What are WMV-HD DVDs and how do I play them?
Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2005 11:21 am
WMV-HD is Windows Media High Definition
These are computer files with a .wmv extension, stored on standard single or dual layer DVD-ROM. They can be played on your computer, HTPC (home theater computer), or a handful of standalone players.
The quality is excellent, all progressive scan, in either 720p or 1080p formats.
So far, this format has not picked up much steam, but the titles that are available have generally been very well received. Recently, a handful of European companies have begun encoding D5 master tapes into WMV-HD DVDs and selling them to the European market. These are generally big budget American movies, but with German menus. The audio is English, and the subtitles can be turned off, so when you're watching the feature, there is no difference, aside from the obvious quality difference when watching 1280x720 rather than 720x480!
On the audio side, WMV-HD uses 5.1 channel audio, but getting that audio to your home theater can be tricky. If you're using a computer, you have to use 5 analog outputs, or convert to dolby digital. this can be done on the fly with software or by Nvidia Soundstorm audio chipset embedded on many motherboards.
These are computer files with a .wmv extension, stored on standard single or dual layer DVD-ROM. They can be played on your computer, HTPC (home theater computer), or a handful of standalone players.
The quality is excellent, all progressive scan, in either 720p or 1080p formats.
So far, this format has not picked up much steam, but the titles that are available have generally been very well received. Recently, a handful of European companies have begun encoding D5 master tapes into WMV-HD DVDs and selling them to the European market. These are generally big budget American movies, but with German menus. The audio is English, and the subtitles can be turned off, so when you're watching the feature, there is no difference, aside from the obvious quality difference when watching 1280x720 rather than 720x480!
On the audio side, WMV-HD uses 5.1 channel audio, but getting that audio to your home theater can be tricky. If you're using a computer, you have to use 5 analog outputs, or convert to dolby digital. this can be done on the fly with software or by Nvidia Soundstorm audio chipset embedded on many motherboards.