This probably sounds like a broken record but I've read a lot of the posts about playback problems and , well here's another one... For a couple of years now I have been successfully burning and playing DVD's using DVDshrink and playing on my stand alone Pioneer DVD player model DV676A (this is an Australian model -I don't know what the equivalent US model might be) Recently, say in the last 3-4 months, burnt DVD's start to freeze up toward the end of the movie, to the point where it is not watchable... however they play just fine on my PC or my other Sony DVD player. This happens whether or not the movie is compressed. I have been using magmedia blanks - I've just fininshed a spindle of 50. The media has been reliable up to this point but I have bought a different brand to test out. (just MTV...cheap) Original DVD's play perfectly. Any ideas??
@Lyscam Welcome to aD! Since the playback is good in other players it's looking like the Pioneer player is the problem. So here's some suggestions: °Try a lens cleaner in the Pioneer. °Lower your target size in Shrink to 4300 (won't burn to edge of disc) °Quality media is always a plus to reduce problems. Verbatim and made in Japan Sony, Fuji or Maxell are good brands. °Take the burn speed down a notch °Keep your burners fimrware up to date.
Thanks Binkie I will give all these things a try and see if anything improves...what is the life expectancy of a lazer these days??
In addition to Binkie's excellent advice, if you are dealing with high compression levels you should use some of DVD Shrink's quality controls. Use the Deep Analysis function and AEC contols set to max sharp or max smooth.
@Lyscam Life expentancy of the laser - good question. I would think at least several years if not longer but just a guess. My oldest dvd player is about 5 years old and is still good. The lens can get dirty depending - it will pick up dust and such from the disc it's playing which can cause some playback issues.
Thanks again In response to quality controls, I do use the deep analysis function and max smooth on high compression. As a rule, I try to eliminate all the extras and just backup the movie with as little compression as possible. I often remove the 2 channel soundtrack and sub-picture options as well...i'm guessing that this is not causing my playback problems as it's pretty much what i've always done. My Pioneer DVD player is only 2 years old so I'm thinking the lazer should be fine then. I'll try and re-backup a movie that is giving me grief on the new media and see what happens now. Thanks for your advice so far
