Star Wars Trilogy The Definitive Collection Laserdisc To DVD Project

Okay. Here is the first posting for this site. Firstly I would like to encourage serious input as to how this set can be best transferred to DVD. But before you email any advice, let me explain how I INTEND to transfer this collection.

Capture: On Wednesday I am having my Pioneer CLD-1450 LD player converted to output a pure NTSC 3.35 signal. Two reasons for this. Before conversion the player outputs NTSC 4.43 signal which is actually a modified PAL signal. (30fps with PAL colour). The framerate is correct but the colour is modified to play on PAL televisions. The conversion will output 30fps with NTSC colours. The quality will be better and it will also enable me to capture the video. To capture the video I'll be using Adobe Premiere 6.0. This will allow me to capture each side of the discs (approx 25-30 mins) and edit them into three continuous movies. I'll be transferring the video and audio signals via a Dazzle Hollywood DV Bridge and capturing with the Microsoft NTSC DV Codec. This is where I would like the initial feedback, as to whether this is a decent format to encode to MPEG-2.

Encode: I intend to use TMPGEnc as I have some experience with this and VCD's and it is rated the best along with Cinema Craft Encoder. Any help that can be given about Inverse Telecine, Deinterlacing GOP structures, bitrates etc. will be greatly received.

Authoring: Still a way off but......which format (DVD-R or DVD+R), which software (DVDit!, MyDVD, Spruce etc), which bitrate (Constant or Variable)?

So as you can see this is still at it's initial stage but my aim is to get this project complete by May 25th 2002 :)


This project is for private use only. My aim is to provide information on how to best transfer your Star Wars Trilogy Definitve Collection Laserdisc set to DVD. As the title suggests, this box set is the best source material available to consumers of the original Star Wars trilogy, untouched by Special Editions and forthcoming Ultimate Editions. This site is to encourage input to help with transferring, encoding and authoring.			CONTACT US swdefdvd@yahoo.co.uk ARCHIVED NEWS December 2001 SECTIONS Set Contents (Coming Soon) RELATED LINKS The Official Star Wars Site TheForce.net Star Wars Trilogy The Definitive Collection Flaw List FOR SALE Star Wars Trilogy Radio Drama CD Box Set £60.00 Star Wars/The Empire Strikes Back Ltd. Ed. Radio Drama CD Box Set £50.00 email for details WARNING! This project is for people who own the LD set and wish to convert it to DVD for their own personal use. ANY requests for copies of the films on any format, and this page will be removed and the email addresses of the guilty will replace it. Please do not spoil it for those who seriously want to have the original trilogy on a format that will last a lot longer. Thank you for your co-operation.
31.12.2001 - YOU'LL HAVE TO SELL YOUR SPEEDER

Success, I think. I've just used VirtualDub to inverse telecine a clip from Episode V and convert to 24fps and it works BUT when I encode with CCE it puts the extra frame back in. Is this normal? I will hopefully have something for you to look at tomorrow. I'm having a great time trying out Inverse Telecine :( I had hoped to put a lovely 24fps MPEG-2 clip from Episode V on the site tonight but TMPGEnc only seems to do half the job. Still trying though. Now it's the prove me wrong bit. If the original NTSC Laserdisc is 29.97fps, and I think that when it's transferred to DVD it should be 29.97fps then why IVTC at all? Why not just encode from the 29.97fps DV AVI and burn straight onto the DVD? As I said this is the prove me wrong bit. I am after getting the BEST quality though. Okay. I don't intend to stray from the subject of transferring the discs too much, but could I just point your eyes to the bar on the left and the FOR SALE section. Also I am desperate to get hold of a copy of Star Wars Insider Magazine #51 (Christopher Lee cover). I am willing to pay for it and the seller will also receive a reward relating to this site! :) TECHNICAL QUESTION OF THE DAY! Which authoring software will allow for multiple audio streams? This is so the set can include both the stereo soundtrack AND the audio commentary from the analogue track of the LD. The vcdhelp.com forum seems to think Cinema Craft Encoder is better than TMPGEnc so I will be investigating. It's great to see that the site has received it's first 100 hits. Remember, tell your friends. You never know, if enough interest is generated, Lucasfilm may release the original trilogy on DVD out of whimsy. :) If all goes well, on Wednesday night I will post some screen shots of the captured AVI file. Still no word on the Ewok laser rot problem. Any ideas?
30.12.2001 - I'VE EVEN MADE A FEW MODIFICATIONS MYSELF....

As you will see over the coming weeks, the design of this site will change constantly until I get seriously underway with transferring the LD's. I'm considering putting a list up of the contents of the discs and the chances of them being included on the DVD. (My hope is that ALL of the contents will be included, even the stills galleries). Thank you for the emails so far. If you want to know why the Star Wars movies aren't already available on DVD please see alt.fan.starwars. All your questions will be answered there. I'm also considering setting up a section of possible DVD sleeve designs. I think I know what it will finally look like (a reproduction of the LD box), but if you think you can do better than that, let me know. Now, the first technical question. To put one of these movies onto DVD-R or DVD+R, an average bitrate (yes, this is where this site gets technical) of 4500 would have to be used. The DVD release of Episode I has an average bit rate of 7000/8000 but it is on a dual layer disc. So the question is, do I make each movie a 2 Disc set (that would include the extras). As you can see there is a links section on the right. The first link is an interesting page outlining the flaws tha were found with the LD set on release. I believe I have one of the good sets. When I first purchased it from Ken Cranes, I got the faulty TESB disc but they were happy to change it. Keep the emails coming! A request fulfilled. Here's the set itself! Late Update: I've just tried playing my NTSC version of 'The Ewok Adventure' Laserdisc and unfortunately side A is displaying some picture problems (a kind of shadowing or interference). I hope this is not laser rot but I have a horrible feeling it is. I'll get that checked out when I have my machine converted on Wednesday. :( I just hope it hasn't affected the box set. If it has this project may end sooner than you think. Anyone have any idea please let me know.
29.12.2001 - HERE GOES NOTHING!

Okay. Here is the first posting for this site. Firstly I would like to encourage serious input as to how this set can be best transferred to DVD. But before you email any advice, let me explain how I INTEND to transfer this collection. Capture: On Wednesday I am having my Pioneer CLD-1450 LD player converted to output a pure NTSC 3.35 signal. Two reasons for this. Before conversion the player outputs NTSC 4.43 signal which is actually a modified PAL signal. (30fps with PAL colour). The framerate is correct but the colour is modified to play on PAL televisions. The conversion will output 30fps with NTSC colours. The quality will be better and it will also enable me to capture the video. To capture the video I'll be using Adobe Premiere 6.0. This will allow me to capture each side of the discs (approx 25-30 mins) and edit them into three continuous movies. I'll be transferring the video and audio signals via a Dazzle Hollywood DV Bridge and capturing with the Microsoft NTSC DV Codec. This is where I would like the initial feedback, as to whether this is a decent format to encode to MPEG-2. Encode: I intend to use TMPGEnc as I have some experience with this and VCD's and it is rated the best along with Cinema Craft Encoder. Any help that can be given about Inverse Telecine, Deinterlacing GOP structures, bitrates etc. will be greatly received. Authoring: Still a way off but......which format (DVD-R or DVD+R), which software (DVDit!, MyDVD, Spruce etc), which bitrate (Constant or Variable)? So as you can see this is still at it's initial stage but my aim is to get this project complete by May 25th 2002 :)