My DVD (XviD) backup discs failing to read.

[perceptionist]

A while back I chose to archive my DVD collection by ripping the movies to XviD AVIs and burn multiple movies on DVD-R DL discs. I use nero burner and upon completion of each burn, it says it was completed "successfully". But every now and then when I try to browse one of these discs, it doesn't seem to be readable in my drive. I've tried other drives as well with no luck.

I still have the DVD's so no loss there other than the time and another coaster gained.

Could this be due to burning too close to the capacity of the disc or....? I always try to stay well under the limit,but sometimes it's close.

Thanks for any ideas for future success in this archival project.

[davexnet]

Here's some suggestions. Use Imgburn instead of Nero to burn the data disks.
Secondly, use the highest quality DL disks, such as Verbatim.

[jagabo]

Use single layer discs to archive Xvid AVI files. They're cheaper (per GB) and more reliable. Use Verbatim Datalife or Taiyo Yuden discs for consistent reliability. Burn with ImgBurn with a verify pass. To be really sure, run a transfer rate test with Nero's Disc Speed. If the resulting curve isn't smooth consider burning another disc.

[jman98]

Could this be due to burning too close to the capacity of the disc or....? I always try to stay well under the limit,but sometimes it's close.

Most likely it's low quality media. Unless Verbatim or Taiyo Yuden made it (almost certainly you do not have TY media), when it comes to DL discs it's garbage. We've had arguments amongst a few of our members as to the cause of your problem in the past. Some insist that the burns are actually bad from day one and others insist that the discs just sort of "go bad" after time. But in any event, use better quality media. The suggestions you got are good. We really don't know what kind of longevity DL media is going to have compared to single layer discs yet. It is safer to store things to single layer discs as jagabo suggests, unless you want to roll the dice on DL discs. If you want to roll the dice, only use Verbatim DVD+R DL as Verbatim's DVD-R DL and Taiyo Yuden's DVD-R DL discs are much more costly. And only burn with ImgBurn. I recommend not burning DL media any faster than 4x.

Burning close to the full size of the disc can be a problem with low quality media, but in your case I suspect that the media itself is the real issue rather than burning close to the end of it.

[theewizard]

i use sony single layer disc for 90% of my stuff
i never burn above 6x, and usually at 4x
and I always immediately test play the disc after burning
so IF there is a problem i can burn another one at a slower speed