What exactly makes CMC suck?

[airwid]

Hello,

First post here. Unfortunately for me, I bought a 50pack of Memorex DVD+Rs (purple label) from Best Buy before reading about the differences between the brandnames and who actually manufactures them After burning a couple of these successfully, I found out that they are indeed the same CMC that arguably has the worst reputation in this forum. I capture VHS to DVD w/ a Canopus ADVC-100, using Ulead VideoStudio 7.0, DVD MovieFactory 2.0 (or is it Workshop, at work and can't remember), and DVD Shrink when necessary. Prior to the purchase of the Memorex, I was using the CompUSA crap and only got one coaster out of ten. I ran a test of the CMCs in DVDinfopro and had no errors/unreadable portions of the disc show up. When playing the CMCs on a new Sony DVD standalone, there are portions where it freezes up, then skips to the next readable portion of the disc (typically only 2 or 3 times during a 2hr disc, skipping 2-10 seconds each time). The discs have no playback problems in my Pioneer DV-563A, or on the drive that I burned them on.

So did CMC and its kind earn its reputation from truly flawed unusable discs, or from the inability of lower end DVD players to play them properly? I've burned 5 discs with no problems. If the test of the disc shows that it's OK, should I feel secure in that, or could these discs go bad in the near-future? I would like to use the discs I paid for, but don't want important projects that I have coming up to go on substandard media.

Regardless, I plan to stop buying the media that's on sale at Bestbuy and the like (I suspect 99% of them will be CMC nowadays- these stores are specializing in the cheaper low-quality products in every arena these days), and will buy online from RIMA or meritline.

Thanks.

[lordsmurf]

Burn errors. Frequent ones, at least half their discs on average will have some sort of error (or just be a fully bad burn).

[Justin42]

... or they go bad after a short amount of time... or they pixellate really, really badly all through the movie ... or they have uneven dye and just don't look right.

With CMC, it's pretty much "name the excuse" and someone has a spindle showing those problems. I'd say they've worked hard to earn their reputation.

[fritzi93]

Airwid, you've obviously done some reading. Good for you. If you're a sucker, so am I, still have a bunch of them. Stay away from the edge and you should be okay. But I'll never fully trust them again, I think their reputation is deserved. JMO

[westlaw]

I just dumped 50 CMC DVD+Rs (branded under the Philips name) in the trash! I ran the first 3 DVDs from each spindle through NERO Disk Speed Test. There were Disk failures with each DVD I tested.

I burn A LOT of DVD backups. I'll be damned if I waste my time, taking a crap roll of the dice, messing with CMC media again.

I'm going to stick with using the Ritek(Ridata) DVD-R GO4. They're reasonably priced and to date, the Ritek quality has been consistant. I've burned about 500 Ritek's to date, and I haven't made ONE coaster!

[lordsmurf]

RITEK can be the same way. Want flawless? Stick to 1ST CLASS media found on www.nomorecoasters.com . Everything else has risks (even 1ST class isn't flawless, but close).

[airwid]

Well, I'll probably try selling my leftovers on Ebay (with full disclosure regarding the potential lack of quality) before dumping mine in the trash. What worries me most is the disc going bad after a short time. If they do, I'll have sold or thrown away the VHS source by then, and have no way of getting back what was on the tape. So I have to get 1st class media like Taiyo Yuden (any bad experiences with those?) for the upcoming projects. If my house was on fire, and I only had time to save a few posessions, I would save these VHS tapes that I'll be converting to DVD. So it really doesn't make sense to put them on CMCs, does it?

[westlaw]

Yes, I did hear about a "bad batch" of Riteks GO4s hitting the market about 4-5 months ago. Back then, I was using Arita DVD+R (RICOHJPNR01) with great results. I went through about 400 of those Aritas and low-and-behold, I get a bad batch of Arita's from Newegg in February 04. I wasn't the only one and Newegg wasn't the only retailer that was having problems. It was definitely a issue with the entire Lot! I guess the problem with the Aritas were so widespread, that NewEgg stopped selling them and discontinued carrying that brand.

In searching for a replacement to the low cost Arita's, I tried out the Riteks. Since February 04, I've burned about 200 Ridata Ritek DVD+R(RICOHJPN01), and 200 Ridata Ritek DVD-R (RITEKGO4), all without any coasters!

I just ordered another 200 Riteks from Newegg today. Of course, In the back of my mind, I'm always left wondering about the lot and batch quality, because who knows when the next 'bad Lot' of disk will be released to the public. I've learned from the Arita experience to only buy DVD media from e-retailers who have exchange policies or offer refunds on their Riteks.

Of course, when I'm feeling like the 'last of the big time spenders,' it's Verbatim DatalifePlus DVD+R (YUDEN000T01) all the way. I like to keep a stockpile of those around for MY BEST and most discriminating customers!

[Matt D]

I will again stick up for CMC. I've used both -R and +R with no problems whatsoever. Right now I am 146 and ZERO failures using Memorex CMC's, and they play in every machine I've tried. Even machines that say they do not read -R discs have played them with NO ISSUES through the entire disc. Even recording to within 2 MB of disc capacity does nothing to the quality of the video or audio recorded. One disc I made that went to a friend got scratched all to hell being kicked around his wreck of an apt and the thing still starts right up and plays.
Maybe there were serious issues with CMC in the past, but rest assured that there are people getting outstanding results with these discs in the here and now.

[porphyra]

I concur. CMC might have had sub-standard discs earlier, but they 4x Mag F01 discs are quite good (translated to 4x DVD+R). Even their -R are decent (4x, and 8x) although they are more error prone than the +R.

CMC has come a long way since, and people don't acknowledge that. I have far better results with CMC than Riteks. And Ritek too were in the same boat as CMC way back, but they obviously were forgiven much easier.

Of course YMMV, but the newer gen CMC are not bad at all.

IMO.

Cheers.

[cmusngi29]

I will again stick up for CMC. I've used both -R and +R with no problems whatsoever. Right now I am 146 and ZERO failures using Memorex CMC's, and they play in every machine I've tried. Even machines that say they do not read -R discs have played them with NO ISSUES through the entire disc. Even recording to within 2 MB of disc capacity does nothing to the quality of the video or audio recorded. One disc I made that went to a friend got scratched all to hell being kicked around his wreck of an apt and the thing still starts right up and plays.
Maybe there were serious issues with CMC in the past, but rest assured that there are people getting outstanding results with these discs in the here and now.

I agree with ya 100%. I have had zero problems with my CMCs.

[jntaylor63]

CMC's have been 100% for me. Approx 100 movie and data disks have played without issue.

8)

[airwid]

Well, I've ordered Taiyo-Yudens from RIMA in the meantime, but I've decided to try to use these CMCs that I have until I get a coaster. Why, however, are these DVD+Rs writing at 1.0x in DVD Movie Factory 2.0 if they're 4x?

[Matt D]

It's got to be your writer, or Moviefactory (which I've never tried). I burn Memorex CMC's at 4x quite a bit with Nero and TMPGenc DVD Author, so it's not the media.

[budz]

Why, however, are these DVD+Rs writing at 1.0x in DVD Movie Factory 2.0 if they're 4x?

Check to see if your dvd burner is DMA enabled. Use this site if you have XP, it will instruct you on how to enable DMA: http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=7625

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[GKar]

CMC worked ok for me except a few "on the fly" copies. Seems the last 500MB or so of the disks, using DVDinfoPro, had some fluctuations in the read rate, no pixelation though. Overall CMC +R Memorex media seems ok. When I order Memorex +R 25 or 100 packs from Amazon I get Ricoh, when I order Memorex +R 50 packs I get CMC. If you have problems with CMC try downloading the latest firmware for your drive here.

http://forum.rpc1.org/portal.php

[budz]

If you have problems with CMC try downloading the latest firmware for your drive here.

Not all brands of dvd burners will work with CMC discs. Upgrading the firmware will work if the brand supports CMC discs. And even with that some won't burn well because the dye quality is just shitty. It's listed on PLEXTOR'S compatiblity chart but it sure didn't work for me. So just because it can be on the compatibility chart doesn't necessarily mean it will work with the drive. That's just my experience with CMC.

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[PJGS]

I haven't been able to get good burns from CMC media.
I was given a couple a CMC -R's last week and I got 2 nice coasters.
Some time ago I bought a spindle of memorex media made by CMC.
Result?. 10 burns = 10 coasters. Sent the spindle back to the store

[Matt D]

PJGS and Budz- Sounds like writer problems. Most complaints I read here are due to a problem on the user side, not media. There's just no way that you can burn 10 coasters for 10 while I have burned 146 and ZERO coasters with the same media if the media is to blame.
Am I the luckiest guy on the planet or a super intelligent being from the future? No, so it's got to be something else. Maybe the firmware for writers you use isn't as good as it shoulf be, or maybe there are issues within your systems. I don't know, but it's not automatically CMC's fault.
I inspect every disc before burn and every CMC disc has been flawless so far. No thin dye, no spots, no scratches or scuffs. Absolutely pristine. They burn at 2x, 4x, even 6x depending on what firmware you use. They've played on 20 different players I've tried or people have tried, so again I would have to say that the media is not to blame.
I use an NEC-2500a, and it seems to love all media. I've burned Riteks, Ricohs, CMCs, and even a few Princo's and time and again this writer pops out a disc that works. In 200 or so DVD's I've burned I have had no coasters at all. I'm at 100%, which isn't a brag about my skill or whatever, but it certainly goes to show that unless the media is observably screwed up in some way, it's probably not the primary cause of a failed burn.
To each their own really. Find media that works for you. Whether it's TY or Prodisc, or Ricoh. Use it, love it, but don't slam a brand just because you've had some failures.

[PJGS]

Well, u may be right in some points but there's no doubt that CMC quality is questionable. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many users complaining and I see no reason why the hardware makers would not pay attention to such a huge media maker.
Maybe communication between them is not the way it should be, maybe CMC keeps making some changes in their media so firmware updates can't catch up. There are some many maybe's.
nobody can make reliable and cheap media.
One thing is certain, CMC quality is not what it should be.

[Sam Ontario]

DVD Media quality improved a lot when compared with those early days (only 12 months ago) 1x, 2x media. Recently, I bought 4x dvd-r, 4x dvd+r cheap media (e3, infodisc, prodisc, optodisc, princo etc.), not yet a single coaster. Both DVD writers and media are now very matured products, should not give you much trouble. I will treat cmc as equal to these discs and now only price matters.

[indolikaa]

CMC doesn't suck too bad...

It's certainly not any worse than Naked Geek media.

[ricky1756]

i just ordered 150 hp +r dvds from tiger direct at $29.99 for a pack of fifty, has anybody used these before?

[stiltman]

CMC doesn't suck too bad...

It's certainly not any worse than Naked Geek media.

[FulciLives]

This is from the front page of the naked geek website.

I have heard several reports over the past week about some brands of media actually coming apart in drives. A recordable disk is two plastic plates "bonded" together, the two plates should NEVER come apart and it is a serious safetly issue if they do. If the plates seperate whilst they are in the drive and the user opens the drive door it has been known for the plates to shatter and send sharp shards of plastic out of the drive drawer. This is a serious safety risk and could literally cause you to lose an eye.

If you ever experience a situation where the two plates of the disk physically come apart, stop using that media immediately and take it back to the shop you brought it from. If they refuse to refund you your money a quick mention of Health and Safety should do the trick, if they still refuse, contact your local council's health and safety office.

Alexander Hanff

This guy is just too damn funny for words

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[troyvcd1]

I think that people who stick up for CMC should do read tests on the media after it is burnt. There may be lots of errors and this disk may play fine even with all the errors.

[Defcon]

This is from the front page of the naked geek website.

I have heard several reports over the past week about some brands of media actually coming apart in drives. A recordable disk is two plastic plates "bonded" together, the two plates should NEVER come apart and it is a serious safetly issue if they do. If the plates seperate whilst they are in the drive and the user opens the drive door it has been known for the plates to shatter and send sharp shards of plastic out of the drive drawer. This is a serious safety risk and could literally cause you to lose an eye.

If you ever experience a situation where the two plates of the disk physically come apart, stop using that media immediately and take it back to the shop you brought it from. If they refuse to refund you your money a quick mention of Health and Safety should do the trick, if they still refuse, contact your local council's health and safety office.

Alexander Hanff

This guy is just too damn funny for words

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

You have got to be kidding me bro

Sounds like like MMD "Media of Mass Destruction"

Could you imagine shrapnel of DVD media shooting out of your drive HAHAHAHAHA

Where do they come up w/ this Sh!t

[Matt D]

Here is a scan of a disc I picked out at random. I made this one a few months ago and it's got a few fingerprints and even a small scrape. Sorry the pic is a bit small but it had to be resized to get below 50k.
Anyway this is a CMCMAG.AF1 DVD-R burned at 4x with TMPGenc DVD Author.

[indolikaa]

This is from the front page of the naked geek website.

I have heard several reports over the past week about some brands of media actually coming apart in drives. A recordable disk is two plastic plates "bonded" together, the two plates should NEVER come apart and it is a serious safetly issue if they do. If the plates seperate whilst they are in the drive and the user opens the drive door it has been known for the plates to shatter and send sharp shards of plastic out of the drive drawer. This is a serious safety risk and could literally cause you to lose an eye.

If you ever experience a situation where the two plates of the disk physically come apart, stop using that media immediately and take it back to the shop you brought it from. If they refuse to refund you your money a quick mention of Health and Safety should do the trick, if they still refuse, contact your local council's health and safety office.

Alexander Hanff

This guy is just too damn funny for words

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

He didn't mention if it was his own media or not, which I highly suspect...

[budz]

Matt D wrote:

PJGS and Budz- Sounds like writer problems. Most complaints I read here are due to a problem on the user side, not media. There's just no way that you can burn 10 coasters for 10 while I have burned 146 and ZERO coasters with the same media if the media is to blame.
Am I the luckiest guy on the planet or a super intelligent being from the future? No, so it's got to be something else. Maybe the firmware for writers you use isn't as good as it shoulf be, or maybe there are issues within your systems. I don't know, but it's not automatically CMC's fault.

There are so many farken variables in burning dvds to the software you use, to the BRANDS OF MEDIA, to what brand of dvd burner you have, to how it is hooked up to your pc. So what if you didn't burn ZERO coasters. To say, "maybe the firmware for writers isn't as good as it should be, or maybe there are issues within your system", is a fucken lame reason(oops, I said a bad word) . It pisses me off when people like you post your opinions but don't realize how many farken variables there are in dvd burning. The one thing that I have learned from this website is what may work for you will not necessarily work for others. Lastly CMC media is shitty in my OPINION. It may work for others but for me it will always be shitty media. Every farken brand of dvd burners have issues with different media. Go take a look at cdfreaks.com at the PIONEER, PLEXTOR, NEC, BTC, LG, LITEON & BENQ forum sites. Ok, I'm done bitchin!

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I'm on the pent 933 pc again dammit!