WEBVTT Kind: captions Language: en 00:00:00.060 --> 00:00:03.149 It is time to end the series on Laserdisc. 00:00:03.149 --> 00:00:07.460 I know, I know, it’s tragic, but I’ve been putting it off and and its long overdue. 00:00:07.460 --> 00:00:11.210 Many new subscribers have perhaps not seen any of my Laserdisc series, and I’ll place 00:00:11.210 --> 00:00:13.330 a link to the playlist down below. 00:00:13.330 --> 00:00:14.960 As the fastest recap possible, 00:00:14.960 --> 00:00:20.580 Laserdiscs were the first optical disc format, predating the CD by four years, and they held 00:00:20.589 --> 00:00:26.330 up to an hour of excellent quality video--nearly that of DVD--with CD quality digital sound. 00:00:26.330 --> 00:00:31.460 They never achieved great success in the US or really all of Europe due to the high cost of the system 00:00:31.460 --> 00:00:36.260 and the inability to record television shows on them, but in Japan they were pretty successful 00:00:36.270 --> 00:00:38.320 reaching about a 10% market penetration. 00:00:38.320 --> 00:00:42.190 I’d also like to just throw in here because I keep forgetting to do so, I’m on Twitter 00:00:42.190 --> 00:00:44.040 now @TechConnectify. 00:00:44.040 --> 00:00:47.670 That’s only the second time I’ve mentioned that and I’ve had it for two months now. 00:00:47.670 --> 00:00:49.060 I’m really good at this! 00:00:49.060 --> 00:00:54.190 Now, this final video on the format goes over three things: One, the discs popularity in 00:00:54.190 --> 00:01:00.150 karaoke, two the Japan-only Squeeze LD format and Three, the MUSE high definition Laserdisc. 00:01:00.150 --> 00:01:03.100 We’ll start with that because that’s what’s the title and thumbnail said. 00:01:03.100 --> 00:01:07.760 Japan, being Japan, was way ahead of the rest of the world when it came to high definition 00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:08.760 television. 00:01:08.760 --> 00:01:13.119 As an American, I think of HD as being a product of the early 2000’s, especially with the 00:01:13.119 --> 00:01:18.229 introduction of Blu-Ray and HD-DVD in 2006 providing the first form of high definition 00:01:18.229 --> 00:01:19.679 home video. 00:01:19.679 --> 00:01:24.899 That is of course only if you don’t count the first D-Theater D-VHS releases from 2002. 00:01:24.899 --> 00:01:29.270 And I am aware that the first HD broadcast in the US took place in 1996, but adoption 00:01:29.270 --> 00:01:32.360 didn’t really take off until 2004-2005. 00:01:32.360 --> 00:01:38.469 But in Japan, a new analog High Definition standard began test broadcasts in 1989 via 00:01:38.469 --> 00:01:42.080 satellite, and it was in development as far back as 1979. 00:01:42.080 --> 00:01:48.100 This standard was called MUSE, which was a sloppy acronym for Multiple sub-Nyquist Sampling Encoding. 00:01:48.100 --> 00:01:53.340 NHK, the national broadcasting company in Japan, preferred the name Hi-Vision. 00:01:53.340 --> 00:01:58.350 The actual specifics of MUSE are very very complicated and involve some strange sampling 00:01:58.350 --> 00:02:02.579 techniques to increase the resolution that go way over my head. 00:02:02.579 --> 00:02:05.950 Apparently it’s not strictly analog but also includes some digital sampling that is 00:02:05.950 --> 00:02:10.869 limited by movement within the frame and it’s just real weird so please visit some of the 00:02:10.869 --> 00:02:13.230 links down below if you’d like to learn more. 00:02:13.230 --> 00:02:19.120 But in simple terms, MUSE produced a video source nearly equivalent to today’s 1080i resolution. 00:02:19.120 --> 00:02:26.569 With 1,125 lines transmitted, of which 1035 were visible, you could call the resolution 1035i. 00:02:26.569 --> 00:02:29.569 And similar to NTSC, it used a 60 hz refresh rate. 00:02:29.569 --> 00:02:33.659 To get the MUSE signal on a Laserdisc required tweaking the format somewhat. 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:36.819 The most significant twist was the adoption of a red laser. 00:02:36.819 --> 00:02:40.890 If you thought DVD was the first format to use the red laser, think again. 00:02:40.890 --> 00:02:45.400 Just as the pits in a DVD are smaller and allow for more data on the disc compared to 00:02:45.400 --> 00:02:50.939 a CD, the smaller pits of MUSE laserdiscs allowed for a higher bandwidth analog signal 00:02:50.939 --> 00:02:52.410 than a conventional Laserdisc. 00:02:52.410 --> 00:02:57.379 Hi-Vision Laserdiscs used the same CAV and CLV flavors of your standard discs, but due 00:02:57.379 --> 00:03:01.661 to a higher linear speed required--apparently the pits were still the same length, just 00:03:01.661 --> 00:03:06.239 squished closer together-- CAV discs used a smaller portion of the disc, with the inner 00:03:06.239 --> 00:03:09.330 radius being pushed out 76 millimeters. 00:03:09.330 --> 00:03:15.599 And CLV discs used the entire face of the disc, but the inner portion was read at 2,700 RPM. 00:03:15.599 --> 00:03:16.599 My word. 00:03:16.599 --> 00:03:17.599 That is ridiculous. 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:24.469 OK, just as a reminder, these discs weigh a tad over 200g, or just under half a pound. 00:03:24.469 --> 00:03:30.500 And a consumer piece of A/V equipment would get this massive disc spinning at 2,700 RPM. 00:03:30.500 --> 00:03:36.290 If the disc were rolling, it would be travelling at 152.6 kilometers per hour, or about 95 00:03:36.290 --> 00:03:37.470 miles per hour. 00:03:37.470 --> 00:03:38.800 In your living room. 00:03:38.800 --> 00:03:43.829 For more context into this absurdity, a standard Laserdisc spins at up to 1,800 RPM and already 00:03:43.829 --> 00:03:46.000 that seems too fast for comfort. 00:03:46.000 --> 00:03:48.580 Just listen to this player spin a disc up. 00:03:50.340 --> 00:04:05.140 [loud, building whirring noise, with a bassy vibration] 00:04:05.140 --> 00:04:07.260 To be fair, this old beast is louder than 00:04:07.300 --> 00:04:11.520 newer players, but newer players are still plenty frightening when their covers are off. 00:04:12.200 --> 00:04:14.340 [mechanical sounds as transport engages with disc] 00:04:14.340 --> 00:04:28.780 [Slightly less loud whirring noise, but still at unsettling speeds] 00:04:28.780 --> 00:04:30.940 Now imagine that 50% faster. 00:04:30.940 --> 00:04:31.940 Yikes. 00:04:31.940 --> 00:04:36.270 Anyway, even though Japan was early for HD, and MUSE Laserdisc was among the earliest 00:04:36.270 --> 00:04:40.540 ways to get HD content, it was the Laserdisc of Laserdiscs. 00:04:40.540 --> 00:04:43.860 Adoption was very poor, and the players were mighty expensive. 00:04:43.870 --> 00:04:48.900 Plus, they required a separate MUSE decoder to actually create a component output to send 00:04:48.900 --> 00:04:50.130 to your TV. 00:04:50.130 --> 00:04:53.910 But still, near 1080i video on a disc in the mid nineties? 00:04:53.910 --> 00:04:55.419 That’s pretty wild. 00:04:55.419 --> 00:05:00.020 Today, these MUSE Laserdisc players are highly sought after for numerous reasons. 00:05:00.020 --> 00:05:02.949 First is probably their collectability and relative rarity. 00:05:02.949 --> 00:05:05.220 And trust me, they aren’t common. 00:05:05.220 --> 00:05:09.449 As I write this, on eBay there’s a player with an asking price of $1800, and someone 00:05:09.449 --> 00:05:12.400 else wants nearly $4000 for theirs. 00:05:12.400 --> 00:05:16.160 Discs are also hideously expensive, commanding $300 or more. 00:05:16.160 --> 00:05:20.400 But aside from their novelty, they are among the best laserdisc players available. 00:05:20.400 --> 00:05:25.780 These players used their red laser to read standard NTSC laserdiscs too, and the shorter wavelength 00:05:25.780 --> 00:05:29.020 of the laser means it could read discs more easily. 00:05:29.020 --> 00:05:31.970 Scratched and worn discs play better on a MUSE machine. 00:05:31.970 --> 00:05:37.380 Really, all discs play better on MUSE machines because the red laser almost entirely eliminates 00:05:37.380 --> 00:05:41.280 crosstalk, and its more advanced electronics produce a better output. 00:05:41.280 --> 00:05:45.570 Moving on then, for those that aren’t already aware, karaoke is a BIG deal in many parts 00:05:45.570 --> 00:05:46.720 of Asia. 00:05:46.720 --> 00:05:50.530 Much of Laserdisc’s success came from Asia at large, and some of this was due to its 00:05:50.530 --> 00:05:53.250 seemingly perfect alignment with the karaoke business. 00:05:53.250 --> 00:05:55.870 Karaoke, after all, began in Japan. 00:05:55.870 --> 00:06:00.389 Pioneer was involved in the karaoke business to a surprising degree, apparently producing 00:06:00.389 --> 00:06:02.990 many of the music videos used in karaoke machines. 00:06:02.990 --> 00:06:07.130 Which, of course, were made very flexible with the use of Laserdiscs. 00:06:07.130 --> 00:06:12.599 Pioneer made various models of Laserdisc jukeboxes that could hold 50 or more discs. 00:06:12.599 --> 00:06:17.350 These machines, with catalogs of up to 100 hours of material available all in one place, 00:06:17.350 --> 00:06:20.879 helped make Laserdisc the format of choice for karaoke machines. 00:06:20.879 --> 00:06:25.060 To be clear, though, there were and are many different types of karaoke venue; those that 00:06:25.060 --> 00:06:28.900 would have one of the Laserdisc jukeboxes were probably in a small percentage of the 00:06:28.900 --> 00:06:29.900 total. 00:06:29.900 --> 00:06:32.699 Still, laserdisc as a format was used fairly widely. 00:06:32.699 --> 00:06:37.470 Now, if you weren’t aware, a large innovation in Karaoke was the development of the CD+G 00:06:37.470 --> 00:06:40.660 format, that’s compact disc-graphics. 00:06:40.660 --> 00:06:45.490 Using the rarely-used subcode channels of an audio CD, the CD+G was able to store basic 00:06:45.490 --> 00:06:51.500 graphics (16 colors at a resolution of 300 X 216) alongside the audio. 00:06:51.500 --> 00:06:55.760 Karaoke machines displayed these graphics, which were usually lyrics, while playing a disc. 00:06:55.760 --> 00:06:57.940 Laserdisc received a similar extension. 00:06:57.949 --> 00:07:01.419 The LD-G addition wasn’t quite as impressive, though. 00:07:01.419 --> 00:07:05.660 Info on its specifics is sparse, but it appears it was more along the lines of a closed-captioning 00:07:05.660 --> 00:07:10.449 system, with white text on black boxes resembling the standard line 21 decoding we have here 00:07:10.449 --> 00:07:11.539 in the States. 00:07:11.540 --> 00:07:14.340 The actual data was hidden in the audio stream. 00:07:14.340 --> 00:07:17.000 While it wasn’t as impressive as CD-Graphics... 00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:18.930 it’s a Laserdisc so it has full motion 00:07:18.930 --> 00:07:20.270 video going on already. 00:07:20.270 --> 00:07:25.620 Plus, the LD-G standard supported 16 different data streams, so multiple languages of lyrics 00:07:25.620 --> 00:07:27.830 or subtitles could be supported. 00:07:27.830 --> 00:07:32.409 Whether or not LD-G made its way into karaoke is unclear, but it’s still pretty neat. 00:07:32.409 --> 00:07:35.150 Well, it seems as though this final installment will be pretty short. 00:07:35.150 --> 00:07:38.180 I suppose it is pretty much a “here’s three other things we haven’t talked about 00:07:38.180 --> 00:07:39.770 Laserdisc yet!” episode. 00:07:39.770 --> 00:07:40.770 Hmm. 00:07:40.770 --> 00:07:44.980 Well anyway, the third and final thing is what we are going to refer to as “Squeeze LD” 00:07:44.980 --> 00:07:46.580 because that’s what it’s called. 00:07:46.580 --> 00:07:49.760 Just as DVD can store the video on discs anamorphically, 00:07:49.760 --> 00:07:51.930 whereby the image is squeezed in from side 00:07:51.930 --> 00:07:54.720 to side, Laserdisc could do it too! 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:56.140 But only in Japan. 00:07:56.140 --> 00:07:57.680 And only sometimes. 00:07:57.680 --> 00:08:01.830 So as a refresher, the reason why this is a good idea is that for widescreen displays, 00:08:01.830 --> 00:08:06.060 it really helps if the content going to them is also widescreen. 00:08:06.060 --> 00:08:12.300 We could create a new 16:9 video standard, but sending a 16:9 signal to a 4:3 display 00:08:12.300 --> 00:08:13.700 might get messy. 00:08:13.710 --> 00:08:17.129 What we want is something that would be compatible with both. 00:08:17.129 --> 00:08:21.099 Anamorphic widescreen is a way to use the existing 4:3 video standard for widescreen 00:08:21.099 --> 00:08:22.800 in a non-destructive way. 00:08:22.800 --> 00:08:27.150 In a DVD, if the disc is made using anamorphic widescreen, the actual video looks like this. 00:08:27.860 --> 00:08:32.460 If this signal is going to a widescreen display, A DVD player will send this as is, and the 00:08:32.460 --> 00:08:35.709 TV will stretch that image out to fill itself in. 00:08:35.709 --> 00:08:40.360 If you don’t have a widescreen TV, then the DVD player will squish the image downward 00:08:40.360 --> 00:08:44.680 and add letterboxes to the top and bottom to restore the correct aspect ratio. 00:08:44.680 --> 00:08:48.720 Of course you can encode the video with the letterboxing, but then you’re wasting much 00:08:48.720 --> 00:08:51.250 of the resolution on black bars. 00:08:51.250 --> 00:08:54.430 This means to fill a widescreen display, you have to zoom it in. 00:08:54.430 --> 00:08:58.600 And if you make these chunks go offscreen, you’re making all of that resolution just 00:08:58.600 --> 00:09:00.040 go away. 00:09:00.040 --> 00:09:04.710 By using anamorphic widescreen, none of the image is lost, it just becomes stretched. 00:09:04.710 --> 00:09:08.769 To use digital terms, it takes pixels that should be square and stretches them sideways 00:09:08.769 --> 00:09:09.769 into rectangles. 00:09:09.769 --> 00:09:13.100 But of course Laserdisc isn’t digital so there aren’t pixels. 00:09:13.100 --> 00:09:15.000 Let’s not go down that path… 00:09:15.000 --> 00:09:19.560 Squeeze LD was perhaps the first time anamorphic widescreen was found in home video. 00:09:19.560 --> 00:09:24.240 But it was rare for players to be able to unsqueeze the image--few Laserdisc players 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:28.140 had the ability to self-letterbox like any DVD player can. 00:09:28.140 --> 00:09:33.020 So unless you had a 16:9 television, which was a rare thing even in Japan while Laserdisc 00:09:33.020 --> 00:09:37.160 was still current, a Squeeze LD would actually really suck. 00:09:37.160 --> 00:09:41.500 As you can imagine they aren’t particularly common, and they were never released in the States. 00:09:41.500 --> 00:09:43.080 Well, that about covers it. 00:09:43.089 --> 00:09:45.230 I think we said all there is to say about Laserdisc. 00:09:45.230 --> 00:09:46.230 Except no! 00:09:46.230 --> 00:09:47.230 There’s one more thing! 00:09:47.230 --> 00:09:48.300 A bonus fact! 00:09:48.300 --> 00:09:50.600 There WERE recordable Laserdiscs! 00:09:50.610 --> 00:09:52.740 And in at least three varieties. 00:09:52.740 --> 00:09:58.301 Just like the CD-R is a thing, so was the LD-R. Except they were really called RLV for 00:09:58.301 --> 00:10:00.060 Recordable Laser Videodisc. 00:10:00.060 --> 00:10:04.930 Now, Wikipedia tells us with no accompanying citation that these were developed and marketed 00:10:04.930 --> 00:10:07.480 by the Optical Disc Corporation in 1984. 00:10:07.480 --> 00:10:11.860 I’ve linked some forum threads down below which shed some light on the issue, and it 00:10:11.860 --> 00:10:16.790 could be that fewer than 10 machines ever existed which could write to these RLVs. 00:10:16.790 --> 00:10:21.820 But, once written, they were compatible with standard Laserdisc players, just as a CD-R is 00:10:21.820 --> 00:10:23.300 with any old CD player. 00:10:23.300 --> 00:10:24.300 Usually. 00:10:24.300 --> 00:10:26.760 The second variety was actually re-writable. 00:10:26.779 --> 00:10:32.050 The Pioneer VDR-V1000 was a behemoth of a machine, equipped with 2 lasers to enable 00:10:32.050 --> 00:10:36.480 reading in one place while writing in another, and the caddy-protected discs had a theoretical 00:10:36.480 --> 00:10:39.140 lifespan of one million re-writes. 00:10:39.140 --> 00:10:45.220 But, this thing was definitely for professional use only, with a retail price of £25,000. 00:10:45.220 --> 00:10:48.500 Discs, though, were quite the bargain at only £800. 00:10:48.500 --> 00:10:53.990 Sony developed a third, almost unrelated writable video standard called CRV, which rather than 00:10:53.990 --> 00:10:55.790 being a midsize crossover... 00:10:55.790 --> 00:11:01.050 I mean a re-writable disc, was a write-once read-many format, but it only held 24 minutes 00:11:01.050 --> 00:11:02.050 per side. 00:11:02.050 --> 00:11:05.730 It was mainly used as a video backup system in the professional market. 00:11:05.730 --> 00:11:11.550 Interesting, CRV stands for Component Recordable Video disc, which makes me wonder if it stored 00:11:11.550 --> 00:11:14.280 component signals rather than composite. 00:11:14.280 --> 00:11:16.639 Perhaps that would explain its reduced runtime. 00:11:16.639 --> 00:11:20.399 There might have been more recordable versions of Laserdisc out there, but information on 00:11:20.399 --> 00:11:21.399 them is scarce. 00:11:21.399 --> 00:11:25.740 A lot of info for this video came from forum threads on the Laserdisc archive, the Laserdisc 00:11:25.740 --> 00:11:27.959 Database, and even CED magic. 00:11:27.959 --> 00:11:31.149 I’ve put some links down below if you’d like to take a look at these conversations. 00:11:31.149 --> 00:11:34.560 I believe I owe particular thanks to Disclord for his knowledge. 00:11:34.560 --> 00:11:36.860 Well now, that is all I have to say about Laserdisc. 00:11:36.860 --> 00:11:40.300 I’m sure we’ll look at it again in some fashion, especially as I want to get this 00:11:40.300 --> 00:11:44.111 machine working again, but I think I’ve compiled everything you might want to know 00:11:44.111 --> 00:11:47.660 about the format into video form, if I do say so myself. 00:11:47.660 --> 00:11:50.310 Well, I’m sure that’s not true, but hopefully most of it. 00:11:50.310 --> 00:11:52.380 As always, thank you so much for watching. 00:11:52.380 --> 00:11:54.720 And thank you to everyone who supports this channel on Patreon, 00:11:54.720 --> 00:11:57.360 especially these fine individuals. 00:11:57.360 --> 00:12:01.120 I know I’ve said this before, but support from Patreon literally is what keeps these 00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:02.480 videos coming. 00:12:02.480 --> 00:12:07.060 Very soon this channel will become my full-time job thanks to the amazing support you’ve pledged. 00:12:07.060 --> 00:12:08.060 Thank you. 00:12:08.100 --> 00:12:11.580 If you are interested in supporting the channel too, please check out my Patreon page. 00:12:12.000 --> 00:12:14.540 Thank you for your consideration, and I’ll see you next time!