I have been researching blank media and it appears there definitely are quality issues with different brands. I'm really interested in longevity - I want to be able to view my old movies and slideshows when I'm in a connie-home someday. This site talks a lot about it:

http://www.best-dvd-burning-software-revie...k-dvd-media.asp

I did check the two media types that I have -- My office depot -R DVDs are Ritek F1, which are considered 2nd place in quality. My much more expensive lightscribe HP -Rs are CMC MAG which are considered junk.

I do like the lightscribe ability, but it appears there are no lightscribe-capable DVDs made by any reputable company. I'm not interested in all in affixing labels to the DVDs, don't want any problems. I've only burned to one lightscribe so far and it seems to work fine in all my players. My office depot ones, however, will not play in one of my more expensive players, which is curious since the office depot DVDs (Ritek F1) are rated better than the HP lightscribes.

I'm interested in any input as to your experiences with quality of blank media.

Also -- if I won't be using lightscribe - I will be marking the DVDs with a pen -- what kind is safest? And, of course, I'll be practicing with some really cool inserts/covers.

I've also thought of the print direct to DVD option, but my ink jet (Canon MP830) doesn't have that capability - something about Epson having the exclusive rights to that capability in the U.S.

Any suggestions, opinions?

-- Ramona

The real problem is defining 'longevity' - most DVDs I use seem fine, but then I haven't had a DVD writer long enough to say it will last 'X' number of years.

I'm very much afraid that it's a test that will take that length of time to carry out really

My Grandad never had those concerns when he was buying all those 78rpm discs.

They still play..................although it's a b*tch finding something to play them on.

You mean your grandma didn't soak them in hot water and make vases out of them?

I have feeling that 10 years from now that it's going to be a "b*tch finding something to play" todays DVDs and CDs. Just look at what has happened to previous storage mediums

You've got to be joking!

My Cliff Richard, "Move It" 78 is destined for E-Bay..............one day.



Thats only because we've all been stupid enough to get rid of the hardware that used to play them.

It's the "must have that" syndrome.

I still have my Sanyo and Sony beta video recorders and a slug of beta tapes to go with them.

Well done that man.

We're all on our way round to your place with our tapes.....get the beer and Pretzels out.

I've got them ready.

Sorry in advance for the long post --

Boy I can't wait until they come out with a printed manual for EMC9 -- I like to break away from the computer desk once in a while and read a book instead of help screens -- but I digress.

Opinions please -- it seems from what I can figure authentic Taiyo Yuden are the way to go as far as most reliable media. I do think the lightscribe ability is cool, but not at the risk of losing my movies due to a crummy disk.

I was using -R discs -- worked fine on three players I have except on my most expensive state of the art Integra player. So I went and got a 5-pack of Maxell (actually RICOHJRPNR03) +R and burned a movie and voila, works on the Integra perfectly. I was using -Rs because they supposedly play on a higher percentage of players than +Rs. But then I learned that's because +Rs are newer, thus less newer players, thus the compability percentage figures. And I like to share my movies so compability is a biggie for me.

But before I figured that out I ordered 100 Taiyo -Rs instead of +Rs, which should come any day. I'll try them out and see if they'll play on the Integra and keep you posted. That test may help me determine if it is the quality of the disc or the format that is the problem. (The Integra says it plays both -R and +R.) But I've also put in another order for +Rs.

The goal of forever media seems to be a neverending quest for me. I still have my old 8-mm silent projector, but I did put all those 8mm tapes onto Beta (very amateurish way -- actually played the 8mm onto the white screen and videotaped that image with the big old suitcase video recorder), then VHS, and recently DVD. I'm quite sure I'll be having to do it again to whatever they come up with in the future. For digital photos, I have them on CD, VCD, and now DVD, but I also have big fat albums with real live paper prints.

-Ramona

The boxed set did come with a manual I believe, but if you have lots of ink and paper, you could print out the pdf manual - available here:

http://forums.support.roxio.com/index.php?showtopic=8788

The TYs are definitely the best out there. If you want to use LightScribe, get some Verbatim LightScribe media. It is MCC media, and I have had no problems with it.

+R media will play on most any set top DVD player, if your burner has book type settings, and those settings are set to DVD-ROM for the +R, +RW, and +R DL media.

I have bought and tried about every kind of media on the store shelves and although some are better than other they all work O.K. EXCEPT those Memorex platters. They are the pits !!!

Frank...

They now have a digital way to transfer old 8mm film. They literally scan each frame like a photo and then use software to combine these images into a video file. By using advanced math, this software compensates for the difference in frames rates, too, completely eliminating the 'flickering' you normally see with telecine methods (recording from a screen). Not cheap, but worth the quality.

A word of warning re: Taiyo Yuden.

They are top of the range discs which as I recall are 52X rated.

I had problems using these discs in Disc Copier to burn as it tries to get somewhere near the disc rating.....result lots of errors as burn speed was too high.

Use Creator Classic, burning an Image of your project, setting a slow speed (4X or 8X).

You must be talking about CDs. DVD's are all that most care about when it comes to video editing, and there are no 52X rated DVDs.

Yep you're right.

My memory has gone AWOL again.

The discs were 16X.

The rest of my post still applies.

You are correct. You can get burn errors, when doing video burns, if the speed is too high. I have not had that problem, but I know that my daughter's set top DVD player does not like discs that were burned faster than 6x. There are no errors in the discs, but the player has a problem with anything burned at a faster speed.

For data, I burn at the max speed.

I've been using copy disc instead of creator, and setting the write speed to 4x no matter what kind of rating my media has. It's okay to use copy disc instead of creator, right?

If it works - don't worry.

There's no real 'correct' way to use either - whichever suits you in the end

Good topic!

So you want to know if your media is good or bad? Test it! Easy Media Creator 9 comes with DVDInfoPro. After burning a CD or DVD, you can check the error rate of the burned disc with this test utility.

While this kind of testing is a not for average Joes and Janes, it is not too difficult to do, and it can really give you a good indication of whether the discs you are burning are good, or just barely playable.

Longevity is another issue. High quality blank media should last for years. Good manufacturers conduct "accelerated aging tests" in special environmental ovens (that control temperature and humidity). After a few weeks at 150 degrees fahrenheit and 90% humidity you can tell good media from bad. Good brand names include Verbatim, Ritek, HP, Taiyo Yuden and Mitsui (now Computer Support Italcard). I'm sure the gurus here will have other brands that they would recommend.

Do you really want the best CD and DVD media? Mitsui has special CD-Rs and DVD-Rs that use real 24K gold for the reflective layer. These are more expensive, but they are designed for archiving purposes. If, by some chance, the protective coating layer allowed oxygen to reach the recording layer the reflective gold would not oxidize like silver or aluminum would (the standard reflective layer for CD-Rs and DVD-Rs). Mitsui has an unbelievably advanced factory in Colorado Springs that cranks these out (lots of robots... not a lot of people in the cleanroom production area). Plus, Mitsui invented the pthalocyanine dye that is the best recording layer available. For more information see http://www.mam-a.com/

Tom

Use Sharpie fine point Permanent Marker if you are going to write on the DVD. A pen will damage the disk

Good advice. Another great option for labeling is an inkjet printer that is designed to print on CDs. These printers have a special tray to align the CD or DVD. You just need to purchase inkjet printable media (which has a white coating designed to absorb inkjet ink). This media costs about the same as other media, and you can write on it with a Sharpie also.

I had been having trouble playing my videos productions burned onto -R discs in my high-end Integra CD/DVD player; however, they seem to play on everything else. But I now only burn the Roxio productions onto +R because that's what the Integra seems to like.

But I was reminded last night that I have always been able to play -R discs on the Integra that I had burned on my JVC set-top burner. I use the JVC to burn all my VHS tapes onto DVD or to copy programs from my DVR or live TV, but I always play them on the Integra. Why do you think it can read other stuff off of -R discs but not Roxio created productions?

I'm working around it fine, but just curious.

-- Ramona

It could be your DVD burner doesn't like the flavor of -R discs that you are feeding it. You could try a different brand, but if the burner likes +R, and your home theater system likes it, then I see no need to try change the way you are doing it now.

DVD players are notoriously picky about what they will and won't play - strangely enough, it always seems to be the high quality ones that are worst - the cheap and cheerful ones seem to be able to play anything you feed into them

But as Bruce says - if yours prefers +R, then keep on using that