I am using TDK, 16x, burning on an Emprex dual burner. I have read much already discussed about which disc's to buy, burning at slower speed, and even into some of that bit stuff but, I still encounter some bad disc's from time to time, in fact more time than I like. Get a lot of pixelating and freezing. Would change brands but recently bought 200 TDK's at Best Buy on sale. I have a Philips DVD taple top DVD burner as well as the comptuer Emprex. The computer burner seems to be the one that is giving me the problems. But here is my real question: once I burn from the computer I spot check the finished copy on another DVD player. I check from chapter to chapter. Of course this misses a lot inbetween and short of watching the entire movie then and there, I run into bad copies when I finally get around to watching the movie. Is there anything out there that would allow me to do some QC on the disc so that I know that it is a good copy? Additionally, anyone recommend some type of good disc cleaning apparatus, something like what Blockbuster must use to revitalize discs that are sent out in the mail program? Any help would be appreciated; the wife is getting po'd of not being able to see a movie straight through anymore!
get rid of those cheapo disk and get the good stuff..... obviously those cheapo disks were not so cheap, now that you have to replace them for the better ones..... which you should have done to begin with, so you wouldn't have these problems! Here is a media guide for you: http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm just remember to read the lable and get the disks that say [bold] Made-In-Japan (MIJ)[/bold] and you can't go wrong. Taiyo Yuden, Maxell, Sony, Fuji----- make sure they are MIJs...... Verbatim is the only exception as they are made in Taiwan/Singapore and they are top notch too! don't know of any Cleaning disk system that blockbuster uses! sorry
Hello. Check for a firmware update for Emprex here: http://www.emprex.com/03_support_02.php?group=57&kind=1 You can check for the quality of the burn by using the Verify option on most burning software or by using Nero CD-DVD Speed or DVDInfo Pro. http://www.dvdinfopro.com/ http://www.afterdawn.com/software/cdr_software/cdr_tools/nero_cd_speed.cfm Some of the TDK 16X media is made by CMC Magnetics, a very low quality supplier. Soem is made by TDK itself and some by Taiyo Yuden, the highest quality manufacturer around. Many programs can ID the manufacturer. I prefer DVD Identifier. The other two programs I linked above can ID the media as well as can DVD Decrypter in Write mode. http://www.dvdidentifier.cdfreaks.com If your media IDs as CMC Mag, burn at 4X speed and see if that helps. Otherwise, be sure to burn at a reasonable speed usually not to exceed half the rated speed of the media. Once you get setup with good media and updated firmware and get good burns, you shouldn't have to worry about verifying the burn. The best way imo is to simply put the standalone player on fast forward. If you have a bad burn the player will usually choke. Disk repair kits won't help if you have a bad burn. They are most useful for removing scratches that may hinder playing the disk. Otherwise to clean a disk, use an eyeglass cleaning cloth, some lens solution, and wipe from the center to the outside of the disk. Don't go in concentric circles around the disk and be sure to remove any material on the disk before cleaning to precent inadvertent scratching.
Thanks to all for the immense help and very useful advice. I will check into all these suggestions and look forward to no more problems.
Apparently you didn't read enough about media lol. But yeah, those TDKs are crap. If you have a dog, use 'em as frisbees. Otherwise, dump them. There is a slight chance that you may get some quality TDKs, just like there is the slightest possibility that if you get Memorex, that it won't be a CMC product, but yeah, those chances are slim to none. Stick to the reliable: Verbatim or TY.
Again thanks for all the comments regarding media. Its strange that the movies I burn on my computer are the only ones I have problems with. Those I burn in my Philips DVR off my TV, Sat Dish or TV come out fine using the TDK. I will buy a bundle of the "approved" ones and use them in my computer and see how they work out. If not, I will get back to all of you for more suggestions. Thanks again.
Your standalone Philips DVR likely is recording/burning at 1X speed. That's makes a difference as compared to burning at 4X or 8X speed.
