are the original series blu rays any good?

Discussion in 'Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series' started by tmosler, May 11, 2013.

  1. tmosler

    tmosler Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    Hi i just have a quick question. I have been watching the next generation blu rays and they look great but i was wondering if the same good treatment was done to the original series blu rays and not like the terrible star trek movie transferrs?
     
  2. T'Girl

    T'Girl Vice Admiral Admiral

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    If you're asking if the blu ray's are significantly better than the pre-blu ray DVD's, I'd say no. There is a incremental improvement in the quality yes, but it isn't the different between night and day.

    It's a matter of nuance.

    :)
     
  3. NewHorizon

    NewHorizon Captain Captain

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    No, they're asking if the hi def transfers were cleaned up as well as TNG, rather than how poorly Paramount scanned the movies.

    The answer is yes, the TOS transfers look fantastic. The blurays allow you to choose the original effects or the CGI effects. It's a win for purists and those who want modern CGI.
     
  4. ConRefit79

    ConRefit79 Captain Captain

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    I didn't have the DVD versions, so I cannot compare. But I bought the Blu-Ray version when they were cheaper. I like them, but have not seen the series with the unmodified effects. But the newer effects work well. The only problem I'm trying to resolve, is how to stop my Blu-Ray player from displaying angle messages when it switches to the modified effects scenes.
     
  5. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

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    I have two players and one use to do that and then it quit doing it on its own. :lol:
     
  6. feek61

    feek61 Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I have had the TOS series in just about every format it was ever released in. IMO, yes, the blu-rays are amazing. You can't go wrong with them and you can pick them up for just over a hundred bucks. It's a no-brainer; get them.
     
  7. TREK_GOD_1

    TREK_GOD_1 Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Yes, the TOS blu rays are beautiful--you see just well that series was produced. I had TOS tapes, laserdiscs, and DVDs, and none come close to the revealing quality of the series on blu ray.
     
  8. mach7

    mach7 Commander Red Shirt

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    I have TOS on the 2 episode disks and the Bluray packs.

    I'll echo what others have said, the Bluray is worth the money.

    As said you get both the enhanced and original effects. Also some nice extras.
     
  9. 22 Stars

    22 Stars Commodore Commodore

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    Is this a joke? Comparing the bluray res to the dvd's is not even fair. It's a matter of math, not really subjective.
     
  10. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

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    This.

    Though there are some really shitty Blu-ray's out there.

    Star Trek on Blu-ray is absolutely worth the price and blows the DVD's out of the water.
     
  11. Destructor

    Destructor Commodore Commodore

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    The detail on the blu-rays is pretty insane. I love em.
     
  12. Michael

    Michael Good Bad Influence Moderator

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    I'm really sorry, but there must be something wrong with your eyes then, as the picture quality of the live-action footage is actually significantly better than the SD material on the DVDs. It really is the difference between night and day.
     
  13. Irishman

    Irishman Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Resolution will see a bump (but not tremendous), and the shots will be inconsistent, as cameras vary (and some are less sharp and grainy than others - when the source is in less-than-stellar shape there's only so much that can be done to extract detail from it). Color depth will improve - simply because the number of colors present in blu-ray far exceeds that in a DVD or streaming HD (if you've seen the TOS-R episodes on Netflix or Hulu+). Audio? For the most part, it's cleaned and levelled. That's about it. They rescored some of the themes and incidental music, but it's a mono track. Only so much.
     
  14. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

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    The picture quality is quite a bit better, but not the revelation that the TNG Blu-Rays are, since the TOS DVDs weren't so bad to begin with. They are much, much better than the DNR'd movie transfers, though.
     
  15. Mr_Homn

    Mr_Homn Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    100 percent agreed.

    Anyone who says otherwise needs their eyes checked.
     
  16. KarmicCurse

    KarmicCurse Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    Each season is $45 at Best Buy this week.

    I just bought season 1 and I've seen 3 episodes so far. They do look quite good, but the soft lighting and deliberate (I think) blurring of some shots detract from the clarity. That's not so much a transfer issue as it is the artistic choices made at the time, which retains a certain contemporary glamour.

    From what I had read I expected to be blown away. I am impressed but not quite blown away because there is a LOT of grain (or is it the term snow?) throughout.

    I understand that old film just won't look as good, but I also have the older James Bond movies on bluray and those look spectacular! I can put my face right up to the screen and those movies look like an oil painting. No hint of grain or pixels. Maybe the original film stock was better for movies?

    With TOS I'm impressed with the colors and the clarity most of the time. The dialogue is a bit muted but I don't have a proper sound system, just the flatscreen so I can't judge properly. There is no sense of pixelization, but the "snow" throughout is a minor bother.

    I do recommend them though, especially if you have never bought the DVDs.

    Now if only I can find the angle control on my bluray player...
     
  17. Robert Comsol

    Robert Comsol Commodore Commodore

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    The initial thread question seems like a trick question to me. Having watched the TOS Blu-rays I'd say that about 75-80% is TNG-R quality while you have about 25-20% live action footage one would have expected to have more resolution and detail from the original negatives (such footage is rather movie BR quality). But I don't use a flat screen but a front projector, thus those quality differences are easier to notice on a big screen.

    The gain in resolution and picture detail is impressive, but I really don't like the encoding of some of the Blu-rays. When I select the original effects in the menu prior to starting the episode I expect to have the original effects from the start on and not with a few seconds delay. "The Ultimate Computer" begins with the new effects and then switches to the original ones, in "Wink of an Eye" I had the whole opening scene with the new effects before it switched to the original ones.

    Bob
     
  18. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

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    You realize that grain is suppose to be there? On films with no grain, it means its been scrubbed out digitally and with it details.
     
  19. LOKAI of CHERON

    LOKAI of CHERON Commodore Commodore

    I really can't agree with this statement at all. Beyond "the numbers", I guess it's all completely subjective in "the viewers eye" as it were. But, IMHO, there is indeed a significant increase in comparative quality. To call it an "incremental improvement" is way, way off the mark.

    This.

    LOL, TREK_GOD_1 - I'm glad I'm not the only one who's purchased TOS progressively, and repeatedly, on those formats! :techman:
     
  20. KarmicCurse

    KarmicCurse Lieutenant Commander Red Shirt

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    It seems there is a difference in quality between episodes, although they are all quite impressive. I noticed some grain on the first few I watched randomly. But I just finished watching “Where No Man Has Gone Before” and it was stunningly clean and sharp!

    In contrast I also just finished watching the first two Godfather movies and they are just about the worst quality blu-rays I have ever seen. From what I've read that was intentional. Supposedly. So you just never know what you're getting. Still I would rather have them as they were meant to be seen and not put through some questionable software alterations.

    I wouldn't hesitate to buy the TOS blu-rays if the original poster is still debating, as long as the price is reasonable.