Superbit discs

[Anthony.S]

Sorry if it's been discussed before.
Has anyone tried any of the Superbit discs (Gattaca, CTHD, 5th Element etc) and do they offer noticable improvements.

[mjb1975]

yes it has been asked b4, but no probs.....

I think the general concensus of opinion is that they are not as good as they should've been. It's all well and good to remove all extras to use the whole capacity of the disc for optimum disc and soundtrack but they don't use the full capacity DTS bitrates and the picture improvements are hardly noticeable.

One well discussed comparison is The Fifth Element Superbit which would probably be great for those who don't already own it, but was perhaps not much of an improvement over the existing R1.

I think they're worth getting if you haven't got the movie in question - I'll probably be picking up Gattaca and Air Force One, but I'm not going to bother with The Fifth Element (have said that, I'll probably end up getting it actually!).

[SithLordSi]

I just got my first SuperBit disc - Bram Stoker's Dracula - and the image quality IS superb, make no mistake. The video bitrate is very high, and as a result there are NO artifacts of any kind - no jaggies, no blocking, no shimmering, no smearing. Pretty much any DVD will have some flaws in the picture department, by the very nature of the format. But not Dracula. I am only viewing on a 28" widescreen TV, but I can say in all honesty that it has the most 'film-like' appearance of all my DVDs. However, Columbia have decided not to restore the print, so there are inconsistencies in the colours and contrast (not the fault of the transfer), but only slight ones. There are also scratches and flecks of white on the print at regular intervals, but this doesn't bother me because it really is just like watching film projected. The DTS track was great - not as good as Saving Private Ryan, but very enveloping and with outstanding clarity. Do not be fooled by the 'low' bitrate, as the results are fantastic, and surely better than the previous release.

I can only imagine how good The Fifth Element - SuperBit looks and sounds, as the previous release was already brilliant. DVDFile give it full marks in both the audio and video depts.

[rankinl]

I was sceptical, but bought Air Force 1 since it was the only initial release I did not already own, and the picture quality blew me away. Check out the night time parachute fall at the beginning of the movie ! Awesome. Highly reccomended if you dont have another copy of the movie, and even then worth considering for a classic or favourite movie...

[Anthony.S]

Great, I don't not have any of the superbit films so it will be worth getting them. I don't care too much for the extras.
I take the high bit rates are well within the DVD standards.
Will my LG 3050 be able to resolve the higher detail or are these discs really designed for high end players?

Cheers so far.

[DeadKenny]

Columbia's Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Fox/Pathe's 5th Element are both excellent picture quality anyway, and sound. R2s anyway.

But that's mostly because of the source quality and original digital master transfers.

Dracula has always been 'film-like' on DVD & TV because there is an intentional slight grain look to it.

I wonder if you'd think the Superbits were amazing if you watched both versions side by side without knowing which was which? A bit like Criterion... if they weren't so damn expensive, would people think they're so amazing?

[SithLordSi]

Well, I've never seen the R2 Dracula, as I was initially put off buying it by the horrible giant-jewel case. I'm sure that Columbia use identical prints both sides of the pond for their PAL and NTSC master transfers, so the R1 Superbit version should look at least as good as the R2. I'm guessing that even with the increased resolution of the R2, it cannot be compressed nearly as cleanly. What I really noticed on the Superbit Dracula was how three-dimensional parts of the movie looked, which I attribute to fine compression work. The extra bitrate really does increase fine detail, especially in the backgrounds which are prone to blocking on a lot of DVDs. When the backgrounds and foregrounds are rendered with more clarity, it's logical to say that the image's depth will be better reproduced.

As for The Fifth Element, have you ever read Bullets n Babes DVDs' comparison of the R1 and R2? If not, believe me - there is EVERY reason to ditch the R2 and get the R1, and as the original R1 release came with virtually no extras whatsoever, why not get the Superbit? The reason for the R2 being so rubbish is that Luc Besson only issued the best print to Columbia, and FOX in R2 used a different (vastly inferior) print for the PAL transfer. Or something like that, I can't remember the details. Basically, the NTSC master transfer exhibits much finer detail and a more stable image overall, according to this comparison. Yes, PAL has the benefit of extra resolution, but the superior print is surely favorable. Add to this the DTS track (not available on the UK R2 version or the original R1) and higher video bitrate (DVD File raves about the picture), and the Superbit release offers the best overall presentation, extras or no.

As for Dracula's film-like appearance, does it look more film-like than Saving Private Ryan? Yes. More-so than The Exorcist? Yes. These are intentionally grainy films that should present DVD with no great challenge. However, as I've already stated, Dracula outsmarts them. I did not say the picture was perfect - the print surely lets it down compared to these other titles - but I am willing to bet it is better than any previous release. And, after all, that is what is being disputed here, as the original poster wanted to know if the Superbits offered any improvement.

I'd like to think I would be able to see the difference between a Superbit title and the original version. Surely it's just a case of less compression=less artifacting=more fine detail=clearer, more 3D picture. It stands to reason that it should be noticably different. Can you tell the difference between MP3 and CD quality, or between a BMP and JPEG. It's not hard if you know what to look for, and if you're buying Superbit for an increase in quality, I daresay you will have at least a slight idea.

[r.griffiths]

Yes, The superbit version of The Fifth Element has superb picture and DTS sound. Ditch the R2 version and buy this.


Superb.


P.S. I would still like to know where you can buy the German 2 Disc edition, from an english based website . Any ideas ?