Just wondering what the first HD format was. As in which could be played back.

The oldest I could find was the analog based W-VHS format which would do 480i and 1080i only. It seems D5 tapes were around . Then muse laserdisc, DVHS and now HD-DVD and blu-ray.

It seems their were several atempts at HD media but most never evolved beyond nature tapes. D-VHS had a good run but their were only a 100 or so tapes. Same as the MUSE laserdisc format. Although it didn't seem to catch on becase of cost and the size of disc. Which was a issue with regular Laserdiscs


I really would have liked to see DVHS go a few steps more prehapps allowing recording over commponet or HDMI. Although I'm sure a commbnation of HDCP and ICT shut this down. As you could then back up films with a little rigging.

Just wondering what the first HD format was. As in which could be played back.

The oldest I could find was the analog based W-VHS format which would do 480i and 1080i only. It seems D5 tapes were around . Then muse laserdisc, DVHS and now HD-DVD and blu-ray.

It seems their were several atempts at HD media but most never evolved beyond nature tapes. D-VHS had a good run but their were only a 100 or so tapes. Same as the MUSE laserdisc format. Although it didn't seem to catch on becase of cost and the size of disc. Which was a issue with regular Laserdiscs


I really would have liked to see DVHS go a few steps more prehapps allowing recording over commponet or HDMI. Although I'm sure a commbnation of HDCP and ICT shut this down. As you could then back up films with a little rigging.

According to Wiki - Hi Vision HD LD came before W-VHS by 3 years:

W-VHS is a high definition analog video tape format created by JVC. The format was introduced in 1994 and is no longer supported; the tapes are no longer manufactured and no players are currently produced for this format.

In 1991, several manufacturers announced specifications for what would become known as MUSE Laserdisc, representing a span of almost 15 years until the feats of this HD analog optical disc system would finally be duplicated digitally by HD-DVD and Blu-ray.

Didn't relize Muse HD was around that long. Wonder why it never came to the US.

Didn't relize Muse HD was around that long. Wonder why it never came to the US.

The players were $2000 and the movies started at $100. I know a few had them because they were here at AVS back in 1999.

In 1968 TV took the first steps needed to produce their own wide screen images, when the research arm of the Japanese national broadcaster, NHK, started development of a HDTV system (with 1125 lines at 60 fields/s).

Sony introduced the HDVS high definition video camera, tape recorder and monitor in 1981. Development at Sony started in 1975.

The product range (also aimed at affluent consumers) was launched in April 1984 (HDVS 1125i60 analog system). Its bandwidth was 30 MHz.

Here's a shot of the 1985 range:

http://www.sony.net/Fun/SH/1-25/shimage/hdvs.jpg

In 1987 they released their first digital HDVS recorder. It was an open-reel system. The system has a sampling rate of 74.25 MHz.
Prices were in the range of $180k for the reel transport, and $230k for the required video processor.

It was soon joined by an optical (albeit non-recordable) disc based HD format with a capacity of 15 minutes per side.


Some pictures of early Sony HD products:

http://img55.imageshack.us/img55/695/hdd100001xs4.th.jpg (http://img55.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdd100001xs4.jpg)http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/1840/hdd100002hr4.th.jpg (http://img176.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdd100002hr4.jpg)http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/3959/hdd100003jb1.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdd100003jb1.jpg)http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/6391/hdd100004tg6.th.jpg (http://img180.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdd100004tg6.jpg)http://img201.imageshack.us/img201/9096/hdd100005kt8.th.jpg (http://img201.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdd100005kt8.jpg)
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/694/hdl200001pn6.th.jpg (http://img209.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdl200001pn6.jpg)http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/5016/hdl200002ng5.th.jpg (http://img218.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdl200002ng5.jpg)http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/9162/hdl200003jf5.th.jpg (http://img225.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdl200003jf5.jpg)

some more pictures:

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/7397/hdv1001xd0.th.jpg (http://img180.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdv1001xd0.jpg)http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/3420/hdv1001atn0.th.jpg (http://img244.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdv1001atn0.jpg)http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/8518/hdv1002wd3.th.jpg (http://img175.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdv1002wd3.jpg)http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/3511/hdv1002acv2.th.jpg (http://img247.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdv1002acv2.jpg)http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/3096/hdv1003kx3.th.jpg (http://img223.imageshack.us/my.php?image=hdv1003kx3.jpg)

this thread is awesome. can someone throw a little more info about MUSE out there? i've read a lot about it, but i'm still somewhat unsure how it worked, what television system it worked with, and what the PQ/resolution was like.

kschmit2

Very nice pictures - I remember some of those. But you are showing professional broadcast equipment. I think the thread was addressin consumer available HD media

this thread is awesome. can someone throw a little more info about MUSE out there? i've read a lot about it, but i'm still somewhat unsure how it worked, what television system it worked with, and what the PQ/resolution was like.

Here is more information on the Hi Vision MUSE LD's:

From Wiki:

MUSE LD
In 1991, several manufacturers announced specifications for what would become known as MUSE Laserdisc, representing a span of almost 15 years until the feats of this HD analog optical disc system would finally be duplicated digitally by HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Encoded using NHK's MUSE "Hi-Vision" analogue TV system, MUSE discs would operate like standard Laserdiscs but would contain high-definition 1125-line (1035 visible lines) video with a 5:3 aspect ratio. The MUSE players were also capable of playing standard NTSC format discs and are superior in performance to non-MUSE players even with these NTSC discs. The MUSE-capable players had several noteworthy advantages over standard Laserdisc players, including a red laser with a much narrower wavelength than the lasers found in standard players. The red laser was capable of reading through disc defects such as scratches and even mild disc-rot that would cause most other players to stop, stutter or drop-out.

Crosstalk was not an issue with MUSE discs, and the narrow wavelength of the laser allowed for the virtual elimination of crosstalk with normal discs. In order to view MUSE encoded discs, it was necessary to have a MUSE decoder in addition to a compatible player and a MUSE-compatible TV set. Equipment prices were high, especially for early HDTVs which generally eclipsed US$10,000, and even in Japan the market for MUSE was tiny. Players and discs were never officially sold in North America, although several distributors imported MUSE discs along with other import titles. Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Lawrence of Arabia, A League of Their Own, Bugsy, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Bram Stoker's Dracula and Chaplin were among the theatrical releases available on MUSE LDs. Several documentaries, including one about Formula One at Japan's Suzuka Circuit were also released.

A picture and specs on the Pioneer Player:

http://www.laserdiscworld.com/HardwareDetails.aspx?ID=4000004

A picture and specs on the Sony Player

http://www.laserdiscworld.com/HardwareDetails.aspx?ID=4000003

The main site where the pictures come from - more info:

http://www.laserdiscworld.com/MUSEDecoders.aspx