Forum - View topicDo you purchase Blu-ray releases? Thoughts on quality?
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Guren Alchemist4
 Posts: 347 |
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The purpose of getting a blu-ray release is that the content will be in high definition. However, as some have pointed out, a lot of anime blu-ray releases are just upscaled and to a certain degree not much of an improvement over the DVD release which is why some have been hesitant on making the jump away from the DVD format. Nevertheless, when the blu-ray is done right, the lines are more defined and the colors are richer making for a visually stunning anime experience as was the case with Evanglion 1.11 and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence for myself.
As anime blu-ray releases continue to increase, have you guys began to purchase blu-ray releases or have you decided to stick with DVD’s? With the quality varying between releases, how do you guys decide which series or movie you will purchase in blu-ray as appose to dvd? Do you prefer anime in high definition? What are some titles that you’ve seen in blu-ray that were disappointing or gratifying? As for myself, I’ve begun to purchase blu-ray releases. The two movies I mentioned above were amazing to watch in high definition. Most of my blu-ray collection consists of movies thus far and I haven’t come across one that left me unsatisfied. My blu-ray series collection only consists of Heroic Age and Rin mainly due to the fact that I purchased the dvd’s before some of the other series were released in blu-ray and I hate double dipping. |
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EricDent
 Posts: 997 Location: Georgetown, TX |
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No I don't purchase Blu-Rays. The main reason is that I don't really see the big "jump" in quality that people say they have.
Plus there are so many "incosistancies" on whether or not a movie is just upscalled, or truely re-mastered as HD. Also it is mostly on the newer shows, I don't see them ever going back and upgrading the older shows. Of course I do have a rather tight budget at the current time, and have a hard enough time just buying an anime series on DVD. I can't really afford to spend the extra $5-$20 for the Blu-Ray version. Especially since I would also need to buy a player, I am not about to shell out my hard earned $ for a crappy player that costs under $100, so this is currently not in my budget. IMO DVD/Blu-Ray are kind of a dying breed (according to some people we will go all digital within the next 5-10 years). I think this is true in a way, but also think that they would be totally stupid to just give up a multi-BILLION dollar industry in DVD/Blu-Ray. So at this point in time I will stick with the cheaper (and probably just as good IMO) DVD version. I also want to mention the fact that due to "reverse import" fears that some Blu-Ray anime series are only availible with a dub. I know that some DVDs are only availible with a sub, but most of them are availible with both versions of the show on it. |
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Bento-Box
 Posts: 1049 Location: Florida |
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I have yet to purchase a Blu-Ray anime DVD. They are still a bit pricey for me. Although, I anticipate I will eventually purchase BD for Casshern and other visually engaging shows given they are the right price.
I've found, in general, that Blu-Ray titles only look good on recent movies. We own an LED HD TV that's pretty large and a BD player. Avatar (movie) looks amazing - better than the theater. But the BD for Predator - not so much. LoTR looks like it was filmed in someone's back yard during on location scenes. Don't get me wrong LoTR still looks amazing, but some of the forest scenes looked like someone took a camera out into the woods and filmed some neighborhood geeks fighting. The new Star Trek also doesn't look as good as it should. It actually pales in comparison to Avatar. I think it really just depends on the movie. I, personally, would not purchase an older anime title on BD because even good quality older films don't look that great on BD. Code Geass looks amazing without BluRay. Edit: We have experimented with our old LCD HD TV and the BD Player, regular DVDs, etc. and have found that BD look a million times better on the new LED TV than they do on the LCD HD. There is a slight increase in quality with the LCD/BD combo, but not as much. I think the LED TV makes the biggest difference, to be honest. The Blu-Ray is just a tiny boost after that. So, if you're looking for highest quality, maybe try going for a large LED instead and toss the Blu-Ray idea until you find a good sale. |
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walw6pK4Alo
 Posts: 9322 |
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I wish more BluRays could even get released in North America, there's several that I've watched that aren't available here and probably won't be. I'm talking about old things by the way, things remastered from actual film.
As for quality, you'd have to be blind to not notice the difference in quality from even 480p to 720p. It's colossal.
They're releasing Patlabor on BluRay now, and have released Zeta Gundam, ZZ Gundam, Dancougar, and several others. I watched Zeta in HD, it was magnificent. I'd imagine there's tons more coming, and several important movies and OVAs have already had their BD treatments. |
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Kruszer
 Posts: 8016 Location: Minnesota, USA |
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No, for a couple reasons.
1. I can't see the difference between HD and regular definition, probably due to my bad vision, which isn't fully correctable. Those 3D glasses also don't work on me either. 2. I don't view it as a significant enough technological advance in format to adopt. It didn't give us something cool and new like surround sound and scene selection like the change from VHS to DVD did. It only slightly enhances existing technology. 3. So given the same (perceived by me anyway) level of quality I also have to point out the price being more expensive as another deterrent. I'm not made of money so I'd generally choose the less expensive thing of the two (DVD) and can't justify spending more. Last edited by Kruszer on Sat Oct 09, 2010 11:32 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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John Casey
 Posts: 1853 Location: In My Angry Center |
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So far, I've only bought FMA Brotherhood on Blu-Ray.
The quality comparison is ultimately minute, and really depends on the size of your TV... If you've got a hugish monster of a tele, Blu-Ray definitely makes the big difference. A standard, maybe 27-32 inch, however, you can go either way. |
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Annf
Posts: 578 |
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Yes, I pretty much only buy Blu-ray now. The sharper image is important to me. Not to mention the elimination of compression artifacts. Heck, I was never satisfied with DVD to begin with--always looked so blurry compared to my hi-res computer games. I hope anime itself moves to higher resolution in the future--right now we're still seeing mostly 1280x720 masters.
But I buy from the Japanese market so I have a much larger selection than foreign markets as far as BD anime goes. If were only buying from, say, the North American market, I'd probably still be getting DVDs because BD flow is still just a trickle. |
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einhorn303
 Posts: 1180 |
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I buy BD whenever I can, but I still get DVDs if there is no BD. Yeah, the quality difference really is huge. Especially while watching on my HD widescreen.
There are also some Japanese BDs with English subtitles. It's the perfect import format, since Japan and the US share the same region code. There's a surprisingly large selection (if you're willing to pay Japanese prices). There's a list of them here: http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=101654 Right now I have the JP BD of Black Rock Shooter and the Nanoha movie on pre-order, both coming out in December. Both of which will have English subtitles. Also, we're going to be getting lots of awesome North American BD releases next year. And not just movies, but TV anime too. K-On, man, K-On! That will give my anime BD collection a much-needed boost in femininity, since now it's nearly all mecha.
1. Bluray has nothing to do with 3D. 2. Well, there are a few new features that BD has over DVD: - BD-Live (Downloadable content) - More expansive subtitle options, compared to the out-of-date DVD standard - Pop up menus |
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Zewerr
 Posts: 539 Location: Tacoma, WA |
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I'm with John Casey. Seeing a difference really does depend on what your watching it on. I watch most of my BD stuff on a 65in LCD TV and the difference in anime is definately noticeable. I find the picture much more crisp (less fuzzy) with much more vibrant colors. Another thing that makes BD worth it is if you have a good surround sound system as well. I always found the sound to be much more crisp with BD. The only anime I have seen so far on BD are Samurai 7, Shigurui, Devil May Cry, Ghost in the Shell (2.0 and Innocence), The Sky Crawlers, and Fullmetal Panic SR. Samurai 7 is the only one that I know of for sure that have been produced in HD. I'm not sure which ones are simple upscales, but regardless, all of these had a much better picture on my TV than anything I have watched on DVD.
So to answer your question, yes I buy BD anime. I'm very reluctant to purchase anything on DVD now, unless I have convinced myself that it will never be released on BD. And I have also been either trading in or selling some of my DVD's that have been released on BD. |
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walw6pK4Alo
Posts: 9322 |
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Try watching an older anime that's been remastered for HD. You'll see a incredible difference compared to modern digital anime.
Edit: Oh look, there's Riding Bean's BluRay. Sure the OVA got a DVD remaster, but this looks goddamn fantastic. I'll have to check that out too. |
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Kruszer
Posts: 8016 Location: Minnesota, USA |
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Yeah, but it has to do me and my eyes and how it doesn't work on me just like HD. |
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Tony K.
 SubscriberModerator  Posts: 12104 Location: Frisco, TX |
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Don't forget lossless audio. That tends to be the deal-breaker for me (looking at you Warner Bros, whom I refuse to buy live-action TV series from because of this *shakes fist*). Hearing nearly the same audio master track they mix in studios is astonishing, to say the least, and makes the Blu-ray experience very much worth it for me. It's also easier to upgrade one's sound system to be pretty decent rather than saving up for more expensive TVs. Currently, I have an Onkyo 606 7.1 receiver with a Polk Audio CS2 for the center, Monitor 70s for the front, some old Yamaha towers for the side, and a couple of dingy Sony HTIB satellite speakers. However, I just recently won a bid for some refurbished Polk Audio FXi A4s off of eBay and will be testing those out on the side and rears when I get them in. For TV, I have an old 40" Sony Bravia XBR4 that I bought back in January '08 when my old Trinitron CRT started to die. After I get all the speakers replaced with newer ones, I'll start saving up for an LED TV that's at least 60+", and eventually I'll even save up to have the whole game room renovated by a home theater company. As for BDs themselves, I've got 210 total titles in my collection (most of them live-action). As a hobby I write user reviews because most of the user reviews I see are absolute crap, and I think a good (intelligible) second opinion can be worth a lot. I post my reviews at Blu-ray.com under 6 different accounts to represent different genres: Tony K. (action/adventure, comic book, family/Disney, and westerns) Shinomori Aoshi (espionage, martial artsy, and period pieces/war) Ginko (fantasy, horror, supernatural) Dr. Tenma (crime, detective, gangster, mystery, and thrillers) Onizuka Eikichi (comedy, drama, slice-of-life, or anything where those are most prominent) Gankutsuou (science fiction) You can check out my full collection of titles here. As for anime, I acquired something like 500+ DVDs in the past decade or so. And since the jump to HD, I just can't bring myself to buy anymore unless it's on BD. In terms of anime I own on the format, I have: Appleseed: Ex Machina Devil May Cry Evangelion 1.11 Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete Gunslinger Girl Ouran High School Host Club Paprika Samurai 7 Rented: Akira Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Sword of the Stranger In terms of quality, movies obviously tend to benefit the most from extensive remastering or having the ability to make an easy modern-day transfer. Samurai 7 and FMA:B (the only native HD series) look pretty good, though S7 is a bit foggy at times, but I attribute that to art style. FMA:B, on the other hand, looks fantastic. I tried comparing both to DVDs and high quality fansubs, and there's just no comparison when you take a look at the numbers. Upscales are a bit wishy-washy. GSG and DMC look decent at best, but I appreciate the lossless 5.1 tracks. Ouran, however, looks amazing for an upscale. Colors are vibrant, detail is very sharp, and the whole series presents itself with an excellent picture. Since then, I'm curious to see how well FUNi will be able to upscale some of their other titles and hoping they put out a good number of series since the rest of the U.S. companies aren't really making any progress. Until then, I'll admit to pirating and download BD-rips of certain series (though, there actually aren't too many, but I like having the option). |
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HeatLegs
Posts: 12 |
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It's kinda a waste of money imo. I mean, DVD's are cheaper and the quality is only SLIGHTLY lower than Blu Ray. But that's just me. I'm one of those people doesn't notice much difference between DVD and Blu Ray.
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DangerMouse
Posts: 4022 |
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I have to disagree I've started picking up a lot of my anime movies and series on BD recently as we start to get more R1 BDs, and to me just see Sword of the Stranger and Eva 1.11 on BD, and the potential jump will be unlikely to appear small any more in my opinion. As Tony K said most expensively-animated anime movies and OVAs will probably show the most benefit, but more series going forward (and some old cel series that get remastered) have been showing a more pronounced difference as well, other highlights for BD video quality (and sound) with a sizeable jump over typical DVD quality I've already gotten are stuff like GITS 2.0/Innocence, the FMA movie, both Final Fantasy CG movies, the Appleseed movies, Gundam Unicorn, FMA:B, Samurai 7, Casshern Sins, and Xam'd and Eden of the East which both just came out. I agree though that what someone is watching on is a key factor, especially for people with quite small TVs, I've got a 46" 1080p older XBR so I've got a pretty nice TV which is still probably kinda small compared to people who watch as much anime, movies and tv as I do lol.
Yeah, those two are definitely showpieces. How was Rin's Blu-Ray? I had bought the first dvd set of Heroic Age before buying the BDs and it is quite nice for an old series, especially the numerous space scenes. Last edited by DangerMouse on Sun Oct 10, 2010 5:20 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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crunchycat
I do Marketing for Anime Companies
Posts: 138 |
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Hmm I only own 5 blu rays and I do see a difference,
1. FF7 advent children complete 2. Dragonball Z broly movies 3. 300 4. Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood 1 and Full Metal Panic collection for Full Metal and DBZ it doesnt seem very different just more crisp as for the other 3 compared to the original I can see a pretty big difference, but in my defense I wait till I find a deal for them like FMA brotherhood for 20 bucks on amazon which is cheaper then what the dvd goes for |
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