CD-RW vs. DVD-RW

[Lucifers_Ghost]

Hello,

My question is regarding the stability and quality of a CD-RW vs. DVD-RW.

I have a cd-rw that i have been using over and over for the last several years. just for random backups and stuff. Probably rewritten well over a hundred times by now. I recently bought a 3 pack of Sony dvd-rw and all 3, after having used them about 8 - 10 times, are all not working anymore. Whenever i try to burn to them, it fails. But to regular dvd-r or +r, it works fine.

Is this common? If yes, why is the quality so poor on dvd-rw's?

Thanks for the input in advance.

LG

[MrMoody]

I have a Verbatim 2X DVD-RW I've erased about 40 times that still works.

[Nilfennasion]

Several possible causes, of which I will list a couple:

* Bad support for DVD-RW in your drive (firmware update can take care of this)

* Program you use to burn with doesn't support DVD-RW correctly (you'd be surprised how often this can happen)

* Bad media (this is the most common cause of problems)

Find out the media ID of the discs you are using, and you should be able to find out what is going wrong. Without knowing the specific media ID, which in turn tells you exactly who manufactured it, you're not going to be able to get a definitive answer.

[Lucifers_Ghost]

The manufactureer code is PRODISKDVDRW. They are Sony dvd's.

As for your first two options: I can see that but even though I have used these dvd's several times already. As i said, about 7 - 10 times each i have rewritten. All with the same drive (LG-4040) and using the same programs to burn with (dvd decryptor, copy to dvd, dvd dhrink) and erasing them with Nero 6.0. It all worked in the past, just all of a sudden, Im getting errors.

I am definately more inclined to go with the bad media. I just assumed (wrongly I suppose) that a cd-rw would have the same or relatively the same reliability as a dvd-rw.

Phooey :P

[Skith]

I am definately more inclined to go with the bad media. I just assumed (wrongly I suppose) that a cd-rw would have the same or relatively the same reliability as a dvd-rw.

Phooey :P

They are both based on "phase change" technology, just like CD-R, DVD-R, and DVD+R are all based on dyes. So they are similar, yet very different. I am not knowledgable enough to comment on the technical differences.

[Nilfennasion]

I searched through the site's database and couldn't find a Sony DVD-RW that matched that media ID. I have always used TDK DVD+RWs when I need rewritable discs, but it really depends on what your needs are.

Your drive is an LG GSA-4040B? I had that very same drive myself at one stage. All of a sudden, the drive stopped writing discs (apparently, the writing laser had just stopped functioning or something), so I would seriously consider the possibility of the drive no longer operating properly. When I had this problem, I had the drive taken back to LG, who promptly replaced it with a 4120B.

[kenmo]

I have Verbatim, Memorex and Maxell DVD-RWs that have been written to t least 20 times each. No problems.