Hey I'm using a zenith stand-alone and on some discs I have burned when the player reaches a chapter change is will freeze for anywhere from a half a second to 5 or so and then go on the the next chapter sometimes skipping parts of the movie. Anyone had an experience like this and if so any suggestions?
Here is generic checklist for you - any or all of the possible combination can cause problems. Almost daily there are posts in relation to DVD playback - generally in relation to skipping/freezing of DVD's on playback. While these posts have been answered many hundreds of times over a wide variety of threads/topics, the question continues to reappear (generally due to inabilty to use search button at top of page or to read/comprehend previous threads/answers). Listed below is my recipe for successful DVD burning - Have burnt between 500 and 1000 without any major burning or playback problems. People are free to accept or reject this advice - it is not prescriptive, merely advisory and has worked very well for me. 1. Do not use labels on burnt media. 2. Keep your hard drive defragmented. 3. Ensure you have plently of free hard disk space. 4. Ensure you do not have sypware/virus on your system. 5. Keep you start up menu lean and clean. 6. Use a program such as HijackThis to ensure your start up log is lean and clean. 7. Avoid conflicting programs on your system e.g., Nero/Roxio do not play well together - choose one only. 8. Avoid the use of packet writing software e.g, INCD, Direct CD. 9. Avoid multi-tasking when ripping/encoding/burning. 10. Do not install problematic programs such as Interactual Movie Player and remove from system if installed. 11. Do not burn too fast (max 4x recommended). 12. Ensure definitions for virus and spyware programs are up to date. 13. Avoid burning unnecessary extras - do movie only in reauthor mode if using DVD Shrink <http://www.afterdawn.com/software/video_software/dvd_rippers/dvd_shrink.cfm>. 14. Use brand name, quality players for burning - e.g., Plextor, Pioneer, Lite-On etc. 15. Use an el cheapo Asian/Chinese standalone for playback - they are much more versitile and reliable than name brands and normaly handle both Pal and NTSC formats. 16. Use quality DVD media - Ritek, Verbatim, TY's recommended. 17. Reduce target size of burnt DVD to approx 4400 if using DVD Shrink. 18. Store safely and keep away from children. 19. Be very wary of downloaded movies - in most cases they are not worth the time or effort to reproduce. 20. Ensure that DMA mode is enabled in your system settings. 21. Load and skip through chapters on computer DVD player (e.g, Power DVD, WinDVD) prior to burning. My System Specs (don't laugh) PIII - 800 - 256Mb Ram Programs used: DVD Shrink (98%), DVD Decrypter (approx 2%), Nero (almost 100%) for burning. Success rate: 99% plus. Media: Mainly Laser with some Ultra Tran and a few other ring ins, dash format mainly. Burner: Pioneer 106D ROM: JLMS - Lite-On Rip/Encode time: Between 10 and 50 minutes (depending on movie) - normally under 35 minutes. Burn Time: Between 12 and 15 minutes. This recipe has worked extremely well for me - give it a go if you dare.
