Picture Quality: Pretty amazing stuff here!! The last animated features I've viewed on Blu-Ray were Surf's Up and Meet the Robinsons. Both of those discs were excellent in their own right. Cars definatley up's the ante. I'm not even sure "transfer-wise" Cars is a better than those flicks. Thing is, the production value of these Pixar films just seem to be in a different leauge. It seems there is more detail available in the original source to show off all this detail. Also, compared to the other two discs, Cars seems to have less stylization....no soft focus, artificial grain, etc. (not that I have a problem with these stylistic choices). Cars lends itself more to a natural presentation, which really shows off the sheer amount of detail in the animation.

I noticed that contrast was a bit more in check compared to some of the trailers I've seen on recent Disney discs. This seems to be a trend though. Trailers tend to be higher in contrast and sharper for some reason. The actual feature film is a bit more reserved. Not sure why. I did feel that Cars looked better than the trailer for Rattatooie(sp?) if that says anything.

The only fault I could find was some aisling. Not as bad as what some have seen in MI:3, but its there. I think this may be more of a problem with my monitor than the transfer though....which is why I wouldnt hesitate to say this transfer is damn near perfect.

Overall, beautiful transfer. Very film-like presentation. I'll leave the AQ review for the more experienced reviewers, but I will say that nobody will be dissapointed. Some of the most active surrounds I've heard in awhile.

Chris

Sorry about the ultra low quality of the pics. My camera blows....
Anyway, CC had it on the shelf today. At the register, it says it's "Inelligible for sale until street date nov 6."
The wonderfully dim cashier went ahead and did an override for me! Anyway, I really don't think I could give a proper review but the uncompressed audio is amazing. The voices, the races, everything sounds so much clearer than the sd dvd. that alone is a huge selling point! As for video, to be honest, I thought the sd looked great on it's own upscaled so while the main characters no longer suffer from jaggies around their mouths and such like the SD, the backgrounds are the ones that gained the most from blu imo. The trees, fences, grasses, etc looks perfect! The character,neon light, and the building colors pop off the screen like no other cgi movie I've seen on hdm so far! I haven't tried the games yet but I probably won't even bother....

Either way, go get it when you can!
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2346/1835891995_14ae8cb734_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2123/1836720236_cf1f97d81e_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2290/1836721320_9224d85542_o.jpg

Cool...I'm looking forward to getting it next week.

awesome. But I don't know if the HD picture is enough to distract from the story pacing.

Where did you get that wicked looking guitar hero key-chain?:cool:
(now I want a skull faceplate, doh)

Best buy is selling them at a $2.00 boys/girls club donation! off topic here but do you have the wireless Les Paul? I wanted to pick one up by I heard they have drop outs. Truth? This is for the 360 btw...

I cant wait.

Screen shots look awesome!! I Love that movie!!!


You just quickly took some screen shots and then put in "Arthur's Best Friends" didn't you??!!

A Disney cover without that stupid swish!

OMG!

Loved Cars!...sadly the screencaps don't help show off the hi-def.

Awesome, can't wait to get it! Thanks for the pics dude.

That Arthurs best friends is my daughters fav movie/cartoon. lol
Sorry again about the screen caps. My camera does not do the movie justice.

wow..amazing...man...thank you Blu-Ray.

Best buy is selling them at a $2.00 boys/girls club donation! off topic here but do you have the wireless Les Paul? I wanted to pick one up by I heard they have drop outs. Truth? This is for the 360 btw...

That's what I have. I got wifi all over the place and it works fine. So much more awesome without wires.:)

I'll have to check out the key chains when I pick up the Pixars.

Damn you guys !!! Another $25 going out of my pocket.

i really want cars on blu but im afraid it wont be that much different on my set

It looks incredible in HD; Starz! HD has been showing it for a few months, and I assume it will look as good if not better on BD.

Awesome....can't wait to get this and ratatouille.

I hope Disney releases Finding Nemo and the Incredibles soon...and Monsters inc and the Toy Story flicks. heh.

Awesome....can't wait to get this and ratatouille.

I hope Disney releases Finding Nemo and the Incredibles soon...and Monsters inc and the Toy Story flicks. heh.


+1

+1


+2:D

Awesome....can't wait to get this and ratatouille.

I hope Disney releases Finding Nemo and the Incredibles soon...and Monsters inc and the Toy Story flicks. heh.

+3

I'd love all of those as well. And don't forget A Bug's Life.

Awesome....can't wait to get this and ratatouille.

I hope Disney releases Finding Nemo and the Incredibles soon...and Monsters inc and the Toy Story flicks. heh.

Ditto... Finding Nemo is going to look amazing for sure and my favorite, Monsters Inc will as well...

Just got mine in the mail today. Love this movie, and can't wait to watch it w/ the family tonight. Bring on The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, TS1 & 2, and Bugs Life!

If it looks half as good as the cars short film on the Pixar BD, I'll be happy. That thing looks stellar.

Not half as good, TWICE as good! ;) Seriously though, it looks spectacular. Definitely Tier 0.

Oh man... I am sooooooo excited

Hi, ¿Has Spanish subtitles?

Thanks.

Hi, ¿Has Spanish subtitles?

Thanks.

The back of the case shows "English SDH, French, & Spanish" Subtitles.

:)

My review posted today.

THE MOVIE- 4 3/4 stars out of 5

Another in a string of excellent animated films from the folks at Pixar, Cars tells the story of race car Lightning McQueen, who is living life in the fast lane until he hits a detour on his way to the final race for the Piston Cup. Stranded in a forgotten town of Radiator Springs before the race, Lightning meets Sally, Mater, Doc Hudson and a variety of quirky characters who help him discover that there is more to life than trophies and fame. The film features the voices of Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen and Paul Newman as Doc Hudson along with Bonnie Hunt, Larry the Cable Guy, George Carlin, Cheech Martin as well as Pixar favorite John Ratzenberger, who, it seems, must appear in every Pixar film.

While I enjoyed this film in the theater, it did not impress me as among Pixar’s best. However, the film has grown on me after several viewings. This is one film that gets better the more you see it. While the story is not quite up to the level of those in the two Toy Story films as well as Bugs Life, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo and my personal favorite, The Incredibles, it is only a small notch below. The animation is spectacular however, and every bit as impressive as those other films. Highly recommended.

THE VIDEO- 5 stars out of 5

Simply put, the video presentation on Blu-Ray is flawless. Encoded with AVC and presented in its original aspect ratio of 2:39:1, this disc looks amazing. The colors really pop. Black levels are deep producing a totally three dimensional image. Detail is simply amazing from the sheen of the cars to the sparkling paint to the backgrounds, there is simply nothing to fault on this transfer. This is the best looking animated film I have seen on either Blu-Ray or HD-DVD, surpassing the recent Meet the Robinsons.

THE AUDIO- 5 stars out of 5

The audio is presented in uncompressed PCM at 48 kHz/24 bit and sounds superb. The overall sound is smooth and dynamic with an open soundstage. All sound elements are presented beautifully in the mix. Bass is clean and tight and not overblown. Dialogue is full, rich, clear and distinct and well placed in the soundfield. Audio details are impressive, from being able to hear air around the voices in the dialogue track to the music which is rendered beautifully. Needless to say, the racing scenes sound amazing, with cars flying all around the room as well as directly over your head. The opening Pixar sequence has never sounded better to me either at home or in the theater. You are able to hear every little squeek of the bouncing lamp as he moves and turns and jumps on the I in Pixar. I was never able to hear these details as clearly even in the theater. I know that is a little detail, but it shows just how much care went into producing this audio encode. Very well done.

EXTRAS

This disc is chock full of extras including Cine-Explore, a Car Finder game (featuring BD-Java interactivity), a never before seen deleted scene, Radiator Springs featurettes and a movie showcase which provides instant access to select movie scenes. Also included are the features included with the original DVD release.

IN CONCLUSION

To those fans of the film and Pixar in general, this is a must have disc. The audio and video presentation in Blu-Ray surpasses that on the DVD release by leaps and bounds, which is impressive, given that the DVD release was no slouch. Highly Recommended.

are all the special features in HD?

The back of the case shows "English SDH, French, & Spanish" Subtitles.

:)

Thanks!!!!!;)

Is this disc region free?
Thanks.

Is this disc region free?
Thanks.

The case shows "ABC".

The case shows "ABC".

Thanks Mr Slow!;)

A Disney cover without that stupid swish!

OMG!

Amen to that!

Somebody please confirm me the spanish subtitles?

In websites say they have, buy in others web sites say not have Spanish subtitles...has or not?

Thanks so much.

I noticed that contrast was a bit more in check compared to some of the trailers I've seen on recent Disney discs. This seems to be a trend though. Trailers tend to be higher in contrast and sharper for some reason. The actual feature film is a bit more reserved. Not sure why.


Chris

FYI, I just read an old 2006 article @ hometheaterblog claiming the same thing...

link (http://www.hometheaterblog.com/hometheater/2006/06/bluray_vs_hddvd.html)
{"While the Blu-ray demo disc did indeed have better image quality than the full length Blu-ray movies. I have to assume with the demo disc coming in it at 30 minutes or so, Sony was able to take full advantage of Blu-ray’s bit-rate, whereas they couldn’t with the full length films."}

I have to agree that the Cars movie does look like eye candy though. Will watch it in whole this weekend for the first time.:D

If it looks half as good as the cars short film on the Pixar BD, I'll be happy. That thing looks stellar.

I saw the first 20 minutes so far and yes it does. It was also cool on the Pixar BD to see the Monsters Inc clip showing his new car. The furry monster has never looked crisper than on the Pixar disc.

Cars on Blu-Ray delivers the best PQ I've ever seen to date. Incredible on my Pioneer Kuro!

Great looking and sounding BD.
Disney does it right yet again.

The back of the case shows "English SDH, French, & Spanish" Subtitles.

:)

What about a french and spanish tracks? Thanks!

This disc has the absolute best commentary track ever. John Lasseter gives such an in depth look at what was going on that made the movie, and it adds a lot of depth.

I just finished watching this movie and I'm thoroughly impressed with this release. The PQ is honestly the best I've seen so far on bluray, and AQ was very good as well. Ya some people will say "it was an animated movie," but still, it looked perfect.

What about a french and spanish tracks? Thanks!

No, no Spanish and no French tracks. Only English 5.1 Uncompressed and English 5.1 Dolby Digital audio and English SDH. In fact I have the Canadian edition (the edition with the Canadian home video rating and the Canadian flag in the lower left corner of the back sleeve), and it's surprising it was released here like that with no French at all.

Great audio, almost perfect video. Only a so-so and slightly derivative and lazy effort by Lasseter and crew.

They seemed much more enamored this time around by the technical aspects (it does show) rather than putting a lot into the story and humor (simple and forced, in that order).

Hopefully, PIXAR doesn't end up like their parent company Disney with half-hearted mass consumer animated junk when they started out with absolute classic fare.

I have to admit that the Cars interactive game is better than anything I've interacted with on HD DVD so far.

Not a title I'll revisit often, but the video is stunning.

anybody got issues wen playing the game?

my now loading wording would appear on the screen.....

PQ is the best of the best...just amazing picture and color. 6/5 stars.

This disc has the absolute best commentary track ever. John Lasseter gives such an in depth look at what was going on that made the movie, and it adds a lot of depth.

Where is this commentary track? The back of the cover doesnt say anything about a commentary track.

Robert

I wish all movies looked this good, stunning!

This as well as the rat movie are the best I have seen on hd, and the sound is incredible. Simply put Disney is doing it RIGHT!!!

Where is this commentary track? The back of the cover doesnt say anything about a commentary track.It's part of the "Cinexplore" feature. There are two commentaries, even.

I got Cars on BD a few days ago, amazing PQ, great little animated flick. Two thumbs up.

Just watched on PS3 and all I can said is 8 thumbs up.

I just bought Cars and watched it about an hour ago. Of my 35ish HD titles now (BR and HD-DVD) I think I can honestly say that this is the best of them all, especially sound. The sound on this movie is awesome.

I have never seen Cars. My kids and wife saw it in the theater and we actually have the older DVD but I just never got to watching it for some reason.

I give it 5 of 5.

Simply amazing.

The small framed scenes in the end credits is available as fully framed sequence in the special features sub-menu. I found the PQ on the fully framed end credits to be sharper and colorful than the actual feature film. Did anyone notice this ?

Japanese edition of Cars has plenty of audio tracks notably DTHD EX.

①ENGLISH Dolby　TrueHD EX　6.1ch
②ENGLISH DD6.1ch　EX
③JAPANESE DTS-ES　6.1ch（マトリックス）48KHｚ/1.5Mbps
④JAPANESE DD6.1ch　EX
⑤THAI DD6.1ch　EX
⑥ PORTUGESE DD6.1ch　EX

http://blog-imgs-11.fc2.com/c/h/o/choppytan777/20071204173455.jpg

I have seen cars a while back on DVD.

I thought it OK but slow moving... Well, my 2 year old got a Blu Ray copy for Christmas and couldn't wait to see it. So, we threw it in last night expecting a long nap.

The Blu Ray version, this time around, made me riveted to my screen!


WOW!! The video popped off the screen. Just amazing colors and an image so crisp and clear, it looked 3-D.

As good as the video was, the audio was even better...Employing the 24 bit / 48 kHz Uncompressed track was, for me, led to the best sonic experience ever in my Home Theater!!!

The bass pounded, surround effects were many and moved all around the front and rear sound stages. The split rear effects were awesome. Dialog was clear and crisp. I watched at reference level and found dynamics huge and spatial effects just astounding. Sound was everywhere with many pin point effects all over the surround field. As cars zoomed around various tracks, it was literally like a motor speedway as the cars whizzed seamlessly between speakers around the entire room.

This is THE reference disc for audio (and possibly video). I am still in amazement on how good this disc was. Never thought I could ever have such an experience on any soundtrack.

This is clearly the best experience on any HD format. Simply a great accomplishment on the part of Disney. It simply does not get any better than this in Home Theater software... Nothing I have seen is even close....and i have seen a lot!!!

Check out Pixar's sister release Ratatouille (more adult related story line). It's at least equal to Cars in both PQ and SQ (though not as many sound effects). Both have "off the charts" AVC video encodes that hover in the mid to high 30mbps range most of the time.

I thought Ratatouille looked excellent but a bit softer in parts and the audio was far more subdued. Don't get me wrong, a fantastic release....but CARS was simply a knock out sonically and video wise!

gave my son both for X-mas as well
nothing like a gift we can enjoy as well ;)

For Cars type eye candy you can also add Meet the Robinsons to the short list. It's also Disney (though not Pixar) and has the same 24/48 audio and mid to high 30mbps AVC video encode. Since you have gone CH it would be a narrower picture though (1.78).

Great mini-review Jeff. Looks like I'll be picking this up ASAP!

I have to agree that Cars is the most demo-worthy video yet. While Ratatouille is technically just as good, the style of that movie puts it slightly behind in terms of impressiveness. By design, it has some soft, hazy lighting that, while gorgeous in its own right, softens the image in spots. Cars is slick and sharp all the way.

I would say that Ratatouille is a more beautiful movie, but Cars is more impressive from a videophile perspective, if that makes sense. I haven't seen Meet the Robinsons.

For Cars type eye candy you can also add Meet the Robinsons to the short list. It's also Disney (though not Pixar) and has the same 24/48 audio and mid to high 30mbps AVC video encode. Since you have gone CH it would be a narrower picture though (1.78).
Glad to see your post. "Meet the Robinsons" is indeed a teriffic looking and sounding disc and is a nice story that allows kids to appreciate their families through the eyes of a kid who wants one so badly.
I saw it in Digital 3-D in the theatre and the Blu-ray disc is as much fun as that!!

As great as the video was, it was the audio that just amazed me... Most impressive sound field I have ever heard.

New thread but apparently the OP didn't check out the lossless track..

Just amazing!

I took the BD to my dealer's to let them see it, since I also think it's an incredible disc.

They have this giant Runco projector, with a huge Krell/B&W audio system and the largest $10,000 JL Audio Subwoofer. It was UNBELIEVABLE. Even those jaded guys sat glued to their seats. One exclaimed, "I really hadn't been so excited about video, but this is the first thing that's really impressed me!"

I am waiting for Finding Nemo, which I think will be in the same class (visually, at least).

Lee

I'm not surprised.... I couldn't beiieve it was MY sound system giving me such an awesome performance....

I own the Sd version and decided not to buy the BD. But now, I'm gonna have to go pick it up. The stunning video and awesome audio sound like a great improvement over the SD. I'm headed out to pick this one up!!!!!!!!!:)

I own the Sd version and decided not to buy the BD. But now, I'm gonna have to go pick it up. The stunning video and awesome audio sound like a great improvement over the SD. I'm headed out to pick this one up!!!!!!!!!:)

I just went format neutral so I could get films like this in high definition. Too many good things on both sides of the aisle. ( I just started watching Stardust on my D2 and had finished watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith on the Sony 301). I need to find a decent BOGO to get all of these disney titles.:)

Gary
Format neutral means going broke twice as fast.:)

I just went format neutral so I could get films like this in high definition. Too many good things on both sides of the aisle. ( I just started watching Stardust on my D2 and had finished watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith on the Sony 301). I need to find a decent BOGO to get all of these disney titles.:)

Gary
Format neutral means going broke twice as fast.:)

It's not BOGO, but it gets you alot of Disney titles for a very good price.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000183011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=right-1&pf_rd_r=16G73FATYFPDDZH4KPM6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=343115101&pf_rd_i=193640011

Allow me to lay out the groundwork first--I'm running the Panny BD30 Blu Ray player, connected to a Denon 3808ci via HDMI; the audio settings on the BD30 are all set to Bitstream, and the audio input decode mode on the 3808 is set to "Auto" (w/ PCM and DTS being the other available choices).

I loaded Cars into the BD30 and just for grins selected the DD 5.1 soundtrack (vs. the 5.1 uncompressed PCM soundtrack); next thing I knew, the 3808 was detecting the audio input signal as being 6.1 matrix (for those of you who own a 3808, this shows up in the display as having the SB speaker icon on the left-hand side of the display being lit). The info status screen on the 3808 reports the audio input signal being received as being 3/3.1 and is also detecting the "Matrix" flag.

So...is the Cars DD 5.1 soundtrack that's listed on the back of the BD case in reality DD EX? Sorry if this issue was previously addressed in this forum but I wasn't able to find any specific threads pertaining to this find.

I just went format neutral so I could get films like this in high definition. Too many good things on both sides of the aisle. ( I just started watching Stardust on my D2 and had finished watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith on the Sony 301). I need to find a decent BOGO to get all of these disney titles.:)

Gary
Format neutral means going broke twice as fast.:)A little late but Toys R Us has BOGO on Disney Bluray titles this week.

So...is the Cars DD 5.1 soundtrack that's listed on the back of the BD case in reality DD EX?Yes, the 'Cars' soundtrack was mixed as 5.1 EX.

BTW, it wouldn't matter if the audio had been delivered in a Dolby codec or DTS codec or even as PCM, the surround-back channel remains matrix encoded into the L/R surround channels and can be extracted by using EX decoding or (even better) Pro Logic IIx processing.

Sanjay

I am new to blu ray and there is something I don't understand. I have an HD DVD player, the A35, and I sent everything bitstreamed to my Onkyo 605 so it would decode True HD and DD+. I just got the Sony 350 and I have it set up to do bitstream as well. My setup is 5.1.
I just purchased Cars and it started playing with my receiver showing Dolby Digital. On the Cars case it has an option for 5.1 uncompressed or 5.1 DD. I don't understand the difference. Does this disc not have a HD audio soundtrack? I am not sure which one to choose. From what I have read I guess I should change the audio to the uncompressed but I don't think am not understanding. I figuered the Blu ray discs would all have DD+, True HD or DTS MA audio.
Thanks.

I am new to blu ray and there is something I don't understand. I have an HD DVD player, the A35, and I sent everything bitstreamed to my Onkyo 605 so it would decode True HD and DD+. I just got the Sony 350 and I have it set up to do bitstream as well. My setup is 5.1.
I just purchased Cars and it started playing with my receiver showing Dolby Digital. On the Cars case it has an option for 5.1 uncompressed or 5.1 DD. I don't understand the difference. Does this disc not have a HD audio soundtrack? I am not sure which one to choose. I have read some posts but I guess I am not understanding.
Thanks.

You'll have to select the PCM track from the menu or with the audio button; it's not the default track. Nearly every disc with PCM is like this. Discs with TrueHD (other than those from Warner) are set up so that the TrueHD track plays automatically if the equipment supports it, DD if not. DTS-HD MA is the same way, but of course with DTS instead of DD.

It's a good idea to get in the habit of checking out the sound options every time if you're not familiar with the disc.

Hey newguy, the 5. uncompressed is HD audio. dolby digital is a compressed form of the studio master, so you lose some of the info during compression. 5.1 uncompressed is the opposite, it is uncompressed so when you play it back, it is exactly the same as the studio master. The only difference between uncompressed and TrueHD and DTS HD MA is the latter two take the same information and put it in a codec.

So if you want HD audio. select 5.1 uncompressed.

Edit; whoops, drexl beat me toit.

Thanks to you both. I will make sure to check the audio I am playing on the discs and choose the right one when it has a PCM track. Too bad it will not defult to the best one. Thanks again.

Didn't find anything else in the Forums, so thought I'd post here...apologies if it's been discussed elsewhere...

While watching my week-old BD of Cars this weekend (awesome PQ & AQ, btw!), I noticed a "pop" from my left rear speaker during a specific quiet scene. It was the scene when Sally & L.McQ were taking their cruise thru the mountains and are at the abandoned hotel. FYI, the disc is already in the mail back to Amazon for a replacement, and I did not write down the exact time that it occurred...my bad! :o

The "pop" occurs during a quiet moment in between their dialogue, during the scene before they go to the cliff for the spectacular view. It comes out of the Left Rear speaker, while listening to the 5.1 Uncompressed soundtrack. This pop played at the same spot when re-playing the scene multiple times. The pop did not occur while listening to the DD 5.1 soundtrack. I did not try my SD DVD version as another comparison, but have watched that version enough in the past that I would have noticed this defect by now.

Has anyone else noticed this pop during this scene while listening to the 5.1 Uncompressed soundtrack? I will post whether my replacement copy does the same thing, but I'm hoping the forst disc was just the anomaly.

For reference, I am using a Samsung BD-P1500 (set to Bitstream - Audiophile) via BJC HDMI into my Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver with 5.1 setup.

That's weird. It sounds like the DTS "bomb," but this time with a PCM track.

Have you updated the receiver's firmware?

That's weird. It sounds like the DTS "bomb," but this time with a PCM track.

Have you updated the receiver's firmware?
I have not updated the Onkyo firmware. Is there a link to instructions where I can check what my current FW is? Or do I need to dig thru 500+ pages of the "official 805" thread? :o Any help would be appreciated! :)

FWIW, this is the first pop I've heard while watching any BD.

I have not updated the Onkyo firmware. Is there a link to instructions where I can check what my current FW is? Or do I need to dig thru 500+ pages of the "official 805" thread? :o Any help would be appreciated! :)

FWIW, this is the first pop I've heard while watching any BD.

See this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13571650

It's been a while since I updated my 605, but I remember it involved burning the update as an audio CD and playing it through the first optical input.

See this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13571650
Thanks for the direct link - though a bit intimidating from that huge post! I'll wait and see if my replacement Cars BD has the click/pop in the same scene. It should be arriving today via Amazon - gotta love them...

And to be clear, the pop I heard was from the left rear speaker only, nowhere else. That's why I suspect that it was just a bad disc. All other BDs I've watched using DTS-HD Master Audio seemed just fine. Of course, I only heard the pop in Cars as it was a completely silent moment during that scene. Normal listening levels are between -15dB and -5dB (0dB reference is quite loud with my Polks, and am leery of extended listening sessions in "0+dB land". Gosh knows the structural damage to the house that might occur if I cranked 'er up to +5dB, +10dB or +15db! ;))

I'll check all my Onkyo 805's firmware versions and write 'em down in a safe place, for future reference.

I just showed "Cars" to my two year old boy this weekend for the first time. He freakin' loved it - he was totally excited. This morning when he got up he asked to "watch race cars again on Blu-toons, daddy."

His name is Enzo, so of course, we loved all the scenes with Luigi & Guido and all their Ferrari stuff :). The cameo at the end from Schumacher is pretty cool, too. We'll have to watch it again next weekend.

My son was the same with it at 2, he still loves it at 31/2. Me too:D

Cars has always been a favorite of my 3.5 year old son. I've probably seen it 350 times by now. Cars, along with Toy Story 1 and 2 are his clear favorites. Finding Nemo has come on a bit lately. He likes many of the other animated films, but these stand out. I have another newborn son, so I think I have a long road of Pixar ahead... Could be worse.

Based on location of our players, we end up watching it more often on DVD rather than blu-ray, but the blu-ray is a stunning presentation.

I love it when the car "Media reporters" start taking pictures and the bulbs are flashing and popping all around you in 360 degrees.

was this movie nominated for Best Sound Editing/Mixing? It's really incredible to hear

I too noticed this pop on my system at roughly the same time as described by OP. I have a Denon reciever and a Panasonic blu-ray (sound decoding is in the reciever thru HDMI)


Didn't find anything else in the Forums, so thought I'd post here...apologies if it's been discussed elsewhere...

While watching my week-old BD of Cars this weekend (awesome PQ & AQ, btw!), I noticed a "pop" from my left rear speaker during a specific quiet scene. It was the scene when Sally & L.McQ were taking their cruise thru the mountains and are at the abandoned hotel. FYI, the disc is already in the mail back to Amazon for a replacement, and I did not write down the exact time that it occurred...my bad! :o

The "pop" occurs during a quiet moment in between their dialogue, during the scene before they go to the cliff for the spectacular view. It comes out of the Left Rear speaker, while listening to the 5.1 Uncompressed soundtrack. This pop played at the same spot when re-playing the scene multiple times. The pop did not occur while listening to the DD 5.1 soundtrack. I did not try my SD DVD version as another comparison, but have watched that version enough in the past that I would have noticed this defect by now.

Has anyone else noticed this pop during this scene while listening to the 5.1 Uncompressed soundtrack? I will post whether my replacement copy does the same thing, but I'm hoping the forst disc was just the anomaly.

For reference, I am using a Samsung BD-P1500 (set to Bitstream - Audiophile) via BJC HDMI into my Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver with 5.1 setup.

Video and sound are good but story-wise I'm disappointed. I found it to be a bit boring actually. Great presentation though.

I too noticed this pop on my system at roughly the same time as described by OP. I have a Denon reciever and a Panasonic blu-ray (sound decoding is in the reciever thru HDMI)
@ 1:11:09, right after Sally says "No".
Left rear speaker only. I do not have rear surround speakers to check those channels.

My second Cars BD had the exact same "pop", same location, bitstreaming PCM to my Onkyo. So I believe it might be a flaw in the disc? From what I can tell, my TX-SR805 has the latest firmware. And remember this is cannot be the reported DTS bomb (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1008620) as I'm not listening to that format.

For kicks, tonight I went into the Sammy BD-P1500 (fw 2.3) menu and changed the Audio setting to decode the audio internally, and send to the Onkyo as PCM via HDMI cable. Same pop when selecting the PCM soundtrack, no pop when selecting Dolby Digital. So I continue to be baffled by this rare hiccup of my Blu-ray player...

So it's just me and Mikey that has noticed this one pop? It's not that loud, but it is definitely there...

@ 1:11:09, right after Sally says "No".
Left rear speaker only. I do not have rear surround speakers to check those channels.

My second Cars BD had the exact same "pop", same location, bitstreaming PCM to my Onkyo. So I believe it might be a flaw in the disc? From what I can tell, my TX-SR805 has the latest firmware. And remember this is cannot be the reported DTS bomb (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1008620) as I'm not listening to that format.

For kicks, tonight I went into the Sammy BD-P1500 (fw 2.3) menu and changed the Audio setting to decode the audio internally, and send to the Onkyo as PCM via HDMI cable. Same pop when selecting the PCM soundtrack, no pop when selecting Dolby Digital. So I continue to be baffled by this rare hiccup of my Blu-ray player...

So it's just me and Mikey that has noticed this one pop? It's not that loud, but it is definitely there...

I know its definitely there!

^^
To clarify, the pop is not too loud, but it does occur at a conveniently quiet moment in the scene.

It is not like the DTS-bomb-like noise that I heard while watching Harold & Kumar II. Those loud noises had me worried about damaging my speakers. It was exactly as described in post #1 of this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1106061).

Hey people, is the "cars" blu ray with the toy a remaster or the same as the original release? Thanks

It's the same.

There would be no need to remaster Cars.

The disc has newer trailers on the disc so it's not precisely identical. Same video encode and LPCM audio, though.

There would be no need to remaster Cars.
This has been DNRd to the point where everything looks CG.

This has been DNRd to the point where everything looks CG.
Tell me about it: the costumes look painted on and everyone's eyes look glassy. Several characters' lips look like shiny chrome...

I bought the bluray version of Cars from Best Buy. They price matched wal-marts $19.99 and I had a $10 coupon, so I got the movie for $9.99, with tax=$10.59. Not sure why alot say this movie is one of Pixar's worst. I loved it at the theaters and still love it. I had it on dvd and just had to upgrade to the bluray version.

Anyways, I notice reviews on the audio portion say the 'uncompressed 5.1 soundtrack' is better than the 5.1 Dolby Digital track. Now, all of my blurays that I own so far all have the DTS MASTER HD tracks. I just got my my first true surround sound setup about 2 months ago. I have Sony 770 watts, 7.1 surround sound receiver that will decode any audio track.

Anyways, when I listen to the 5.1 uncompressed track, the volume is actually lower/softer than the 5.1 dolby digital track when keeping the receiver at the same volume, so for my ears the 5.1 dolby digital actually sounds like it has better seperation as well.

Im using HDMI cables for all my stuff, except for my Wii, which Im using component.

I have not had time to really listen and compare both tracks. I know on IGN's review it states that during one of the action scenes to switch from the uncompressed track to the dolby digital track and you will be able to tell the difference in depth and resonance.

Well, when I switch, and keep the volume the same, the dolby digital track sounds better. Earlier today I had a little bit of time and turned the volume waaay up and listened to the uncompressed track and I think I could tell a difference, but when switching to the dolby digital, man was it super LOUD!

I have pretty good hearing, so why am I disagreeing that the dolby digital sounds better than the uncompessed track? This is the first bluray that Ive owned that even has an uncompressed track. Like I mentioned earlier, all my other blurays have the DTS HD master tracks, which are totally awesome. Is this typical that the uncompressed tracks have to be turned up to sound as loud as the dolby digital track? For example, when listening to the dolby digital track, it sounds great and very loud at around the 30-35 level before becoming obscenely loud, when I switch to the uncompressed track I need to turn the volume up to around 45 to sound as loud as the dolby digital track.

All my friends and family have said my setup sounds better than when at the movies. I highly recommend getting a true 5.1 or 7.1 receiver that decodes the Master tracks. I've put off getting a true surround setup for awhile cause I was waiting for bluray players to come down in price, plus up until recently money has been tight for several years. I got my Sony receiver at Best Buy for $279. They price matched Amazon's price. The receiver lists for $399. Right now on Amazon its around $316.

Before this setup I only owned a dolby prologic setup. Man, what a difference. I never knew what I was missing. But anyways, whats up with me thinking the dolby digital sounds better than the uncompressed track? And any clues why there isn't an DTS HD Master track on Cars? Not that Im complaining, cause the tracks on there now sound GREAT. :cool:

Ok, I found out that the uncompressed track is the same as adts master hd track.

So now, I need to figure out why that uncompressed track is not playing right, even though the receiver's screen is showing LPCM [48] when I choose the uncompressed track.

At the time when Cars was released on Blu, Disney used LPCM as their uncompressed lossless audio codec choice. Soon after, they started using TrueHD and for about the last year or so, DTS-HD MA.
Which Blu-ray player are you using and what are your audio settings on the blu-ray player menu?

Ok, I found out that the uncompressed track is the same as adts master hd track.

So now, I need to figure out why that uncompressed track is not playing right, even though the receiver's screen is showing LPCM [48] when I choose the uncompressed track.

It plays just fine, you just prefer the louder Dolby track, and yes you are the first person who I came across to say that. The level difference can be attributed to the fact that the Dolby track has a "dialnorm" feature which preset the overall level of the track. It's embedded in the digital bit stream as a metadata and "tells" the value to your receiver's decoding engine. You might see a message on the receiver's display that correspond to that fact. This feature can't be turned off at the decoding end. LPCM don't have any metadata features, as it is an open format that being used for decades now.
The LPCM track also will be the bit by bit representation of the original track if it was used for the BD, while the Dolby could only be a close approximation of that due to the compression it uses.

Cars is being released in a Blu-ray + DVD set on April 11, the same day as The Incredibles. Does anyone know if there is any extra content to the new Cars release apart from the DVD disc?

Cars is being released in a Blu-ray + DVD set on April 11, the same day as The Incredibles. Does anyone know if there is any extra content to the new Cars release apart from the DVD disc?

Being released on a Monday?

I bought the bluray version of Cars from Best Buy. They price matched wal-marts $19.99 and I had a $10 coupon, so I got the movie for $9.99, with tax=$10.59. Not sure why alot say this movie is one of Pixar's worst. I loved it at the theaters and still love it. I had it on dvd and just had to upgrade to the bluray version.

Anyways, I notice reviews on the audio portion say the 'uncompressed 5.1 soundtrack' is better than the 5.1 Dolby Digital track. Now, all of my blurays that I own so far all have the DTS MASTER HD tracks. I just got my my first true surround sound setup about 2 months ago. I have Sony 770 watts, 7.1 surround sound receiver that will decode any audio track.

Anyways, when I listen to the 5.1 uncompressed track, the volume is actually lower/softer than the 5.1 dolby digital track when keeping the receiver at the same volume, so for my ears the 5.1 dolby digital actually sounds like it has better seperation as well.

Im using HDMI cables for all my stuff, except for my Wii, which Im using component.

I have not had time to really listen and compare both tracks. I know on IGN's review it states that during one of the action scenes to switch from the uncompressed track to the dolby digital track and you will be able to tell the difference in depth and resonance.

Well, when I switch, and keep the volume the same, the dolby digital track sounds better. Earlier today I had a little bit of time and turned the volume waaay up and listened to the uncompressed track and I think I could tell a difference, but when switching to the dolby digital, man was it super LOUD!

I have pretty good hearing, so why am I disagreeing that the dolby digital sounds better than the uncompessed track? This is the first bluray that Ive owned that even has an uncompressed track. Like I mentioned earlier, all my other blurays have the DTS HD master tracks, which are totally awesome. Is this typical that the uncompressed tracks have to be turned up to sound as loud as the dolby digital track? For example, when listening to the dolby digital track, it sounds great and very loud at around the 30-35 level before becoming obscenely loud, when I switch to the uncompressed track I need to turn the volume up to around 45 to sound as loud as the dolby digital track.

All my friends and family have said my setup sounds better than when at the movies. I highly recommend getting a true 5.1 or 7.1 receiver that decodes the Master tracks. I've put off getting a true surround setup for awhile cause I was waiting for bluray players to come down in price, plus up until recently money has been tight for several years. I got my Sony receiver at Best Buy for $279. They price matched Amazon's price. The receiver lists for $399. Right now on Amazon its around $316.

Before this setup I only owned a dolby prologic setup. Man, what a difference. I never knew what I was missing. But anyways, whats up with me thinking the dolby digital sounds better than the uncompressed track? And any clues why there isn't an DTS HD Master track on Cars? Not that Im complaining, cause the tracks on there now sound GREAT. :cool:

Game:

PCM tracks tend to be quieter (lower DB output) for the same master recording than lossy Dolby Digital and DTS tracks. A survey of AVS club LA theater group members I participated in a few years back demonstrates the loudness effect usually causes people to prefer even lossy dolby digital to lossless Dolby TrueHD.

That's even on a superior system costing well over $399.

People gravitate to louder sources as being superior even if they are not. Do a little web research on compression on CD albums and why it's done.

For a real comparison - Play your favorite scene from Cars with a sound level meter used to adjust the volume so it matches for each codec (Dolby vs PCM encode). Then tell us which you prefer. Also have some one do it for you while you are blind folded. Bet you will then have a hard time telling them apart....

im Replacing some of my dvd collection with blu rays and I most deffinetely am replacing cars and planning on purchasing it on blu ray. my question is though, which one should I get ? the US version thats 2.40.1 or the UK version thats 1.78.1 ?

sure I want the 1.78.1 more. but why did they release it on 2 different video screen sizes ? which one is the original ?

Please dont tell me the 1.78.1 is cropped, thats the only thing thats holding me back from buying it right now. but then again I hate the black bars top and bottom of the screen more than anything else.

im Replacing some of my dvd collection with blu rays and I most deffinetely am replacing cards and planning on purchasing it on blu ray. my question is though, which one should I get ? the US version thats 2.40.1 or the UK version thats 1.78.1 ?

sure I want the 1.78.1 more. but why did they release it on 2 different video screen sizes ? which one is the original ?

Please dont tell me the 1.78.1 is cropped, thats the only thing thats holding me back from buying it right now. but then again I hit the black bars top and bottom of the screen more than anything else.

The 2.40:1 is not cropped as intended and meant to be "cinema scope".. Monster House was "cinema scope" also, however Ice Age: The Meltdown, The Pink Panther, and Charlotte's Web (ignore amazon) were not, while they mistake this, they then try and make up for this fact releasing the 1.78.1 version.

im Replacing some of my dvd collection with blu rays and I most deffinetely am replacing cards and planning on purchasing it on blu ray. my question is though, which one should I get ? the US version thats 2.40.1 or the UK version thats 1.78.1 ?

sure I want the 1.78.1 more. but why did they release it on 2 different video screen sizes ? which one is the original ?

Please dont tell me the 1.78.1 is cropped, thats the only thing thats holding me back from buying it right now. but then again I hit the black bars top and bottom of the screen more than anything else.

The animation was framed and composed for 2.39:1 "scope" just like "The Incredibles" and "A Bug's Life."

I know with "A Bug's Life" they did a "full frame" recomposition/repositioning of the animation for the DVD, but the framing didn't look right. The animators even recommended the scope version.

Being released on a Monday?

I made a typo; I meant the 12th. But that has nothing to do with my original question about whether the re-release of Cars differs in any way from the original release.

Amazon lists the original release as 2.40:1, while the re-release is 1.85:1. I like that the re-release will fill up the entire screen. I might have to bite the bullet and get it even though I have the original Blu-ray release.

Amazon lists the original release as 2.40:1, while the re-release is 1.85:1. I like that the re-release will fill up the entire screen. I might have to bite the bullet and get it even though I have the original Blu-ray release.

Heathen.

I would be surprised if they had re-rendered the movie to 1.78:1. But it certainly wouldn't be 1.85:1, that's for sure. Amazon has probably set this ratio to the default for entering new titles into their database.

My guess about the re-release?

SPECULATION Probably just new packaging design, new menus and some Cars 2 fluff. The video encode will probably be the exact same (given its quality), the audio encode might be different seeing as Disney has moved from Dolby to DTS. Maybe they'll make it a 7.1 upmix/remix. /SPECULATION

Heathen.

Nerd.

I would be surprised if they had re-rendered the movie to 1.78:1. But it certainly wouldn't be 1.85:1, that's for sure. Amazon has probably set this ratio to the default for entering new titles into their database.

My guess about the re-release?

SPECULATION Probably just new packaging design, new menus and some Cars 2 fluff. The video encode will probably be the exact same (given its quality), the audio encode might be different seeing as Disney has moved from Dolby to DTS. Maybe they'll make it a 7.1 upmix/remix. /SPECULATION

That is probably right. Blu-ray.com has the same aspect ratio for this upcoming release as it does for the original. And that is fine with me; one less thing I have to buy.

Heathen.

I'd have gone with heretic personally.
:)