RETRO TECH Home Theater Design Plus VHD Revisited

After successful eBay sales of old tech and with the help of my Patreon patrons, I was able to fund the import of a working VHD player from Japan and a bunch of discs. This new addition required some reconfiguring of my home theater setup, so I thought I'd share this setup with my fans plus dive a little more into VHD than I did the first time. Those who are fans of CED (aka RCA SelectaVision Video Disc) will enjoy the side by side video comparison of CED and VHD.
My Projector:
www.projectorcentral.com/BenQ...
My Sendico affiliate link:
www.sendico.com/registerhome/...
The infrared remote extender:
amzn.to/3PfU3M4
The step down transformer:
amzn.to/3KsUTEB
My smart switch:
amzn.to/3AfxqSp
Harmony Hub:
amzn.to/3PIJL7h
Follow Databits..
Facebook:
/ 1databits
Twitter:
/ digitalbt or @digitalbt
Patreon:
/ databits
A HUGE thank you to my super loyal Patreon patrons:
Tim Tom
Scott Walker
Daniel Marsh
Dan Barrett
Greg
Dylan Olah
Matthew Kajcienski
Grover NZ
Jackson Nieforth
Dan Barlow Jr.
Mark Reed
SilentS
Yaniv
TKB
Heads up: This description contains an affiliate link. If you buy something through one of the links, you won't pay a penny more, but databits will get a small commission, which helps support this channel. Thank you!

[@UnbornApple]

You cannot beat a name like "Disc Lord"

[@andreasu.3546]

Must be a lower end model, it's only a National Disc Lord. The International Disc Lord is much superior. And let's not talk about the Universal Disc Lord!

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@andreasu.3546 HA!

[@shermanikk]

I love that your VHD player is apparently a DISC LORD!

[@Nabeelco]

Just so you know, you can rotate the PS logo next to the drive to make it right side up. It rotates 90 degrees clockwise.

[@MichaelJohnson-ip6xr]

I love it that you still have the plasma TV.

[@Dedubya-]

12:27 that power cable looks so dangerous and easy to get a shock ! what were the designers thinking?!

[@erikmolnar6585]

VHD PC; That's incredible! I had no idea. I have noticed that the picture appeared much more stable but did not know about the encoding.

[@theshadowman1398]

Glad to see other people avoiding the annoying smart TVs and sticking with older screens. I am using a modern 32 inch LG IPS monitor as a main viewing screen for all my media. The quality picture quality is spot on and no annoying operating system. If I want some modern streaming I just use my Xbox series X for that

[@databits]

High fives for your TV also!

[@OwenNews8K]

Same here! I'm sticking to my 2007 Panasonic Viera plasma and my 2006 Samsung HD CRT in 2023 or until I die. I swear that plasmas like your RCA and my Panny are easier and healthier for the eyes than LCD; the NY Times even wrote an article saying so! And the picture quality is superb unlike those LCDs and LEDs that easily break down in just a matter of months! 😂

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

20:00 And now I'm getting homesick for that 80's vaporware aesthetic!

[@andycristea]

Very cool setup. Thanks for sharing!

[@williamwilliam9993]

Please upload the vhd world demo disc video

[@belstar1128]

Very interesting back in the day i only knew about the biggest format vhs and after that dvd and then blue ray but these other old video formats are so different with their own advantages and disadvantages and quirks it would be so interesting to imagine a alternative reality where this because the mainstream format instead of vhs.

[@ariefmubiar683]

I presume u’re from the states? Since in 3rd world country in south east asia my family used to have betamax (VHS very rare here and only small people having it in their home), Laserdisc, VCD, combo Laserdisc+VCD, DVD player. Now i have Bluray player in PS4, but I don’t have any single bluray movie disc😅

[@belstar1128]

@@ariefmubiar683 I am from Belgium in western Europe my guess is that when the first vhs players came out they where expensive i went to south east asia in the early 2000s i noticed a lot of vcds but no vhs but i thought they where just dvds with lower quality because i was young back then and not very smart i now also remembered my dad having a box of beta cam sp tapes but we never played them they where used by tv stations not consumers my dad used to work for a tv company but i am relativity young i grew up at the end of the vhs era so Betamax and laserdisc was a lot rarer than it would have been in the 80s and the start of the 90s before my time And i also never used blue ray these days i get all my entertainment from youtube and blue ray came out after youtube and also we kept our old crt tv until deep in the 2010s so dvd was good enough since our tv cant do hd anyway but my friends had blue ray so i watch blue ray movies with them.

[@ariefmubiar683]

@@belstar1128 here in Indonesia actually Betamax won the format war, VHS just for rich family that buy imported stuff. Betamax rental can be found everywhere in '80 & early '90, mid '90 Laserdisc rental also blooming (and this only time when there is no pirated version available), end '90 VCD took over, first most of them are legal copy, but when CD-R are cheaply available, most of them are pirated. When DVD player drop the price, pirated DVD also can be found almost everywhere, then android box with HDD came. While pirated bluray/VCD/DVD still available in online marketplace, but the good quality player and media is hard to find. the gov crack down those pirated at almost same time broadband took off. Now netflix, prime, disney+ (hotstar in Indonesia) are cheap here (compared to EU & US). Movie ticket also just fraction compared to US & EU. Unlike music media, new movie media format seems superior than the older ones ( 1 exception from laserdisc to VCD), So seems no one miss old media format. 😅

[@DAVIDGREGORYKERR]

I have a YAMAHA DOLBY Digital DTS Surround Sound Decoder with 4x speakers, 1x Center and 1x Subwoofer, also I have a SAMSUNG Blu-Ray player with Internet access and a SONY 55" LCD tv

[@DavidSusiloUnscripted]

Can you please make a video of the Dolby Surround VHD. Thank you beforehand.

[@databits]

I sure could! It’s not very exciting.

[@DavidSusiloUnscripted]

@@databits I love watching demo and promo videos. I have near 100 demo discs (laserdisc, DVD, bluray and 4K). I am weird that way. :D

[@databits]

@@DavidSusiloUnscripted - Ok I’m weird with you! 😂

[@databits]

Saw THX WOW for the first time last week, from the actual disc! So good.

[@DavidSusiloUnscripted]

@@databits yup. That’s one of the holy grails for Laserdisc demo.

[@lutello3012]

Hope I can figure out how to get my CED player out of fast forward mode. (Probably not the exact problem but that's the effect.)

[@RacerX-]

Fantastic. VHD looks interesting. Is the VHD shimmering picture that is shown part of the actual playback or is it some sort of artifact from capture/youtube?

[@databits]

Only that disc does that so it must be warped or something.

[@stpworld]

I have an older panasonic surround sound receiver I got it in 2008 cause it was the only one in the store that had a bunch of optical inputs. Only in my bedroom I had to give in and get a receiver that had HDMI/ Off the topic to I got a casssette player actually installed in a 2014 car very cool.

[@PatricksBlendedMixOfVideos]

What brand of cassette player did you put in your car?

[@stpworld]

@@PatricksBlendedMixOfVideos A sony I imported from Japan the video may still be up if copy right hasnt struck it down.

[@johnwalko1483]

A good demonstration of the VHD Player. I'm starting to collect VHD Disc. Where can I buy a good VHD Disc Player Databitis? Hope you can help me out.

[@databits]

"Good" is a challenge. Sendico or Jauce sells them. Your mileage can vary wildly, from a machine completely cracked and destroyed to a perfectly working one. I ordered two from Sendico and got one of each! Pricy hobby too!

[@JohnTwo1]

On my receiver at least you can set a different crossover point for each speaker so there is no need for a sub for the center speaker for example.

[@pablorai769]

It's curious that they chose a non smiling Kelly McGillis for the covers except on the VHD version...

[@OwenNews8K]

Must be a cultural thing. That must be a Japanese copy of it, as Japanese people trust smiling faces more than stern looks!

[@pablorai769]

@@OwenNews8K There's little doubt it's Japanese, being a Victor VHD...

[@OwenNews8K]

@Pablo Rai Japanese, indeed. Inside Japan, it's called Victor. Outside Japan, it's called JVC.

[@AEIOUY234689]

Do you still use Windows Live Movie Maker for video editing? If so, on which Windows version?

[@databits]

I run it on Windows 10. It’s old software.

[@AEIOUY234689]

@@databits Finally got a copy of WMM and installed it on my Windows 11. Shame on Microsoft for quitting such a useful program.

[@FG-gu9rn]

1:02 "An RCA plasma TV which appears to be a rebranded Samsung" Technically, it's not truly correct, it might have a Samsung panel inside, but the chassis and the PSU are probably from TCL, cuz they own the rights to the RCA brand nowadays. And I also want to recommend you that when this RCA plasma breaks, to don't feel sad because there are no plasmas available, I suggest looking up for a used last-gen Panasonic plasma (an 50-in ST60 or VT60 would be a great option) but pay attention to the working hours has gained over the years :) And back to this theme, I will also say that CED is slihtly better in comparison with the VHD because tere are no interferences despite te picture bein' a little bit blurry, but that probably something has to do with the TV format issues :P Cheers from the second worst country in the world 😞

[@andysummersthxcinemaandmyc7748]

10:45 what ? 50,000 ilbs ? that's weight of elephant . you mean 50 ilbs . vhd does it usually have wobble image ? and if so is it to do with the stylus ? otherwise image looked okay .

[@impracticallynoah]

Is your RCA tv 1080p max or 720p/1080i max

[@databits]

720p max

[@CommodoreFan64]

I work for a non profit, and run a senior center in my small hometown, and in our building when a SEARS was getting ready to close down in 2013(they fully closed in 2014), they donated a 50in Zenith(LG guts) Plasma TV that's full 1080p but only HDMI 1.0 that they had sitting for years in their stock/storage room, and used as a demo unit for a short time(took 4 of us to lift that beast, and mount it to the wall in my building)so I've had a few HDCP handshake errors with it, and ended up getting a Sony 5.1 surround sound audio amp/HDMI switcher that can do HDMI 2.0 4K if we ever get a new TV so I can get around the HDCP issues with the Zenith, but man was it worth all the hassle, as the blacks are out of this world, and colors really pop. The only other displays I've seen that can come close, or beat it are OLED, or Quantium Dot, and if it was not for the power draw, and lack of 4K I'd be seaking out a similar LG made Plasma for my own setup at home for sure. Such a shame Plasma displays could not get their power draw, heat issues, and high prices under control to last in the market, as a slimmer 4K plasma would be AWESOME!!

[@mhmrules]

They call me MISTER STYLUS!

[@databits]

Haha!

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@databits Now I'm thinking Master Cylinder from the Felix cartoons.

[@pickleeggs3340]

😑