I've been burning discs for a couple of weeks now with very few problems even though I was using Memorex and burning at 16-20x. Then I seemed to buy 2-3 bad batches of discs where anywhere from 1/4 - 4/5 were coming out bad. So I went out and bought some Sony's (Sony16D1 to be precise) and burned at 8X and still had the last 3 discs be fubared.... any suggestions?
Sony16D1 do not have a great track record. See link. http://www.videohelp.com/dvdmedia?dvdmediadvdridsearch=SONY16D1.... What software are using to burn? Is there a log? What model burner are you using and the version of the firmware.
starting off with good media is the key to successful burns! Here is a media guide for you (take this guide as an indication of what's out there and available.... I don't agree totally about it's standings on some media but as a whole it's the best media guide that I found! so I keep using it as a reference): http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm you can check out your media and see if it is quality media (media that is recognized by most burners and is manufactured in Japan are the best!) Taiyo Yuden can be purchased online at supermediastore.com, meritline.com, rima.com, newegg.com and other online stores are the best , IMHO! Then comes Verbatim, the only non Japan disk that is top notch and is allowed near my burners! I have a 99.9% success rate with Taiyo Yuden and is my fav of choice. I'm not sure on codes but those Sony disks are probably not MIJs! Sony does make MIJs but your DVD-R, 16x media might not burn properly or is recognized by your burner... only a log of the software that you used to show us can see if it's a media problem with your burner or another problem! but get rid of those Memorex media..... not that good and other members here will attest that Memorex is nick named Memosux here and in other forums!
1) digitalfaq is correct in half its assertions and completely wrong, misleading, mistaken, or simply bizarre in the other half. As long as you can tell the difference, it might be useful. As for the ratings, they are based on compatibility reports from users and not on any standards related to quality. 2) There is no reason to get rid of the Memorex if they have worked before unless the versions you have are not the same as the previous. (Memorex buys from CMC, Ritek, Prodisc, and even Taiyo Yuden--so any comments should be more specific. Are Memorex from Taiyo Yuden "not that good" compared to Taiyo Yuden or Sony from Taiyo Yuden? Certainly not.) Try to find out the MID code from the Memorex discs that worked and the ones that did not and see if there is a difference. 3) Your drive may be limited in its compatibility with a number of discs. List your drive model and its firmware version. That information is very helpful. A firmware update may solve the problem with the Memorex and Sony media. If so, then their quality has not changed at all but they may work--proving once again the there is general confusion between compatibility and quality, and that confusion is why members insult and disparage certain brands. 4) Recording at 20X is silly. That speed is far too great to get a decent recording. Your recording speed should not exceed 8X if you want to increase the compatibility with other drives/players after the recording. (A disc recorded at 16X ought to play and scan well on the drive that recorded it, but the results are often far poorer on other drives and playback units.) 5) Good luck in buying "made in Japan." That means only Taiyo Yuden these days, whatever the brand is.
