stratman]

The reason is because those movies are not actually in HD. They are upscaled to "1080i" and played on a HD station, but they are not HD movies.

Yeah, I know they're just upscaled, but I was hoping against hope for a really outstanding picture, but it's not to be. Oh well, I guess we'll have to wait till Georgy Boy decides to release in BD. Have you heard anything about that?

 

[captiankirk28]

Yeah, I know they're just upscaled, but I was hoping against hope for a really outstanding picture, but it's not to be. Oh well, I guess we'll have to wait till Georgy Boy decides to release in BD. Have you heard anything about that?

About Georgy Boy, im sure he will relese them on blu-ray because he has not made enough money on those movies yet

 

[Seth=L]

The reason is because those movies are not actually in HD. They are upscaled to "1080i" and played on a HD station, but they are not HD movies.

How did you come to have this knowledge?

 

[croseiv]

Aw man! I thought you were going to say it was coming out in HD.

 

[mtrycrafts]

How did you come to have this knowledge?

Where would the broadcasters get a hi def source to transmit these movies from?

 

[Pyrrho]

Where would the broadcasters get a hi def source to transmit these movies from?

If they broadcast films in one of the old-fashioned ways, by using actual film as the source, they would have something with more than enough resolution for HD broadcasts. 720p or 1080i (or even 1080p from a Blu-Ray disc) would look like crap next to a good 35mm film print when blown up to real theater sizes.

 

[Pyrrho]

Has anyone been tuning into Spike's Star Wars weekend marathon? All episodes in in 1080i, better than regular TV, but I'm still not decided as compared to DVD, somehow my DVD looks a bit better, but then again this can be a placebo????

Have you guys seen any difference?

What are they using for broadcast, a VHS tape?!??!?? If they are upscaling a DVD, they should have a pro quality upscaler, and it should look better than your DVD (unless you have a pro quality upscaler). Or is it that your cable or satellite provider has just compressed the hell out of the signal, making it look like crap?

 

[stratman]

What are they using for broadcast, a VHS tape?!??!?? If they are upscaling a DVD, they should have a pro quality upscaler, and it should look better than your DVD (unless you have a pro quality upscaler). Or is it that your cable or satellite provider has just compressed the hell out of the signal, making it look like crap?

I'm not sure what they're using as source material. I have Direct TV and to my eyes (and my wife's) my DVD just looks better (sharper and cleaner), maybe Spike is compressing the hell out of it?

 

[Pyrrho]

I'm not sure what they're using as source material. I have Direct TV and to my eyes (and my wife's) my DVD just looks better (sharper and cleaner), maybe Spike is compressing the hell out of it?

I doubt that it is Spike that is overly compressing it. It is more likely that Direct TV is overly compressing it. Cable and satellite service providers do such things to save bandwidth, as a cable or satellite is capable of a finite amount of data transmission, and they can fit more channels on if they compress the hell out of it all. They typically sell you the service based on the number of channels, not by how much bandwidth each channel gets. If you use an antenna, you are less likely to have such problems, though, of course, Spike TV is, I think, not broadcast normally.

This, by the way, is one of those cases that really proves that "you get what you pay for" is a lie. Free broadcast HDTV is typically less compressed. See:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/connecting-your-system/get-high-definition-hdtv

It is really pathetic, though, if a "HD" channel looks worse than a DVD. Are you sure it is really an HD channel? If so, you are getting screwed royally, as you are paying for HD channels that don't look as good as SD can look.

 

[stratman]

I doubt that it is Spike that is overly compressing it. It is more likely that Direct TV is overly compressing it. Cable and satellite service providers do such things to save bandwidth, as a cable or satellite is capable of a finite amount of data transmission, and they can fit more channels on if they compress the hell out of it all. They typically sell you the service based on the number of channels, not by how much bandwidth each channel gets. If you use an antenna, you are less likely to have such problems, though, of course, Spike TV is, I think, not broadcast normally.

This, by the way, is one of those cases that really proves that "you get what you pay for" is a lie. Free broadcast HDTV is typically less compressed. See:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/connecting-your-system/get-high-definition-hdtv

It is really pathetic, though, if a "HD" channel looks worse than a DVD. Are you sure it is really an HD channel? If so, you are getting screwed royally, as you are paying for HD channels that don't look as good as SD can look.

Yup, it's an "HD" channel. My brother in law told me that certain HD cannels look better because they pay more for more bandwidth, ie ESPN, FOX and of course Discovery HD, which in my opinion has the best PQ on Direct TV.

 

[Pyrrho]

Yup, it's an "HD" channel. My brother in law told me that certain HD cannels look better because they pay more for more bandwidth, ie ESPN, FOX and of course Discovery HD, which in my opinion has the best PQ on Direct TV.

I have not heard that channels pay cable and satellite providers before, but your brother-in-law could be right. If I were terribly interested in the practices of these services, I would do a bit of research to see if that was what was going on; I seem to remember hearing or reading that they tended to apply the most compression to those channels that they thought got the fewest viewers, and compressed the least whatever they thought got the most viewers. In any case, I would be very annoyed if I subscribed to something for all the HD channels, and then found that they did not all look better than SD. What is the point in it even being HD if it looks worse than SD can look? It is things like this that make me glad I watch broadcast HD. This, and not getting a monthly bill to add insult to injury. If there are HD broadcasts in your area (and there probably are), and if you have a tuner that can receive it, I recommend trying out your old antenna (if you have one) to see what you can get for free. You might be surprised by what you can get with just rabbit ears, depending upon where, exactly, you live. Of course, it won't be all the channels you get now, but you might find that those you do get look better than what Direct TV is providing you. All of the HD broadcasts that I have received, excluding those programs that are upconverted, look obviously better than any DVD I have seen.

 

[larry7995]

I think the old star wars movies will look really bad in high def, very fake. I am hoping someone will come out with a new sci fi epic. But knowing hollywood they would screw it up with their social agenda, political correctness, and marketing/sales. It would have to be made in some other country

 

[Biggiesized]

Read and learn

Where would the broadcasters get a hi def source to transmit these movies from?

How do you think the DVDs get made? A colorist telecines the film to a digital intermediate. One of the more popular models is the Spirit 4K. From there they do post-processing like digital noise reduction, film grain reduction, digital grading, etc. Finally the whole project is encoded by a compressionist for a specific output format: 1080i broadcast, DVD, etc.

In the case of the prequel trilogy, those movies were shot entirely in digital using 1080p Sony CineAltas. While working in digital is great, you've just effectively limited yourself to future consumer movie media sales opportunities. If something ever succeeds Blu-ray, George Lucas will have to use incredibly good upconverting techniques to get past the 1080p hurdle. Film doesn't have this problem because it can be scanned to a DI at a much higher resolution--up to 8K if you have excellent film stock. It has way more detail. The HD releases of Blade Runner were downsampled from a 4K remaster.

However, if more people starting jumping on board with the RED One, filmmakers might be tempted to go digital only. At 4K resolution, it's really more than you'll ever need. And it's a lot less fuss.

 

[Biggiesized]

I think the old star wars movies will look really bad in high def, very fake. I am hoping someone will come out with a new sci fi epic. But knowing hollywood they would screw it up with their social agenda, political correctness, and marketing/sales. It would have to be made in some other country

In late 2006, HBO and Cinemax debuted the entire Star Wars trilogy on their HD channels and you could even watch them OnDemand. I was curious to see how the old films would look and I was not disappointed. Lowry Digital did a formal restoration of the films before they were released on DVD and seeing the films in HD was equally stunning. There is nothing wrong with the picture quality of the old films. They were in terrible condition before the restoration though.

Honestly, not only do I prefer the storytelling, etc. of the old films, but also the special effects. Despite being primative, they look more realistic than even the more recent CGI work of the new trilogy because they used actual models back then.

 

[obscbyclouds]

Honestly, not only do I prefer the storytelling, etc. of the old films, but also the special effects. Despite being primative, they look more realistic than even the more recent CGI work of the new trilogy because they used actual models back then.

I agree with you completely here. As a huge SW fan (original trilogy), I was really dissapointed with the overuse of CGI in the new films. Even worse is the New CGI that was thrown into the Special Edition versions of episode IV,V and VI. Particularly bad is the rendition of Jabba the Hutt from IV. Something about using real models leads to a more believeable appearance. I may just be the old guard, but I don't think CGI is the most realistic way to produce special effects in all situations. But obviously George Lucas doesn't agree with me.

 

[stratman]

In late 2006, HBO and Cinemax debuted the entire Star Wars trilogy on their HD channels and you could even watch them OnDemand. I was curious to see how the old films would look and I was not disappointed. Lowry Digital did a formal restoration of the films before they were released on DVD and seeing the films in HD was equally stunning. There is nothing wrong with the picture quality of the old films. They were in terrible condition before the restoration though.

Honestly, not only do I prefer the storytelling, etc. of the old films, but also the special effects. Despite being primative, they look more realistic than even the more recent CGI work of the new trilogy because they used actual models back then.

I learn something new everyday. Are you saying Georgy Boy let the prints floating out in tv land, that are used for showings, deteriorate? I figured he's so anal that he wouldn't allow extra film to get ratty. I bet the original prints are stored in museum-quality conditions in a hermetic vault. I saw the original trilogy back in their theatrical releases, the new ones are missing the spark that made the originals so appealing. I did a small experiment, I played Revenge Of The Sith and everytime Anakin appeared with Padme during the "love" sequences I fast-fowarded, the movie picked up pace and was more interesting and enjoyable, the acting in the new movies was mediocre at best.