Who made Maxell MIJs? And Difference between "Pro" and "Valu

[mrlar2]

Three quick questions if anyone can help:

(1) What's the difference in the various TY DVDR lines? Is the "Value Line" a cheaper disc, or is it just outside cosmetic appearance? It's been a long time since I bought actual branded TY discs (I stocked up on the TY-made Fujis and TY-made Sonys), but soon I'll have to buy more blanks, and since Fuji and Sony have stopped using TY... just wondering if the Value Lines are as good as their Pro line, or what the difference between them is.

(2) Now that it's been quite some time since Maxell switched from Made in Japan to Made in Taiwan for the DVDs, does anyone know who actually did make their Made-in-Japan DVD-Rs and DVD+Rs? I have hundreds of these in my collection and backing up my data. Just curious. I seem to recall some guesses by people... just wondering if anyone knows who actually made them.

(3) As most of you know, for a while (at least in the US) Sony used TY-made discs (with the octogon tab, outside would say Made in Japan, DVD Identifier would verify as TY). Now they've moved to Made in Taiwan. But there were also a few Sony batches that were "Made in Japan" that were NOT TY-made (no octogon, DVD Identifier said SONY instead of TY). Wondering if anyone knows who actually made these as well -- the "Made in Japan" Sonys not made by TY. Though I only have a handful of them...

Thanks!

[OneSickPup]

(1) Most people seem to think there is no real quality difference between Value-Line and Premium. My only observation has been that Value-Line media seems to suffer more packaging and handling related issues like residue on recording surfaces, etc. Another thing is there is no guarantee what media code you get with Value-Line - could be TYG02 or TYG03. I prefer Premium grade personally because the price difference isn't enough to make it worthwhile for me and the fact that I use Rima and they do not sell Value-Line.

(2) They were Maxell's own media and had Maxell media id's. I'm pretty sure they are still manufactured - just extremely rare in North America.

(3) Similar response as #2 above. They are Sony's own media manufactured in Japan.

[mrlar2]

Thanks... but another question... since you brought up different media codes, is there a difference between TYG02 and TYG03? (and other TY codes?) Since I usually burn at 4x anyway (rather than full possible speed) if it's 8x or 16x doesn't matter with me... so are the different TY codes just speed-related? Is there a quality difference between the various codes?
Thanks

[OneSickPup]

TYG02 is the 8x and TYG03 is the 16x DVD-R media codes. Both are good media in my opinion. Many TY freaks will swear that TYG02 is superior because it tends to record low pie/pif and better quality scores when compared to TYG03. Some say TYG03 is actually more compatible in players due to better reflectivity. If you burn at 8x or less; then the Premium TYG02 is cheaper than TYG03 by usually $5 per 100 (based on Rima low volume pricing). You'll have to try them and see what works best for you. I do believe there is less variability with the 8x TYG02 IMO.

Sidenote: I have had fewer player related issues with mass distributions using Verbatim DVD-R (both 8x MCC 02RG20 and 16x MCC 03RG20). This is purely my opinion and is not based on any scientific analysis - just gleaned from customer return statistics. Good luck.

[Grain]

Some people have had poor luck burning TYG03 at 4X, but that is more burner related. If you like 4X, I'd go with TYG02's, they are readily available. Value Line TY's are not of the consistent HQ their Premium discs are. You may get lucky and get all great ones out of a spindle, but you could also get a half dozen with dye spatter that fail to burn. Premium TYG02's go for $32CAD per 100(non-printables), cheap for HQ discs.