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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: +1 585 477 5325 Cell: +1 585 781 4036 Fax: +1 585 722 7243
e-mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: here

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: +1 585 477 5325 Cell: +1 585 781 4036 Fax: +1 585 722 7243
e-mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: here Kodak Website

Lo and behold, there's a line of dorks all waiting in line clutching their FULLSCREEN copies of the DVD talking about how it's "digital" and "this is how Lucas inteded it to be seen"

I was approached by a store associate holding a stack while waiting with my toothpaste in line. He asked if I wanted a DVD and I told him I didn't even own a player, to which the people immediately surrounding me snickered and laughed. Yes, I have better things to do than wait in line for hours to be one of the first people in one of the millions of stores to own a copy of some movie that will satisfy my rampant voracious consumerism.

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What "special" list are you on to be able to get a pre-release copy? The only early copies I know of went to magazine and newspaper reviewers.

Are you all saying that a full-screen 1.33:1 version of the film is available on DVD ? Yet another possible forum topic in the "I hate..." genre: pan&scan, colorization, you name it...

Here both VHS and DVD are in 2:39 ratio.

Yes, there is a Full Screen version and a Wide Screen version on
the market for "Star Wars:EP2". "Ice Age" is a two disc edition.
It has a Full Screen and Wide Screen edition. All in one package.

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And what are sub-bass sounds doing in my surrounds?

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Don't you think sub-bass sounds are exaggerated on this DVD release? I thought resonance was going to blow my sub-woofer and surround speakers. This is the first time I encounter resonance in my 5.1 speaker system. And what are sub-bass sounds doing in my surrounds?

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When I "experienced" Ep2 in a theater with really good sound, especially LFE (happened to be in SDDS, and obviously not at a Cinemark, where the motto is "Bass? What's that?"), I about crapped my shorts. I can't recall any other film making better use of the subs. It wasn't just a lot of noise either - it was extremely well-articulated and it did seem like there was substantial bass coming from the surrounds too. The Ep1 DVD also gives the low freqs a real heavy-duty workout. Me like.

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He asked if I wanted a DVD and I told him I didn't even own a player, to which the people immediately surrounding me snickered and laughed.

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They stop laughing fast when you tell them that you just stay late at work and watch DVD's on the DVD player connected to your DLP. Not that you should do that.

My DVD installation is indeed a cheap one. The kind of thing you buy "all in one" (DVD player + 6 speakers with power amp included in the subwoofer cabinet) so I'm sure you're right: my speakers just cannot handle the very low frequencies of this film's sound track. My DVD system manual doesn't mention what these speakers resonance frequency is. I'd be curious to know...

But it's the first time it ever happens. My speaker system always delivered an excellent sound, powerful but without distortion. The Phantom Menace, for example, didn't use so low frequencies. I suspect sound editors may sometimes exploit LFE beyond its recommended use. It's only Digital Dolby Stereo, not Sensurround...

With some entry level systems, you may still have to invest in a better quality, separately amplified subwoofer to get decent low frequency playback.

Typically, only high end speakers (such as a quintet of Martin Logan towers) are able of reproducing the full frequency response put into the main channels on any Dolby Digital, DTS or Linear PCM audio track. Unless your main channel speakers can get down to at least 40Hz or 30Hz, there's little need to set them for "large". You're going to get more low end bang by setting your five main channels to "small" for bass management.

Speaking of new DVDs, I agree the bass level of "Episode II" seems a little pumped up. But I disagree with some of the raving comments made on various DVD reviewing websites claiming this is the best surround track one can now hear on DVD. The audio on "Episode II" is pretty good, but it doesn't even outdo the stuff on "Episode I". There's other films I enjoy more for surround sound, such as "Saving Private Ryan" or even "Toy Story II".

I'll tell you a peculiar mix. Check out the new Extended Version of "Fellowship of the Ring." The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is still essentially the same (and very heavy with bass). The new DTS-ES 6.1 track, however, is kind of odd. It sounds smoother, the surrounds are more alive than the DD, but the bass is weaker by comparison. It almost seems like the same bass level goof was made on this track as was made on the first DTS DVD release of "Jurassic Park".

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I about crapped my shorts. I can't recall any other film making better use of the subs

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