Well...I couldn't wait until tomorrow to watch the rerelease. Since I know folks are waiting to hear some initial impressions, here are my thoughts after one viewing:

Equipment used: Epson Home Cinema 1080 over HDMI , Panasonic BD10A

Video - While I'm no ISF video expert, my initial reaction is this deserves placement in Tier 1, overall. There are a few very brief moments which would count as Tier 2 (e.g., beginning of Chapter 2 with the shot of 'Egypt 1914' shows a good amount of grain in the blue sky, quickly replaced by a [more typical] crisp pristine closeup shot). While I don't have the initial problematic BD release to compare to (listed as Tier 5 on this board), this rerelease is an unquestionable BD worthy title now. I'm very pleased with the result.

Audio - Listened to the Dolby TrueHD track in its entirety and tried the PCM track for select chapters. TrueHD was pleasing with a large, rich soundstage and an adequate use of bass (could have utilized to a slightly greater extent throughout). Also, while satisfactory overall, there were a few times when I felt the center channel needed boosted (surprisingly only in a couple quiet passages and not at all during intense action sequences). The brief sampling of PCM revealed a similarly strong track, albeit a little less rich/subtle after being surrounded by TrueHD for 2 hours :-).

Take if for what it's worth (my subjective opinion), but I consider this a very solid title among my Blu-ray collection and believe there's little to complain about here.

Well...I couldn't wait until tomorrow to watch the rerelease. Since I know folks are waiting to hear some initial impressions, here are my thoughts after one viewing:

Equipment used: Epson Home Cinema 1080 over HDMI , Panasonic BD10A

Video - While I'm no ISF video expert, my initial reaction is this deserves placement in Tier 1, overall. There are a few very brief moments which would count as Tier 2 (e.g., beginning of Chapter 2 with the shot of 'Egypt 1914' shows a good amount of grain in the blue sky, quickly replaced by a [more typical] crisp pristine closeup shot). While I don't have the initial problematic BD release to compare to (listed as Tier 5 on this board), this rerelease is an unquestionable BD worthy title now. I'm very pleased with the result.

Audio - Listened to the Dolby TrueHD track in its entirety and tried the PCM track for select chapters. TrueHD was pleasing with a large, rich soundstage and an adequate use of bass (could have utilized to a slightly greater extent throughout). Also, while satisfactory overall, there were a few times when I felt the center channel needed boosted (surprisingly only in a couple quiet passages and not at all during intense action sequences). The brief sampling of PCM revealed a similarly strong track, albeit a little less rich/subtle after being surrounded by TrueHD for 2 hours :-).

Take if for what it's worth (my subjective opinion), but I consider this a very solid title among my Blu-ray collection and believe there's little to complain about here.

What is the bitrate of the TrueHD track? 16/48 or 24/48?

Robert

I wouldn't get my hopes up that high. The Tier 0 titles are all very recent movies done in the age of digital intermediates (two of them weren't even shot on film). I just wouldn't expect a 10-year old, pre-DI film to look that nice. .
In general I have to disagree. DI is simply scanning the negative. If you have a well shot 35mm film and telecine the negative on a state of the art telecine the end result on HD disk will look about the same as from a DI. DI or no DI is only relevant when there are lots of not in camera special effects and optical work that all suffer generational loss on non DI films. As long as you have little of this and just use raw well exposed camera negative in good condition a 40 year old film can look as nice as a 20 year old or recent DI film. It might even look better if the DI was digitally compromised (for example with crappy DNR and sharpening) since there is no such digital abuse on camera negatives. On the other hand to reach the super clean look of some DIs the scanned footage of older films would need some careful digital dust busting and removal of little scratches etc. In the end how the film was shot and what film masters survive and are used will decide how good older films look when technically all is done correctly when mastering the HD.
In the case of TFE the IP is used which is not optimal for detail (camera negative is preferable) and there are various sfx whose digital masters are gone so rescanning of material already scanned once and put back on film will reduce quality somewhat compared to the ideal state of things.

What is the bitrate of the TrueHD track? 16/48 or 24/48?

Robert

Unfortunately, I cannot tell. My Panasonic BD10A only shows 'TrueHD Multi'. I'm using the analog outs, by the way.

I find the omission of such status information as time remaining and bitrate (audio and video) to be the biggest downside to this player. I'm hoping there will be a patch to add such 'features'...

according to paidgeek:

PCM: 16/48
TrueHD: 20/48

(on this title)

according to paidgeek:

PCM: 16/48
TrueHD: 20/48

(on this title)
Earlier in this thread, "paidgeek" stated that the original master for this movie only has a bit depth of 16-bits. Therefore, both the PCM and TrueHD tracks are 48 kHz/16-bit.

Earlier in this thread, "paidgeek" stated that the original master for this movie only has a bit depth of 16-bits. Therefore, both the PCM and TrueHD tracks are 48 kHz/16-bit.

If so, why include both?

- Rich

If so, why include both?

- Rich

For those of us who don't have a truehd equipped Blu-ray player :(.

For those of us who don't have a truehd equipped Blu-ray player :(.

Yes, but the statement was made that both tracks are 48 kHz/16-bit. If so, why would they include both. Since all players can already to LPCM.

- Rich

Earlier in this thread, "paidgeek" stated that the original master for this movie only has a bit depth of 16-bits. Therefore, both the PCM and TrueHD tracks are 48 kHz/16-bit.

the latest information expressed that the TrueHD would be 20 bits. The 16-bit PCM master-spec was an assumption. I'm pretty sure Paidgeek said that the TrueHD track would be 20 bits on this particular title (at the blu-ray forum).

The reason Sony is including both is so that early on in BD's life cycle with not all players having access to TrueHD lossless, he wants to give conumsers a chance to experiment with both tracks as the studio begins formalizing its practice of authoring TrueHD (eventually, PCM won't appear on TrueHD discs).

the latest information expressed that the TrueHD would be 20 bits. The 16-bit PCM master-spec was an assumption. I'm pretty sure Paidgeek said that the TrueHD track would be 20 bits on this particular title (at the blu-ray forum).

Well, in this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=10832038&&#post10832038) he corrected you.

There may have been a more recent revelation, but this is latest from him on this forum.

FYI - This remastered edition started appearing yesterday in the St. Louis metro area. I just picked it up at Wal-Mart for $19.96. UPC 0-43396-21520-7 containing Dolby TrueHD. Cancelled my Amazon preorder.
I got a little jealous seeing that since the Wal-Mart by me doesn't carry BD. However I went to visit my friend down in CT, and we decided to go to walmart last night at 11. I saw they had a nice BD/HD rack so i took a look, and low and behold they had 3 Fifth Element remastered. Picked one up for $19.96, now I have to cancel my order at DVDpacific. BTW this is in the Waterford, CT Supercenter.

I overheard one of the stockers talking and she said they put out BD/HD releases once the get them.. Too bad I live 100 miles away or I would be traveling here often to see what titles I could pick up early. And this is the first time I bought a movie at a B&M, since the WM prices are like amazon. Also there are no stupid security stickers around the edges, just the normal top one with the title. And the case is now like the Disney style cases with a snap on the right side.

IF the TrueHD track was really 20 bit, and the PCM was 16 bit, would you really be able to tell a difference in sound quality if the master was 16 bit?

BTW, does Universal own all of the international rights?
Maybe, hopefully, we could someday get an R1 release from Asia???

Dune is distributed by a variety of different studios in different territories. Other than Universal, none have so far begun releasing on High-Def media.

In Japan, it's distributed by Comstock, and their last DVD release was pretty lousy quality.

Boy Josh, you act as though you know something about Dune!

;)

didnt notice, but will the Region A version be region A,B,C?

Rob,

All Dolby Decoders output a 24-bit word stream regardless of the signal's original resolution (padded with zeros for the least significant "blank" bits). In other words, if the master was 16-bit, the Dolby TrueHD encode would be as well... unless the mastering engineers used some fancy digital upconversion algorithm which would in fact make the two sound different.

Well, in this post he corrected you.

There may have been a more recent revelation, but this is latest from him on this forum.

thanks for the correction. I could have sworn I heard 20-bit for the TrueHD but obviously I'm confusing with another title.

just tried 3 stores in richmond, va area and found nothing...tried mechanicsville, short pump and brook rd. if you live in richmond area and find it plz post...eagerly awaiting to find!

I could have sworn I heard 20-bit for the TrueHD but obviously I'm confusing with another title.
Ghost Rider

Sorry ... I'm a bit behind on things concerning The 5th Element re-release but I just saw the thread with the pics of the re-release and I would like to know if there are any specifics regarding the exchange program? I know there was an exchange program being planned but I haven't heard or read anything since then ... anything new? Thx

Sorry ... I'm a bit behind on things concerning The 5th Element re-release but I just saw the thread with the pics of the re-release and I would like to know if there are any specifics regarding the exchange program? I know there was an exchange program being planned but I haven't heard or read anything since then ... anything new? Thx

Here is the contact information: Phone: 800-860-2878 Email: consumer@sphecustomersupport.sony.com

Here is the contact information: Phone: 800-860-2878 Email: consumer@sphecustomersupport.sony.com
Thanks a lot ... I'll give them a call on Monday.

Anyone have any idea or knowledge on how good the pq and aq will be on the new release? What tier it would fall into?

Anyone have any idea or knowledge on how good the pq and aq will be on the new release? What tier it would fall into?

Check the pic in the Thread.... very nice improvement...

didnt notice, but will the Region A version be region A,B,C?


oh i can help you there, its all region release m8 so should work on both your BD players, hope that helps............... :D

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet
I could have sworn I heard 20-bit for the TrueHD but obviously I'm confusing with another title.

Ghost Rider

And Stomp The Yard.

Sony's DTHD tracks are supposed to be 20bit unless the master has a lower sampling rate.

Check the pic in the Thread.... very nice improvement...

What pic?

What pic?

The pics are in a different thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=872094

thanks!

So did anyone received the ones that Sony exchanged for ya?

So did anyone received the ones that Sony exchanged for ya?
If so, how did they ship them ? UPS, Fedex, or USPS ?

This way I can stop checking my mail box and front porch and back porch each day.

If so, how did they ship them ? UPS, Fedex, or USPS ?

This way I can stop checking my mail box and front porch and back porch each day.
The email said Fedex I believe.

So did anyone received the ones that Sony exchanged for ya?

Not possible as they haven't even shipped yet. They ship tomorrow and Monday via Fed Ex ground from Wisconsin.

Has anyone received conformation that sony received the disk they sent in for replacement? I know an email was mentioned saying FedEx was shipping, was this a new email or from last month?

I am wanting some conformation that I have done what I needed to do to get my replacement. . .

I called 800-860-2878 and verified they received my disk. They said shipments start next week. I am glad they got mine.

Thanks for the info, I sent mine with delivery confirmation, they received it on June 27th. Maybe they'll email us when our discs ship.

PURE SPECULATION

After seeing the sales position on Amazon for TFE REMA over a period of several weeks I believe it may have sold more units than Columbia anticipated. They may be obligated to fill XXXXX number of copies to the retail channel which may have left their fulfilment center short.

Take with a big grain of αΞξρς

OK then. We'll all wait for your seal of approval before doing anything.


Approved!

Approved!


Xylon approved :) Nice one

Review (http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=29282)

Review (http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=29282)

Nice review Josh!

"the movie is gloriously goofy entertainment that never takes itself seriously for a second."

Nailed it! :cool:

Is Sony still doing exchanges?

I received no response from the email I sent last week.

I got a copy of this last month and never posted on it, but easily one of my favorite Blu-rays. I was blown away by the sound track. PCM and TrueHD were both indistinguishable (and in a good way), though I was quite underwhelmed by previous TrueHD tracks on Blu-ray (most notably Letters from Iwo Jima). Great PQ! A true reference title.

Is Sony still doing exchanges?

I received no response from the email I sent last week.

I didn't receive a response from an e-mail I sent asking about the status of my exchange. I never received anything and sent in my old copy a couple of months ago. It seems like they may have left this whole exchange program behind them...

I got a email response yesterday so I'll be sending it in.

just ordered it through Amazon.

Just sat through over half of the remastered version today. While it no longer looks like a top tier film for picture quality (source IP, master? who knows?) compared to other releases, the detail is much better, and the dirt and scratches have virtually been scrubbed away or at least they used a much better IP than the previous version to begin with.

Glad I picked it up. It's definitely growing on me, but I still find it a bit too silly for its own good.

Gary Oldman is one outstanding character actor and the king of accents!!

Dan

I finally got mine in and watched it the other night. It's certainly 'better' than the super-bit version but not by a huge margin IMO. That's more a compliment to Super Bit than a slap at HD.

I finally got mine in and watched it the other night. It's certainly 'better' than the super-bit version but not by a huge margin IMO. That's more a compliment to Super Bit than a slap at HD.

Are you sure you watched the remastered version, and not the original Blu-ray release? If you watched the remastered version and can't see much difference over the DVD, it's time to get your vision checked. :eek:

I finally got mine in and watched it the other night. It's certainly 'better' than the super-bit version but not by a huge margin IMO. That's more a compliment to Super Bit than a slap at HD.

I initially thought the same thing, having been so impressed with the superbit. But it only took a few switches between to realize that the Blu Ray version is FAR superior to the sd dvd. It's hard for me to even watch the superbit version now.

Sent an email too and still waiting to hear from them. Is there a specifical adress to ship my 2006 version to receive the 2007 ? :confused:

Sent an email too and still waiting to hear from them. Is there a specifical adress to ship my 2006 version to receive the 2007 ? :confused:

They will provide the address in the email, along with an ID number for the exchange. It could take several weeks to hear back from them.

thanks! :)

I finally got mine in and watched it the other night. It's certainly 'better' than the super-bit version but not by a huge margin IMO. That's more a compliment to Super Bit than a slap at HD.

No, actually, it isn't.

Well.... 6 weeks now i have sent my old one and still waiting to receive my new copy...:( Emailed them since and no reply.... is there a phone number to call them? :confused: Thanks!:)