ML upscaled/enhanced to 1080p60 (from what is basically 480p pro shot source). 480p to 720p upscale (using ffmpeg), and then 2x upscale/enhance + 60fps with Aiarty Video Enhancer. 1440p output was then downscaled to 1080p with Digiarty VideoProc Converter. I could’ve gone straight with the 480p to 960p (but I find the final downscaling after the ML processing gets that sharp quality; I would need to downscale that to 720p and my objective is to get these to 1080p with as much sharpness as the tech currently allows).
Offshot outtakes from the (now shuttered) Nakano Sun Plaza show on August 7, 2000. ML upscaled/enhanced to 1080p60
Live audio comparison of STARTING LEGEND 1999 ～Face to Face ver 417～ ガンバレ. This was the old (second) live band which emphasized keyboard arrangements. The guitar tones from the Nobu K era band were really studio quality bright/crisp; I'm glad this song was pro shot during this period. Comparison video from the January 1, 2004 show at Nippon Budokan with the new band (from 2001) and the now 3 year old Yamaha PM1D digital mixing console (with a vastly improved live sound, excellent guitar tone, and very clear separation of the bass and drums): ** link to be added ** 30th anniversary (2024) performance (with most of the band from the 2004 video): ** link to be added **
#代々木第1体育館
ML Upscaled/Enhanced 1080p60. Live audio comparison of STARTING LEGEND 1999 ～Face to Face ver.417～ Kaze ga Fuku oka + ROLLING STONE. This was the old (second) live band which emphasized keyboards. Comparison video of the same two songs from the encore concert in November 2001 with the new band and what was then, the new Yamaha PM1D digital audio mixing/sound system (with a vastly improved live sound, more guitars, and very clear separation of the bass and drums):
#代々木第1体育館
ML Upscaled/Enhanced to 720p from grainy 480p source (this was a more granular upscaling utilizing Topaz Video AI as the backend). The original broadcast (NHK POPJAM) was recorded using VHS tape (Panasonic VHS Hi-Fi). This is just the OA performance part (not the initial interview with Moriguchi Hiroko). The footage was originally digitized with an PowerMac 8500 (it had AV inputs making it easy to connect to a VCR). Video formats and compression technology (in terms of being cross platform compatible) was not great around this time. Since this was also on a Mac, the Quicktime MOV container format was used along with the Sorenson video codec (since it was included with QT3 and looked the best). A few years later, I re-digitized it (better tech) and used MPEG-4 (various permutations were created since then by others).
Trivia: these on-air performances with bands for music shows are normally backing tracks. Longer songs are also usually shortened (entire section and/or solo removed). Some performers would also lip sync (Hekiru's vocals for this were live).