WWE to have one set for all three shows. *UPDATE*

[KingofOldSchool]

The crew is putting the final touches on incredibly vibrant, high-definition versions of Raw, ECW and SmackDown, including the assembly of a revolutionary entrance set that will be used for all three brands. It’s also tweaking the complex lighting and pyrotechnic elements that give each brand's broadcast their distinctive looks, as well as adjusting every Superstar's entrance package to shine in gorgeous WWE HD. From WWE.com

Thoughts?

[Fox]

Can't wait to see it.

[Mr. Pierre]

Wow, should look pretty amazing.

[Heros Welcome]

Sounds pretty sweet, can't wait to see it.

[Jordan]

Sounds pretty interesting, looking forward to it.

[Jura]

It's probably gonna look horrible. That's not what I really think but I'm trying to keep expectations low.

[Destor]

I'd imagine it will rotate somehow, might have like three sides, although it wouldn't make sense to use one set for everything due to Raw and SD!/ECW being on other sides of the country most of the time...I guess that idea is scrapped.

[The Lone Wolf]

i just hope that it doesnt become too over the top but i am looking forward to it nontheless.

[Xero]

For some reason I'm imagining something like the Invasion PPV set...

[Gerard]

One set for all three shows, sounds like they oput some cash into it this time instead of the majority of the set looking cheap as if it was made out of tinfoil.

[Innovator]

4 entrances

1 for RAW, 1 for Smackdown!, 1 for ECW, 1 for HHH

[CSL]

:D

[Xero]

6 entrances

1 for RAW, 1 for Smackdown!, 1 for ECW, 1 for HHH, 2 for Cena

[KingofOldSchool]

Nah, the entrance will be one giant spinner belt. And when the plate spins, a door opens where the wrestlers walk out onto the stage.

[Team Sheep]

I'd imagine it will rotate somehow, might have like three sides, although it wouldn't make sense to use one set for everything due to Raw and SD!/ECW being on other sides of the country most of the time...I guess that idea is scrapped.

Umm not really. When they have Raw, Smackdown & ECW the next night tend to be somewhere just down the road.

[Kane Knight]

Umm not really. When they have Raw, Smackdown & ECW the next night tend to be somewhere just down the road.

When you consider how often the other show has a house show the same night nearby, no less, yeah....

[Blue Demon]

When you consider how often the other show has ALYAAAAAAAALYALYA

[Volare]

4 entrances

1 for RAW, 1 for Smackdown!, 1 for ECW, 1 for HHH


Triple H comes down from his throne. Sledgehammer in hand...and destroys anyone walking down or up the ramp.

[Dorkchop]

Please. Triple H will get his own arena.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the new set. I hope the Titantron isn't slanted anymore

[Tazz Dan]

Please. Triple H will get his own arena.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the new set. I hope the Titantron isn't slanted anymore

According to Rajah, the Titantron is being removed :?:

[NYDon]

One Step Closer to the disposal of ECW and Smackdown. I'm all for it.

[Indifferent Clox]

2 Entrances, 2 for Cena Everybody else just has to chill under the ring with Hornswoggle till their match.

[FourFifty]

Ya know, if WWE tried as hard as they did with storylines and wrestling as they do with production value we would be in a boom period by now.

[James Steele]

I have a feeling the WWE logo will be all over the damn thing, and they will be royally fucked if they ever get into another situation like they did with "The Fund".

[FourFifty]

I have a feeling the WWE logo will be all over the damn thing, and they will be royally fucked if they ever get into another situation like they did with "The Fund".

Why yes, because the Anti-Amiish group "We Want Electricity" will be all over WWE. Pretty soon it'll be "World Wrestling Crap" if they don't TAKE ONE GOD DAMN SECOND TO REALIZE THAT WRESTLING PUT THEM ON THE MAP AND NOT KEVIN "COCKSUCKER" DUNN!

[SammyG]

I'm stoked.

[James Steele]

Why yes, because the Anti-Amiish group "We Want Electricity" will be all over WWE. Pretty soon it'll be "World Wrestling Crap" if they don't TAKE ONE GOD DAMN SECOND TO REALIZE THAT WRESTLING PUT THEM ON THE MAP AND NOT KEVIN "COCKSUCKER" DUNN!

I know they will never get into another issue like that, but I still hate watching any attitude era stuff and everything is fucking blurred because the WWF logo was on everything in the fucking arena.

[James Steele]

I'm stoked.

I agree with you here. I was really excited to see what WrestleMania 23's set would look like after they mentioned it would be changing all the time and stuff. For some reason, I think they will set it up similar to how NJPW had their TokyoDome show set look like.

[GD]

You know the old saying. Anything is possible in the WWE.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Maybe it will come with even larger speakers so they can dub in more crowd noise. And some vacuums to suck legitimate heat out of the place?

[Dave Youell]

I’m interested to see what they do, I’m sad at the thought of the titan tron going, but when you are at shows I notice I spend more time seeing if I’m on TV rather than what’s going on in the ring, so it’s a good way to get everyones attention back on the wrestling.

As for having 1 set. This has been done before, Smackdown/Velocity and Raw still has Heat, I pray they try just a little harder with this one.

As long as there’s loads of lights it shouldn’t be that hard to separate the brands, as they all have their own colour system.

One set I have in my head is from Mania 18, when I first got there it looked terrible, just a massive bunch of scoffolding, but when the different lights hit them in different ways it totally changed how it looked, so this could work really well

[KingofOldSchool]

I don't think they are getting rid of the big screen format, more so changing it to look completely different.

I mean how else can someone show a video of what they did last week if there is no video screen to do it on?

[Dave Youell]

I don't think they are getting rid of the big screen format, more so changing it to look completely different.

I mean how else can someone show a video of what they did last week if there is no video screen to do it on?

They could always just lower the obscenely, ridiculously expensive Jeritron 5000 lowered for such an occasion

I mean, Jericho is back, therefore he should still have it

[KingofOldSchool]

Looks like they will have a set similar to Wrestlemania 23's set.

Source: WWE.com

WWE.com has posted an interview with WWE’s 12-year veteran set engineer Jason Robinson about the new HD set that will make its debut tonight. You can read the whole interview here. Below are some of the highlights:

-- Viewers will notice how vibrant the colors are. They are going with a whole new set that is created entirely out of video. People are used to seeing hard sets with things like mirrors and the fist on SmackDown. They have more than 1.2 million LEDs (light-emitting diodes) that are going to be on the set. In HD, the rich colors that these LEDs produce is going to be amazing.

-- The set itself is all video, so they can change it to be anything we want it to be. It will be a set for all of the WWE brands (Raw, SmackDown, and ECW).

-- When The Undertaker comes out, the HD set will be gravestones and lightning bolts. When Kane comes out, it will be all fire and flame. It’s a complete freedom of palette to create anything we want for the Superstars.

-- For fans in the arena, the set won’t be a stagnant one that just sits there all night. The fans are going to feel more a part of the wrestler’s persona and who they are. They will see and feel the change when different Superstars come out.

-- WWE has been talking about a new set for a couple of years. Once they had a definitive idea of what we wanted to do, it took about three months to go from the planning stage to completion. The technology available to their industry – HD, lighting, sound and video – all merged together at the right time for them to put together a great set.

[Jordan]

I know its dorky but I am stoked to see this tonight. Just wish that I had HD!

[Gerard]

I liked the dx take on hd on the site triple h noticing michaels bald patch and that was the running gag near the end of the video.

http://www.wwe.com/content/media/video/vms/raw/2008/january15-21/6232744?zone=_index

Wwe.com saying the sets basically all video and they can just change the images for each show.

[Rammsteinmad]

I'm still not up to speed on what this whole HD thing is. Obviously I know the basics... but is it a modern TV set that requires special HD technology? Or is it just the cameras that WWE are using that are changing?

Basically what I wanna know is, will Raw look better on my TV, or will it still look the same because my TV is at least 5 years old? Or will I not be able to watch it at all?

[KingofOldSchool]

So will anyone here actually be lucky enough to watch this in HD??

[KingofOldSchool]

I'm still not up to speed on what this whole HD thing is. Obviously I know the basics... but is it a modern TV set that requires special HD technology? Or is it just the cameras that WWE are using that are changing?

Basically what I wanna know is, will Raw look better on my TV, or will it still look the same because my TV is at least 5 years old? Or will I not be able to watch it at all?

From my understanding it's basically everything that gets upgraded, cameras, monitors, etc.

[BigDaddyCool]

Interesting. I love how they smash the set right before they bring out a new one each time. I liked it best when Rhyno gored the set.

[Kane Knight]

Maybe it will come with even larger speakers so they can dub in more crowd noise. And some vacuums to suck legitimate heat out of the place?

They'll need it once Cena's back.

[Theo Dious]

Interesting. I love how they smash the set right before they bring out a new one each time. I liked it best when Rhyno gored the set.

I wanna see Taker electrocute Smackdown's set and have Kane burn the remains. I want to see Hornswoggle blow up the Raw set with a piece of defective ACME dynamite product. And I want to see ECW's set just fall over when Henry and BDV lean on it.

[The Lone Wolf]

I think it is going to be pretty cool that everybody will have their own set and i think it will add to their character.

[KingofOldSchool]

I think it is going to be pretty cool that everybody will have their own set and i think it will add to their character.

And then Mike Knox comes out...

[Corkscrewed]

I'm still not up to speed on what this whole HD thing is. Obviously I know the basics... but is it a modern TV set that requires special HD technology? Or is it just the cameras that WWE are using that are changing?

Basically what I wanna know is, will Raw look better on my TV, or will it still look the same because my TV is at least 5 years old? Or will I not be able to watch it at all?

HD is on both ends: broadcast and reception.

On their end, they will be using HD cameras that broadcast video at a much higher resolution: 1920x1080 pixels vs the non-HD, which is 720x480 pixels (assuming the HD is 1080p).

On your end, if you have a regular TV, it will look the same, because the extra pixels will get converted down to fit your screen somewhere between where the video broadcasts and when you receive it (I think the stations would "convert" that). If you have an HD TV, you WILL notice the different because you have a lot more pixels filling the same area of screen vs a regular television.

--

You already see HD in most sports broadcasts. They have a regular channel for people with normal TV's and an HD channel for HD TV's. The cameras film in HD, but the station creates two differnt formats for viewers at home.

--

The only thing in relation to video working on your TV or not is the fact that in 2009, the FCC will require all television stations to switch from analog broadcast to digital broadcast. If you don't have an HD TV, you won't be able to watch television. However, for those with regular TV's who want to keep them, or can't afford or don't want HD TV's, there will be an adapter sold that will convert the digital signal to analog so your TV understands it, so you can still watch TV no matter what you have. It just might cost you an extra $20.

[Team Sheep]

I'm still not up to speed on what this whole HD thing is. Obviously I know the basics... but is it a modern TV set that requires special HD technology? Or is it just the cameras that WWE are using that are changing?

Basically what I wanna know is, will Raw look better on my TV, or will it still look the same because my TV is at least 5 years old? Or will I not be able to watch it at all?

You need a HD ready digital receiver box, a HD subscription, and a HD ready TV. So if you don't have all that you can't watch in HD. I have it but WWE aint in HD in the UK yet and haven't announced when it will be :mad:

[Innovator]

Kinda wish I had Direct TV to get USA HD, Optimum better get on it

[Innovator]

They'll need it once Cena's back.
They already have one, Orton can handle all the sucking and blowing

[Xero]

You know, in my experience, it is toned down a bit, but HD looks a shitload better than something shot on an SD camera even on an old SD TV. Sure, you're not going to get a VERY clear picture and see EVERY single detail like on an HD TV, but on a decent TV it should still look a few steps up than old broadcasts.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Someone should use the SmackDown! fist as a weapon. I nominate Brian Kendrick.