HDCriticalFan
Established Member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2008
- Messages
- 1,364
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OK everyone, please form an orderly clue to tell me I'm an idiot
Everything was peace and love in the HDCF household; the Blu-ray player was set up and the Director's Cut of Red Dwarf : Back to Earth was unwrapped for my viewing pleasure.
Within the opening few seconds I noticed that camera movement caused terrible tearing in the background. I couldn't read a sign on the wall. I popped over to my Sky+HD recorder where I still had the Dave broadcast. There is was fine.
It didn't take long to realise that the difference between the two was that the satellite broadcast on Dave was (unsurprisingly) 1080/50i - being a normal UK broadcast. The version coming out of my Blu-ray player seems to be 1080/60i !
Now firstly, I had asked for this present because I naively assumed that the Blu-ray would be very much better than the TV broadcast - expecting it to be a 1080/50p "master". A quick look at the packaging showed that is was labelled "1080i" - with no reference to the frame rate. However, there should still be a benefit, albeit smaller, of being less compressed than broadcast TV.
But the show, being made for UK TV, must surely have been made at 50 Hz (unless they actually filmed it at 24fps or applied a fake filmic effect - which fortunately they didn't). It looked OK on Sky, so I'm guessing they did indeed film it at 50Hz.
Have they actually performed a 50Hz to 60Hz frame rate conversion prior to putting it on the Blu-ray ? This is guaranteed to make it look "flickery" (like US TV often does on UK TV) and can't be be done "properly" no matter how good the conversion equipment (ye cannae change the laws of physics, cap'n !). Why would they ruin the show like this ?!?!?
I had an awful thought that this has allowed them to make one single international disk which will play on US kit (at 60Hz) and international kit (which invariably supports both 50Hz and 60Hz).
Don't get me wrong, it's not unwatchable ... but it continuously shows that it has been "damaged" in the production process when there is any significant movement on screen. As I have already seen (and still have available) the 1080/50i version on Dave then what is the point of watching a worse version on BD ?!?
Or have I foolishly got a setting wrong on my Sony BDP-S360 ?
But I don't think so - because the disk also includes some calibration tools, including a five minute sample of test footage shot in my native London, UK. This footage is excellent - and it plays back in the Holy Grail film format of 1080/24p !!! It is by far the best thing on this disk !
So what is the point of putting out Blu-ray disks of TV shows which look worse than the original TV broadcasts ?
Fair enough, the disk only cost a tenner or so, but there is a principal involved. I asked for this present - and someone kindly bought it for me. Now I have it and am not inclined to watch it - what a waste and embarassment
Regards
Everything was peace and love in the HDCF household; the Blu-ray player was set up and the Director's Cut of Red Dwarf : Back to Earth was unwrapped for my viewing pleasure.
Within the opening few seconds I noticed that camera movement caused terrible tearing in the background. I couldn't read a sign on the wall. I popped over to my Sky+HD recorder where I still had the Dave broadcast. There is was fine.
It didn't take long to realise that the difference between the two was that the satellite broadcast on Dave was (unsurprisingly) 1080/50i - being a normal UK broadcast. The version coming out of my Blu-ray player seems to be 1080/60i !
Now firstly, I had asked for this present because I naively assumed that the Blu-ray would be very much better than the TV broadcast - expecting it to be a 1080/50p "master". A quick look at the packaging showed that is was labelled "1080i" - with no reference to the frame rate. However, there should still be a benefit, albeit smaller, of being less compressed than broadcast TV.
But the show, being made for UK TV, must surely have been made at 50 Hz (unless they actually filmed it at 24fps or applied a fake filmic effect - which fortunately they didn't). It looked OK on Sky, so I'm guessing they did indeed film it at 50Hz.
Have they actually performed a 50Hz to 60Hz frame rate conversion prior to putting it on the Blu-ray ? This is guaranteed to make it look "flickery" (like US TV often does on UK TV) and can't be be done "properly" no matter how good the conversion equipment (ye cannae change the laws of physics, cap'n !). Why would they ruin the show like this ?!?!?
I had an awful thought that this has allowed them to make one single international disk which will play on US kit (at 60Hz) and international kit (which invariably supports both 50Hz and 60Hz).
Don't get me wrong, it's not unwatchable ... but it continuously shows that it has been "damaged" in the production process when there is any significant movement on screen. As I have already seen (and still have available) the 1080/50i version on Dave then what is the point of watching a worse version on BD ?!?
Or have I foolishly got a setting wrong on my Sony BDP-S360 ?
But I don't think so - because the disk also includes some calibration tools, including a five minute sample of test footage shot in my native London, UK. This footage is excellent - and it plays back in the Holy Grail film format of 1080/24p !!! It is by far the best thing on this disk !
So what is the point of putting out Blu-ray disks of TV shows which look worse than the original TV broadcasts ?
Fair enough, the disk only cost a tenner or so, but there is a principal involved. I asked for this present - and someone kindly bought it for me. Now I have it and am not inclined to watch it - what a waste and embarassment
Regards
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