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Thank you for taking time to read my research I've put together on DVD-R compatibility. I believe that education is the most important asset we have, to understand how DVD-R actually works and to maximize its compatibility.
A little history: when 8x DVD-R duplication equipment and media were introduced to replace 4x DVD-R, there was an unusually high amount of clients calling me and wanting to know why their DVD-R weren't playing back or was digitizing half way through their program. At first we thought that it was a media issue, but later learned different.
I spent the next three years talking to drive manufactures, disc manufactures, duplication equipment manufactures, and duplicators trying to isolate the issue with poor burns and unacceptable playback compatibility and unreliable archiving issues.
Below is the information that came from that research.
Are all DVD-R created equally?
A: Quality differences depend on the manufacturer.
The controlling DVD Forum hasn?t settled on a standard for DVD-R quality, which allows manufacturers to put out an array of differing quality DVD-R. 98% of all DVD-R are not manufactured by the company listed as the brand name. Most DVD-R manufactured today are from Taiwan, China, India and Japan. Each DVD-R disc has a manufacture's code embedded on the disc and you can read this data with free shareware "DVD Identification Software".
Since most DVD-R are manufactured on a cost per disc basis, it's not unusual to have a particular branded DVD-R manufactured by multiple companies. This can allow batch issues to arise and develop burn/playback inconsistencies. Highly recommended DVD-R are still going to have a higher price tag, and most professionals have gone through a trial and error process in deciding which DVD-R brand offers them the best opportunity for playback compatibility.
I have found Taiyo Yuden-Japan, Taiyo Yuden Value Line-Japan, TDK Pro, Ritek and Verbatim to be very consistent.
FYI: Taiyo Yuden invented the CD-R with Sony & Phillips and has always been the industry standard for the highest quality CD-R & DVD-R media.
What can cause a DVD-R not to playback?
1）A: The most common issue with playback is that there?s not a standard for DVD players to play DVD-R.
The most common issue with playback is that there?s not a standard for DVD players to play DVD-R. DVD players were originally created to playback store bought replicated/stamped DVD. DVD players that were manufactured after 2001 have a better chance of playing back a DVD-R disc than models made before that time. To date, there is a 85% DVD-R and 80% DVD+R compatibility rating with commercial DVD players. Replicated (store bought DVD) are 100% compatible with DVD players.
2）A: Labels used on DVD-R can cause a high-speed wobble that produces errors in playback.
Labels used on DVD-R can cause a high-speed wobble that produces errors in playback. The internal laser guide in a DVD-R is four times tighter than the laser guide on a CD-R; therefore any disc wobble can cause the laser to miss-track. Adhesive labels have been reported to affect the reflective layer after extended periods of time and labeling a disc with a permanent marker (alcohol based-Sharpie) has also been reported to eat through the reflective layer on thermal discs after a period of time. This can create adverse affects on a master or copy. Any alteration to the reflective layer will result in an unplayable DVD-R. Printing directly onto the disc with an inkjet or thermal printer is the industry standard for DVD-R and will cause less playback problems in the future.
3）A: Labels used on DVD-R can cause a high-speed wobble that produces errors in playback.
Labels used on DVD-R can cause a high-speed wobble that produces errors in playback. The internal laser guide in a DVD-R is four times tighter than the laser guide on a CD-R; therefore any disc wobble can cause the laser to miss-track. Adhesive labels have been reported to affect the reflective layer after extended periods of time and labeling a disc with a permanent marker (alcohol based-Sharpie) has also been reported to eat through the reflective layer on thermal discs after a period of time. This can create adverse affects on a master or copy. Any alteration to the reflective layer will result in an unplayable DVD-R. Printing directly onto the disc with an inkjet or thermal printer is the industry standard for DVD-R and will cause less playback problems in the future.
#1 Burn / Play Problem ***** Incremental Speeds.
After much investigation on burn speeds and why one burn speed works and others don't, here is the conclusion:
1）Understanding Incremental speeds:Incremental speed burning was developed for CD-R burning starting at 24x and has carried over to DVD-R burning starting at 8x. Incremental speed burning is actually multi-speed burning on the same disc. Incremental speed burning starts slow at the center of the disc and speeds up to the outer edge. Since physics won't allow a disc to burn at higher speeds at the center of the disc, incremental speed burning was a necessity but not the optimum solution.
2）DVD-R Incremental Speed burners are technically a quad speed burner with 8x and 16x only burning on the last quarter of the program. 8x burn speed = 2x-4x-6x-8x, so what you actually get is an average record speed of "5x". 16x burn speed = 6x-8x-12x-16x, which equates to an average record speed of "10.5x". Burn speeds listed on manufacture's burners only state that drive will record at the advertised speed. It doesn't state how much of the disc will record at that speed and what the average burn speed actually is. With demand for faster speeds the drive manufactures continue to market faster burners, but won't share the information that defines a faster speed. Now you know.
3）Playback incompatibility is the byproduct of faster record speeds.
Data Pits are the most important part of your DVD-R. are technically a quad speed burner with 8x and 16x only burning on the last quarter of the program. 8x burn speed = 2x-4x-6x-8x, so what you actually get is an average record speed of "5x". 16x burn speed = 6x-8x-12x-16x, which equates to an average record speed of "10.5x". Burn speeds listed on manufacture's
4）The conclusion to DVD-R burn & playback compatibility problems is as simple as adjusting burn speeds to 4x for DVD-R Masters & Duplication & 16x for CD-R. 4x DVD-R / 16x CD-R is not an incremental burn speed. These are true burn speeds and are the fastest burn speeds that burn the same speed from the beginning to the end of your program. Burning at 4x allows the burned pits to be the same depth from the start of your program to the end (mimics Replicated/store bought CD & DVD) and thus offering your program the best opportunity to play back on most DVD players.
5）DVD/CD Masters: Set your duplicator or computer burners to burn 4x for DVD-R and 16x for CD-R masters. This will allow your duplicator reader to follow the data pits without hesitation throughout the program and allowing the best opportunity for error free duplications.
6）Outside Client Masters: When taking in an outside master from a client, re-burn a new master at 4x for DVD-R and 16x for CD-R. Without knowing what speed your client's master was burned at, it's too risky to use it.
7）Disc to Disc tower duplicating: Using 8x & 16x DVD-R masters. Duplicating using a master disc through the duplication tower's reader is the easiest way to duplicate and can also be the problem to a lot of burn problems. The tower's reader doesn't spin at a speed high enough to transfer data though the controller and to all the drives at the exact same time when using 8x or 16x masters, thus causing sporadic drive failures. 4x DVD-R Masters eliminate burn problems & 4x DVD-R Duplication eliminates 98% of playback problems. All 8x & 16x DVD-R media is backwards compatible to burn at 4x.
8）CD-R Incremental Burning: CD-R 16x is the last speed that burns the same speed from the beginning to the end offering the fastest yet most compatible burn speed for CD-R. 24x up to 52x becomes a incremental speed burn and can cause issue for playback in older cd players and car stereos. 52x cd-r burning causes high levels of playback incompatibility in older CD players and car stereos.
How long does it take to burn a 4.7GB-Two hour DVD-R?
A: A two hour DVD-R with 4.7GB of programming will burn in 15 minutes at 4x and then add a minute for finalization.
****After averaging the 8x & 16x record speeds and the compatibility playback problems they can create many professionals are returning to 4x with great success. They have found that loosing a few minutes of burn time and having better playback compatibility is worth the tradeoff.
****The only reason for burning a CD or DVD is for it to be played back. If the disc won't playback properly then it's wasted your time and money.
Should a disclaimer about playback problems be added to your work?
A: Yes. A disclaimer reading:
?NOT ALL DVD PLAYERS SUPPORT THE DVD-R FORMAT?. his will let your clients know that there are compatibility problems with players and it isn?t your work. This will help your client understand that there is a difference between a Replicated/Pressed (store bought movies) DVD and a DVD-R.
Can archiving with DVD-R / CD-R create a problem?
A: I have had clients have DVD-R masters fail after sitting on the shelf for just weeks, so yes it can be a problem. If DVD-R or CD-R masters are to be used, multiple sets of three or four discs need to be used for archiving one master, just to be safe.
A newer format of archiving is RAID. RAID is a simple redundant chain of random access hard drives used to store data. Storage can be setup to hold all your data on one hard drive and the second being the mirror backup. There are multiple storage size setups for RAID depending on your needs. RAID is currently the most reliable format for archiving your digital information.
Removable hard drives that are pulled and shelved aren't optimal for archiving. These units are designed to be pulled out for a short time, not an extended period of time. There have been reports of the gel-pack arm lubricant drying up after sitting on the shelf for months. As with all electronic backup equipment, remember to attach it to a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) battery backup system with a power conditioner.
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