Blu-ray BD-R quality/changing media questions

[yukon33]

Normally I use Verbatim or Taiyo Yuden for DVD burning - the extra cash outlay is worth peace of mind for quality purposes over cheaper media.

With a brand new LG Blu-ray burner, I am about to make my first Blu-ray discs. With a delivery of blank Verbatim BD-Rs held up in the mail, I bought some blanks from a local store in the meantime: (these ones as also sold on Amazon) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Infiniti-Professional-Printable-Blu-ray-Jewel/dp/B001PCJVVQ - these Infiniti discs are obviously not the best, but were the most expensive I could find locally outside of the internet (reviews on Amazon are fairly positive).

I haven't made any burns yet, but when I compare the build-quality of the discs between the Infiniti and my now arrived Verbatims, there is a distinctive difference between the edge finish of the underside of the discs. While the Verbatims have a smooth, rounded finish, the circumference of the Infinitis is more 'uneven'.

My questions are, is this evidence of shoddy disc-making - and therefore more prone to errors/unreliability - on the part of the Infiniti discs?

Also, I have often heard the question asked: "Have you changed media?" in response to those wondering why their DVD burns have been unsuccessful. I am assuming this bascially means, are you trying to burn to a cheaper brand of disc than you normally do because that might be causing your playback problems.

It may be a silly question, but DVD/Blu-ray burners aren't affected by 'changing media' in that they become 'used' to a certain brand in any way? I'm thinking like a camcorder is best kept to the same brand of tape because of the different lubricants used between manufacturers. I'm assuming 'changing media' simply means 'keep to a high-quality brand or risk an unreliable burn to a poorer quality disc', but appreciate if someone could confirm this rule for me.

Thanks

[jman98]

BluRay media is so relatively new that there doesn't seem to be any real consensus on what's good/bad. I'd suggest using Verbatim and avoid the cheaper LTH discs. Compatibility of LTH discs with existing BluRay players is iffy and in my opinion too big a risk to take. I've seen evidence that Taiyo Yuden does actually make BD-R discs, but only for Japan and I've only seen the LTH discs listed Sony may make acceptable media for BluRay but I'm not totally sure. Others may know. Their DVDs are highly variable though so I'd definitely want confirmation that their BluRay media is good before I'd buy it.

Yes, cheaper discs can lead to bad burns which leads to playback problems.

No burners do not become accustomed to specific types of media, although some are more fussy than others and some brands burn better than others in specific drives. Generally those who stick to the high quality manufactured media have the fewest problems.

[yukon33]

Makes sense - thank you

[Kerry56]

Verbatim (non-LTH) BD-R disks are a good compromise on price and performance. I've had no problems with them.

The non-LTH disks that are made in Japan have a good reputation so far also, and can be found under the Sony and Panasonic brands. The last time I checked, only the 6x BD-R disks under the Sony brand are still being manufactured in Japan. Sony and Panasonic are much more expensive however, and I don't really see the need to use them unless you are just paranoid about disk quality.

www.nikonekoya.com is a good place to shop for Japanese made disks, since they include country of origin for each listing.

[bbanderic]

The (non-LTH) Verbatims are excellent, I've burned about 75 of them without any issues.

[mobie29]

You cannot go wrong with the Verbatim BD-R's. Stay away from the LTH's BD-R's!!! They are cheap price for a reason. They do not work!!! Bad burns and very rarely play in standalones.

Also try Blaze BD-R's. I have had very good success with those also.

[taxman]

I just did my first burns with some TDK BD-R DL disks. After updating my firmware on my burner it burned fine. It has also played fine on my Oppo, Sony 350 and Insignia (first generation) players.

[yukon33]

My Verbatims are BD-R not BD-R LTHs - I'll continue to buy these until I hear of anything better.

Another question regarding those BD-Rs 'inferior' to the likes of Verbatim: is it at all possible for a lesser-quality disc straight out of the packet to damage the Blu-ray burner in any way?

As I say I have a pack of 'Infiniti' brand which, as mentioned above, appear to have a more uneven finish around the circumference of the discs. This is probably just cosmetic, but before I use any of these to run some burn tests is there any likelihood of damaging the burner hardware at all?

Writer is brand new LG BH10LS30.

[Kerry56]

^No, I've not heard of any instances of disks damaging a drive, except in those extremely rare cases when a disk shatters. And I haven't seen any cases of that with blu ray.