Laserdiscs!

[darko]

I picked up a Laserdisc player and 17 movies this weekend. I've never owned anything laserdisc related. Anything I should know? I'm currently watching Independence Day!

[turf]

The only thing I know about Laserdiscs is that the Star Wars ones are worth their weight in gold.  They are the only digital release that hasn't been F#$@ed with by George Lucas. 

[atariboy]

Congrats on finding a Laserdisc player and movies, I currently have 3 players and about 250 movies for it. Just have fun with it. and Ya the star wars movies are great on it.

[scott]

I thought they published the Laserdisc versions of the original Star Wars movies on DVD at one point?

[slothingXPIG]

I have never heard of this.    kinda embarrassing lol I guess before my time and never did my research

[darko]

Congrats on finding a Laserdisc player and movies, I currently have 3 players and about 250 movies for it. Just have fun with it. and Ya the star wars movies are great on it.

I found out that the player I have (Pioneer S104?? - I'm at work so that's from memory) is a pretty baseline player. Do you have any recs on a good player? I'm going to hit up some thrift stores and see if I can find something a bit better for a decent price.

I only paid $10 for the one I have, so I'm not worried that I got ripped off or anything

[sin2beta]

I hear the original discovision release of Jaws on laserdisc is supposed to be a very nice version. Some extra scenes. But I don't know if those scenes have been rereleased. I'd be surprised if they haven't. But still something I would look for. If nothing else, the discovision covers are weird.

[insektmute]

Dunno if you're into horror, but I've heard the laserdisc for Suspiria is fairly special for offering the theatrical quadrophonic soundtrack mix.

[foxhack]

The only thing I know about Laserdiscs is that the Star Wars ones are worth their weight in gold.  They are the only digital release that hasn't been F#$@ed with by George Lucas.

Laserdiscs are analog. Not digital. I don't get it either, but you can't just copy them like you can copy a DVD.

I thought they published the Laserdisc versions of the original Star Wars movies on DVD at one point?

They did... kinda. They were letterboxed instead of being properly formatted for widescreen. You know how widescreen movies just seem to -fit- on a widescreen TV? Well, these ones keep the bars on the top and bottom. It sucks.

I LIKE laserdiscs (hell I love old video formats) but man are those discs bulky as hell.

[atariboy]

Congrats on finding a Laserdisc player and movies, I currently have 3 players and about 250 movies for it. Just have fun with it. and Ya the star wars movies are great on it.

I found out that the player I have (Pioneer S104?? - I'm at work so that's from memory) is a pretty baseline player. Do you have any recs on a good player? I'm going to hit up some thrift stores and see if I can find something a bit better for a decent price.

I only paid $10 for the one I have, so I'm not worried that I got ripped off or anything

I really don't know too much in terms of whats a great player compared to a good baseline player. The folks over at http://www.lddb.com/ may be able to answer any questions you might have. The one I have setup in my living room is a Pioneer CLD-D501 and the other backup ones are a Sony MDP-455 and a Denon (not sure of model # it's in storage). I haven't seen a player in my area for a few years now but I do come across a movie every now and then. About 2 weeks ago I found Jumanji and Top Gun for $1.35 and Casper for $2.35. Good luck in your hunt.

[scott]

@foxhack, how is a Laserdisc analog? It looks like a giant CD?! Blows my mind. ha

[foxhack]

@foxhack, how is a Laserdisc analog? It looks like a giant CD?! Blows my mind. ha

Data on CDs and DVDs is stored as pits that represent 0s and 1s (digitally) and the data can be copied relatively easily. Laserdiscs don't store their info in such a simple way, the data varies quite a bit, and they can't be copied so simply. That's all I know about the differences.

[turf]

The only thing I know about Laserdiscs is that the Star Wars ones are worth their weight in gold.  They are the only digital release that hasn't been F#$@ed with by George Lucas.

Laserdiscs are analog. Not digital. I don't get it either, but you can't just copy them like you can copy a DVD.

Well, slap me around and call me Sally.  I've always heard that they were the only release where Han shot first.  My life is a lie.

[pacpix]

Greedo shot first!

[scott]

Personally, having seen all versions of the film. I like Han shooting first. But I guess, I can see why he would want to make Han seem less villainous.