which Robotech box set?

[MrStitch]

I am currently in the market for a Robotech box set. There are so many floating around and I cant make a decision. The ones I have glanced over are The Protoculture Collection, The 20 disk Complete Set, The Legacy collection, The A&E collection out of which seems the best but cant be sure. Can anyone make a solid recommendation?

[renegadeleader1]

Basically its like this.

Legacy colllection- Has the original sound effects, but bad visual quality as the masters used were signifigantly degraded. Interesting special feature discs include Robotech II the Sentinels pilot.

Protoculture collection- remastered footage, but original classic sound effects have been replaced. The intro and eyecatches were also changed. The special features discs are basically the same as the Legacy set.

A&E collection- Basically the same as the Protoculture collection except they altered the Sentinels pilot to remove the parts with Macross flashbacks, and added a 29 minute long version of the Robotech movie without the Megazone 23 footage.

[UN Spacy]

Neither.

[Sandman]

What? They removed the megazone 23 footage from the robotech movie? That's the whole movie. How is the rest of it cohesive without that footage.?Lol!

[MrStitch]

Yeah i heard they lost the rights to Megazone 23 back in the day so the film makes no sense. Im willing to pick up the missing films from as long as the collection is valid. I dont want to double dip and want to get the most comprehensive collectors edition. I honestly dont mind the new sound effects. yeah they arnt what i grew up with but its not to bad. I really want good picture and the edited scenes included. I like the way that lasers sound in the new sound edits but the transformations are a bit lacking. the hovering sound is a bit off but none of it really bugs me that much. just looking for the best buy so that in the future my kids will have known what this all really was. p.s. i own the Macross Anime ego set. great quality video. But as much a Macross fan as I am the ending fell a bit flat and thats why i liked Robotech. it was more of that but in a remixed kinda way. Hell I was a kid and to be honest still am.

[Lorindor]

If you don't miss the old sound effects, I'd say the latest DVD set by A&E which has The Shadow Chronicles, LLA and the remastered version of The Seninels is the best. Then you have all the essentials. It lacks some extras like the Codename: Robotech pilot episode from the Protoculture Collection, but it's not a big loss.

[MrStitch]

Can anyone tell me the difference between the 20 disk complete by Lionsgate and the 17 disk set by AnE? are the visuals better in one or the other, audio, etc?

[Lorindor]

MrStitch: I don't think so. The extra discs are just for Shadow Chronicles and LLA.

[derex3592]

I have the old Robotech "Remastered" DVD series and the video transfers on it are great, the best I've seen, short of the actual Macross Blu-Ray's I'm sure - which I don't own. However, the remastered audio is nothing to right home about. The changed sound effects are the most annoying part by far. As the series goes on the 5.1 surround mix gets better, but at the beginning it's pretty weird. A year or so ago I went around and hunted down the Robotech Legacy DVD Box Sets for all 3 series, dirt cheap if you look hard enough, one for the original audio, but two for the simply gorgeous box and disc art that set had going for it.

Edited May 1, 2016 by derex3592

[Sandman]

Why did they change the audio sound effects?

[danth]

Why did they change the audio sound effects?

Because doing something right is impossible for Harmony Gold.

[505thAirborne]

I still have the entire DVD set from ADV and for me it's 1985/86 all over again. The remastered versions may have better picture quality however the new Sound effects are ghastly. (well Reba West's singing too).

[renegadeleader1]

Why did they change the audio sound effects?

Basically what happened is the original shows Robotech(Macross, Southern Cross, Mospeada) is based on got remastered, not the actual Robotech footage itself. This meant that to remaster Robotech they needed to re edit the three remastered series footage again like it was back 1985. The problem with this is that while they still had the original voice recordings which included audio from scenes cut from the broadcast version, the music and effects reel was lost in a fire. That's why Robotech Remastered has new intros, eyecatches, and effects.

[JB0]

Basically what happened is the original shows Robotech(Macross, Southern Cross, Mospeada) is based on got remastered, not the actual Robotech footage itself. This meant that to remaster Robotech they needed to re edit the three remastered series footage again like it was back 1985. The problem with this is that while they still had the original voice recordings which included audio from scenes cut from the broadcast version, the music and effects reel was lost in a fire. That's why Robotech Remastered has new intros, eyecatches, and effects.

Ahhhh, so there WAS a reason aside from sheer idiocy. That makes it a bit less of a travesty.

[JetJockey]

Wait for the Blu-ray. They'll get it right one day. The new sound effects are terrible.

[Sandman]

I suppose they don't have documentation oh how they did the previous sound effects.

[JB0]

Wait for the Blu-ray. They'll get it right one day. The new sound effects are terrible.

I expect an endless chain of releases, each bungled in a new and excitingly different way. It just wouldn't be Robotech otherwise.

This whole situation would break my heart if I wasn't a 100% Real Macross fan these days.

But I do still have a soft spot for the old Robotech cartoons, and it does sadden me to see the state the franchise is in.

[SuperSenpai]

If you're in it for pure nostalgia value, the Legacy collection is the way to go.

[JetJockey]

If you really want pure nostalgia, dig out those old VHS tapes. And I'm not talking the officially sold ones. I'm talking the taped off TV ones. That's still how I watch the Southern Cross and New Generation parts of Robotech to this day.

[JB0]

If you really want pure nostalgia, dig out those old VHS tapes. And I'm not talking the officially sold ones. I'm talking the taped off TV ones. That's still how I watch the Southern Cross and New Generation parts of Robotech to this day.

Vintage commercials add that flair of realism.

Edited to note I am 100% serious.

Edited May 8, 2016 by JB0

[Porcupine]

I may have stumbled onto an unknown release. I recently placed an order on amazon for a used copy of the A&E 17-disc Robotech box set in like new condition. I was charged tax confirming the seller was not third party. Amazon seemingly had trouble finding it and took weeks to ship out. When I finally got it, it had been obliterated in shipping and they quickly gave me my money back.

I only opened the package days later. The damage to the green box was severe. But more interestingly, the 4 DVD cases have packaging artwork that is slightly different from normal. In particular the spine for Macross is different from the others, so at first I thought someone had swapped out and mixed releases. But upon closer inspection, the packaging is different on all 4 DVD cases. All of them mention both A&E and Lion's Gate, so I'm thinking this might be an abandoned test release from Lion's Gate before they decided to go with the 20-disc set.