FYI

30.95$ each. VERY reasonable!

xploitedcinema.com

yup, i ordered them about 20 mintues ago and posted in the imports, custom cover , and underworld/ silent hill thread.


can you tell i'm excited?
:cool:

Great news. Now I'm off to put in my order.

Oops, sorry to create yet another thread on this subject, I thought I had the scoop. :)

Considering I ordered from amazon.de, you guys will probably get the discs before I do...hehe. Xploited is awesome, great prices and second to none service and shipping speed.

Ordered

Underworld Extended
Silent Hill
Tomb Raider Cradle of Life
Fantastic Four

Now just waiting for Ghost Rider
Got to love those FOX exclusives on HD DVD

Another FYI:

Amazon.de raised the price on Underworld from 20 Euro to 27 Euro, so Xploited is actually much less expensive by about 8 dollars before shipping charges. Get em while they are hot!

I just ordered Underworld extended, Silent Hill, An American Haunting and The Fog.

Thanks for the heads up DrCrawn. Ordered Underworld.

Now....Take him to be tortured :)

Silent Hill.

Just ordered Underworld. Thanks.

FYI

30.95$ each. VERY reasonable!

xploitedcinema.com

I believe we HD DVD owners get to watch it before the BD guys do.;)

has anyone got a review on the PQ and how it relates in terms to PQ with U:E?

I believe we HD DVD owners get to watch it before the BD guys do.;)

POWNED :D

"Silent Hill" cost me $24.42 through amazon.de!
"Underworld" I ordered when it was EUR 21,00 so I got it for $28.

Heads up!
Amazon.de just lowered their price for the pre-order to "Resident Evil"
It was at the high EUR 26,88 now EUR 24,33 $33.68

I have this on pre-order and happy to say that Amazon.de will automatically reduce the price before it's release to you and will stay at the lowest price aval. untill i't's release like Amazon us!

all prices i mentioned are after VAT BTW
:D

Thanks for the heads up DrCrawn. Ordered Underworld.

Now....Take him to be tortured :)

For you and me, very funny. Everyone else, not so much... hehe:D

Just ordered Underworld.

Yup, me too, just ordered Underworld! :D

Just ordered Underworld and Bro'hood of the Wolf.

I just bought my first imports, ordered both Underworlds from xploited. Someone stop me, this HD DVD thing is killing my pocketbook LOL.

Ordered Silent Hill. Hope the transfer is better then the BD I have.

Damn! I just checked the site earlier this evening and it wasn't there, they must have just updated it. Got my copy on order...

Damn guys, I just ordered Underworld and Tomb Raider:Cradle of Life myself. I just love that site. I like that HD DVD has no regional lockouts, so we can enjoy those Blu Ray "exclusives", lol.

Ordered both :)

when you guys received the HD DVD, kindly post your review on PQ and AQ. I want to know whether my Silent Hill BD needs to be replaced with the HD DVD counterpart.

I'm going to talk my wife into ordering this one. ;)

POWNED :D

Will you be buying Silent Hill? If so any chance of a comparison of the BD and HD DVD versions?

Same with Underworld?

just ordered both :)

Just ordered both Underworlds.

Underworld is veryyy tempting right now. The thing is I don't know if I should wait for the Blu release or just go ahead with this...?

^^

While I prefer HD DVD over BD, I'll be getting the BD version of Underworld.

Ordered, I cannot wait for it. I already have the 2nd one (with custom cover art). Gotta love the region free movies.

FYI

30.95$ each. VERY reasonable!

xploitedcinema.com

My wife just ordered "Underworld" and "Fantastic 4". :D

Ordered Silent Hill. Hope the transfer is better then the BD I have.
From what I have seen of the promo disc, the source is the exact same as the BD version (so very detailed) but without the MPEG2 compression problems :)

I ordered Underworld last night :D.

I order Underworld friday and it ships on monday.

Will you be buying Silent Hill? If so any chance of a comparison of the BD and HD DVD versions?

Same with Underworld?

Of course.

Just ordered both Underworlds and Equilibrium.

I've spent $200 on HD-DVD's within 2 days. Someone stop me!

Just ordered both Underworlds and Equilibrium.

I've spent $200 on HD-DVD's within 2 days. Someone stop me!

Give me all your cash, that would stop you :D

How good is "Silent Hill"?

How good is "Silent Hill"?


I personally like the movie but the DVD is horrid and the BD, although a marked improvement, is not great either. I'm hoping somebody can do a comparison between the BD and the HD DVD version.

Ordered Tomb Raider: COL... it's a guilty pleasure.

Has this been announced on either format in the U.S.?

I personally like the movie but the DVD is horrid and the BD, although a marked improvement, is not great either. I'm hoping somebody can do a comparison between the BD and the HD DVD version.

That's why I'm waiting on that one. Want to see the reviews before taking the plunge.

US BD = MPEG2
GER HD = VC-1

That's the main difference.

US BD = MPEG2
GER HD = VC-1

That's the main difference.

How do we know Silent Hill is VC-1? Wasn't this companies last release on HD DVD (Fantastic Four) MPEG2?

I can't find anything that definitively states that Silent Hill is VC-1. Where does your info come from?

Edit:

http://www.dvd-datenbank.com/frm_content/ds_dvddetail.php?id_film=27935&PHPSESSID=e4cec2befed8f6af390c594246771636

Never mind. I found this site, which is actually pretty neat. SHows sound, video, and disc sizes for all German HD DVD releases (plus some upcoming releases). Can't wait to get the AVC release of REsident Evil later this month. I wonder if it is the same AVC encode as the Japanese release of the film (which was said to be a bit soft).

Ordered, I cannot wait for it. I already have the 2nd one (with custom cover art). Gotta love the region free movies.

Any good paper someone can recommend for printing the custom cover? I bought the Underworld Evolution (put in the order for Underworld) and would like to print the custom covers.

TIA

cheers

Any good paper someone can recommend for printing the custom cover? I bought the Underworld Evolution (put in the order for Underworld) and would like to print the custom covers.

TIA

cheers

Get the Kirkland (costco brand) Semi-gloss Premium photo paper. Works like a charm for all my covers (and i'm picky about photo paper)

Get the Kirkland (costco brand) Semi-gloss Premium photo paper. Works like a charm for all my covers (and i'm picky about photo paper)

Thanks for the tip. I will check it out.

BTW, do you just print on 8x11 and then cut to the exact size?

Thanks for the tip. I will check it out.

BTW, do you just print on 8x11 and then cut to the exact size?

Yes, that's how I do em.

if you are a cheapo like me who hates paying for ink/toner, you can also take them to your local kinkos and get them for $1-$1.50 depending on the exact quality of paper you want. at least for my printer (cheap canon pixma something or another...) I know I couldn't get 40 prints out of a set of ink cartridges ($40-$50) . to boot, they usually have nice paper trimmers that are far more sharp and accurate than mine. ymmv. $.02

if you are a cheapo like me who hates paying for ink/toner, you can also take them to your local kinkos and get them for $1-$1.50 depending on the exact quality of paper you want. at least for my printer (cheap canon pixma something or another...) I know I couldn't get 40 prints out of a set of ink cartridges ($40-$50) . to boot, they usually have nice paper trimmers that are far more sharp and accurate than mine. ymmv. $.02

here's an even cheaper way. Get a Continuous ink System for your printer. I get hundreds of prints from that for way cheaper than ink or Kinkos.

here's an even cheaper way. Get a Continuous ink System for your printer. I get hundreds of prints from that for way cheaper than ink or Kinkos.

pretty cool. does look a lot cheaper for a big upfront cost.

How do we know Silent Hill is VC-1? Wasn't this companies last release on HD DVD (Fantastic Four) MPEG2?

I can't find anything that definitively states that Silent Hill is VC-1. Where does your info come from?

First: Silent Hill is released by Concorde, not Highlight Video like Fantastic 4
Second: Concorde stated in press release that they gonna use this video codec for their releases.
Third: I got this HD DVD myself. :D

pretty cool. does look a lot cheaper for a big upfront cost.

it can be mildly cheap upfront cost too. I've gotten them off ebay for about 70-90 bucks which is just a bit more than a set of ink cartridges.

First: Silent Hill is released by Concorde, not Highlight Video like Fantastic 4
Second: Concorde stated in press release that they gonna use this video codec for their releases.
Third: I got this HD DVD myself. :D

How the PQ on it!
I ordered it also along with "Underworld" and "Resident Evil" but my shipment is awaiting "Resident Evil" to street.:mad:

Also do you know if "Resident Evil" is going to use mpeg2?:eek: since it's from Highlight?... I hope not.

My "Underworld" will be here Wednesday!

YES!:)

if you are a cheapo like me who hates paying for ink/toner, you can also take them to your local kinkos and get them for $1-$1.50 depending on the exact quality of paper you want. at least for my printer (cheap canon pixma something or another...) I know I couldn't get 40 prints out of a set of ink cartridges ($40-$50) . to boot, they usually have nice paper trimmers that are far more sharp and accurate than mine. ymmv. $.02

Kinkos is the exact place I was going to go to to get some custom covers made. I don't even have a printer so it's not like I'm to lazy to do it myself, I'm just waiting to get lots of covers I want and do it all at once. Thanks for the tip.

You people just had to make me spend more money.I'll be starting up a donation fund for HD DVD addicts just in time for the TOS set on Nov. 20th if things keep going this way.;)

How the PQ on it!
I ordered it also along with "Underworld" and "Resident Evil" but my shipment is awaiting "Resident Evil" to street.:mad:

Also do you know if "Resident Evil" is going to use mpeg2?:eek: since it's from Highlight?... I hope not.
No It's AVC (MPEG4).

How is Underworld as far as a blind-buy goes? I typically like horror but not super graphic/gore horror.

Silent Hill was pretty good, lots in there from the game. May have to pick that up.

How is Underworld as far as a blind-buy goes? I typically like horror but not super graphic/gore horror.

Silent Hill was pretty good, lots in there from the game. May have to pick that up.

Don't think of Underworld as Horror. Think of it more like Blade, teensy bit of horror with the rest of it full of ass kicking and guns.

Just placed my order for Underworld on xploitedcinema. Got Underworld Evolutions a while back but have been holding off on watching it, waiting for the first one to be released. Also picked up Lara Croft and Rambo 2 and 3 (to complete my Rambo collection). Thanks for the heads up.

How the PQ on it!
I ordered it also along with "Underworld" and "Resident Evil" but my shipment is awaiting "Resident Evil" to street.:mad:

I'd say it's Tier 1. Definitely an improvement over the US-BD.

How the PQ on it!
I ordered it also along with "Underworld" and "Resident Evil" but my shipment is awaiting "Resident Evil" to street.:mad:

Also do you know if "Resident Evil" is going to use mpeg2?:eek: since it's from Highlight?... I hope not.

We orderd "Underworld" and "Fantastic 4"...but F4 was sold out and backordered, so they shipped the "Underworld" by itself.

Mine just shipped today, sweet. I ordered Underworld 2 from Poland too, we'll see if that ever gets here lol.

Mine just shipped today, sweet. I ordered Underworld 2 from Poland too, we'll see if that ever gets here lol.

You should have ordered from Xploited, their shipping is very fast...2days. :D

Underworld ordered. Prices with shipping is a bit steep however. I do it to send a message to the "we don't support HD DVD" studios anyway.

"WTH, why are soooo many Germans buying Underworld?" he he

I just ordered Silent Hill from Xploited. This was a "horror" movie that surprised me, and I liked it quite a bit--enough to order it despite the slightly higher price (but the combo HD DVDs are almost in this range!)

I just ordered Silent Hill from Xploited. This was a "horror" movie that surprised me, and I liked it quite a bit--enough to order it despite the slightly higher price (but the combo HD DVDs are almost in this range!)

I am very picky when it comes to horror films. I tend to favor the supernatural over the blood and gore (Hostel being the exception, great film) genre.
How good is this movie really?

I am very picky when it comes to horror films. I tend to favor the supernatural over the blood and gore (Hostel being the exception, great film) genre.
How good is this movie really?


This movie is the supernatural kind.

I am very picky when it comes to horror films. I tend to favor the supernatural over the blood and gore (Hostel being the exception, great film) genre.
How good is this movie really?

It's not great -but I quite like Silent Hill. I was sort of disappointed when I
first saw it in the theater, but it's grown on me since then.

The movie has really fantastic atmosphere. If David Lynch or Cronenberg directed Hellraiser, you might get something like it.

Conversely, there are parts of the movie with just deathly atrocious dialogue IMO. Especially some of the lines given to Alice Krige's character are ridiculously hokey.

If you can get past a little corniness though - it's definitely worth a viewing.

Should get my SIlent Hill Thurs or Fri from xploited... can't wait...have a bunch of friends coming over to see it...I am a really big fan of the games and can't wait for Silent Hill V to come out.

can't wait for my order to arrive tomorrow around Noon
(SH and Underworld 1)

I work at a university, and aspects of popular culture are now considered legitimate research topics. Silent Hill is, in my opinion, an above average supernatural film, but it certainly does have flaws such as corny dialog at times and gaps in logic. However, it is interesting that all the major characters are women. The father and the male police officer have decent amounts of screen time, but it is the female characters who dominate the film.

can't wait for my order to arrive tomorrow around Noon
(SH and Underworld 1)

Yep...as you predicted. I got mine today. :D I could not resist so I went home for lunch and watched the first 10 minutes. I thought that PQ was a bit softer than Underworld: Evolution. However, it could be that I've been sitting in front of a computer monitor for 6 hours. So I'll have to try it again this evening.

I got mine today as well. Thanks Tony :D. I agree, it's a hair softer than Evolution but nothing to sneer at though. The DTS English audio is stunning and the colors are absolutely beautiful. the only only only complaint I have with this baby is the softness, although that could have been because of the filtering style the first movie used that the second did not use. I give this one a very good Tier 1 rating.

mailman came a bit late today (2pm). discs in hand, will be watching them tonight
:D

mailman came a bit late today (2pm). discs in hand, will be watching them tonight
:D

I just recieved my copy of "Underworld"!
I can't wait to watch it this evening!:D

still waiting on Amazon.de

should have ordered from Tony...oops... :)

Kinkos is the exact place I was going to go to to get some custom covers made. I don't even have a printer so it's not like I'm to lazy to do it myself, I'm just waiting to get lots of covers I want and do it all at once. Thanks for the tip.
Sorry if the answer seems obvious, but I just want to make sure, as I've never used Kinko's for this: is there a specific image format it has to be in for Kinko's to print it, or are the hi-res (print-quality) jpg's that are out there sufficient - can I just bring 'em a jpeg file on a disc and have 'em print it? I know, I know, you can print jpeg at most photo centers... but I've never tried Kinko's. :D Thanks!

I work at a university, and aspects of popular culture are now considered legitimate research topics. Silent Hill is, in my opinion, an above average supernatural film, but it certainly does have flaws such as corny dialog at times and gaps in logic. However, it is interesting that all the major characters are women. The father and the male police officer have decent amounts of screen time, but it is the female characters who dominate the film.
Indeed. Rather hilariously, or so the story goes, when the script was first submitted, all the characters were female, and the writer received a note back from a studio executive saying "But there are no men!!!" :D

As for the film, I think it's very, very good. The production design is beautiful, and I'd definitely consider it the best video game to movie adaptation.

Sorry if the answer seems obvious, but I just want to make sure, as I've never used Kinko's for this: is there a specific image format it has to be in for Kinko's to print it, or are the hi-res (print-quality) jpg's that are out there sufficient - can I just bring 'em a jpeg file on a disc and have 'em print it? I know, I know, you can print jpeg at most photo centers... but I've never tried Kinko's. :D Thanks!



yeh, just save them in 300dpi high quality jpeg on a cd-r

Oh well, the mail man came already today and It did not arrive today but I got another one I ordered from amazon.com. Maybe tomorrow:D

watched about 20 minutes of each right now. both look VERY good.
right below matrix, riddick, and underworld 2 at the top of the charts for me.

watched about 20 minutes of each right now. both look VERY good.
right below matrix, riddick, and underworld 2 at the top of the charts for me.
Both are WELL above The Matrix (a.k.a. the Edge-enhantrix) for me. Not seen Underworld 2 or Riddick in the flesh so can't comment on them.

Both are WELL above The Matrix (a.k.a. the Edge-enhantrix) for me. Not seen Underworld 2 or Riddick in the flesh so can't comment on them.


lol, well, i think the matrix is a bit better on the overall picture sharpness ($.02) although it's hard to say how much is transfger and how much is director's vision

There's something wrong with the black levels on Silent Hill, they're not completetly black, but a really dark gray, also, there's a very thin "halo" bordering the edges of the anamorphic frame, anybody else noticed this?

There's something wrong with the black levels on Silent Hill, they're not completetly black, but a really dark gray, also, there's a very thin "halo" bordering the edges of the anamorphic frame, anybody else noticed this?


I see the dark greyness on the SD DVD and BD. Anybody can confirm this on HD DVD too? :eek:

I got mine today as well. Thanks Tony :D. I agree, it's a hair softer than Evolution but nothing to sneer at though. The DTS English audio is stunning and the colors are absolutely beautiful. the only only only complaint I have with this baby is the softness, although that could have been because of the filtering style the first movie used that the second did not use. I give this one a very good Tier 1 rating.

I agree the audio is awesome but the picture isn't as sharp as Ev. Compared to the SD alot more color.

"Underworld" was awesome!

Great PQ, an easy tier 1, or at worse 2.

But the DTS-HD AQ???

Simply PHENOMENAL!:):):)

I am now a fan of DTS-HD. We could feel the roars of the Licans; amazing.
A+

Avoid Alone In the Dark. Shoo!
Avoid anything from Uwe "Toilet" Boll
All his movies are pieces of Sh***!
They better not ever have a High Def Version of Bloodrayne.

I just picked up Underword Uncut and The Fantastic Four.
I like the fact the FF has an 97 behind the scened featurette and other features that the Blu Ray Version does not have.

Underworld. Just perfect! What a transfer!

Got Underworld :)

^^

Will you be getting the BD version as well? If so, can we expect some comparisons?

I see the dark greyness on the SD DVD and BD. Anybody can confirm this on HD DVD too? :eek:


They used the same master, so I'm guessing it's the way it was shot, Underworld has no problems like this AT ALL, the blacks are perfect.

I see the dark greyness on the SD DVD and BD. Anybody can confirm this on HD DVD too? :eek:

Nope, didn't notice any "greyness" at all. The PQ was great to me, but the AQ= MARVELLOUS.:)

"Underworld" was awesome!

Great PQ, an easy tier 1, or at worse 2.

But the DTS-HD AQ???

Simply PHENOMENAL!:):):)

I am now a fan of DTS-HD. We could feel the roars of the Licans; amazing.
A+

Makes me wonder why we don't see dts HD more , did you listen to the german track? I had to turn it way down don't want to upset the neighbors. But I did put in Evolution afterwards and the PQ is much better but doesn't sound as dynamic.

Makes me wonder why we don't see dts HD more , did you listen to the german track? I had to turn it way down don't want to upset the neighbors. But I did put in Evolution afterwards and the PQ is much better but doesn't sound as dynamic.

The difference was night and day as far as AQ is concerned.

I have Underworld (Superbit). Will I notice a big difference in PQ between that and the import HD-DVD? Is it worth the double-dip?

I have the non-superbit Underworld: Evolution. I'm guessing the difference in PQ will be more noticeable with that title?

I'm really trying not to double-dip. But Kate Beckinsale in HD is tempting. ;)

I have Underworld (Superbit). Will I notice a big difference in PQ between that and the import HD-DVD? Is it worth the double-dip?
One word: YES!!!

You're going from 480 lines to 1080, and all of those 1080 lines are put to good use. The difference is NOT subtle!

I have Underworld (Superbit). Will I notice a big difference in PQ between that and the import HD-DVD? Is it worth the double-dip?

I have the non-superbit Underworld: Evolution. I'm guessing the difference in PQ will be more noticeable with that title?

I'm really trying not to double-dip. But Kate Beckinsale in HD is tempting. ;)

I have the Superbit as well. There is a BIIIIIG difference between the SB and the HD version. The audio is more robust, and heck yeah the pq is amazingly better in the HD version. And I'm only viewing on a 42 inch screen :eek:

Nope, didn't notice any "greyness" at all. The PQ was great to me, but the AQ= MARVELLOUS.:)

It's not greyness per se, it's just that the blacks are not really black, you can notice this when the movie fades to black and on the darker scenes, the black levels of the frame do not match that of the black bars on the top and bottom of the screen, as it does with other movies, including Underworld, I think this is a problem with the source and not the actual encode.

PS: Xylon, maybe you can chime in? Thanx.

Tomorrow night I will put up my Pic review.

I have Underworld (Superbit). Will I notice a big difference in PQ between that and the import HD-DVD? Is it worth the double-dip?

I have the non-superbit Underworld: Evolution. I'm guessing the difference in PQ will be more noticeable with that title?

I'm really trying not to double-dip. But Kate Beckinsale in HD is tempting. ;)

HUGE DIFFERENCE!!!:)

I still have my "Underworld" Superbit as well, and I watched it only last week so it is very easy to see the difference. The most notable as far as PQ is concerned is the detail and the contrast between light and dark, the blackest blacks...amazing. Get it.

It's not greyness per se, it's just that the blacks are not really black, you can notice this when the movie fades to black and on the darker scenes, the black levels of the frame do not match that of the black bars on the top and bottom of the screen, as it does with other movies, including Underworld, I think this is a problem with the source and not the actual encode.

PS: Xylon, maybe you can chime in? Thanx.

Not an issue on the HD DVD version. :) The blacks are perfect, the contrasts are perfect, although there is a little grain. No greyness or contrast problems in the HD DVD version.
But of course the HD DVD version of Underworld 2 has been confirmed to be superior in PQ to the BD version, so no surprise here.;)

Not an issue on the HD DVD version. :) The blacks are perfect, the contrasts are perfect, although there is a little grain. No greyness or contrast problems in the HD DVD version.
But of course the HD DVD version of Underworld 2 has been confirmed to be superior in PQ to the BD version, so no surprise here.;)
Actually, the blacks are slightly elevated in all versions, including the HD DVD release. It's fairly slight, though, and you can compensate acceptably by adjusting the brightness setting of your display.

Just finished watching Underworld and Underworld Evolution. Part 2 PQ is a hair line slightly better than 1 but the SQ from Part1 is far impressive than 2 . Using same volumn ,part1 is much louder and forceful than part2 . Will try to watch the silent hill this weekend to compare to my BD version .

Got Underworld :)

I am expecting mine anyday now! Psyched for this import.

Not an issue on the HD DVD version. :) The blacks are perfect, the contrasts are perfect, although there is a little grain. No greyness or contrast problems in the HD DVD version.
But of course the HD DVD version of Underworld 2 has been confirmed to be superior in PQ to the BD version, so no surprise here.;)


This whole black level issue is related to the Silent Hill HD DVD, not the Underworld HD DVD, I got both and yes Underworld's blacks are excellent, and so is the transfer in general, you might want to watch Silent Hill again though, I'm sure you'll see what I'm talking about.

This whole black level issue is related to the Silent Hill HD DVD, not the Underworld HD DVD, I got both and yes Underworld's blacks are excellent, and so is the transfer in general, you might want to watch Silent Hill again though, I'm sure you'll see what I'm talking about.

My mistake, I thought we were talking about "Underworld", I don't have "Silent Hill" yet.

This whole black level issue is related to the Silent Hill HD DVD, not the Underworld HD DVD, I got both and yes Underworld's blacks are excellent, and so is the transfer in general, you might want to watch Silent Hill again though, I'm sure you'll see what I'm talking about.

I have just watched silent hill and agreed that the picture is sharper than BD version but the whole movie is towards grey.Just for fun I reduce the brightness a bit and found out it did not sacrifice the black level details at all.Maybe something wrong on the transfer?

I have just watched silent hill and agreed that the picture is sharper than BD version but the whole movie is towards grey.Just for fun I reduce the brightness a bit and found out it did not sacrifice the black level details at all.Maybe something wrong on the transfer?


David Susilo mentioned that this "greyness" was also present on both the BD and SD DVD copies, so I'm assuming it's a problem with the actual master and not either of the transfers.

David Susilo mentioned that this "greyness" was also present on both the BD and SD DVD copies, so I'm assuming it's a problem with the actual master and not either of the transfers.

Yup,I have watched both BD and SD version too.I know they are all towards greyness.But only this HD version, I can see below black level on 2 scenes.That is why I think something maybe wrong.Could be my calibration,though,but this is the first time I encounter this.

Yup,I have watched both BD and SD version too.I know they are all towards greyness.But only this HD version, I can see below black level on 2 scenes.That is why I think something maybe wrong.Could be my calibration,though,but this is the first time I encounter this.


oh crud. I hope the greyness is not really worse on the HD DVD compared to the BD and SD. :( I already ordered mine so in the next 2 weeks or so I'll receive the HD DVD. Crossing my fingers, eyes and toes. :p

ordered silent hill from xploited yesterday. can't wait to get it :)

oh crud. I hope the greyness is not really worse on the HD DVD compared to the BD and SD. :( I already ordered mine so in the next 2 weeks or so I'll receive the HD DVD. Crossing my fingers, eyes and toes. :p

The PQ sharpness and details and especially the AQ will please you,don't worry:D

I know I'll probably catch hell over saying this, but being format neutral, I can't see any real advantage to choosing the German Underworld HD DVD over the upcoming Blu-ray. :(

Of course, if I had no intention of going Blu, sure, but it appears the Blu-ray will have several advantages (price, extras, sound) for those who have both formats.

Saying this, I did just get the German Silent Hill HD DVD in the mail for the superior PQ over the Blu-ray.

I know I'll probably catch hell over saying this, but being format neutral, I can't see any real advantage to choosing the German Underworld HD DVD over the upcoming Blu-ray. :(

Of course, if I had no intention of going Blu, sure, but it appears the Blu-ray will have several advantages (price, extras, sound) for those who have both formats.

Saying this, I did just get the German Silent Hill HD DVD in the mail for the superior PQ over the Blu-ray.

I have a lot more HD DVDs than BD, and I prefer HD DVD over BD. However, I too will be purchasing the BD version of Underworld as well. It doesn't bother me.

I know I'll probably catch hell over saying this, but being format neutral, I can't see any real advantage to choosing the German Underworld HD DVD over the upcoming Blu-ray. :(

Of course, if I had no intention of going Blu, sure, but it appears the Blu-ray will have several advantages (price, extras, sound) for those who have both formats.

Saying this, I did just get the German Silent Hill HD DVD in the mail for the superior PQ over the Blu-ray.

The thing is that so far all of my favourite movies that are available on both local BD and imported HD DVD have always been better on the HD DVD even on my "tiny" 46" TV.

Just got my Silent Hill today! Woo hoo!

Yup,I have watched both BD and SD version too.I know they are all towards greyness.But only this HD version, I can see below black level on 2 scenes.That is why I think something maybe wrong.Could be my calibration,though,but this is the first time I encounter this.

I just watched Silent Hill tonight, and I, too, noticed the elevated blacks.

I don't think that just reducing the brightness is an answer, either. When I reduced the brightness so that there was no difference between a black screen and the black bars, I seemed to lose too much shadow detail. Maybe that's just my TV, though?

Anyway, I found a happy compromise by reducing the black level just a little bit instead of all the way.

Also, no one should let concerns about the black level prevent them from buying this movie--it still looks fantastic. There aren't that many scenes that have that "3-D" quality to them (all that darn fog is probably too blame!), but there's no question that it looks loads better than the standard DVD.

Wow, I just watched Underworld tonight. Definitely tier 1 video, IMO. I don't have BD so I can't compare the versions, but I can tell you the HD DVD looked and sounded AMAZING.

I've bought 3 imports so far..T2, HPGoF, and Underworld...and all 3 have been great! :D

Has anyone else noticed slight, intermittent clicking sounds when listening to Underworld's DTS-HD 5.1 English track? Replaying that exact spot reproduces the click every time, so it seems unlikely to be a pre-amp/amp issue. Three examples of this occur at 45:21, 46:18, and 48:17. The German track has similar clicks but at different locations -- one example is at 40:10.

It'd be a shame if this is a widespread problem with the disc, but I also hope that it's not an issue with my HD-A2 or my new Pioneer VSX-92TXH receiver! Audio is fed to the 92TXH via HDMI, btw.

Edit: Tried the disc in my second system, with HD-D2 connected via optical SP-DIF to an Emotiva pre-amp. The same clicks are present in the same locations. Seems like it might be a mastering issue with the audio track(s)... :(

I finally had a chance to watch it last night and I did notice a faint pop or snap occassionally throughout the movie. It isn't distracting to the point it ruins the movie, imo, but I do notice it.

I just received my copy of underworld from Xploited in Japan. Amazing SQ for sure, the PQ is right up there as well. Glad I was able to get my hands on this. I cancelled my copy on BD from Amazon. The sound is just that good, highly recommended.

Underworld,silent hill and tomb raider2 all have the clicking sound.

Perhaps someone who is a loon and buys lots of everything will get a-hold of both the HD-DVD and BD versions of UNDERWORLD and compare them, fairly. Myself, I am ordering the BD.

By the way, I cannot help but say that I hated SILENT HILL more than any other film I have seen since GODZILLA. It was so beyond bad that it wasn't funny bad. It was just bad bad bad bad bad bad. Oh my God, it sucked so bad.

By the way, I cannot help but say that I hated SILENT HILL more than any other film I have seen since GODZILLA. It was so beyond bad that it wasn't funny bad. It was just bad bad bad bad bad bad. Oh my God, it sucked so bad.

kind of like how people couldn't help but say their matrix hd-dvds have no audio lag issues?

Has anyone else noticed slight, intermittent clicking sounds when listening to Underworld's DTS-HD 5.1 English track? Replaying that exact spot reproduces the click every time, so it seems unlikely to be a pre-amp/amp issue. Three examples of this occur at 45:21, 46:18, and 48:17. The German track has similar clicks but at different locations -- one example is at 40:10.

It'd be a shame if this is a widespread problem with the disc, but I also hope that it's not an issue with my HD-A2 or my new Pioneer VSX-92TXH receiver! Audio is fed to the 92TXH via HDMI, btw.

Edit: Tried the disc in my second system, with HD-D2 connected via optical SP-DIF to an Emotiva pre-amp. The same clicks are present in the same locations. Seems like it might be a mastering issue with the audio track(s)... :(
Heh. I knew I should've ordered the Blu-ray version. Still, my HD-DVD copy is on the way and I'm eager to give it a spin.

Underworld,silent hill and tomb raider2 all have the clicking sound.

Add Fantastic Four, another DTS-HD track. It is by far the worst and I am surprised nobody has mentioned it. Anyone see a pattern here? I have a hard time believing all these titles would have soundtrack master problems, maybe there is something going on in the players when decoding the core or re-encoding back to DTS. I haven't checked on my A1 with analog outs yet, has anyone? Is everyone who hears clicks using optical out from their player? Anyone get this over HDMI?

Add Fantastic Four, another DTS-HD track. It is by far the worst and I am surprised nobody has mentioned it. Anyone see a pattern here? I have a hard time believing all these titles would have soundtrack master problems, maybe there is something going on in the players when decoding the core or re-encoding back to DTS. I haven't checked on my A1 with analog outs yet, has anyone? Is everyone who hears clicks using optical out from their player? Anyone get this over HDMI?

I have Underworld on HD and I can't hear the click people have been complaining about. I checked the timestamps and I couldn't hear them. I'm running optical out on a HD-A2

no clicks at those time stamps using hda20- fwv2.2 , optical out to denon 3803 (yes, it's an antique!)

*edit note*
I didn't turn it up that loud, only about -30 dB on the receiver. does it need to be louder to hear the clicks ?

By the way, I cannot help but say that I hated SILENT HILL more than any other film I have seen since GODZILLA. It was so beyond bad that it wasn't funny bad. It was just bad bad bad bad bad bad. Oh my God, it sucked so bad.

A lot of people seem to really hate Silent Hill, and I'm not sure why.

I mean, I can understand not liking it if you don't like horror movies, but, if you don't like horror movies, then why the heck did you see it?

At the very least, I think that you have to acknowledge that the cinematography, directing, set design, and audio design were all fantastic.

Has anyone else noticed slight, intermittent clicking sounds when listening to Underworld's DTS-HD 5.1 English track? Replaying that exact spot reproduces the click every time, so it seems unlikely to be a pre-amp/amp issue. Three examples of this occur at 45:21, 46:18, and 48:17. The German track has similar clicks but at different locations -- one example is at 40:10.

It'd be a shame if this is a widespread problem with the disc, but I also hope that it's not an issue with my HD-A2 or my new Pioneer VSX-92TXH receiver! Audio is fed to the 92TXH via HDMI, btw.

Edit: Tried the disc in my second system, with HD-D2 connected via optical SP-DIF to an Emotiva pre-amp. The same clicks are present in the same locations. Seems like it might be a mastering issue with the audio track(s)... :(

Wow, these audio tracks on these imports have been a disaster. First the pitch problems with 90% of the Studio Canal titles, then the low-bitrate lossy tracks on Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Island and The Prestige, and now this. There's several imports I would love to buy if only the audio was good. Picture Quality is only half of the equation, folks.

Picture Quality is only half of the equation, folks.

the other half is the ability to actually hear the distinguish whether the audio you're listening is "low bitrate" without comparing to the master and/or read about it somewhere. ;)

My old receiver doesn't have HDMI inputs, so I'm going 5.1 analog in...and I don't hear any of those "clicks" people are talking about. Again, my imports have been great with video and audio.

My player is connected via optical cable to my denon.
The volume was set to -9 (that's very loud and I'm not hearing impaired ;)) throughout the movie. I bought my sound system, exluding receiver, approx. 1 year ago for around $1,800 and I didn't hear anything at all. Btw I watched Silent Hill with English audio.

I haven't checked on my A1 with analog outs yet, has anyone? Is everyone who hears clicks using optical out from their player? Anyone get this over HDMI?

Yes, the audible clicks occur when feeding the Underworld DTS-HD track to my receiver via HDMI. They also occur on the other player, feeding the downmixed standard DTS to the receiver via optical. But they did seem a bit less noticeable on the second system. A result of the DTS-HD -> DTS conversion, perhaps? Or the different speakers (dome vs ribbon tweeter), or the room, or... possibly many other things. Both players are running firmware rev 2.2.

Underworld,silent hill and tomb raider2 all have the clicking sound.

Do you hear them at the same spots I mentioned above?

then the low-bitrate lossy tracks on Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Island and The Prestige, and now this. There's several imports I would love to buy if only the audio was good.

You make it sound like the soundtracks on these discs are played back from wax cylinders.

Even "low bit rate" DD+ is still higher bit rate and fidelity than the audio on DVD.

no clicking sounds for me for Underworld on HDV5000 and A2 both connected via optical.

You make it sound like the soundtracks on these discs are played back from wax cylinders.

Even "low bit rate" DD+ is still higher bit rate and fidelity than the audio on DVD.


now now... at least wax cylinders are not "lossy" :D

Well I quickly tried Silent Hill on my A1 with analog outs to my Denon 5700, and I heard the same clicks at the same spot, ~3:17 mark right at the beginning. Very difficult to hear unless you knew it was coming. I suggest any of us who don't hear the clipping to break out the headphones for a much more detailed listen.

I just tossed in Silent Hill and played the first few minutes, and the click at ~3:17 was very, very obvious -- as is the click at ~3:08. At both points the click was at least equal in volume to the other sounds being played back. Switched from the HDMI audio input to the optical input, and the clicks were definitely quieter... but were still there. I'm wondering if this is some sort of player bug or defect in the player's DTS-HD decoder...

I just tossed in Silent Hill and played the first few minutes, and the click at ~3:17 was very, very obvious -- as is the click at ~3:08. At both points the click was at least equal in volume to the other sounds being played back. Switched from the HDMI audio input to the optical input, and the clicks were definitely quieter... but were still there. I'm wondering if this is some sort of player bug or defect in the player's DTS-HD decoder...

Like I said before, I have a hard time believing all these discs have mastering issues like this. Too many DTS-HD tracks with clipping issues. I am leaning towards hardware/software in the players, but what do I know...

I can also confirm the problem exists whether you output re-encoded DTS, or PCM over a digi connection or just let the player output over analogs (e.g. HD-A1).

As far as clicks and pops go... I can't hear crap!!!

What I can hear is some kickass demo material on this disc!!!!

Jesus Christ! It sounded like there were Lycans in my house!!!

I haven't noticed these clicks on my other DTS-HD encoded discs (Total Recall, Brotherhood of the Wolf). Hopefully this can be fixed by Toshiba, or at least resolved by Concorde for any of their subsequent releases.

I did not hear any clicks on all previous imports except this time on this 3 titles . Will try out resident evil1/2 and hero when received.

You make it sound like the soundtracks on these discs are played back from wax cylinders.

Even "low bit rate" DD+ is still higher bit rate and fidelity than the audio on DVD.
First off, I have plenty of DVDs that have both full and half bitrate DTS which is much higher than many of the DD+ tracks being released these days. If I wanted slightly better than DVD, I would stick with DVD. I buy next-gen discs because of the substantial improvement that it is capable of. Just because it is a little better than DVD doesn't mean it's an automatic sale to me. Compare the 640kbps track on The Prestige to the 24-bit PCM track on BD and tell me you can't hear a huge difference. I'd be shocked if you couldn't. The audio on the HD-DVD is weak by comparison.

Wow, these audio tracks on these imports have been a disaster. First the pitch problems with 90% of the Studio Canal titles, then the low-bitrate lossy tracks on Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Island and The Prestige, and now this. There's several imports I would love to buy if only the audio was good. Picture Quality is only half of the equation, folks.

I'm going to order FF4 and The Island from Xploited sometime this week to see what the whole freaking world is complaining about. :eek:

So far there haven't been any complaints here about the Island and from what I've read, people seem to love Mr/Mrs Smith: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=832044

I own Total Recall (SC) and don't have a problem with the sound.

It could be that I'm just not annoyed with the "little things" :D

I would love to hear some more impressions of Underworld. I bought this for a friend and he tells me it looks like crap, he said worse than the SD DVD. He's using the Xbox add on. I'm wondering what he's smoking. Can anyone add to this?

looks way better than SD on hda20
:eek:

I'm going to order FF4 and The Island from Xploited sometime this week to see what the whole freaking world is complaining about. :eek:

I don't know about Fantastic Four so I can't comment on that one. The Island looks spectacular but has a low-bitrate lossy audio track. Most of the reviewers in that thread haven't mentioned it because most HD-DVD owners don't care about sound quality. As long as the picture looks nice and crisp, they're happy.

So far there haven't been any complaints here about the Island and from what I've read, people seem to love Mr/Mrs Smith.
What about this:
Too bad Warner went cheap on the audio. This is next gen but I have DVD's with better audio...

I own Total Recall (SC) and don't have a problem with the sound.

It could be that I'm just not annoyed with the "little things" :D
I wish it didn't bother me, but that helium sound in Arnold's voice is too much for me to handle. Some people don't mind it, but I just can't take it. The Blu-Ray looks like garbage, the HD-DVD sounds like garbage. I love the film, but I'm stuck with DVD for now on this film.

So FF is supposed to have 'clicks' as well? I didn't notice any at my regular volume level. I won't make a note of where the clicks are on Underworld so that I'm not deliberately straining to hear them. If I can't hear them at my preferred volume level, then I'm good.

As for Mr And Mrs Smith, it's 'only' normal DD & DTS but it sounds superb, far better than the DTS track on the unrated DVD. Picture quality is excellent too.

I would love to hear some more impressions of Underworld. I bought this for a friend and he tells me it looks like crap, he said worse than the SD DVD. He's using the Xbox add on. I'm wondering what he's smoking. Can anyone add to this?

Whatever he's smoking he needs to quit!!!! Underworld on HD DVD looks absolutely fantastic!!!, It's a solid Tier 1 title. I A/B'd the HD DVD with the 2 disc unrated cut and the Suberbit DVD. Blew both of them out of the water. Plus the DTS HD track is absolutely Insange

Tomorrow night I will put up my Pic review.

Where do you usually put your pic reviews? Will you be comparing to the Blu-Ray version? I'd like to see this because it'll be a rare case where it's an HD-30 versus a BD-50 AVC (rather than MPEG2).

Not to get off topic, but have there been any other other BD-50 AVC versus HD-30 (AVC or VC1)? I really think it would take an incredible eye to see any difference, but I could be wrong.

just got Silent Hill in the mail.. i'll check it out tonight and report if i have any clicking issues.. i'll be watching on an xbox addon

A lot of people seem to really hate Silent Hill, and I'm not sure why.

I mean, I can understand not liking it if you don't like horror movies, but, if you don't like horror movies, then why the heck did you see it?

At the very least, I think that you have to acknowledge that the cinematography, directing, set design, and audio design were all fantastic. It's quite an assumption to say I don't like horrror films. I love them. Hell, last night I popped THE HIDDEN into my DVD player so that the wife could experience it (she fell asleep). To me, SILENT HILL was poorly written, ill conceived and laughable in its nutso stereotypical Christian villains. It took three sittings to get through the movie. No amount of good sound or exceptional production design could save it for me. It was a huge disappointment coming from Christopher Gans, who's prior two films I love (one of which, Crying Freeman, is still not available in the United States).

SILENT HILL was poorly written, ill conceived and laughable in its nutso stereotypical Christian villains.

you DO realize it was a video game adaptation...? :confused:

Whatever he's smoking he needs to quit!!!! Underworld on HD DVD looks absolutely fantastic!!!, It's a solid Tier 1 title. I A/B'd the HD DVD with the 2 disc unrated cut and the Suberbit DVD. Blew both of them out of the water. Plus the DTS HD track is absolutely Insange

+1 What he said. This has great detail in the dark scenes and most of the movie is dark. The DTS HD 5.1 is just outa this world (movie ripped to HDD, using HTPC C2D, PDVD Ultra 3104.x , ASUS 8600GTS along with X-meridian anolog to Marantz SR8001 AVR). I think I just found another ref demo disk to go along with The Chronicles of Riddick. IMO Underworld is much better then Underworld Evolution PQ/AQ wise. Did I mention the sound was outstanding :eek:.

Now to watch Bro of the Wolf.

Also shopping at Xploited was great as always.

I just got Underworld today. The picture quality is eye popping and jaw dropping. Heheh, it's very 'noisy' :D

you DO realize it was a video game adaptation...? :confused:

Yes, but that excuses it?

i watched silent hill 2 nights ago start to finish and did not experience any clicking issues at the times noted earlier in the thread

Hmm. I wonder if there is a bad batch of Silent Hill & Underworld discs? Or perhaps the clicks are higher-pitched than I thought and as such are simply above the upper-end of some viewers' hearing range?

Hmm. I wonder if there is a bad batch of Silent Hill & Underworld discs? Or perhaps the clicks are higher-pitched than I thought and as such are simply above the upper-end of some viewers' hearing range?

good ? .... i can hear the 17 (pretty easy) and 18 k (straining) sample mosquito tones. :(

I got my copy of Underworld today but I can't watch it until I get my burn-in hours complete on my 150FD plasma (high aspect movie with top and bottom bars). :(

I got my copy of Underworld today but I can't watch it until I get my burn-in hours complete on my 150FD plasma (high aspect movie with top and bottom bars). :(

I remember the break-in days....they seem to take FOREVER dont they? :mad:

Hang in there.....you're on your way.... :D

good ? .... i can hear the 17 (pretty easy) and 18 k (straining) sample mosquito tones. :(

'Twas a guess... I just recently (within the last couple years) lost my ability to hear the 19kHz tones, so my ability to detect high-pitch sounds seems roughly the same as yours. So that's probably not it. Still leaves open the possiblity of a bad batch of discs, or perhaps a bad batch of players or decoder chips.

I dont have the disk but could the XBOX Addon be different then the Toshiba players? I wonder if that is why some people hear it and others do not?

Some full resolution (1920x1080) screen captures of Silent Hill (and King Kong, and Serenity), if anyone's interested:

http://whiggles.landofwhimsy.com/archives/2007/09/anyone_want_some_full_resoluti.html

Shots of Underworld will follow later, hopefully.

:)

Took the dip on Silent Hill. Should be here by Wends. or Thrus.