HD movie files noob guide

[kierennyc]

Hi all,

So after amassing a digital movie collection on my laptop of about 300 non HD files (mostly mp4's varying from 700MB to 2GB in size), I want to take the plunge and re-download everything in 720 or 1080 HD format.

Without stating the obvious on how ill acquire this new collection, what should I be looking for when downloading the files?

Whats generally recognized as the best HD format?

Per movie, what size files should I be aiming for? Ive seen everything varying from a few gigs to 10+.

Any other tips for a HD noob?

Ill be downloading this HD collection to a 2TB external and will play back via my latop through a 1080 HD projector (with a 130 inch screen). Whats the best player to use for HD content? Im assuming VLC?

Thank you in advance for any advice you can give.

 

[spacepower7]

Without discussing the legality, your best bet is to use the sites' search engines for AppleTV, iPad etc, bc those files won't need conversion.
Some people tag that way so it's easier to find.

File size, 800 to 2.5 Gb depending of DVD,720p or 1080p

Before the moral police respond, and in reply mode I can't see where you are, it may not be illegal in your country.

Ok, you are in NYC, do what you want, you wouldn't be doing "bad things" if the entertainment oligopoly offered you what you want at a fair price.

 

[Idgit]

You'll find more HD movie files in the MKV container than in the MP4 container. To play MKVs, you'll need to use VLC, MPlayerX, XBMC, Plex, or Boxee. Don't bother using Quicktime with Perian for MKVs. If you find HD MP4s, then Quicktime will work well.

Look for "Scene" rips of HD movies. You'll see a lot of the same names associated with certain scenes like Release Lounge and Kingdom-Release. Download a few of their files and see if you like the quality of them.

Also, it's a good idea to read the comments under the files you're downloading. If there is a problem with the file, like audio out of sync, usually someone will complain about it in the comments.

 

[AdrianK]

Also, it's a good idea to read the comments under the files you're downloading. If there is a problem with the file, like audio out of sync, usually someone will complain about it in the comments.

But 99% of people on P2P sites are complete n00bs. "Who uses mkv? wmv ftw!", "Why are there black bars", "Why did the uploader not include sound" and my personal favourite "I'll tell you what I think about 9/11 *insert bullcrap here* ".

 

[Idgit]

But 99% of people on P2P sites are complete n00bs. "Who uses mkv? wmv ftw!", "Why are there black bars", "Why did the uploader not include sound" and my personal favourite "I'll tell you what I think about 9/11 *insert bullcrap here* ".

LOL. Totally.

Certain sites tend to have a higher ratio of competent commenters. If someone posts that the video goes out of sync at 1:25 and the closing credits have been cut and someone else confirms that without bringing up 9/11, I think you can trust it.

 

[Sparky9292]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8H7 Safari/6533.18.5)

Also, it's a good idea to read the comments under the files you're downloading. If there is a problem with the file, like audio out of sync, usually someone will complain about it in the comments.

But 99% of people on P2P sites are complete n00bs. "Who uses mkv? wmv ftw!", "Why are there black bars", "Why did the uploader not include sound" and my personal favourite "I'll tell you what I think about 9/11 *insert bullcrap here* ".

Yep. That's why you don't use the big public trackers. Tons of noobs.

Unfortunately avi's are used for SD rips and mkv's are for HD rips. That's why you delete handbrake and use mkvtools instead.