WOW
Really
P4 had a debut in 2000, the 1.4 cost around $400
People were still paying a huge sum for a P3 CPU.
DVD-ROM was still expensive but available in 2001
PinoyDVD started back in 2001.
DVD decrypter was initially released back in 2003...Macrovision was able to shut it down 2005.
DVD writers became commercially available in 2004,and most of the discussions started in 2005.
So if...you're burning DVDs quite ahead than some of the professional video editors here, then, that explains why..."you've been burned many times"...... one member I know, was still into VCDs back in 2005.
Anyway.....the thread is just to inform members of the availability of dual layered discs,and my response is only to attest that the Illusion brand is just as capable.
I cannot at this time confirm that the there will be no DVD rot after 2 years, since my Original Superman DVD 18G dual sided Warner release which I bought for a premium price was the very 1st one to suffer from a DVD rot, so seemingly it can happen wheter the DVD media you bought is expensive and branded or not.
I used my Tito's Yamaha CD-writer while in senior year high school (SCSI man! Those were really bulky and slow!). He was a professional recording engineer, and recorded his own piano music at home. I used it to burn my very first VCDs (high school short film) and music cd compilations (I stole a few 550MB from his stash <- hell yeah 550MB TDK CD-R discs! About 60mins!) And yes those dates are real and not "invented"/"illusioned".
The office/studio I worked at had a G4 Quicksilver with a Pioneer A03 Superdrive, 2x DVD-R only. That was late 2001. And yes, I am a professional and I specialize in post-production and DVD design. Even though it wasn't my own I took care of that baby, and I loved the idea of burning DVD-Videos for clients. I also used it to burn my own and a director-friend's startup demo reels, and it really helped in getting quite a few jobs. We used Apple-branded MCC00RG20 (Verbatim DVD-R 2x Made in Singapore) and was our main workhorse until I got my own G4 Quicksilver (refurbished with a Pioneer A04) mid-2002. PCs were behind surely in the DVD burning department, but I got Macs so there.
Too bad you PC guys only had DVD burners much later only by 2004, but I digress.
Macrovision wasn't essential for creating your own DVDs. I wasn't talking about duplicating pressed DVDs, but on creating my own - so the Macrovision issue is moot.
Pressed DVDs actually have varying qualities, and sometimes even burned SL DVDs have better optical qualities than some pressed discs (I stress "some"). I have DVDs from 2003 that are still readable (Apple-branded MCC01RG20) though I've already disposed of my older discs as they have been reburned onto newer, more "stable" discs. These are a combination of MCC03RG20 for videos (Verbatim 16x DVD-R)
or MCC004 for data (Verbatim 16x DVD+R) along with a duplicate on HP-branded CMC MAG M01 (16x DVD+R) with ECC (error code correction) added. I wanted to use premium 8x Taiyo Yudens although wala akong makuhanan (for now). I'll know by 2012 (5 years from backup - I did it in 2007) if my kapraningan works.
And I store my discs vertically, with dehumidifiers (aka. silica gel
), away from light. Love of work + love of data/backups + love of burning = lots of burned discs.
Thanks for your inputs! I had no idea that media IDs are being faked.
Until I read your posts, I never bothered doing a physical comparison of the discs, since I thought a media ID check was sufficient.
Comparing the Illusion with my Verbatim, here are the differences I noticed:
- The hub codes are different;
- The dye colors are different -- Verbatim is redder; Illusion is bluer; and
- The inner edge of the dye is smooth on the Verbatim, wavy on the Illusion.
On a side-by-side physical check, the Illusion definitely looks like a fake MKM. Ang masasabi ko lang ay bagay na bagay pala ang pangalang "Illusion"
I don't get it. Why would Mitsubishi make A-grade and B-grade discs with the same MKM 003 ID? If they don't use a different ID for the B-grade disc, doesn't that defeat the very purpose of using a media ID?
Tama si sir evo69. A successful burn is not good enough if the disc will quickly become unreadable.
That's what I said in 2006 when more members were more interested in low price than quality:
All discs aren't made equal. They also vary depending on location (Taiwan/India/Japan/China/Mexico/various locations in Europe/Malaysia/Thailand - some that I remember) and depending on manufacturing plant (Verbatim has 4 manufacturers making discs using Mitsubishi Technology - CMC Taiwan (Plants A, 6, and 7), Prodisc, Moser Baer India, and Taiyo Yuden). From these there are varying grades that are sold to different "brands". Buying Verbatim or Mitsubishi-branded discs will ensure that you will get A-grade MCC media, and other brands are sold the lower quality batches. For example CMC MAG M01 can be found under imation, Philips, HP, TDK, Maxell, Memorex, and other unknown brands. CMC MAG AM3 is also used by many manufacturers. Buying a known "good" brand will somewhat give you a better chance of getting quality media - HP-branded discs are more reliable in the burning department than imation. Brands do not make their own discs - except for Verbatim (supplies its own technology to disc manufacturers) and Taiyo Yuden (which makes their own media
in Japan only). Media Codes (MID) can be faked by a DVD pre-writer from the "faker's" plant to make sure it has "some" compatibility with a burner using another well-supported code, but does not ensure its quality and reliability. The "stamped" codes (inner hub and outer hub) of the DVD cannot be faked as these come from the machine itself, and properly identifies the maker/type of DVD manufacturing equipment used. Verbatim has a universal outer hub code for a disc series, while the stampers for the polycarbonate on the inner hub are almost like signatures for the plant's equipment (PAPA/PAP6/PAP7 for DVD+R or MAPA/MAP6/MAP7 for DVD-R - CMC Taiwan, xxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxx or xxxxxxxx+xxxxxxxx for DVD-R or DVD+R respectively - Prodisc Taiwan). Knowing these will certainly help in the decision of buying discs, that which I am addicted to (have around 1700 blanks - so I know what I'm buying).
For what it's worth, buying Made in Japan Verbatims
will get you real Taiyo Yudens - although these are considered to be B-grade TY discs. Funny, ain't it? But still, they're Taiyo Yudens!
A- or B-grade doesn't matter as much with TY blanks as with other lesser-quality media.
Just curious, how much is the price range of good quality DVD-R in the Philippines right now?
The only 2 brands clearly marked "Made in Japan" (in Japan) are those made by Taiyo Yuden and TDK, and the cheapest price is about 17 pesos per disk. Even though Taiyo Yuden is recognized in Japan as the most premier DVD-R mare, I prefer TDK because Taiyo Yuden's brand sounds corny (THATS).
Last time I bought Mitsubishi Chemicals' DL disks (made in Singapore), I had to shell out about 160 pesos per disk kaya I still dont back-up with DL disks.
Taiyo Yuden are
only Made in Japan, any other that claims it is TY but not Made in Japan is clearly fake. "That's Write" is TY's in-house brand marketed by That's Fukushima, Japan. Other well-known TY are Panasonic 16x DVD-R and Fujifilm DVD-/+R (only 8x and Made in Japan, Fuji has moved to using other manufacturers for 16x discs). If you buy it online you'll pay around 17-19 pesos per
single-layer disc (without shipping though!). Taiyo Yuden supposedly made DVD-R DL discs (TYG11) pero wala akong makita anywhere, they're primarily on the SL disc-making business lang ata. TDK also made its own in-house "dye" but quickly used other dyes only recently - so be wary of TDK blanks, not all are TY/TDK (not Made in Japan is the obvious 'hint'). Discs from Verbatim's Singapore plant are only DL (MKM001 2.4x/MKM003 8x) due to production limitations (size, maliit lang Singapore and mahal ang lote!
) - which explains why they outsource to CMC Taiwan (probably the world's biggest manufacturer of optical discs). Due to DL being a relatively "new" optical disc technology, SL pa rin ang recommended dahil "subok" na (and they're a hella lot cheaper noh!).
In the Philippiines, the high-quality discs are Verbatim and Imation. I think they're all Taiwan-made.
Experienced users still say Taiyo Yuden is the best, but it's hard to find here; besides, they say that new Verbatims have even better standalone compatibility than Taiyo-Yuden.
So in the Philippines, Verbatim (MCC and MKM) is regarded as the best; Imation (CMC Mag and MKM) is second-best. Hindi sikat ang TDK dito.
Verbatim, I agree. imation... hindi masyado. They use a lot of different disc-manufacturers and are variable quality. imation only designs their discs and doesn't manufacture them, and they don't get A-grade discs like HP or Maxell from CMC Taiwan. On the compatbility aspect - yes, Verbatims are more compatible than Taiyo Yudens (mas maganda lang ang basic disc characteristics ng Taiyo Yuden kesa Verbatim pero Verbatim dyes/polycarbonate/reflective layers are designed to be more compatible with standalone devices, Taiyo Yuden are more "reliable" and stable sa disc longevity). On imation using MKM (MCC code is for SL, MKM is for DL), 2.4x lang yun and gumagamit din sila ng RICOHJPND00 (maganda Ricoh in my experience, I like their single-layer RICOHJPN03 16x DVD+R) code sa 2.4x nila na DL so it's not a sure thing na you'll get MKM when you buy imation 2.4x 8.5GB DVD+R DL. Yung 8x naman nila gumagamit ng Ritek - [rant] I don't trust Ritek DVDs (pero maganda CDs nila) lalo na yung
ARITA 8X 4.7GB DVD-R (Ritek G05) na binebenta sa CD-R King. Good luck kung aabot ng a few months or even a year - meron iba a few weeks lang di na readable. (Sorry - [/rant])
Sooo... Verbatim ensures that you get quality Verbatim-technology media (buying Mitsubishi is the same, mas kilala lang ang Verbatim sa US and EU) and not unlike other discs na hindi ka sigurado kung ano makukuha mo. Taiyo Yuden is the same deal, that is, if you can find some authentic ones. Buying other brands (lalo na imation - Prodisc, MBI, Ritek, CMC, Fuji, Optodisc, Ricoh... at kung ano pang dye/manufacturer/ekek!) is like playing lotto - di mo alam kung panalo ka hehehe. So if you're a CD-R King guy (or makakahanap ng place na pwede yung "tingi" sa DVD), buy two each of the branded ones and try them out on your drives and standalones. Use
DVD Identifier para at least alam mo kung ano yung disc. When unsure, go to
Videohelp's DVD Media Database to check disc infos. Marami ding ibang forums online that specialize on blank media, like CDFreaks or CDRLabs (actually marami pang iba,
Google is your friend).
I hope this helps, di nagpapalaki ng ulo, pero I know what I'm saying kasi I invest in blank DVDs, and dahil kuripot ako, I get the best bang for my buck. Kung may makikita kayong guy sa mga CD-R King or sa mga other bentahans ng blank optical media na matagal nagiisip (dahil kuripot nga at ayaw magsayang ng pera) at maraming hinahakot (yung umaabot ng libulibong gastos pang DVD/CD lang), ako na iyon.
Signed,
evo69 (adik sa dibidi at sidi, kolektor at tagaubos ng quality media)