Greetings - Im new to backing up media to DVD. I have the above burner (Im aware its actually a Lite-on thats rebadged). In my limited experience, there is exactly ONE blank DVD+R label that will work with my drive - It has to be Verbatim, or I always burn coasters. I have tried Memorex and TDK - the decrypting, shrinking and burning process appears to work fine, but the resulting DVD wont play in any machine. The host PC where the disks were burned does not even see them, much less read them. All of the above are 8X disks. Is this common? I guess the easy work around is always buy Verbatim, but Im curious about why this is happening. Thanks in advance, Ray
Sounds like you need to do some reading in the forum about media. memorex doesn't work for to many people TDK is questionable if you get the wrong ones. Heres some info that may help you in the future. There really isn’t a big difference in the type of DVD you would use + or- . It all boils down to personal preference or what most DVD’s players you own will support. If your stand alone DVD players are newer (within 2 years) chances are they will read either + or – just fine. The most important factor when deciding media would be the brand or the manufacturer of the disc. This is a confusing one and talked about in depth all over the forum. So my recommendations to you would be these disks. Most will agree with this.. I hope Buying Online Taiyo Yuden (genuine TY’s there are fakes out there so beware) Ritek G04 brand these would be the x4 disks again beware of fakes Prodisc 2nd class media, but newer media x8 seems to work well for people Buying at the store (Best Buy, Office Depot, Wal-Mart ect.) Fuji film – Manufactured by Taiyo Yuden, MCC, Ricoh Japan, Prodisc, Fuji Film all fairly good manufacturers Maxell – Manufactured by Maxwell, Ritek, RicohJapan, Taiyo Yuden TDK – Manufactured by TDK, Ritek, RicohJapan, Maxwell, MCC, CMC Beware of the CMC brand Verbatim – MCC, CMC, TY, RicohJapan, Ritek again beware of CMC which it seems Verbatim is using more frequently lately. Sony - RicohJapan, MCC, Sony Note: A good rule of thumb when purchasing your media in the store is to look for “made in Japan or Singapore” stay away from “made in Taiwan or Hong Kong” When buying online always try and get “Branded” media this way you can be sure you are getting the genuine article. There is an exception to that rule and it would be Taiyo Yuden disks. You just need to buy from a reputable dealer when buying online. Here are a few I have bought from with good experience. Of course it isn’t going to be the same for everyone. Supermediastore.com – Rated number 1 just about anywhere you look. Rima.com – Fast and cheap good service Mertline.com – Little slower on shipping, but quality media Ones you should stay clear of Shop4tech.com – Let’s just say you get what you pay for.. I received fake TY’s from them