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Originally Posted by charris cy  I have asked this in another thread but I think it is important so...
I have players for both formats and I am trying to decide which discs I should be buying. I am trying to buy only VC1 discs since everybody agrees that they are of much better quality. Is there a list somewhere where we can see what codec the hd-dvds/bds released and going to be released are using?
The same for audio. I am trying to buy movies with at least DD HD.DTS MA is a bonus if present. Is there a list for audio as well?
Also I would like to know if they discs that have already been released encoded in MPEG are they going to be released in VC1 also in the future? And the discs with "only" DD+ are they going to be releade with DD HD in the future? |
Personally I wouldn't get too caught up on which codec a disc uses, and just look to buy the films you like. Although some of the worst titles have been encoded in mpeg2 (generally early releases), there have been a fair few stinkers in vc-1 as well. Also, some of the best discs use mpeg2 or AVC - so I wouldn't discount them because they don't use vc-1.
For reference,
Warner use vc-1 for all releases across both formats (a few early BD titles were in mpeg2). Audio tends to be DD+ and DD (for HD and BD respectively) with the occasional TrueHD track for HD-DVD titles (and a single PCM release for BD).
Paramount use vc-1 and avc for HD and mpeg2 for BD. DD+ and DD for audio.
Weinstein use avc and vc-1. DD+ and a few new releases have TrueHD.
Studio Canal use vc-1 and DTS HD MA.
Buena Vista use mpeg2, avc and vc-1. PCM for the audio (sometimes 24bit).
Fox use mpeg2 and avc. DTS HD MA for the audio.
Lionsgate use mpeg2 and avc. Audio is DD and DTS HD.
Sony use mpeg2 and avc. Audio is PCM and they are about to release some with TrueHD also.
Universal use vc-1. Audio is DD+ with a few TrueHD
The only re-release I am aware of is The Fifth Element, which should be out in the next few months apparently. Instead of a BD25 mpeg2 disc it'll be BD50 avc. I imagine it will be a good while yet before we see any other double dips.
Edit: this may be of some use - its more for region coding info, but if you scroll along it also mentions codec and best audio track for the titles without region coding,
Blu-Ray: What Films Are Region Coded 
Linear Mode
