GAAAAHH !! My digital recording app on my PC didn't trigger and I missed capturing the 3 Countdown episodes from last night ( Week 3 ).
If anyone has digital copies for upload on public or personal drives, I'd be more than happy to share whatever I have in kind.
Cheers
criscles
criscles, if you check my links above you will find copies there (Countdown 84-05-13, 85-02-10, and 85-06-23)
Luuuc, thankyou so much !
Hi All,
I have the following 1979 episodes available for download:
1979-06-17 - Eric Oldfield (incomplete 38:31)
1979-07-08 - Glenn Shorrock
1979-07-22 - Shirley Strachan
1979-07-29 - Roger Voudouris
1979-08-19 - Shirley Strachan
1979-10-07 - Steve Gilpin (incomplete 49:23)
1979-10-28 - Russell Hitchcock
1979-11-04 - Molly
1979-11-25 - Marc Hunter
1979-12-02 - Elton John
1979-12-16 - End Of The Decade Special
PM me for a Link as it is hosted privately.
Cheers :slightly_smiling_face:
criscles
Also looking for Tuesdays February 1982 Countdown if anyone managed to capture that one!! I would be appreciative of a copy.
Cheers
Regards
Brett
Thanks Luuuc - cheers!! Yes I understand the lack of enthusiasm
Would anyone be able to share the New Years Eve special from 5 weeks ago? I'd really like to get the footage of AC/DC playing from 1976.
This has been brilliant! So many generous people to thank: Andrew, Luuuc, Chad, and Criscles I’ll be in touch with you too! 1979 was a fab year.
Seriously this has been so awesome. About 4 years ago I had a bad hard drive crash. Lost years worth. I was so devastated I didn’t bother to reconstruct my collection - until now.
Incidentally I think I have Some episodes in MP4 format (ie: consistent with the uploads) which I’m happy to share. I’ll have to do a reconciliation and let you know what they are.
Hi. i'm an avid countdown fan, if you could send me download links, that would be great.
regards
Marcus
Hey Grant,
Thanks for the links. I downloaded the one I am missing, 19 September 1982. Well 2 actually, the first and second out of interest. I skipped the third given file size doesnt worry me given how cheap hard drives are now and I try not to compress anything if I can help it as it has usually already been compressed somewhere along the line. The ****ty bitrate they are putting out on the HD channel isnt impressing me either thats for sure.
I am not a great Matroska fan, as mp4 is generally easier, more accepted and less issues. You can also get a thumbnail, and even a preview at times when downloading where as mkv basically appears as a file rather than video. I noticed yours have a slightly lower bitrate than what the transport stream put out.
The second file at 50fps I think is perhaps overkill for not much result. Given the transport stream is @25 fps, I am not sure if deinterlacing actually works unless you are working from the source file or master tape ? 24 fps is the standard for Tv and Movies, most feature film and tv is produced and displayed at 24 fps. Analog TV, which was what was used when Countdown was recorded was of course different, but the ABC are transmitting it out to us on a stream at 25fps which is basically industry standard. Happy to be be corrected if it can be deinterlaced back to its original source, but I cant see how given the frame rate is changed upon sending the transport stream.
30 fps is also widely used but more for higher motions, such as sport. 50fps is getting up near 60 which is used for video game and other high motion recording. 25fps is used more for cinematic effect and I think Countdown realistically fits that bill rather than fast motion.Though some of that hand clapping gets wild :)
Just out of interest I encoded what I had (34 minutes) of that episode before it froze - at mp4 1920 x 1080 @30fps (up from the 25 on the stream) data rate 3995, 4249 total bitrate...basically making sure its more than the .ts bit rate. I took a screenshot of each, (your 2 and my 1) and they all pretty much looked the same. Having said that, its a terrible episode (quality wise) to start with. After looking at some other scenes (particularly local in studio) I found the 50fps looked a little bit unnatural compared to mine and your first one.
Don't take that as a criticism, just my opinion and I enjoyed looking at the differences and seeing whether I think there are improvements. Having said all the above, I am also not viewing it on a television, just a PC so they may look different again on a TV :) I didnt get that far.
So thanks for episode 1 :) I am converting it to .mp4 at the moment.
I have an .mkv that I am converting to mp4 overnight. Its a monster at just under 30gb and goes out of audio sync on my android Mi_Box 3 but not on my PC so I am going to see if re-encoding it to mp4 fixes the sync problem. Its the new remastered Pink Floyd Delicate Sound of Thunder Bluray, 1920 x 1080, Total Bitrate 36399, Frame Rate 23.98. Hoping my PC doesnt melt :D
We really should try and compile a list to see what episodes people actually have at some stage. Half mine are good and half are average to very average and I am sure many are in the same boat and want to improve some of their crappy episodes.
Also, a question, I just noticed that 11 April 1982 just screened I already have.......and its a completely different episode. Yet both have 11 April 1982 on the screen after the Rage logo ! Grrr.
The episode I already have has Duran Duran on it. Does anyone know which one is which ?
Hey Andrew,
Thanks for your reply. Not taking it as a criticism at all!
Regarding de-interlacing, my reasoning for doing this is that digital television here in Australia is still broadcast in interlaced format. ABC HD is 1080i. When re-encoding, most software (I use Handbrake) will convert interlaced (1080i) to progressive (1080p), but the default setting for the frame rate is "same as source", which for us is 25fps. When you encode at 25fps you remove half of the frames and lose the smooth motion that the interlacing gives the original video. Setting it to 50fps preserves the smooth motion of the 50i source.
For the music videos originally shot on film, you won't notice, but for the live in-studio stuff shot on video tape, at 25fps the motion becomes jittery.
A good example I can give for 25fps vs 50fps is the tennis currently being shown on 9GEM HD. Watch it on your HDTV (1080i50) and take notice of the ball flight. Nice and smooth. Now load up their streaming service 9Now. 9Now streams at 25fps. Sport looks jittery in 25fps, that's why Kayo Sports and the BBC stream in 1080p50. MLB and ESPN stream in 720p60 and it looks amazing, even at the slightly lower resolution.
An even better and more relevant example - next Saturday night watch Countdown on Rage live on your TV and at the same time watch it on iView. Watch the SD version on your TV so you're watching standard definition on both. Wait until an in-studio performance comes on and pay attention to the motion. You'll find the broadcast version on the tv is much smoother, the iView version will be more film-like. iView, like all of our FTA streaming services, still streams in 25fps.
Sorry for the long-winded technical reply - just wanted to explain there's a method behind my madness! I've added a new folder to my OneDrive called "50fps vs 25fps example" that hopefully illustrates this :)
(BTW good luck re-encoding DSOT! I've seen the Blu-Ray and Rachel Fury has never looked better ;)
The miscaptioned Duran Duran episode is from the week after (17/4/82): See:
http://pub24.bravenet.com/forum/static/show.php?usernum=2015862427&frmid=135&msgid=960895&cmd=show
I know others have shared already, but since I did it in previous years I'll be sharing my copies of Countdown episodes again this year for anyone who is interested. As with previous ones they are MP4 files in H.264 format, full HD, and with file sizes kept to just under 1GB per episode.
Download Link
Hi All, I am new to the forum. I have attached a link for my Countdown Episode list. If anyone needs any episode then please let me know. Thanks to everyone who has posted links to episodes. I have increased my collection as a result. Cheers, kiersey.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6235hus9tpiimli/My%20Countdown%20List.docx?dl=0
Would love a copy of the 14/9/80 Kiss episode :sunglasses:
"That 14/09/1980 KISS episode is on my list. You should be able to D/L it.
cheers
kiersey"
Thanks!
Hi all,
Is everyone aware that the ABC is replaying the documentary Classic Countdown starting 11 January at 11am?
Hi kiersey,
I have the following from your request list:
Countdown 84-04-22
Countdown 84-12-16
Countdown 86-06-08
Countdown 87-04-26
They're uploading now to my OneDrive requests folder:
https://1drv.ms/u/s!AmE5hleMzCmIqVTpHh_QjOB9Xi19
Grant, thank you very much for the Bette Midler and James Freud episodes, they are brilliant. I can't thank you enough. Love them!
Untouched rips of the 4 Countdown episodes that aired last night are uploading now to my OneDrive. Scroll up to my previous post for the link. They'll be in the following folder:
HDTVRips - Untouched / Week 2
I'll also put the cropped / de-interlaced versions in this folder:
50fps De-Interlaced and Cropped
Many thanks Grant, especially for the untouched copies. Your work is appreciated.
My requests, if they are out there. :) Thank you to all who have shared. :)
• 24/06/79 - Russell Morris
• 23/03/80 - Robin Scott
• 01/06/80 - Village People
• 15/06/80 - Skyhooks
• 24/08/80 - Xanadu Dance
• 26/10/80 - The Romantics
• 01/03/81 - Russell Morris
• 19/04/81 - Joe Dolce
• 26/07/81 - Kim Wilde
• 20/09/81 - Adam Ant
• 29/11/81 - Cher & Fay Waybill
• 30/01/82 - Summer Video Rock Special
• 23/05/82 - The Human League
• 06/06/82 - Marc Hunter
• 04/07/82 - Bucks FIzz
• 10/10/82 - Simple Minds
• 14/11/82 - Daryl Hall & John Oates
• 27/02/83 - James Reyne
• 17/07/83 - Paul Amos & Ray Grech
• 07/08/83 - Malcolm McLaren/Duran Duran
• 23/10/83 - Dave Mason
• 20/11/83 - Split Enz
• 24/12/83 - Christmas Special
• 12/02/84 - Sandii & The Sunsets
• 01/04/84 - Jenny Morris
• 10/06/84 - Duran Duran
• 07/10/84 - Cast of Sweet & Sour
• 28/10/84 - 10th Anniversary Special
• 23/12/84 - Johnny Rotten & Specials
• 12/05/85 - Nik Kershaw
• 15/09/85 - Brian Mannix
• 17/11/85 - Grace Knight & Bernie Lynch
• 08/12/85 - Grace Jones
• 20/07/86 - Russell Mulcahy
• 27/07/86 - Molly (from London & Edinburgh)
• 17/05/87 - D-Generation
• 19/07/97 - Carol Hitchcock
Hi RetroTragic
I have the following
10/10/82 - Simple Minds
28/10/84 - 10th Anniversary Special
20/07/86 - Russell Mulcahy
https://1drv.ms/u/s!AmE5hleMzCmIqVTpHh_QjOB9Xi19
Look in the Requests > RetroTragic folder.
Grant
Hi Grant,
Thank you, very much appreciated. Can't thank you enough.
:+1: :grinning:
Hey Retrotragic
I should be able to fill the following for you when I get onto a decent internet connection for uploading. Stay Tuned !
• 26/10/80 - The Romantics
• 01/03/81 - Russell Morris
• 19/04/81 - Joe Dolce
• 29/11/81 - Cher & Fay Waybill
• 23/05/82 - The Human League
• 06/06/82 - Marc Hunter
• 14/11/82 - Daryl Hall & John Oates
• 23/10/83 - Dave Mason
• 20/11/83 - Split Enz
• 12/02/84 - Sandii & The Sunsets
• 01/04/84 - Jenny Morris
• 07/10/84 - Cast of Sweet & Sour
• 12/05/85 - Nik Kershaw
• 15/09/85 - Brian Mannix
• 17/11/85 - Grace Knight & Bernie Lynch
• 08/12/85 - Grace Jones
• 27/07/86 - Molly (from London & Edinburgh)
• 17/05/87 - D-Generation
• 19/07/97 - Carol Hitchcock
Cheers
criscles
Oh criscles,
Mate, that would be awesome. Thank you. Can't wait! I'm staying TUNED!! :grinning:
Last night's untouched ABCHD rips are here:
HDTVRips - Untouched / Week 3
Cropped and de-interlaced 50fps versions will be in this folder when they're done encoding:
50fps De-Interlaced and Cropped / 2020 Week 3
https://1drv.ms/u/s!AmE5hleMzCmIqVTpHh_QjOB9Xi19
No worries, Andrew! Happy that I can give back a little.
Hey RetroTragic
I've uploaded your fill request. PM me for a direct link. :+1:
Cheers
criscles
Following is a list of episodes I'm missing any help would be much appreciated :upside_down_face: Happy to upload any episodes required by others when I have some free time. I basically have every episode except those in the below list
27.12.81 clips of 81
17.04.82 Duran Duran
04.07.82 Bucks Fizz
14.11.82 Hall Oates
08.04.84 Marilyn
10.06.84 Duran Duran
24.06.84 Molly IV Rod Stewart
08.07.84 Culture Club
29.07.84 Beat Street final
25.11.84 Fashion special
19.05.84 Awards
18.08.85 Style Council
Gary,
I can fill:
17.04.82 Duran Duran
14.11.82 Hall Oates
24.06.84 Molly IV Rod Stewart
08.07.84 Culture Club
19.05.84 Awards
18.08.85 Style Council
PM me for a link
Cheers
criscles