Reasons to have a Laserdisc Player in 2011?

I have an LD Player and some movies as well. I mainly like the old school part of it. Same as with LPs. I recently started collecting those.

Its funny when kids from friends come over and ask what those big 'CDs' are. Its almost like a history lesson for them

 

Retro has become a life style choice, I drink Pepsi Throwback, I started buying those Dorritos in the old style bags. I'm playing more pre PS2 games now than ever.

Now I'm moving over to the LD realm.

It's like I don't want to age..... (actually that's exactly it)

 

http://youtu.be/K7l5ZeVVoCA

 

Roger Rabbit.

Disney has since gone tint the movie (DVD release onward) and removed all the 1 frame dirty jokes the animators put it, such as frames of Jessica Rabbit naked and toons doing lewd things with their fingers, etc.

LD is the only way to get a beautiful print of the unchanged Rabbit.

Oh, and you can also get Song of the South on LD.

Thanks for raping my childhood, Disney.

 

Aw man... Roger Rabbit! I might have to look into getting a player myself now.

 

I'd love to get an LD player, but it's practically impossible down here, unless I bring it with me from the states next time I travel, since they are huge machines. And discs would probably arrive here in pieces due to bad handling by the postal office.

I love the obscure-retro mystique it has, and as you said GoH "It's like I don't want to age..... (actually that's exactly it)", haha couldn't agree more.

 

2006 DVD release.

 

Number 1 reason: JOG SHUTTLE DIAL

I own over 300 Laser Discs including Dragons Lair, so maybe I'm a little nuts about it.

I wrote a Guide here: Laser Disc Guide: The Forgotten Jog Shuttle Dial

 

Pretty my my LD to get list is Star Wars, Roger Rabbit, and the Japanese Evangelion (any Gainax Freak has to have that right?)

I found a guy who sells referbed players the website is a bit crude but we exchanged e-mails through out the day yesterday.

 

Make sure to get one with an S-Video output. Oddly, it seems like it was a pretty common feature.

 

S-Video out is a must unless I find a PAL model but then again even if I had SCART out I don't have a SCART IN on my TV

 

I think SCART is a pretty rare feature even for European players. It wouldn't do you any good anyway, because the signal written on the discs isn't RGB. It's either NTSC or PAL, so the best you can really do is S-Video.

I think. Don't quote me on that.

 

All I remember about laser discs is that my Pioneer LaserActive had a bloody awful picture on it. I only had Empire Strikes Back LD (and it was bloody 4:3 resolution!) so maybe it was the disc that gave the awful image quality but it was a millions times worse than DVD.

Yakumo

 

I was really surprised at the lack of video options on the LaserActive. You'd think that S-video would have been a no brainer, but noooooo....

And yeah, the picture was nothing to write home about. Pioneer made that gold tinted LD/ DVD player that I see for around Y20,000 used, still.

http://www.amazon.co.jp/パイオニア-DVL-H9-Pioneer-DVD-LDコンパチブルプレーヤー/dp/B00009V8OL

or

http://page5.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/e118555089

 

Sexy

I'm still on the fence

 

S-video is almost pointless given the video is stored in composite format. Splitting it typically would just add problems to the equation rather than improving anything.

 

Interesting.


I've got a friend that might give me a player and a large stack of Star Trek. Not that I care much for Trek, but I'd love a player. Another thing to sink money into.
It's a shame most of the thrift stores around here have nothing but garbage in discs, when they actually do have any.

 

From what I read only the definitive star wars collection had decent video, the laser discs transfers done before that were done half rate. But yeah laserdisc has a lot of drawbacks. It was honestly a quality between broadcast and low end dvd at best.

 

just for having a 12 inch disc that looks like a cd, thats enough reason, impress your friends! i don't know, LD is a great format, it just got in the past beacause it was expensive, like Minidisc, both awesome and really nice to have.

 

i agree on minidiscs. They were fantastic but maybe a little too late to the party since CD-R media was becoming cheap by then. I still remember the first time I listened to a mini disc back in 1998 or was it 1997? Anyway, it was amazing. No hiss, no crackles, no hum, no nothing. They really were a home recorders dream. I never went back to tape once the the Mini Disc arrived.

Yakumo