Are they worth it?

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 3:42 pm

I don't quite know if this is allowed here but I'd like some opinions. I'm thinking about starting to get the DBZ DragonBox singles. I really wanna see the original coloring and just see these episodes the way they're truly meant to be seen. I can probably get around 1 or 2 a month. I can either start that collection now or I can do what I was planning and buy a few import books like Son Goku Densetsu, Dragon Ball Forever, and about 4 One Piece books. Are the singles worth it?

Vegard Aune · Post by **Vegard Aune** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 4:26 pm

If you understand japanese, certainly. If not, well, I'm not sure. The main thing that justifies getting those sets if you don't know japanese would propably be that the american releases of season 1 and 2 are absolutely awful.

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 5:53 pm

I don't know Japanese. Through Anime I've learned to understand basic, baisc conversations but that's it. I know the plot in DBZ enough that I don't need subs to know what's goin on. I wanna get them because Funi will probably never put out a good set, I wanna collect them, and I'm curious to see DragonBox quality episodes.

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 12:06 pm

On a completely unrelated note, I'm thinking about selling all of my DBZ tapes on Ebay. I have almost the entire series on VHS from Funi but I don't watch them anymore. How much do you guys think I can get for all of them?

DaemonCorps · Post by **DaemonCorps** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 2:00 pm

I've been wondering the same thing, too.

I think that the R2 singles wouldn't be worth it if you're new to the series, since you wouldn't know what's going on. But I'm sure most of the people on the forums are well versed enough in the series to not have that be a problem. Also consider that most of FUNi's single disc releases are now going for around the same price (or even higher!) than their R2 equivalents. With that in mind, I'd definitely go with checking out at least a couple of the R2s. They have a better, non-zoomed-in, picture, better box art, and more episodes per disc.

ect5150 · Post by **ect5150** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 3:02 pm

Or, if you have the time and patience, you can pursue another path as I'm doing. I'm currently buying up the Dragon Ball singles as they are released (because they are 25% off on pre-order through Amazon JP). I'm also buying the DBZ singles here and there with them to save on shipping costs.

Then, I rip them to my hard drive, encode them into huge files (about 500 megs per episode, you can argue it may be overkill, but its enough to retain the film grain). I have most of the FUNI discs (or access to them) so I just make my own subtitles. See below:

I actually took movie 12 and and re-encoded the subtitles back onto a DVD-R to watch on my new TV, I must say, its quite nice (FAR nicer than funi's version. Maybe I'll post comparison shots of the actual TV later). The hardest part of the task is getting the timing correct from the US version to the Japanese version because they are not in synch. Otherwise, just encoding the stuff for me take take 6 episodes per night roughly using Xvid.

Its just another thought/idea/option, because you don't HAVE to be stuck not having subtitles if you don't want them.

nwoo_2002 · Post by **nwoo_2002** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:24 pm

There is no better way to watch Dragonball than with the Dragon Box footage with Daimao subs. I plan to do it with GT when the singles come out.

ect5150 · Post by **ect5150** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 11:48 pm

I mentioned above what I did with movie 12. Here's a picture.

That's my new 47" 1080p widescreen. The disc is being played on an upconverting DVD player to 1080p as well. I have to say I was rather pleased with the result.

So, its possible to get what you want if you want to go to the trouble and I don't feel that this is in anyway unfair to any party by making my own disc since I own both movies legit. its just a mixing of the two.

SonGokuGT · Post by **SonGokuGT** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 12:02 am

ect, That is highly impressive! I'm glad those worked out for you! It looks amazing!

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 9:41 am

The lowest price I can get them for is $30 each from CD Japan. It'd be a lot to get the whole series. I thinking buy them all would cost me over $1400. I can't get them from Amazon Japan because I've tried to order from them but they always tell me they can't get confirmation from the bank, so I stopped trying. And yeah, those pics do look amazing. Also I could collect the DragonBall singles but I'm lazy and I just mostly want Z. I mean, I own nearly the whole original DragonBall series from Funi. And I don't know if Funi's DB sets had bad quality to them. It never really bothered me. I just wanna start collecting Z because I'm afraid if I don't then I might miss my chance if Toei stops making them.

ect5150 · Post by **ect5150** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 9:47 am

Strongbad456 wrote:The lowest price I can get them for is $30 each from CD Japan. It'd be a lot to get the whole series. I thinking buy them all would cost me over $1400. I can't get them from Amazon Japan because I've tried to order from them but they always tell me they can't get confirmation from the bank, so I stopped trying. And yeah, those pics do look amazing.

Confirmation from the bank? I just use my Visa credit card. Goes thru smoothly enough once you find the "View this page in english" button. Although I think the credit card company charges me $2 for a Yen to Dollar conversion.

And yes, no one will argue its not a kick in the pants in terms of price. This is the primary reason I try to buy them on sale (or bundle a few more together to save on shipping). Every dollar helps. But you gotta ask yourself. What else do you spend money on? I only have a few small hobbies personally. This is turning out to be the most expensive, so its not that bad compared to some other people I know.

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 10:01 am

Yeah I don't really spend my money on much else but then again, I don't have money that often(I just graduated and don't have a job yet). When I do have money I usually buy either cds or games. Anyway, when I tried to order from Amazon Japan, I don't use a credit card because my mom doesn't have one. All she has is a debit card which takes the money straight from her bank account. They seem to be more expensive on there anyway. I'm gonna try and start buying them in sets of 10 when I get a job.

ect5150 · Post by **ect5150** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 10:06 am

I see larger sales on Amazon JP. For some reason, they currently took off all sales on DBZ singles recently (so its all standard price). Hopefully they will re-appear in the near future. Most discs that were onsale were at 22% off. Then the pre-orders were 25% off. That's primarily why I order there.

stfn · Post by **stfn** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 5:38 pm

Hey,
So far I've only collected 1 of these singles ( 32 because I bought the remastered sets and didnt really want to buy the Saiyan Saga after just seeing that ).
I order them from YesAsia because I don't have a creditcard and I like the free shipping they offer.

Are they worth it , well..for me they are , I don't really understand Japanese and what ect5150 said about subs sounds really interesting.
But even without really understanding it , Its fun watching them ( for me anyway)

And the colors are great!

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 9:04 pm

That's the exact way I feel. I watched the entire 1st season set from Funi not too long ago and because of that, I don't feel like getting any of the earlier DragonBox singles even though I want them all. I either want to start with vol.16(because of the Freeza fight and Goku going SSJ), 32(Gohan going SSJ2), or 49(The end of Z). Also Yesasia has them?? I can only find them at CDJapan and Playasia.

stfn · Post by **stfn** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 1:48 am

Yea they have it , just search for "dragon ball z vol" , that should make them all show up.
Be sure to google a coupon also , as you can get a 5$ discount on your first order.

I think I'm gonna get the one where Vegeta destroys #19 next

.

OutRun2 · Post by **OutRun2** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 3:53 am

I will eventually get ALL of the DBZ singles on principle. But for now, I've just spent quite a bit buying the whole series with the Ultimate Uncut Editions. If you are new to the series and haven't seen it before, and do not read or understand Japanese, I strongly recommend watching it with subs instead of watching it raw unsubbed. The dialog is essential to the story, and being that the series is 291 episodes long, you're gonna be seeing a LOT of conversation and pre-fight trash talk.

I would just hunt down the UUEs used on ebay or something. This way you are not directly supporting Funi, just a third party seller. I couldn't be happier with my UUEs. PQ aint the best in the world but honestly it's not that bad. Having it in full screen is great. Subs are likewise exceptional. Dub is of course garbage

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 1:04 pm

I don't get it. I still can't find them on YesAsia. I searched "dragon ball z vol" and all I got was DBZ cds.

Castor Troy · Post by **Castor Troy** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 1:26 pm

Strongbad456 wrote:On a completely unrelated note, I'm thinking about selling all of my DBZ tapes on Ebay. I have almost the entire series on VHS from Funi but I don't watch them anymore. How much do you guys think I can get for all of them?

To be honest, not much.

I had a whole bunch of tapes and I couldn't sell any of them. So I ended up giving them away to a thrift store. I assume the shipping would be nightmarish as well.

This 23 DBZ VHS lot is only going for $5. If this were 2001-2003, then you would have been able to make some money.

Strongbad456 · Post by **Strongbad456** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 1:28 pm

Awww. I was gonna sell them and hope to make $600. That would be enough to get me 20 of the Dragon Box singles. Well I'm still gonna try and get some money for them. I need the Dragon Box singes!!