VHD in the UK.
This is the video I mentioned I was deep in the weeds editing last week. I had planned to put it out in May - but I've bumped it up the queue as I felt my April output was looking a bit lacklustre.
This turned out to be a fascinating but exhausting video to make as every time I went looking for clarification of a date or fact, it lead to finding out about something else that added another five minutes to the video. As a result, my anticipated three or four day edit for a fifteen minute video turned into nine days and a half hour video but hopefully it is as interesting to watch as it was to make.
Comments (81)
Thought I would point out that at 12:44 into the Japan VHD Promo Full video they demonstrate the potential of the second audio channel for audio commentary (presumably the director) explaining a circular track setup to get that revolving shot of the mahjong game. Fascinating, because it is widely accepted that the first audio commentary was Criterion's LD of King Kong from December of 1984... not sure when the Japanese disc was released (but this VHD promo seems from 1985) but this might mean Criterion never "invented" audio commentary. The disc in question actually lists this feature on the cover as 特別対談, whereas in Japan the current English term Audio Commentary is sometimes written phonetically in katakana or as 音声解説 according to the back of some of my Japanese DVDs/BDs. I am looking into this, but it seems hard to find any hard info on this topic even on Japanese sites. I can't believe that the Japanese would even know about King Kong on a *minor* label in the US, so I doubt this is a copy of a unique idea... maybe this was an intended disc feature promoted within the industry from the inception? Oh, while I am at it, I recently found a very cheap way to send packages from Japan via the Japanese post. A box whose combined dimensions measure to 90cm total and 2kg in weight can be sent as "kougata housoubutsu" (basically small thing to send) and when specified for boat, the cost is only 1080yen per box to the states (I would guess the UK price is similar). Thing is, the Japan post workers don't even know about it, they have to pull it up on their screens, so the odds of Japanese sellers shipping overseas knowing about it is basically nill. Not tracked, takes a couple of months, you don't fill out a customs slip on this end (they verbally ask what it is) but has been a great way to send strange things cheaply to friends in the states.
Wonderful video, many thanks Mat. You've surpassed yourself again, can't wait for Part 2! Loved the detective work on the caddy end-piece notches, that was absolutely quintessential TechMoan. Also. I kinda want to play golf to Cuba Baion now...
Thanks again for a video about another old media format. I appreciate your research on these, so it's a full story, instead of just a demonstration. I also liked the old ads featuring the Angels :)
Nice video, Mat! One thing I especially like is the transfer of a disk, using four sheets of paper. It's elegant en shows visually the problem and solution. Nice. Also, these notches, and the way these are not attached to the cartridge... About the English centric companies: I always like to hear the world is bigger than the place I live in... And you might learn something: from a previous video, I instantly knew what Beck was singing in the first line of is song Debra, which I have listened for the last twenty years (I met you, at JC Penney).
On the topic of 1980's interactive video, I remember happening upon an in-store Levi's Jeans kiosk in the mid/late 1980s in the USA to allow buyers to pick from the bewildering array of choices. Computer control of a player wasn't exclusive to VHD; Pioneer made Laserdisc players with a RS-232 port, and I believe this was what the Levi's kiosk used (with a CAV disc). I have no idea how commonplace these kiosks were, but there is naught a mention on the Interwebs.
I’d expect computer control of laserdisc was far more common when you add in Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Mad Dog Mccree and all the others including that 3D peppers ghost effect thing from Sega. Then there’s the Domesday project...
Well now I'm a fan of Yellow Magic Orchestra. Thanks for that. Looking forward to part 2 & seeing on what's on that display disc!
It’s always good to discover an artist who you feel you should know - but don’t. The same thing happened to me when I played that disc. I ended up buying a DVD of their videos from Amazon in Japan that doesn’t really look any better than the VHD for quality.
Highway Star was also demonstrated on the BBC's "Micro Live", and I've uploaded the clip for you here: <a href="https://youtu.be/e-KzllMSwfM" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/e-KzllMSwfM</a>
I’ll have seen that back in the day - I never missed an episode, but of course I don’t remember it now. That does look like a truly bad game though - I can see why they shelved it. Thanks for the upload though, seems like the demo on my disc wasn’t as significant as I thought.
Watching that not-an-actress model enjoying herself amidst a distinct Japanese flavour of corporate hype and hijinks is certainly entertaining, I've had Trans-X's Living on Video bouncing around in my skull since I saw it yesterday. Same thing happened after your Kickstarter send-up of course, being a teenager in the early 80's was in some ways a highly traumatic experience. ^_^
Fantastic video! Leaving aside the model who is most definitely not an actress, interoperability with an MSX etc, it’s interesting to see an also ran than so very nearly came close to making an appearance in the local video shop in the early 80s. Video 2000 seemed exotic, having its own couple of shelves compared to the wall each of Beta & VHS titles, VHD being disc based with a caddy/cassette would have seemed impossibly futuristic to early 80s me. To see so much of the promo material and press materials is wonderful. Highway Star on the other hand simply looks like the ‘gameplay’ of Dragon’s Lair except with a motorbike. Looking forward on the US centric VHD video.
Those 80s Japanese-produced corporate promo videos are so iconic... and mind-numbing. 😵 Enjoyed the hell out of this one!
Loved it! Thanks so much.
It's the first Techmoan's video in two years which is so deeply British-oriented that after 10 minutes I quickly got lost in unknown names and references, got completely confused and had to stop watching. Or may be it's just because it is too long and deals mostly with boring business relations of long-gone companies.
I know not everything can appeal to everyone - it's just the nature of the game. In the past I've hoped that some videos would have reached a wider audience - but I've since become content in the knowledge that this is a very niche channel about things that a small percentage of people find interesting.
So that's where you got the footage for the Android Home Delivery fake- Kickstarter video. Heck yeah for that
I thought the woman saying 'Information' and 'Entertainment' was so 80's she strangely reminded me of the title sequence for the Electric Blue videos (Safe for work highly edited YouTube approved link) (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pqvjfW9yHo)" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pqvjfW9yHo)</a>, not that I've ever seen them apart from that clip just now, and have absolutely no idea what they are. I suspect that all 40 or so volumes that I've no knowledge of would *definately* have been released as a £900 box-set on VHD though. p.s I claim 'Alice in Chemical Reaction' as our new band name. (<a href="https://youtu.be/fKLwAwIfZT4?t=1132)" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/fKLwAwIfZT4?t=1132)</a>
I spotted the AICR disc - and had similar thoughts about reusing the name. I also had to carefully edit around a bit of partial nudity at the beginning of this video when they demonstrated the random access features of the VHD with a ‘California Girls’ disc.
Seeing the interaction with computer games and disc provided video was a very interesting concept, and looks amazing for the early 1980s. The golf segment reminded me of the Joytech 2020 golf simulator from about 10 years later. This system also used a video disk overlayed with computer interface, although as Sony is mentioned perhaps it was a laser disc rather than a VED driven system: <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dV3B3DWQPqs" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dV3B3DWQPqs</a>
It reminded me of the CDi golf games that so nearly sold me on the idea of buying one...nearly.
I really enjoyed this video. I had never heard of it (I am from Australia). It is a pity you couldn't play the Olivia one. I would have loved to hear it. Looking forward to the next part. Edit: I just did an Ebay search on VHD and someone in Sydney is selling them for $A129 each.
The Japanese discs do get around a bit - some of mine came from France - but they all originated in Japan. They aren't in any way special in themselves - they're just a less common alternative to a laserdisc with Japanese subtitles.
Fascinating, another obscure format ticked off. It makes me wonder how many millions were burned through during the various format wars in the 80's.
thanks for the really interesting clip. It was nice that rather than just concentrate on the technology itself the clip focused on the marketing and the eventually abandoned attempt to launch it in the uk. An interesting insight into bringing a product to market - and it's great that you might have found some of those disks actually used in the press launch.
As a kid, I used to think the Thorn EMI logo was something to do with Southern Television (former ITV franchise holder), as their logo, on our cooker, looked like the top half of Southern's blue-on-white star logo. I was an odd kid.
This was amazing. Looking forward to part 2.
Wow, superb job on this - I found it really interesting and look forward to part 2. Seriously, great job on this, top notch stuff.
I'm pretty sure that Ferguson (Thorn's consumer electronics brand) used the Videostar name and rebadged JVC machines. They used the Baird brand name for rented products but that may have just been on their TVs.
Yep, the "Videostar" machine mentioned here looks almost exactly like a JVC machine sold in the US and branded as "Vidstar".
In the last few minutes of your video, you show a CRT broadcast monitor. It would be very nice if you added a 15 kHz frequency filter in post, so that younger viewers don't hear a loud, annoying buzz. (I understand you're too old to hear it, but that's why I'm letting you know :)
Thanks for letting me know - but the only way to fix it would be to take it down re-edit it and reupload it again, which takes a full day - and possibly a bit more for YouTube to process the 4K version. So I’ll have to leave it.
What a fascinating unique video. I think one of your best !
I can’t wait to see what you find on the sealed demo. I wonder what format it’ll be? Might take a few tries. I do hope it’s the demo you didn’t get.
The VCR you mention looks almost exactly like a model produced by JVC (and sold under the "Vidstar" name in the USA). Is that Thorn VCR actually produced by them, or is it just a rebadged JVC model?
I think the Ferguson models were rebadged jvc models, the UK factory in Newhaven produced models for both companies. Normally there would be similar spec models from JVC and Ferguson but sometimes at quite different prices. As a child we had a Ferguson model that lacked some of the features of the equivalent JVC model - but if you opened up the remote control the pads were there for the missing features and you could use these (eg slow motion) if you connected the two contacts together.
Fascinating, Matt - one of the most thorough and informative vids you've done! Part Deux will be along soon, I hope. Here in the states I progressed from audio cassettes to CDs, and from VHS to LD to DVD - but don't remember ever seeing VHD equipment for sale or in anyone's home.
Lovely work as ever and a sort of backdoor tribute to the late great Andre Previn (aka Andrew Preview) the face of Ferguson at the time.
Yes he popped up a few times in the EMI documents I read
Ah, the delectable Mrs Billy Idol, Perri Lister, standing next to Kenny Everett there at the 2.00 mark!
Great video! Lots of interesting information and obviously you put a lot of time into this. The bit in the middle with all the fragments from the demo disc gets a bit boring because there are long fragments without your voice-over, but it's all sandwiched between nice juicy bits at the start and the end. Thanks for posting! Looking forward to the B-side :-)
A lot of people say I talk too much, so sometimes I try to let things run for a while without interrupting.
Oh, I love this 80s overload on the VHD - especially the background music for the explaination parts :-) That's the typical kind of video background music I had to listen to in school... And, of course, I like how they spelled "Giga bites" (sic!) at 26:38 ;-) Must be a huge animal, that does giga bites!
When you said your last VHD video was a couple years old I did a double take. Could've sworn not that much time had passed.. Anyway, I really enjoyed this! A welcome add-on to your previous video, fills in lots of gaps in the VHD story. Especially fun to see those snippets demonstrating the interactive/computer capabilities.
Time passes pretty quickly on the internet - although it often feels like I'm standing still while the world changes around me.
Because I assume any disc can end up in any sleeve, did you confirm that the extra copy of 'Physical' wasn't something else (such as the missing demo disc :-) )?
Yes I checked both sides of every disc - unfortunately what I got is what you saw. One of the copies of physical had lots of drop outs as did the later part of the Yellow Magic Orchestra disc. The Interactive demo disc was reconstructed from the best parts of side A&B (the same programme was on both sides). These are old discs - if they were laserdiscs they'd most likely have disc-rot, these were probably stored flat in a shed for over 30 years, so they aren't doing bad all things considered.
Another great story - thanks. Looking forward to Part 2.
Always wanted a player to go alongside my Laserdisc players, but had no idea it got this far along in the UK
Wonderful, Mat! In the late 1980s/early 1990s I was working in a laboratory and I remember some company coming around with interactive training videos on discs . Unfortunately, I can't recall whether it was this system or not. The idea was you watched a video of a process being carried out and had to press a button if you thought you spotted an error being committed and then the video would show you the correct way to do it. The interactive functions were all rather slow and clunky, so I don't think we bought it in the end. Super video, Mat - great investigative work and historical reconstruction. How ever do you get access to a Thorn EMI Shareholder's report form 25+ years ago?
That was the result of a fortunate search containing the right keywords at the last minute combined with a very generous chap who uploaded these. <a href="https://www.yumpu.com/user/kronemyer.com" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.yumpu.com/user/kronemyer.com</a> Reading through these was fascinating - but also added at least two days to the edit.
Maybe the fact that recently I had to watch 7 hours of mandated work topics made me sit through this one without falling asleep. I don't know that I could have watched that whole interactive disc without wanting to burn the disc afterward. The different caddy ends were pretty interesting, though.
So much for "global compatibility": nowadays, the industry tries to make that as difficult as possible... :-P But now I know what I always have been missing to my MSX computer as a child ;-)
Great work! My favorite Youtube channel and a real hardworking guy.
Thanks so much, although I’d really like to take a couple of days off now for my own sanity.
Top draw Techmoan vid Mat. 20 return to 10 = major flashback!
The 4th disc at the demo stand looks like King Kong.
It does - I’m guessing it’s the 1976 version. I didn’t want to say as when searching for the poster or box art I couldn’t find an exact match for the curvy font at the top.
This has to be one of your best videos and heres why: A. The video you provided is incredible. I'm a huge fan of vaporwave/1980's Japanese aesthetics and each frame of that demo disc could be an album cover for some random bandcamp synthwave artist. Especially the scenes of the woman at the telephone, it felt like a Paul Verhoeven movie. B. Features gameplay from a game system I bet barely anyone knows about. Even the youtube Gamesack who have reviewed the HI-VISION laserdisc game system haven't mentioned this as far as I'm aware. C. Humour was on point, a little bit of riffing is always a good point to keep people from getting distrated. The only problem is the title, it doesn't really let you know that there will be any kind of story outside of the UK when this seems to be more of a Japan to English deal. Also appealing to gamers will help. I'd put something clickbaity like "VHD: How A Failed Video and Games Format Failed to Break the UK". Anyway keep up the good work and also thanks for that awesome National demo video you uploaded to Youtube.
I like your title and I may well use some of it. Thanks again for the positivity.
Thanks Mat. I really enjoyed that.
As did I - glad I could share this with the people who appreciate these things.
This feel like the future according to Total Recall. Great video and a great choice of replacement music for the content match.
of all the movies to have archived, you get Convoy. What a horrible flick. Kristopherson was once asked why he did it, his answer: "They paid me."
But what a great song by C.W. McCall!
Thorn... The Omen Trilogy predicted this monolithic company — LOL!!!
People worry about Google’s influence now - but back in 1980s UK this company was really something else. I spoke to my parents about it and they had no idea of their reach. It’s a bit creepy to think one company had so much control over the average person’s life but hardly anyone realised because they used so many different brands.
VHS recorders were so expensive, £499... no wonder shops like Rumbelows existed
That’s when they’d come down a bit - I think £799 was the norm for the first couple of years of VHS. Yep - so most early adopters rented - and they had a choice of VHS or VHS.
The video quality is surprisingly good. That was an incredibly interesting video, Matt. I really had no idea about VHD when I was a nipper.
Thanks - the video quality was officially not as good as laserdisc as far as resolution goes - but it also had some advantages with a lack of crosstalk. On the average 1980s 21” CRT TV you’d have struggled to spot any difference.
It would be truely amazing if you tracked down the lady in the demo video. Is there a clip where she's saying "I'm absolutely fine. I can leave whenever I want to. No one's holding me hostage" *blinks twice* 😄 Really interesting and unusual video thanks Mat
Well anything is possible - the ponytail guy who rubbernecked at the passing lady in the 1993 HD D-Theater demo tape eventually saw that video.
Great detective work! (My brain hurts now....)
2.54 GB of (even read-only) data storage is really impressive for the early/mid-80s.
Yeah, CD is a quarter of that!
Wow.. hope you got a litte refund for the missing disc. That's unprofessional of the seller. ;) Now to see if anyone can produce VHD today.. so I can release my music videos and tutorials on the format, and you promote it. Think of the ruckus that would have been... ^_^
They really didn’t have a clue what it was that they were selling, I’m just glad I managed to get what I did.
Thank you Mat! My week has been made - and it's only Wednesday!
Yessssss. Looking forward to watching this after work. Thanks!
Thanks for your great productivity - looking forward to watching it tonight :)