Disappointed by Die Hard

[Tyler Durden]

Harumph! Am I the only one!?! Before I finish this post I should say that I am a huge fan of Fox's expanded and committed output on DVD (one has to be so careful what one writes on the net these days) but I am very disappointed with the sound on the new double disc sets.

The menu screens, extras, packaging and so forth are top notch and the visual transfer really rather good - except the first is slightly gorged in colour and there is visible edge enahncement throughout the series.

But sound has always been the key factor for me and I found the Dts and Dolby soundtracks to be wanting in true fidelity and dynamics. It all opens so well. On Die Hard - the plane flyby that opens the set is very dramatic but from thereon it all deteriorates into a homogenised wall of sound. Dialogue is not well integrated and is distorted in some scenes whilst the LFE is boosted in the middle frequencies meaning that it has a tendency to honk during gun fights, even fist impact effects have been subsidised by the bass channel whuch slows the whole dynamic down at key moments. I felt the soundtrack was lacking in body and resonance giving it slightly aged feel and a brittle chracteristic so often found in older films that the remastering process has failed to eliminate, this is a shame as older films fon't have to retain these signs of compression and age; as can be evidenced by the wonderful new, Superman edition which is as full-bodied and dynamic as one could possibly hope for. Yes I know it features newly recorded elements but the dialogue and so on is the key here.

Die Hard 2 fares slightly better but again the LFE enhancement is in trouble but rather strangely it is because it is almosy quiescent throughout, at the final confrontation when the plane explodes there is little LFE to augment the action, similarly when McClane is blown up and out on his ejector seat where's the lovely LFE impact? And this was on Dts?! With Dolby dynamics are even more restrained, as though a veil has been drawn upon proceedings. But at least the dialogue fares slightly better and imaging is wide and deep but in comparison to the very best efforts that have so impressed with remastered soundtracks recently, both Die Hard 1 and 2 are severely lacking in 5.1 genius.

As for the 3rd, well things do improve but the chracteristics of the original DVD pressing remain and whilst it is, as you would expect, the best of the bunch even it features some wildly misjudged LFE and less punch than I would have expected.

I was really disappointed that all 3 sound so shut-in in terms of transients and dynamics.

However, as a package they are hard to beat. A lot of time and effort has obviously been spent on the menu screens and extras and I would recommend them to anyone with even the remotest interest in DVD but I just wish that Fox had perhaps done a little more wih the sound or am I being churlish? I hope not.

Best wishes

T

[BathTub]

I don't think its ever churlish to want the best possible presentation.

unfortunately this presentation met the standards of someone who's requirements were slightly lower than yours. Why? of course we can only guess, but the package as whole appears to be quite decent. we will just have to hope the Die Hard UE's will be better.

just kidding,..

[eideal6]

indeed. ive only watched the first so far, but all of the punching seemed , well, thick. WHUMP, WHUMP.. real bassy, oh well, i'm just stoked that, being a relative newbie, this is one of the few titles/sets that i did NOT own the previous version of.

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"We raped the horses and rode off on the women..."

[Squid Lips]

Maybe I have a lack luster sound system but I have a hard time complaining about this DVD because of the sound. In fact, after reading the post I double checked it and thought to myself I would really have to be wanting to find a problem to pin point the sound. I think maybe I am not as much a DVD perfectionist as some but all I can say is, the DVD couldn't be much better (except maybe a Bruce Willis contribution).

[Chili Palmer]

Just got mine today and I'm rather pleased. The video did have a wierd feel to it, but I have a 4:3 so what do I know. However I thought the audio kicked ass! Hey Tyler what kind of set up do you have? I've read your posts in the past and I know you know your stuff. Just curious !

[Tyler Durden]

Hi Chilli

I am fortunate enough to have 2 set-ups, the main system is:

Lexicon MC-1
Bryston BP-9 5 Channel Power Amp
Meridian Reference DVD Player
Tannoy 7000 Definition Speakers front and rear
Tannoy D750 Centre
Chord Chorus Interconnects
Chord Odyssey Bi-wired speaker cable
REL Stentor III - subwoofer X2
Van den Hul the First Ultimate cable
LAT Power conditioning and cable
Townsend Seismic stand and rack
Theta CD Transport and converter


Secondary system:

Tag MacLaren AV32R Processor
TagMacLaren DVD Player
TagMacLaren 5 Channel power amp
B&W Nautilus 805 Speakers
B&W Nautilus Centre
Nordost interconnects and cables

Cheers

T

[Hank]

Tyler,

Will you get an MC-12?


And why are you not running 7 speakers?

[Drexl]

Those first two soundtracks were supposedly from six-track magnetic masters with mono surround and no separate LFE, so maybe that helps explain why they would be a little disappointing (compared to today's soundtracks). I believe The Untouchables was done the same way.

I'm thinking these soundtracks may have been recorded and mixed at a time when sound engineers weren't used to creating discrete multichannel mixes, but then again I could be wrong.

[Tyler Durden]

Hi Hank

I am certainly going to get an MC-12 - have you seen it - WOW!! Gorgeous is the word, I can't wait to hear it!

As for 5 speakers, I work with DVDs and HT for a living and to give a reliable and focused review of a disc's technical merits it is my opinion that I should listen to it through 5 speakers as intended, I can then give a considered opinion - if I were to utilise the 7 channels I would not be getting, or giving, an entirely accurate gauge of the sound quality as an additional link has been added. The use of 2 subs is neither here nor there as I am simply splitting the signal without adding additional processing.

Cheers

T

[paragmehta]

Hey, I am having a similar problem with the audio tracks on Die Hard, a big problem, can't hear the dialogues and gunfights are way too loud. I have to always play with the volume control and the difference is as large as 12-15 db.

Really poor audio quality. Really messed up. Wonder if this is only a problem with some Die Hard DVDs and not with others, in which case they should be replaced by FOX.

[daehkcid]

I got it for 67$CDN tax inc. Is that expensive? I'm thinking about reselling Die Hard 2 and 3.

[OneofRyan]

Hmm. I thought it was a great release. I loved the sound.

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That's no moon - that's a website - www.geocities.com/ryanofone/The_Game_Grid.html