HELP WITH DVDS
Most customers will have no problems playing our DVDs or Blurays. The information on this page is provided should there be a problem.
All our Blurays are region free.
Please see individual item pages in our online shop for additional technical details (audio etc) as these vary by release.
All DVD players and televisions / monitors are manufactured to display a particular type of video format - either PAL or NTSC. A short list of which countries use which formats is below, but we advise all our customers to check their equipment to ensure you select the right format when ordering a DVD.
If you are playing DVDs through a computer, most software will be able to read either video format, but again, we advise customers to check the software documentation to be sure.
The video format is different from the Region settings on your DVD player. Because we sell our DVDs world-wide, we make sure they are designated as "Region 0", often called "Multi-Region".
This simply means that there are no restrictions for playback based on your location. However, you do not need a "multi-region DVD player" to play "multi-region" discs.
PAL FORMAT
UK, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, Asia (excluding Japan).
NTSC FORMAT
USA, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, Japan, Caribbean.
RACKET RECORDS NTSC-ONLY DVDs
Shot in the Dark (2002)
A Piss Up in a Brewery (2002)
Brave Live 2002 (2002)
Before First Light (2003)
Christmas in the Chapel (2003)
Bootleg Butlins (2007)
h Natural (2007)
Something Else (2007)
This Strange Convention (2009)
Live From Cadogan Hall (2010)
Live In Montreal (2011)
Brave Live 2002 (Re-issue, 2013)
A Sunday Night Above The Rain (2014)
Unconventional (2015)
Out Of The Box (2016)
Steve Hogarth - Friends, Romans (2016)
The DVDs released through Racket Records listed above have only been encoded in NTSC format.
This decision was made due to the limited number of copies we were manufacturing or to maximise world-wide compatibility.
Our DVD authoring company has advised us that most PAL and computer DVD players, and most modern televisions will play NTSC format. PAL customers should check to see that their hardware is compatible before ordering.
HELP PLAYING RACKET RECORDS NTSC DVDs ON A PAL DVD PLAYER / TV
This information will only apply to customers in a PAL-format country, and for the DVD titles listed above.
All our DVDs are multi-region, and will play on any region-encoded players, regardless of where they are bought.
Most PAL-standard DVD players are set by default to display multi-standard (both PAL and NTSC) discs, however there are some manufacturers who set the output to PAL-only.
You should be able to solve this problem by turning on your DVD player with no disc in the drive; your DVD player should have a configuration menu of some sort which you will need to access.
In this menu, you will need to look for the video output (or similar) section. If you are experiencing problems, this will probably be set to 'PAL' - you should be able to switch this to 'NTSC', or - usually more common - 'Auto'.
Alternatively, some DVD players will have a physical switch, usually located on the back of the unit. If playing on a computer, often updating drivers for video cards or your software can help solve the problem.
This is a guide only - please consult the operation manual supplied with your player for more information.
Although we have tested the NTSC-Only DVDs on a variety of players before shipping, and had no problems, these DVDs - as with any commercially available - may not play on all DVD machines, simply due to software or hardware limitations thereof.
We have been made aware that NTSC-Only DVDs will not play on any PAL-region Playstation 2 or Xbox games consoles. NTSC-based consoles should have no problems.
Most Racket Records DVDs and all EMI DVD releases are available in both PAL and NTSC formats - playback issues should not arise for any of these titles.
If you are still having trouble playing any of our DVDs , click the contact us link below
OTHER DVD ISSUES
Marbles on the Road
The 'blue halo' that is seen around the band and equipment during 'The Invisible Man' is an issue that could not be corrected, and not an encoding problem.
Due to the band's decision to have very little light during this song in addition to the concert being filmed on digital video (as opposed to photographic film stock) this issue was unavoidable.
This is a common problem with this particular colour of blue used in theatrical moving lighting fixtures.
As the light level in the rest of the show is much higher, this problem does not arise again.
This issue may appear more prominent on NTSC encoded discs due to the NTSC colour standards.
Hidden Extras / Easter Eggs
It is fairly common practice in the industry to include a small number of hidden features, or "Easter Eggs," on DVD releases.
These Easter Eggs are usually short clips of unused interview footage that would otherwise never be used, "gag reels" or out-takes, or specifically designed hidden material.