I've been schooled in the great "Why Widescreen is better than Pan & Scan" debate since the days of VHS. As DVDs were introduced, I discovered a new term: Anamorphic. Not having a widescreen TV, it really didn't matter to me and I just ignored the rantings of those who posted here that were peeved when a studio released a DVD that wasn't Anamorphic.

Flashforward to two years ago when I purchased my Sony Wega. Granted, it's not wide, but the TV menu has a 16x9 option. Once I selected it and threw on an Anamorphic DVD, a whole new world was opened to me! The colors seemed more vibrant! The picture was sharper! And i'm sure if I had a widescreen TV it would fill the entire screen!

So now "Anamophic" is one of the things I look for when I buy a DVD. And now i'm one of those that get peeved alongside the others I would causally dismiss [Ransom SE is the latest example.]

As I continued participating on this forum, I kept seeing threads talking about "dts". People were raving about the sound and disappointed when it wasn't included. In fact, some would buy the DVD from ANOTHER REGION for the sole reason that their release contained a dts track. Well, I never understood the devotion.

Recently, thanks to a tax refund, I upgraded my 10 year old Sony reciever [old faithful is STILL working]. My new reciever has Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Pro Logic II & dts decoding [and a bunch of other things I haven't gotten around to accessing/fooling around with].

Last nite I throw on Kill Bill. I select the dts sound option and head directly for the "House Of the Blue Leaves" chapter...

Greatgoogilymoogly!! The sound was f'in phenominal! [and I wouldn't even consider my set up anywhere near what a true cinephile would have]

I now realize what everyone was raving about regarding dts and apologize for any possible dismissive thoughts I might've had while reading the various obsessive rantings regarding movie studios' failure to include a dts track.

So now "dts" is one of the things I look for when I buy a DVD.

I DO have a question though...I did a quick Google search trying to find a comprehensive list of DVDs with dts. I noticed that we have one here. Is this still maintained? And does anyone know of any others lists?

Thanks!

I haven't watched the Kill Bill DVD yet but I find it curious that this one is the disc that converted you since many reviews that compared the DD and DTS track say that there wasn't much different on the disc. I would have thought you would be converted to DTS by one that is known to have a large difference between the two formats.

DTS=don't talk shit or my speakers will blow you away

What about us softcore DTS enthusiasts?

Don't we get any lovin'?

Anyhoo, the DTS for Kill Bill is _awesome_. Totally blew me away!

I agree with you. But the Dolby Digital track is "_awesome_ " as well.

Go here and select region 1 from the drop down box.

Also, you will notice that it says Canada under country. If you click on the letter z it will have a couple titles under Canada & then have the complete U.S. releases from 101 Dalmations to Zigzag.

Don't get too caught up the dts frenzy though. Typically the difference is slight (once volume is matched) and in some cases the DD on a given DVD may actually be the better sounding option. Always listen and let your ears decide.

Now go get yourself a couple of big ass subwoofers and drive your neighbors crazy.

Did the ten year old receiver have Dolby Digital 5.1?

Just curious. I think I used the same word when I went from Dolby 2.0 to Dolby Digital 5.1. My first DTS encoded DVD was a nice improvement also, but not as shocking as hearing 5.1 for the first time.

Check out the Saving Private Ryan DTS DVD.

The opening sequence is phenomenal.

I'm still not 100% clear on exactly what ANAMORPHIC is and what it does to make the picture better.

I do only have a regular 36" RCA TV though, so it probably doesn't make any difference to me.

You definitely need to check out more DTS movies. I thought the Kill Bill DTS and DD 5.1 tracks were almost identical, but the DTS track did have more LFE.

Oh great .. here comes another "Do I have the right version of Jurassic Park" thread ..... whooohooo000OOOO!!!!!!

Congrats on your new found love though ...

It's all about options!

Go read the FAQ:
http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=165672

Yeah, if you have a standard 36" screen, you won't get much benefit from the technology. While it's not true 100% of the time, an anamorphic movies shown on a standard screen TV usually looks better than a non-anamorphic movie shown on a standard TV. (The truth of that statement has a lot to do with your equipment and connections, so YMMV)

welcome to the club! oh-converted one

Big dts nut here too. I'm also one of the ones who buy the R3 dvds for the dts. Check out We Were Soldiers! Amazing.

Anyways, I was really impressed with KB dts track. I put on the ES mode and it decoded really well. The scene where Black Mamba was in the hospital and that mosquito was buzzing around was sweet. The imaging overall was fantastic, like the sword coming out of it's sheeth had a nice sound to it.

-Writes another name on the DTS enthusiast list-
{Mr. Burns} Excellent!{Mr. Burns}

Welcome to the DTS club....

awww, i want DTS. I have a DTS decoder on my DVD player BUT not on my receiver. Time to buy a new one someday with a decoder...

MG26

When I first bought a DVD player, I really had little to no experience with DTS in a home theater setting...like you, it took a few years. It's not always a huge improvement over DD5.1, but many times you can notice at least a slight difference in clarity. A quick sidenote: I hate to plug my own stuff, but check out the blurb I wrote about the Top 10 Best Sounding DVDs of 2003 ...several of the entries include DTS tracks.

I'm surprised you picked the DTS version of TTT. While it does sound very good, there's substantially more "super low" LFE on the DD track (even more noticable on the theatrical edition). I've talked about it here before and not many people could feel it but on the home theater forum I go to (where my fellow HT gear freaks are) many people noticed the same thing I did. Most noticable scene, when the... dammit I can't remember the names now, the black rider dudes on the flying whatevers. When the first one appears over the marshes, there's the audible "whoosh" of the wings at probably around 50hz that everybody will hear form their sub, but then there's a second super low one riding along with it that's probably in the 20-25hz range. You can't really hear it, you just feel this wave of air go across the room. Very cool. That's not present in the DTS track, just the DD track. You need some damn beefy subs to get the effect though (dual SVS here).

Now the DTS track on U-571... Weeeee!!

Rogue - if you want to really hear how good DTS sounds, track down a DTS copy of "Twister"...you'll think there's a storm in your living room.

The R3 Das Boot Superbit really boomed in my living room.

When has a submarine movie not sounded good in DTS, even "Hunt for Red October" has a stellar DTS soundtrack.

Good choice! Also check out the Imax DVD feature "The Stormchasers" - the DTS track nearly blew (figuratively and literally) my speakers in half. There should be a warning sticker on this one, cause the soundlevels are extremely dangerous to speakers if played loud. (Really, I am not kidding).