those DVD region codes...

[animaltown]

howdy folks!

what a lovely discussion board you have here! this is my first post and what better way to start off that with a technical DVD question - a question about regional DVD codes! i'm considering buying a DVD off of a fellow from the UK (i'm in Canada) but i'm concerned that it may not work because of the whole regional code thing which i do not understand. here's the info he provided:

Video Format : NTSC - Color
Region Code : No Regional Coding
Audio Tracks : Linear PCM Stereo
Aspect Ratio : 4 / 3
DVD Format : DVD 5

as you can see there is no region code, but it is DVD 5 format. i know North America is DVD 1 format. my DVD "player" is actually a special edition Imac if that makes a difference. any help/advice on the matter would be mucho appreciated!

[Mick]

Originally posted by animaltown

Video Format : NTSC - Color
Region Code : No Regional Coding
Audio Tracks : Linear PCM Stereo
Aspect Ratio : 4 / 3
DVD Format : DVD 5

as you can see there is no region code, but it is DVD 5 format. i know North America is DVD 1 format. my DVD "player" is actually a special edition Imac if that makes a difference. any help/advice on the matter would be mucho appreciated!

Slow down there maestro. DVD 5 refers to the layers on the disc (in this case a single-sided, single-layered), not the region. Canada is indeed Region1, the Uk is in region 2.

NTSC is standard in Canada, so there's no problem there, and since it's got no region code, it will play.

I'd be more concerned about the quality/legality of the disc, it does sound awfully dodgy. It's rare for legal discs to have no region code (see the Criterion collection for a notable exception) The aspect ratio/audio track/disc format don't sound terribly healthy. It sounds like it could be a fake.

What DVD is it you're buying?

[animaltown]

Originally posted by Mick
Slow down there maestro... What DVD is it you're buying?

thanks for the info Mick. the DVD i'm looking to buy is:

Nirvana - Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!

but it's not available on DVD in North America. may i ask what it is that doesn't sound "healthy" about the aspect ratio/audio track/disc format?

[shifty]

i would have to agree with mick on this one,..a dvd such as Nirvana...live,should have at least DD 5.1,..if not d.t.s..which quite a lot of music dvds have now,..i suppose the concert could have been filmed in 4:3,..but not likely,...two words,...stay away.;)

[animaltown]

oh but i don't want to "stay away", i want to buy it!!! ;) do you know what the story is with "Linear PCM Stereo"? the guy who is selling it is a reputable eBay DVD seller and he says it's brand new and that it's a manufactured DVD, not a DVD-R.

p.s. it's more of a documentary than a concert video...

[Mick]

Definitely dodgy. As shifty says, a music DVD like this would have a much better soundtrack. The aspect ratio is probably correct, most of these DVDs are 4:3.

NTSC DVDs do play on most UK DVD players/TVs, but they are not readily available in shops here. I've had a look round a number of sites and none of them stock this DVD, and I can find no reviews about it. Add all that to the shoddy quality (DVD5 may have been common a few years ago, but new, genuine, DVDs will almost always be dual-layered.) and it sounds to me like someone's got a copy on VHS, and stuck it on a disc. I don't think such a DVD exists.

Almost certainly fake. Avoid it.

[Mick]

Originally posted by animaltown
oh but i don't want to "stay away", i want to buy it!!! ;) do you know what the story is with "Linear PCM Stereo"? the guy who is selling it is a reputable eBay DVD seller and he says it's brand new and that it's a manufactured DVD, not a DVD-R.

p.s. it's more of a documentary than a concert video...

Linear PCM Stereo is a format that's used on CDs, I don't know much about it really. It's not common on DVDs and is at a lower bit-rate I think.

All I can see on ebay are VHS tapes and VCDs (which it does sound like this one is - there's no way he could have genuine DVD copy, they don't sell it) Care to paste the URL for the auction?

[animaltown]

Originally posted by Mick
Care to paste the URL for the auction?

Nirvana "Live! Tonight! Sold Out!" Rare DVD (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2303&item=3311861692&rd=1)

[Kim_EZ]

Looks like a bootleg.

[Mick]

There's a whole load of stuff on that page that doesn't make sense.

He claims it's a DVD5 (which is SINGLE-SIDED), and also that it has tracks on side one and two.

Video Format : NTSC - Color
Region Code : No Regional Coding

Doesn't make sense if he's in Region 2.

DVD is a real manufactured silver / gold disc not a DVD-R

Is the equivalent of me offer a "Real manufactured photocopy of Catcher In The Rye". If it's a silver, it's a VCD, homemade doo-da, not a genuine DVD by any stretch of the imagination.

And the fact that it's on sale on eBay and not for sale at any reputable e-tailer (I checked all the ones I use, plus a few others) suggests it doesn't exist.

It might not be too bad, but it's not a real DVD - it's up to you if you want it or not - but you might as well pick it up on VHS.

[animaltown]

nice detective work Mick. i think i'll do exactly what you suggest - pick it up on VHS for now and hope it comes out for real on DVD. i wanna thank you guys again for being so helpful to a newbie. this is a really great forum!

[The Locnar]

It's possible for a DVD to be created as region ALL.

I agree though that this sounds like a DVD copy of a VHS tape. I bet once the legal entanglements between Courtney Love and the record company get straightened out they will start producing Nirvana products by the boat load. I'd hold out if I were you.

[RavenBlade]

you know, the fact that the seller
only accepts cash, is a sure good sign of a scam. Because, if you were to send a check, you can cancell that, as well as a money order, but you can't stop cash from reaching this guys hands.

If I was you, which I'm not, I would be patient, and wait for a reputable disk to come out, and buy it straight from a store. You may have to wait a while, but
it certainly is better then being ripped off.

That's just my two cents.



Raven

[Dietrich]

Interesting topic..

First: It's bootleg for sure, I'll put money on it.

Second:I think I'm gonna find out some more about that Linear PCM Stereo thingy.. :confused:

Third: Welcome animaltown, me newbie too;)

[Jim H]

"Complaint : Item received, but extremely long shipping and product is not real, it is fake. "

From his feedback. He's probably a reliable shipper selling decent quality faked products.

Many DVDs are region 0 by the way, just not in America. Almost every Chinese disc I have is region 0. So are the couple Koreans I have.

And the only anime DVD I have, Trigun. It's a possibly not legit Hong Kong version though - but it cost 1/5th of the ludicrously over priced USA version, so I didn't care. Excellent video/audio quality with awful subtitles (I'd already seen it though, so I can understand it fine).