Sony’s Metamorphosis (1990 Analog HDTV HDVS High-Definition Dolby Surround Demonstration Videodisc)

This is the legendary Sony high-definition 12“ HDVS videodisc called “Metamorphosis“ (HDP-1622) produced in limited numbers in Japan for demonstration. The HDVS disc format was designed to be a highly portable 12“ laserdisc-derived media format for Sony’s “High-Definition Video System“ or “Hi-Vision“ back in the early 1990’s! Back then, high definition was a little different from how it is now. The majority of the signal was analog & close to but slightly different in resolution to the 1080i picture we receive over the air today as it was 1035i (hence the large upper border in the picture). Before the earliest high-definition media was available to the public (via satellite, MUSE Laserdisc, & W-VHS tapes), Sony and other companies began shooting footage, performing research, and showing public displays of high-definition television. There were three main ways of storing HDTV (or HDVS) at that time: Reel-to-reel tape (HDV/HDD-1000), cartridge tape (HDV-10 “UniHi“), & 12“ Laserdisc-style discs (HDL-5800 / HDL-2000). This footage came from one of the Laserdisc-style discs. These HDVS discs could only hold a maximum of 15 minutes of video on CLV discs, even less on CAV it held uncompressed, raw high-definition component video! Take that, Blu-Ray! The disc itself was produced in 1990 but some segments were taped in the 1980’s. The disc contains unique footage along with recycled footage from other early Sony HD titles such as the Hills Of The Seasons series & Coral Story. An interesting note is that the older Hills of The Seasons & Coral Story sequences were recorded using the 1984-era analog HDVS system (Sony HDV-1000) while some of the other sequences, such as scenes featuring the female model, were recorded using the 1988-era digital HDVS system (Sony HDD-1000). There is a noticeable increase in random noise for the older analog HDVS sequences. The audio track is encoded in Dolby Surround/Dolby Pro Logic (technically Dolby Stereo) so I’d highly recommend running this video through your favorite surround sound receiver! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx This was played back on a Sony HDL-2000 Videodisc player which outputs analog component (1035i) video. Uploaded in upscaled 4K ProRes for extra clarity! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx More of my vintage HDTV uploads can be found in this playlist: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx If you want to follow me for updates or want to help me purchase a pet fish named “Bonko,“ please click the link below: