If i was going to buy one format over another is there a difference between the 2 disks?

Effectively, no. They have the same content and use use the same exact VC-1 Video encode. The HD DVD version has lossless Dolby TrueHD audio, while Blu-Ray has lossless PCM audio.

So while there are minor back-end differences, the presentation on either format will be identical. Buy whichever one you want.

Effectively, no. They have the same content and use use the same exact VC-1 Video encode. The HD DVD version has lossless Dolby TrueHD audio, while Blu-Ray has lossless PCM audio.

So while there are minor back-end differences, the presentation on either format will be identical. Buy whichever one you want.
Hey, a nice non-bias response to a member's question. Thanks! Sure wish there were more of these.

One comes in a blue case, the other in a red case. Choices, choices. Whats a guy to do.:)

One will only play in Blu Rlay player, and the other won't play in a... </smarta$$>

There are no diffferences, get whichevef one best fits with your current format views. What I've seen looked fantastic on SD TV...I can't wait to see it in hidef!

thanks. its hard to sometimes find good information between disks. thats not tainted.

The main difference is one only plays on a much more expensive player.

The main difference is one only plays on a much more expensive player.

I just knew someone would try and ruin a perfectly good non-biased thread. Oh well, another one for the ignore list. :rolleyes:

The main difference is one only plays on a much more expensive player.

I thought Toshiba got a firmware out to finally get the lower priced models working ? ;)

anyone know what this was shot in? 60i, 30p, 24p?

Effectively, no. They have the same content and use use the same exact VC-1 Video encode. The HD DVD version has lossless Dolby TrueHD audio, while Blu-Ray has lossless PCM audio...
Are specs released for both formats ? Amir mentioned it's VC-1, but where do you get audio spec ? any other tracks besides mentioned above ? Thanks.

Are all of these off topic comments really needed?

The main difference is one only plays on a much more expensive player.

umm, not what I was looking for.

The reason I ask is because I have devices that can play both.

hd-dvd add-on for my 360, and a ps3. The ps3 I can use to output pcm sound. but If a hd-dvd has a better transfer, i'll take the hd-dvd, because in time I will upgrade to dedicated players, probably a combo player, when prices on those drop.

I.E. I didn't get happy feet, but i'd be more likely to pick it up on hd-dvd because the sound track on it is better quality then the blu-ray. and in the future I'll be able to play the better sound track.
---------

The problem for alot of people that dont care who wins, is both formats claim to be the best, and we all know that depending on the movie, one format might have been done better, or contain a good feature the other doesn't.

It's the exact same transfer. Buy the one you want, but since you have the 360addon, i'd get the Blu-ray version since the audio isn't crippled.

Since it sounds like the discs are equal on PQ and SQ but your HD-DVD player is holding back your audio (sadly crippled) abilities on your setup so I'd go with the blu-ray version.

thanks. its hard to sometimes find good information between disks. thats not tainted.

Indeed. It is a sad commentary on the state of these forums :(

Are specs released for both formats ? Amir mentioned it's VC-1, but where do you get audio spec ? any other tracks besides mentioned above ? Thanks.

Specs are posted on amazon. For HD DVD:
DVD Features:

* Original U.K. broadcast version narrated by David Attenborough, including 90 minutes not shown on the Discovery Channel
* Dolby TrueHD sound
* Bonus movie: The Dream Is Alive
Blu-Ray:
DVD Features:

* Original U.K. broadcast version narrated by David Attenborough, including 90 minutes not shown on the Discovery Channel
* MLP Lossless sound
* Bonus movie: The Dream Is Alive

well thats odd, MLP is TrueHD

Perhaps they meanth PCM?

I'm pretty sure it means Multichannel Linear PCM.

If I'm wrong about the acronym, then there is absolutely no difference between the releases except the color of the box.

So let me get this straight. The BD version will be on 25GB with lossless PCM. That leaves what, about 17-20GB for the video? So the HD-DVD version will only be using about 20GB total on a 30GB disc? That kinda sucks...

Indeed. It is a sad commentary on the state of these forums :(

if you think its bad here.

I searched here, AND google before I posted the question.

I wish there was just a facts place to go. just give you the number

hd-dvd disk contains xyz
blu-ray disk contains xyz.

and yes, i will be getting the blu-ray version for now for pcm sound.

I'm frankly sad that the elite 360 wont output pcm sound over hdmi, so my ad on could play the true-hd. if it did i'd buy a 2nd 360

So let me get this straight. The BD version will be on 25GB with lossless PCM. That leaves what, about 17-20GB for the video? So the HD-DVD version will only be using about 20GB total on a 30GB disc? That kinda sucks...

Yea, doesn't it suck? *looks at my Warner 50gb Blu-ray collection* :o

if you think its bad here.

I searched here, AND google before I posted the question.

I wish there was just a facts place to go. just give you the number

hd-dvd disk contains xyz
blu-ray disk contains xyz.

and yes, i will be getting the blu-ray version for now for pcm sound.

I'm frankly sad that the elite 360 wont output pcm sound over hdmi, so my ad on could play the true-hd. if it did i'd buy a 2nd 360

Same here. I really wanted to buy the add-on when it was on sale for $160 but I want a player that does the whole job. The Elite is just another dissappointment and shows me that MS doesn't care about quality HD-DVD playback.

Since it sounds like the discs are equal on PQ and SQ but your HD-DVD player is holding back your audio (sadly crippled) abilities on your setup so I'd go with the blu-ray version.

Yup, that's why I'm leaning on the Blu-ray. PCM over HDMI from my PS3 to Denon just makes me grin. :D

Moment of truth will be if I decide to jump on an A2 or not. I keep hoping to see an XA1 for sub $200 that I'll be willing to play Frankenstein with my add-on's drive, some RAM, and maybe a CPU (and liquid cooling if need be!) with....

Yea, doesn't it suck? *looks at my Warner 50gb Blu-ray collection*

Yeah... makes me want to cry when I think of all that empty space that could've been used for PCM. :(

My point was that if the BD version had been using TrueHD as well, both the BD and HD-DVD versions could have been encoded at a higher video bit-rate.

I know, I know, Warner won't use TrueHD on BD since the stand-alone players don't support it.

Btw, I'm format neutral having both an A1 and a PS3. Hopefully the VC-1 encoes will still look great despite being confined to ~20GB for the video.

well thats odd, MLP is TrueHD

MLP is not trueHD, but the rest is right. I don't even thgink MLP is in the BD specs

My point was that if the BD version had been using TrueHD as well, both the BD and HD-DVD versions could have been encoded at a higher video bit-rate.

not necesserily

I know, I know, Warner won't use TrueHD on BD since the stand-alone players don't support it.

some do

There both coming with lossles sound? Any news if it is 16 bit or 24 bit?

some do

Why limit potential buyers to "some"

Why limit potential buyers to "some"


why not give them choice. Because some don't have HDTVs and some don't have other speakers should all movies be stereo and SD?

MLP is not trueHD, but the rest is right. I don't even thgink MLP is in the BD specsTrueHD is Dolby's implementation of MLP (http://dolby.com/assets/pdf//tech_library/TrueHD_FAQ_10925_Final.pdf) for HD-DVD and Blu-ray.

I'm frankly sad that the elite 360 wont output pcm sound over hdmi, so my ad on could play the true-hd. if it did i'd buy a 2nd 360

I agree with you there. I'm sure that x-box team is aware of the requirement / demand for this feature. I hope they consider it in the future ...

bfdtv: this is what it says

12. How does Dolby TrueHD differ from
MLP Lossless?
Dolby TrueHD expands on the proven
capabilities of MLP Lossless, adding the ability
to deliver more flexible channel configurations,
higher data rates, and extended metadata
functionality to support next-generation
content delivery formats.


ergo not the same thing.

how about

http://www.dolby.com/images/products/dmp/ComparisonTable_800px.jpg

PS thanks, I was looking for that FAQ the other day

PPS MLP is Dolby, they bought it and used it to create DTHD but they are different and incompatible

anyone know what this was shot in? 60i, 30p, 24p?
There's some discussion of this in the HD programming forum thread covering the series. AFAIK, it's a mix of filmed and taped material, with the video taping likely in overseas formats such as 1080/50i. For U.S. Discovery HD delivery, everything needed conversion to 1080/60i (30i), with judder-inducing pulldown (TV field duplication) required for the filmed stuff. -- John

Like I said, TrueHD is Dolby's implementation of MLP, which is a bit different than the MLP implementation used with DVD-Audio.

MLP is Meridian Lossless Packing. It is funnt the way the document talks about MLP Lossless. Talk about the power of words used purely for marketing ;)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meridian_Lossless_Packing

The underlying codec in DVD-Audio's MLP and TrueHD are the same. The capabilities are different.

I like premium sound and all but I didn't hear anything in the broadcast that I thought "oh gosh that would be great with lossless".

bfdtv, nataraj

we all agree. I never said the two are unrelated, someone said they are the same and I said they are not (which you both seem to agree with) andf that MLP is not even in the BD specs (as can be seen above) so it is obvious that the site is wrong when they say the BD has MLP

It is the a bit like saying VC-1 is MS implimentation of AVC. While MLP and DTHD share many techs/algorithms theyt are not the same thing and a DTHD decoder can't decode MLP and vice versa.

Over in the BD area it has been confirmed that the BD version includes a single lossy DD track.

Planet Earth is VC1 on both formats - luckily for Bluray :) Quite often the BD films don't get VC1, certainly not the norm like it is with HD DVD.

I just watched the 1st disc in BluRay and i have to say i am disappointed. This is after the latest film i watched on my PS3/HC5000 system was Apocalypto, superb transfer, AMAZING detail.

Sadly, the Planet Earth i saw on Discovery HD Theater on Dish Network is much better in video quality than the BD version.

So mine goes to ebay, and i am off to WalMart to get the HDDVD version.

Please let me know if the HDDVD version is better?

OK, found the answer.

HDDVD gets 5 stars for video quality on HighDefdigest:

http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/planetearth.html

BD gets only 4 stars, but i guess it sucks cuz i have 110" screen:

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/planetearth_us.html

So back to WalMart to fight it out for an "exchange" , hehe :)

Why was this thread resurrected? The to versions are exactly the same video. Looked a different way, appears Blu-ray has the better picture:

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/668/planetearth.html
http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/984/planetearth_us.html

(there were two releases of Planet Earth on each format)

...I was wondering where you guys were digging up TrueHD specs from... Silly American version...

Answer,as above, identical discs. Now, I -believe- the version from Oz includes the docs dropped from the HDM versions - I've yet to see a review that demonstrates this conclusively, as it's certainly something I'd import and sell my Region A BD if it's true.

Why was this thread resurrected? The to versions are exactly the same video. Looked a different way, appears Blu-ray has the better picture:


Thats because you're linking to the VC-1 encode from a progressive source for the Blu-Ray disc, and an AVC encode from an interlaced source for the HD-DVD disc.

Please please don't tell me that in the USA they dubbed out David Attenborough with an American accent.. PLEASE


Specs are posted on amazon. For HD DVD:
Quote:
DVD Features:

* Original U.K. broadcast version narrated by David Attenborough, including 90 minutes not shown on the Discovery Channel
* Dolby TrueHD sound
* Bonus movie: The Dream Is Alive

OK watched HDDVD version on my HD-A1 and it beats the BD version. These are the WalMart USA discs.

Again, format neutral, Apocalypto 4 days ago looked fabulous on my PS3.