Hi,
I just bought a
The description also says:BenQ DW1650 - DVD±RW (±R DL) drive - IDE
GeneralRemovable storage type None Compatibility PC Storage CD / DVDType 5.25" x 1/2H CD / DVD read speed 48x (CD) / 16x (DVD) Cache / Buffer Size 2 MB Storage CD / DVD:Form Factor 5.25" x 1/2H
Would someone explain what DVD+R/+RW/+R DL/-R/-RW and CD-R/RW and ± mean? I got the drive at eBay and the manual wasn't in the box.Get fast DVD and CD recording with this BenQ Double Layer DVD±RW IDE Drive! Now you can burn DVD+R/+RW/+R DL/-R/-RW and CD-R/RW discs from just one device.
It writes to Double Layer DVD+R discs at 8x, DVD±R at 16x, and DVD±RW at 8x. It also features 48x CD-R write speeds, 24x CD-RW rewrite speeds, and 48x CD-ROM read speeds. The 2 MB buffer ensures a smooth and errorless writing session every time!
I haven't gotten it yet but I'm planning on getting Nero 7.0, or the newest update. Is there a better program for the BenQ? Can Nero write double-sided? Does the BenQ decide whether it needs to be put on double-sided disks or does the program decide, or even me?
I've burned VCD's, data disks and mp3 disks with my old drive so I have a little experience with burning CD's but not with DVD's. I've looked around the net and there are a lot of different types of DVDs. I'm not sure which kind of DVD I need to burn backups of movies that're on my hdd and make backups of my DVDs. Some of them are very large files, up to 1,300,000kb. I want to get good disks to do this. I'm sure there are different quality disks and I'd like to get pretty good quality, maybe not the best if they're very expensive.
In case you need the info, this is what my computer has:
- Biostar TFORCE 6100-939 mobo which supports dual channel ddr
- SATA
- AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.0GHz / 512KB Cache / 1000MHz FSB / Venice / Hyper-Transport / OEM / Socket 939 / Processor
- 2 twin sticks of 1G RAM
- Corsair 620W PSU
- Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 SATA 3.0Gb/s 320-GB Hard Drive
- Windows XP X64
Can someone help me?
Hart
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Originally Posted by HartsVideo
I've burned VCD's, data disks and mp3 disks with my old drive so I have a little experience with burning CD's but not with DVD's.
1) Edit
2) Encode
3) Author
4) Burn
There are many, many tools for these tasks, some all-in-one, some individual for each step above.
Again, almost all the info you need to get started is here on this site, so spend some time reading in the "How To" section to the left <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Don't be afraid to try a few programs, make a few test DVDs, until you find programs *you* are comfortable with. I'd suggest getting some DVD RW discs for this trial period.
For DVDs, generally Taiyo Yuden and Verbatim are the most consistent in terms of quality and successful burning; only Verbatim DVD+R DL for Dual Layer.
Cheers,
Jim -
DVD+R/+RW/+R DL/-R/-RW and CD-R/RW and ±
If you just need a burning program, mainly for DVD, ImgBurn is free and it's better than Nero for just burning, IMO. Nero can do a lot of other operations, such as encoding and authoring. But it doesn't do them too well, also IMO. For double layer media, use only Verbatim + media and ImgBurn to burn with for the best results.
Some burner programs like Nero will just tell you that you don't have enough room on the disc, then it's your choice if you want to use double layer media.
Verbatim single layer DVD discs, either + or - type and Taiyo Yuden are considered the some of the best media by most at present. The best brand of discs are just a few pennies more that the cheaper brands, but don't have the failure rate and problems.
And for the DVD specification and format, look also to the upper left on this page for 'WHAT IS' DVD.
For more DVD media information, take a look here: http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/index.htm -
Ok guys . . . you gave me real good places to start. Thanks
I read up on DVD- and DVD+ and the only difference I can see between the 2 is the percentage of compatibility with all DVD Players and most DVD-ROMs. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Thanks for the link to ImgBurn. I read the instructions and put them in a Word.doc. They look easy to follow, with pictures and all . . . not much harder than making a CD mp3 or data disk using that program.
I surfed the net for a couple of hours and I've seen that Verbatim is one of the best but also very expensive. I couldn't find Verbatim DVD+R 8x 8.5Gb/dual layer for less than $2.00/disc, and Taiyo Yuden was the same. I found "RITEK/RIDATA DRD+858-RDUSA-CB25 8X DOUBLE LAYER DVD+R 8.5GB 25PACK IN CAKE BOX" for $34.90. They were listed as being in the second class in the Bank Media Quality Guide. Does anyone have info about the performance of the RITEK/RIDATA? If you know a place where I can buy Verbatim or Taiyo Yuden for less that $2.00/disc, please let me know.
Hart -
For on-line media purchases try:
http://www.rima.com
http://www.supermediastore.com
http://www.meritline.com
Dual layer is expensive and for Verbatim Dual Layer +, ~$2.00US is about a average price. You can get a Taiyo Yuden Single layer for ~ $ .30US each.
There's not much difference in compatibility between DVD + and DVD - these days. It depends on your burners and players, but most will work well with either type.
With DVDs the name on the disc isn't as important as who made it. Lot's of 'name brand' discs can be made by different disc manufacturers. If you read through our forum a little, you will see that disc problems are very common and it really doesn't pay to try to save too much money by buying cheap discs if you have to throw them in the trash when they fail.
If you look to our DVD Media page, you can find how to check who really manufactures a disc and see some user comments for them. There are plenty of good brand discs out there. -
Originally Posted by HartsVideo
It wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility to get at least 7 coasters out of 25 for those Riteks (and the coaster rate would likely be worse) - now you're at the same per-disc price as the Verbatims, but with the added aggravation and time spent re-burning. Doesn't sound like much of a "savings" to me.
Jim -
The instructions at ImgBurn say
This will cover a full set of Vob, Ifo and Bup files on your Hard Drive to Dual Layer Media.
We recommend only Verbatim +R DL discs. See why here
It is NOT recommended to use DVD-R DL Discs for Video.
20 Pack Verbatim 8.5GB 8X DVD+R DL Spindle $35
Click Here 20 Pack Verbatim 8.5GB 8X DVD+R DL Spindle for $35 with free shipping. These discs are capable of recording data at maximum speeds of up to 8X and can be burned in just about 15 minutes
Verbatim 8.5GB 2.4X~6X DVD+R DL 20 Packs Cake Box Branded Disc - Retail. These discs are capable of recording data at maximum speeds of up to 8X and can be burned in just about 15 minutes.
Is this just a ploy, to offer DVD's that burn at 8X but really burn from about 2.4x to 6x, or is this usual?
Hart -
There are 2 things that determine what speed you can burn a particular disc at: the disc itself and your burner's firmware.
My cake box of Verbatim DLs indicates they are 2.4x rated, but additionally say "Up to 8x with compatible high-speed DVD+R DL drives". So depending on what drive/firmware you have, you can burn these at 2.4x, 4x, 6x, or possibly up to 8x.
I'm not saying there isn't some "marketing" going on but the burn speed is related to more than just the discs.
Jim
[Edit: Wait...you actually read the ImgBurn instructions?!? ] -
Ok, so it's a little different than CDs. To first say 8x and then see the limit of 6x doesn't seem right.
One of the urls that you gave me also seems great, 50 discs for $23.00. That's less than $0.50/disc:
Verbatim (95052) DataLifePlus 8X DVD+R Shiny Silver 50 Pack in Cake Box Spindle - Free Ground Shipping
DV-002-1930 MPN:95052
An Authentic Verbatim Product -- Combining an exceptional thermal silver surface with professional grade Metal Azo recording.....
Buy Now: $23.99ea. /2+ $19.99ea.ea. /10+ $18.99ea.
Hart -
LOL . . . I just read your post script, lmao . . . of course I read them! How else would I know how to use the program?
I was happy to see a program with directions on how to use it. Usually I have to figure it out by myself and the word flop comes to mind It's actually a simplistic program . . . right up my alley! And I enjoy doing these things. I'm here to learn how to b-u-u-r-n!
Hart -
Uh . . . I just re-read the specs on the Verbatim (95052) DataLifePlus 8X DVD+R Shiny Silver 50 Pack for $23.99 ea. They're not DL, only 4.7GB, so feel free not to answer my question about them
G'Nite
Hart -
And you probably already realized that Taiyo Yuden doesn't make DL media.
When you mention burning CDs at 48X, you have to realize that DVDs have about 6 times more data in the same space as a CD. So if you compare the two, the DVD is actually burning pretty fast, maybe up to 48X or more if you relate it to CD burning speeds.
I should warn you too, that DL burning is still somewhat in it's infancy. That's one reason only Verbatim seems to have got it 'right'. Not all players can accept burned DL media, but most newer ones should. All this is a way of saying, that if you don't need DL, a single layer disc may be the better choice most of the time. JMO. -
Uh . . . yeah, I saw that about Taiyo Yuden . . . cough . . . choke . . . ahem!
To move along, I'm not concerned about how long it'll take to burn a DVD. I've ripped DVDs that took 12 hours in my old pc. My problem is that I have a lot of .avi files in my computer and I want to make back-ups of some of them and burn some and delete the ones in my pc.
When I bought the BenQ a few months ago, I also bought a pack of Staples brand DVD-R disks that will probably wind up as coasters. I just tried to burn an .avi file onto one of them using ImgBurn and I did notice, ahem, that it makes back-ups of DVDs but I didn't see an option to burn an .avi to disc. Do you know if this is true? If it is, do you know of another program that will burn .avi's to disk?
Hart -
Originally Posted by HartsVideo
but I didn't see an option to burn an .avi to disc. Do you know if this is true? If it is, do you know of another program that will burn .avi's to disk?
(Oh, and as a lurker over at the ImgBurn forums, I think the forum would be half as big if others would read the instructions like you did, particularly the part you quoted about only Verbatim DVD+R DL. Hence my "shock" )
Jim -
You might know how little children are with things. They don't understand that scratches on DVDs, or cracks, lol, will make a DVD unviewable, so I put them in my pc for my 5-yr old grandson to watch but that hasn't worked out either as I can't use my computer when I need to at times without fuss. So that situation that I thought was ideal turned out to be one that needed changing. My grandson has a tv and DVD player in his room so I'll burn them for him and he can watch them when I'm on my pc and if one gets ruined, I'll burn another one for him. Some of them he didn't care to watch much so I'm going to delete them after I burn a copy of them. My computer is pretty full at this point, with only about 12% free space.
I'm surprised that people go to the forum and don't read the instructions. It wouldn't make sense if I came here for help and didn't follow your advice. A point was clearly made to use the DVD+R disks. I did try to save a few bucks by going down a notch in quality but your point was well taken so I'll buy the Verbatim. I'm thinking about not buying the DL for my grandson's backups, because I'm sure I'll be replacing the burned DVDs a few times and DL ones will be a waste of money.
I was also reading at eBay where camcorder cassettes can be burned onto DVDs using a DVD Recorder and used as backups. The one I'm looking at is the "Panasonic DIGA DMR-ES20 DVD RECORDER." They're reasonably priced at around $70.00.
It's almost 3:30 am here so I need to get some sleep . . . I have to be up in about 6 hours. Tomorrow's got a full schedule so I'll have to put this on hold until tomorrow night.
Thanks again for your help and advice Jim and redwudz.
Hart -
Originally Posted by HartsVideo
I'm thinking about not buying the DL for my grandson's backups, because I'm sure I'll be replacing the burned DVDs a few times and DL ones will be a waste of money.
I was also reading at eBay where camcorder cassettes can be burned onto DVDs using a DVD Recorder and used as backups. The one I'm looking at is the "Panasonic DIGA DMR-ES20 DVD RECORDER." They're reasonably priced at around $70.00.
It's almost 3:30 am here so I need to get some sleep . . . I have to be up in about 6 hours.
Thanks again for your help and advice Jim and redwudz.
Jim -
Good morning
What're the differences between DVD+R and DVD-R? I read the "What Is" on DVDs but the only difference I could see was the percentage of compantibility with DVD players and DVD-ROM drives. What other differences are there between DVD+-R that would make the DVD-R so much cheaper than DVD+R and the need to use DVD+R so that the burns will be good?
Denise -
Originally Posted by HartsVideo
and the need to use DVD+R so that the burns will be good?
I'm sure the more-knowledge folks can expand on the differences between the two types, but from my (somewhat limited) practical experience, I've not been able to determine a difference.
YMMV, of course
Jim -
and the need to use DVD+R so that the burns will be good?
Basically, the (practical) differences are as follows:
* The "dash-R" format is the one that's officially recognized by the DVD standards forum, which is why it carries the official, trademarked DVD logo while "plus-R" media doesn't and can't.
* While the majority of players made within the last 2-3 years can handle either type equally well, older players -- in my experience, anyway -- tend to prefer "dash-R" discs over "plus-R." (At least, this is true of single-layer discs; with dual-layer, all bets are off, as a lot of players don't seem to much like either type!)
[/quote] -
My $.02 . .
Since you will be doing your DVD burning with a Benq 1650 - you should be able to use a wide variety of media successfully. My Benq 1650 and 1655 burn most anything I throw at them with no problems.
I suggest you not start out working with double layer media due to high cost of making errors and learning things the hard way. I suggest you pick up a small batch or rewritable media which you can use over and over to experiment and learn with.
You mentioned that you have been burning music cd's. What software package do you use for that? Does that package also have the ability to burn dvd media? Don't get me wrong - ImgBurn is a superb program - but using something you are already familiar with may have some advantages. I've used the Adaptec/Roxio Suite for years and it handles dvd burning just fine.
Regarding your Benq 1650 - I suggest you make sure you have current firmware on it and install Q-Suite, and set the "booktype" for the drive such that DVD+R media is burned with a DVD-Rom booktype (done within q-suite). This tends to improve compatibilty with other drives and devices after the media is burned. The firmware and q-suite are free - check the Benq website - and you only have to set it up correctly once.
If you want to make dvd's of those avi's you have that play simply and easily on your grandson's dvd player, you may want to convert them to standard dvd video before burning. I've been playing around with 2 free programs (DVDFlick and AVI2DVD) for similar purposes. So far, I would say that AVI2DVD is much slower and more complicated - but gives better results.
And lastly - if you are in the USA and frequent Costco - they are having a 2 for 1 coupon sale in August for their TDK inkjet printable media - which drives the unit cost per disc down lower than anything you will ever likely find anywhere for decent media. This TDK media is actually CMC oem media. Folks in these forums tend to frown on any media that doesn't say Verbatim or TY on it - but I use this TDK 16x DVD+R inkjet printable media all the time in my Benq 1650 and 1655 burners - with no problems. I also burn pretty conservatively - and tend to burn all media at 4x or 8x and never 16x in spite of the media or drive ratings. I'm not mass producing anything - not in a hurry - and just walk away once I've started it so I don't care how long it takes. I only care about how it comes out. -
Thanks for all of your opinions and advice. You all seem to be in agreement that +R isn't required for a good video burn so that opens the market up a lot. Right now, I'm burning some Jimmy Neutron cartoons onto a Staples' brand DVD-R (I picked them up a couple of months ago before I looked into burning). I'm using AVI2DVD along with QuEnc 0.2. It's been burning since last night because each cartoon is about 15 minutes long and I have to click OK for it to start the next one. I slept from around 4 am to 9 am and then I've been out of the house since, so I think only about 5 or 6 have processed so far. I can't wait for it to finish to see if I did things right. I also downloaded DVDFlick but I haven't installed it yet. It looks like a good option to check out.
I also agree that I shouldn't buy DL disks. Besides being expensive, if they won't play in a DVD player, there's no sense in burning to them. I have DVD Shrink . . . I've never used it but I've had it in my old pc for a few years and I installed it in my new one.
Regarding your Benq 1650 - I suggest you make sure you have current firmware on it and install Q-Suite, and set the "booktype" for the drive such that DVD+R media is burned with a DVD-Rom booktype (done within q-suite). This tends to improve compatibilty with other drives and devices after the media is burned. The firmware and q-suite are free - check the Benq website - and you only have to set it up correctly once.
When I burned mp3's, I used Nero Start Smart (or is it Smart Start, it's been a while) and burned them as mp3's and data. Someone bought it for me but didn't buy the one that burned DVDs. At the time, I wasn't concerned about it because I was burning only CDs. I bought data disk CDs and made mp3 CDs and data CDs because the DVD player in my car won't play data disks, but the DVD players in my house do play them and I can fit a lot more in data format on the disks than mp3's. So they're all for backup and for using and the mp3's are stored in my hdd. I have about 80G's of them. When Staples sold CD data disks, I'd pick up a 100 pack. About 5-7 years ago, they stopped carrying data disks and I started buying 700Mb, 80 mins, 48x CD-R's and burn them at the next lower speed, but I got quite a few coasters out of them. When I first started making them, I didn't know that I shouldn't write on them using a pen and I ruined so many of them.
I really enjoy doing all of this. learning about it and how to do it, and all my spare time is used doing it. I look at it as my hobby even though a lot of my friends/relatives don't understand how it could be. I don't understand how stamp collecting could be a hobby, but there you have it.
I mentioned in an earlier post that ImbBurn instructions say
This will cover a full set of Vob, Ifo and Bup files on your Hard Drive to Dual Layer Media.
We recommend only Verbatim +R DL discs. See why here
It is NOT recommended to use DVD-R DL Discs for Video.
I downloaded the ImgBurn program but the instructions included were for copying a DVD, not for burning an .avi file when I tried it, but I didn't know that there's an option using the "Build" mode at the time, and was given that info in an earlier post also, so as soon as AVI2DVD finishes, I'm going to burn something else and use the Build mode.
You guys gave me a lot of info and a lot to think about and try. I appreciate all of it and I feel much more comfortable with the knowledge that you've given me. I'll let you know how things work out with the present burn that I'm doing (if it ever finishes, lol) and I'm sure I'll have more questions within the next few weeks.
Hart -
Originally Posted by HartsVideo
I mentioned in an earlier post that ImbBurn instructions say
This will cover a full set of Vob, Ifo and Bup files on your Hard Drive to Dual Layer Media.
We recommend only Verbatim +R DL discs. See why here
It is NOT recommended to use DVD-R DL Discs for Video.
I downloaded the ImgBurn program but the instructions included were for copying a DVD, not for burning an .avi file when I tried it, but I didn't know that there's an option using the "Build" mode at the time, and was given that info in an earlier post also, so as soon as AVI2DVD finishes, I'm going to burn something else and use the Build mode.
ImgBurn can burn either the "DVD" folder (use "Build" mode) or the ISO file (use "Write" mode); they both contain the same info (ISO is just an image of the "DVD" folder, kind of like a .zip).
Jim -
Originally Posted by Jim44
I brought this option up in response to discussions about grandchildren playing dvd's in a standalone dvd player, and I figured compatibility with dvd players should be considered - hence the bitsetting suggestion also. -
Originally Posted by Rich86
Since one can burn avis directly onto a DVD, I went with the literal interpretation of the question, whereas you did a better job of putting 2 and 2 together
Regardless, hopefully enough info for a successful outcome for HartsVideo.
Jim -
The cartoons aren't finished processing yet . . . it should be about another hour, then it will start to burn (hopefully). I don't know if AVI2DVD will automatically start burning the disk when it's finished processing or if I'll have to do something else. I put a disk in the drive. I'm hoping it'll be automatic.
About DL disks, in an earlier post, it was said that
* While the majority of players made within the last 2-3 years can handle either type equally well, older players -- in my experience, anyway -- tend to prefer "dash-R" discs over "plus-R." (At least, this is true of single-layer discs; with dual-layer, all bets are off, as a lot of players don't seem to much like either type!)
- a folder named DVD and inside DVD are
-- AUDIO_TS - is empty
-- VIDEO_TS - contains the following 5 files
--- VIDEO_TS.BUP
--- VIDEO_TS.IFO
--- VTS_01_0.BUP
--- VTS_01_0.IFO
--- VTS_01_1
- a file named - AudioStream 1 MP3 2CH
- a file named - Avi2Dvd_Log
- a file named - Avisynth_Script_File
- a file named - BeSplit
- a file named - BeSweet_AudioStream 1 MP3 2CH.ac3
- a file named - DVD_Image
- a file named - Dvdauthor
I'm concerned that there aren't any files in the Audio_TS folder.
Hart -
I'm concerned that there aren't any files in the Audio_TS folder.
-
I removed the last 2 cartoons from the que so that it wouldn't take an hour longer to process the files. When the processing stopped, nothing else happened. AVI2DVD didn't go into another mode and start burning them as I thought it would. I opened AudioStream 1 MP3 2CH from one of the folders and there's no audio. I'm not sure what happened there.
So I have all these folders with video but no audio and AVI2DVD is just sitting there looking pretty . . . I'm not sure where to go from here. I'm going to find instructions for AVI2DVD but I have to reboot.
Hart -
I just finished processing a cartoons using 2 encoders, HCEnc and QuEnc. Both encoders produced IFO files even though I ticked "Make ISO." I read the guide for AVI2DVD and the next step is to use DVD Decrypter to burn the disk. I opened DVD Decrypter and clicked the Mode tab -> ISO -> write, and the clicked on the folder icon to locate the ISO file. When I followed the path to the folder, there was no ISO file in it so DVD Decrypter couldn't burn a DVD. Since I did tick "Make ISO" box with both encoders, I don't know why it made IFO files, so I'll have to find a burning program that can burn from an IFO file, if it's possible and if there's a program that can do it.
avi2dvd,%20hcenc,%20dvd%20decrypter,%20video_ts%20 1.bmp -
This is the other half of the screenshot.
avi2dvd,%20hcenc,%20dvd%20decrypter,%20video_ts%20 2.bmp -
I couldn't accept that an ISO file wasn't made . . . it didn't make sense. So I turned on "show file extensions for known file types" and the ISO file wasn't in the Video_TS folder. It's an DVD_Image.iso in the main folder. I burned it and it came out great! Hey, when you're good, you're good . . . ya know what I mean?
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