Bunch of Laserdiscs for Sale

[Cassidy Nolen]

Hi all,

 

I'd like to sell these as one lot. Let me know if you are interested, and you can make me an offer. I know a number of them sorta suck, but hey, something for everyone, right?

 

1. Faith

2. Out on a Limb

3. Wisdom

4. Cold Front

5. Night of the Warrior

6. Police Academy 3

7. Two of a Kind

8. Room Mates

9. Shooting Elizabeth

10. The Squeeze

11. 3 Men and a Little Lady

12. The Crazysitter

13. Postcards from the Edge

14. Keaton’s Cop

15. Sabrina the Teenage Witch

16. Sorry, Wrong Number

17. Family Karaoke Rock Hits

18. Cobra

19. Light Sleeper

20. Apprentice to Murder

21. Killing in a Small Town

22. Death to an Angel

23. Bloodsport

24. Bob Roberts

25. Crazy People

26. Rude Awakening

27. Fair Game

28. Shes out of Control

29. The Package

30. Mesmerized

31. Trapper County War

32. Miami Rhapsody

33. Blue City (corner of sleeve cut off)

34. Police Academy 4

35. Jack be Nimble

36. Cold Justice

37. Getting In (still sealed)

38. Before Sunrise

39. Last Fling

40. Judgment in Berlin

41. Miracle in the Wilderness

 

 

All have sleeves.

Cheers,

Cassidy

[gulag picture radio]

I keep finding that I'm one of the only guys who still has his LD player!

 

I might be interested in the karaoke disc. What songs are on it? also, what is "Keaton's COp"? Is it a Buster Keaton movie by chance?

[+-^CrossBow^-]

No your not the only one. My wife just got me a replacment player for my 8 month now dead Pioneer S-104. The replacment is mucho better and plays both sides. It is not on the main TV in the living room where there hasn't been a Laserdisc player installed in over 5 years now. Hook one up to a really good receiver and speakers...and the sound is still unmatched on a good quality THX Laserdisc.

 

As for Cassidy's offerings. The only one that caught my eye was Cobra. And that still isn't one that I would add to my elite collection of LD. Sorry Cassidy...

 

[gulag picture radio]

I've had mine for a long time. I can't remember the model number, but it's unusual in that it has an RF output right next to the Y/C and the digital audio out! I think that it was Pioneer's top of the line at the time (I got it as a dealer demo really cheap) because some years later I bought a pile of LD's, and included among them was Pioneer's demo disc and they heavily featured mine!

 

I haven't compared the audio quality versus a typical DVD (the LD is in my office using the nice, but not perfect, stereo speakers built into my Trinitron), but Im sure that it would be pretty comparable. I resisted DVD for a while thinking that because it's compressed the picture can't be as good, but once I saw some animations on DVD it changed my mind. Large fields of color on LD always has some kind of analog noise in it, wheras a well-compressed DVD just shows color - no artifacts or anything. Of course this only works if the compressionist was paying attention to what he was doing at the time.

 

I used to teach at a film school and in the early 90's, LD's were the only way to get certain titles. Definitely the only way to teach cinematography since you could advance frame by frame, and the projected image was so much better than any format that we had at the time.

 

I realize that DVD's are here to stay, and I'm happy about it. I jsut wish that my collection hadn't become as worthless so quickly. I have some nice obscure titles that I was going to sell off to get DVD's, btu the bottom fell out of the LD market in what felt like an afternoon. The "Brazil" set I paid $250 for would be lucky to sell at $10.

 

The upside of course is that it's a tremendously cheap way to watch movies in a very high quality format. Especially when they turn up at the thrift store and get priced at 25 cents and are stuffed in the bin with records!

 

I also love the really obscure discs that were meant for training or multimedia stuff. I've got a whole pile of discs that are meant for high school guidance counsellors to use to show video tours of colleges. I've got a "kids disc" which was supposed to be a subscription-based LD magazine for children which was a nice interactive idea - totally eclipsed by computers of course. And of course, the bizarre world of cheaply produced Karaoke videos... Those I love like nothing else. You haven't lived until you see the bargain basement videos that accompany cheap MIDI versions of Michael Jackson songs.

[video game addict]

Yep people are still interested in them!

 

I own a Pioneer CLD-V880 like new still have original box & docs, inserts & tie wraps, with remote & microphone! Only wish it had s-video output,

And my small but growing LD collection!

[Tempest]

I have a Laseractive LD player which can double as a Genesis when need be. I don't have many LD's but I do have the Definitive Star Wars Collection which is all I need. I actualyl picked up The Secret of Nihm last week for $5 just because I'm a sucker for Don Bluth animation.

 

Tempest

[tantone56]

realy why do you guys like laser disks still? there so big why dont you just buy the dvd?

[video game addict]

A lot of stuff isn't on dvd...yet Besides what's wrong with a 12" disc?!

[gulag picture radio]

Oh wow... a LaserActive player... I still want one of those! I saw a demo of one when they were new... I still have the dingy t-shirt that they gave me (I shouldbe clear... the shirt was new what I got it. I added my own "dinge" I guess ). I love "convergence" stuff like the LaserActive. Hopefully I'll find one someday!

 

As for DVD vs. LD today, I think that there's really little reason to have an LD of a movie over a DVD. I don't go out of my way to look for DVD's of films, but occasionally when one comes my way it's WAY cheaper than getting the DVD of the same movie... and it's nearly the same quality. I got box sets (like five discs each) of "Aliens", "Terminator 2", and "The Abyss" for $1 each... hard to beat that on DVD!

 

Admittedly having to exchange the discs is a bit of a bother and interrupts the movie flow, but it's sort of like changing reels on a projector. You get used to it.

 

I do have a number of LD's that are Japanese imports that will likely not be released on DVD anytime soon - but DVD's are a far better medium for the movie experience (really nice quality transfers, uninterrupted playback, all those yummy extras... though I should mention that this used to be a standard feature on the more expenvie collector LD's). And SO much cheaper than LD's ever were!

 

The weird thing to me is the way that people act like they're ancient. They were still the defacto videophile format 'til only 3-4 years ago. People's memories just aren't what they used to be.

[tantone56]

I can really understand collecting vintage games because theyre one of a kind ut as far as a format for watching movies oes I think you really have to be open to change.

[gulag picture radio]

I guess that I'm not being clear. I have lots of DVD's. I buy DVD's. I've never recommended that anyone buy LD's because they're fragile, develop internal defects, and the equipment is outmoded.

 

I keep my player around because there's very little reason for me to go out and buy a DVD of a movie that I already have on LD. Why would anyone do that? Yet I know tons of people who feel obliged to rebuy their whole collection of films on DVD. When HDTV comes out, they'll rebuy all those same movies again. Those movies aren't getting any better, and all you're doing is feeding the machine.

 

I feel lucky that I can pick up these movies for a buck or two - less than the cost of renting them - instead of investing $25 in a DVD I end up not liking. I think that "The Abyss" is a pretty bad movie, so I'm really happy that I only paid $1 for it.

 

Your argument about video game cartridges versus Laser Discs doesn't really hold water. For the most part, Atari carts are a mass market item that there are tens of thousands of. LD's were a more "elite" kind of thing (a giant portion of LD releases were unconventional non mainstream movies), and there were far fewer pressed of each title than the average manufacturing run of an Atari game.

 

having said that, I don't think that there is _really_ more inherent worth between Atari carts as there is between LD's. There isnt' any real craftsmanship involved to invest them with value or make them "one of a kind". They're both mass market mass produced goods that are created to make money... not make some kind of artistic or personal statement.

 

It's sort of funny to have someone who collects something obscure and backwards as Atari carts telling other people that their collection of Laser Discs is obscure and backwards. I work in the film and television industry, so I am constantly open to change... but that doesn't meant hat I have to subject myself to each one, and just keep paying to keep the big movie companies in business so they can keep selling me the same stuff for the rest of my life.

[Cassidy Nolen]

I'm not getting rid of mine; still have two! Just need to consolidate, and make some space.

 

As for updating, I like watching Star Wars without all the crud that VHS has. So far, that is the only way to get it.

 

I was still buying new movies as late as the Matrix. My most recent one is Waterboy. Even 'had' Episode 1 (Taiwan only version) but had to give it back !

 

 

Cassidy

[+-^CrossBow^-]

The Matrix was released in LD format?!

 

Newest discs I picked up were actually courtesy of Columbia House Club as it was the only way for me to get LDs. My last purchases were Starship Troopers, Jurassic Park II:Lost World, Men in Black ( yeap they pressed LDs of that!! ), and finally L.A. Confidential. I also have The Saint but that was gotten because I forgot to send in my stupid card...ugh.

 

However, with that said. Gulag makes a fine point in that the best way to experience the first Star Wars flicks is the THX LD versions. There is a store here that has Star Wars and Empire Strikes back..but they also want about 29.99 each! They know what they are worth!!

 

Also some other movies can't be had in some versions other than LD. For instance I have the original Theatrical release of Blade Runner from the Critirion Collection. Worth quite a mint actually and again, it is the only way to see Blade Runner as it was in the movies long ago and in awesome picture and sound.

 

The main difference technically between the Laserdisc format and DVDs is the compression that is used as Gulag stated. Laserdiscs are at most compressed to Mpeg1 which is great quality..but quite large. Some that are in CAV format...aren't compressed at all. Also most of the audio tracks aren't compressed on Laserdisc. So among the standards we have today, the Laserdisc still provides superior sound quality in the movie track area. Sure DVDs have their 6.1 encoded digital surround...does that mean my Laserdiscs sound bad? Nope...

 

It is kind of like the comparision of Vinyl to CDs. I still prefer the sharpness of a CD over Vinyl. But when watching a Laserdisc, I truly feel like I am at the theatre all over again. With a DVD something is still missing. I can't explain it...

 

I do have a DVD player ( 2 in fact ), and of course all new releases are purchased this way. But I wouldn't trade my Laserdisc collection and players for anything.

 

[norkusa]

um, how much for Sabrina The Teenage Witch? It's not for me...it's for a friend. Yeah.

[SteveW]

I love my Pioneer LaserActive, but I haven't watched it in a long time. Not because I started buying DVDs, but because my LaserActive has started acting up in movie playback. I get some odd ghosting and distortions that sweep across the screen from left to right.

 

I bought the DVD of the movie Clerks, because my LD version wasn't playing well due to the playback problems. I wanted the DVD because I wanted to hear the director's commentary. But the DVD wouldn't play past track 16. It froze three DVD players at the same point in the movie. So I took it back, but they didn't have any more copies. So they just gave me store credit. I got back home, looked at my LD copy of the movie, and noticed that it had audio commentary on the back sleeve. I never realised that the commentary I wanted to hear was on it the entire time. Proving to myself, once again, that i'm an idiot.

[Tempest]

I bought the DVD of the movie Clerks, because my LD version wasn't playing well due to the playback problems. I wanted the DVD because I wanted to hear the director's commentary

 

You didn't miss much. The commentary was terrible! They did it while they were doing Mallrats, so half the cast that was in clerks wasn't there and they really had nothing interesting to say. Most of it was just mindless rambling. They also took the commentary directly from the LD so half the time the comments didn't line up with the action on the screen. It was very half assed.

 

Tempest