Porsche – Victory by Design (DTS)

 

Picture: B-     Sound: B     Extras: C+     Film: B

 

 

The first Victory by Design show started off with the Porsche marque, a wise choice indeed and started a great series that would be followed by Ferrari, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, and Aston Martin.  One can only hope that more will be added to this series and since the series is now on DVD consumers will be craving more because this is a terrific set that will make you go out and buy a home theater system if you don’t have one yet!

 

Some may have seen some of this material on the Speed Channel, but for DVD they have upgraded the program by re-formatting it for an anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 widescreen aspect ratio, plus Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 mixes to go the distance beyond the basic stereo, which was how they were originally presented for broadcast.  The stereo mix is still included on the DVD, but it is doubtful that anyone would choose this if they can do the multi-channel instead. 

 

In comparison to the others in this series Porsche focuses more on the archive vehicles and includes the film by Huschke Von Hanstein and Dr. Ferry Porsche from their beginnings building the company during the 1950’s and their achievements turning motor sport into a world of development and breakthrough.  It was during this period that motor vehicles started to have a more global appeal for racing and motor sport in general and Porsche was there leading the way. 

 

Every series features legendary driver Alain de Cadenet as he sweeps across the landscapes and countryside in these beautiful, expensive and archive vehicles acting as if he could do it in his sleep.  He is very familiar with every model and gives extensive, fascinating, and fun tidbits along the way as we ride along with him.  Here is a list of the models driven and featured:

 

• Porsche Number One
• 356
• 550 & RSK Series
• 911
• 904
• 906
• Bergspyder
• 910 & 907     
• 908
• 908/3 (& 916)
• 917
• 917/10
• 917/30
• 911 RS & RSR Series
• 935
• 936
• 935/78 A.K.A. “Moby Dick” because of it’s whale design
• 936/81
• 956 & 962
• 959
• 993 & 996
• 911 GT1
• Carrera GT
• Ruf R Turbo

 

The most important part about a presentation like this is that afterwards you feel more knowledgeable because you receive up close information that you can get only from experts, plus you get to experience the cars in the most exclusive way possible besides actually being there.  Some of these models are so rare and priceless that it would be nearly impossible to ever get the chance to see all of these in one lifetime up close.  Imagine the thrill of being able to drive one of these, let alone all of them like de Cadenet, lucky man…very lucky! 

 

In terms of DVD these shows perform about as well as the cars themselves.  Since this is the first in the series it is evident that something like a PAL transfer was used and the show does not look nearly as good as some of the later ones, which appear to be shot in High Definition.  Some scenes here look better than others, especially the ones with driving, but the parts where we take a closer look at the cars while they are sitting you can see a drop in quality as the background and foreground do not produce the same standard of detail and definition.  This is still not a problem overall, especially since the driving scenes still look pretty good.

 

In terms of audio these are very fun DVD’s and the Porsche offers a very interesting sound design, with DTS being the preferred playback method. Skids, sliding, tire peeling, engine roaring, and engine revving are just some of the interesting sounds coming through the mix and designed to make the viewer/listener feel like they are at the center of the action.  The DTS mix is very chunky and thick giving all the muster one would expect from a car that hauls major tail like a Porsche. 

 

The entire feature runs about 84-minutes as compared to its broadcast length, which would be closer to 45-mintues since it ran in a 60-minute time frame with commercials.  The extended footage, better picture and sound, plus the ability to repeat these programs are sincere reasons to own not just this part of the series but the entire set, it should be noted that by just owning one…you will certainly thirst for more!

 

All the DVDs can only be ordered exclusively through the manufacturer, so visit their website at www.VictorybyDesign.com or call 1-877-466-6660 for more details on this and other titles in the series.

 

 

-   Nate Goss