DVD-R not being read on computer even though successfully burned on same.

[LittleSwallow]

I suspect it's the brand of DVD-R (Fujifilm DVD-R up to 16X, made in Taiwan version), but then I want to make sure before I go out and buy more blank DVDR's.

I burned using dvd decrypter, and it was successful. But then once I reinserted the disc, the computer would not read it at all. The drive came up as empty, and DVD decrypter recognized the disc as empty as well (even though it wasn't able to put more data on it). I tried more Fujifilm DVD-R's but none of them could be read after I burned them. However, all these discs CAN be read on standalone DVD players, even the Playstation2. Any reason why the standalones can recognize and read the disc, but both my laptop and desktop can't?

I then burned the same movies onto "Value Disc" brand DVD+RW's, and they turned out successful; both the computers were able to read them and play them. My DVD drive is a double-layer DVD burner - DVDROM/R/RW on a Gateway computer, it should be able to burn DVD-R and DVD+R. Also, I tried burning a DATA DVD disc using NERO Express using the fujifilm discs, which even though successfully burned, once again could not be read, just like the DVD movies I attempted before. Once I switched to the "Value Disc" RW, it worked.

So is the problem a +/ - problem, an R v.s. RW problem, or just the brand of disc itself? A bad batch, perhaps? Can anyone make some suggestions? I feel like I'm wasting my blank DVD's. Thanks.

[bevills1]

Which burner do you have? Others have had same issues with NEC burners as have I with my NEC 3520A. Also read the NEC 3540A review at cdfreaks to see it's rated below average on reading DVD video discs.

[normcar]

In the stores, the best DVDRs are Sony's. They are the only Japan made DVDrs I've found in the stores lately. They are considered probably the best DVDR available in stores.

[SingSing]

The issue is most likely the DVD burner. Different type/make/batch of DVD media has slightly different refective index. the calibartion phase of the burning process is designed to deal with it. If the DVD burner not able to lock on the optimal parameter during the calibartion phase, then the result will not be opitmal -- universally readable. The good DVD burners get good burn all the time. The so-so DVD burners are type/brand/batch media dependence.

[LittleSwallow]

I have a QSI DVD+-RW SDW-082 Drive. I did some Googling and I got to the manufacturer's website. It says the read rate is up to 8X, and so is the burn rate. So is the problem with my Blank DVD's? They are 1X-16X DVD-R's. I thought that if you just burned them at 4X or so speed there wouldn't be a problem. But is it a speed issue? Because I looked at all the DVDR's that WERE universally readable, and the highest "recordable drive speed" was 8X. The ones that weren't universally readable were my "up to 16X speed" DVDR's.

On another note, another of my desktops (that is not available to me now) has that NEC 3540A drive. I looked that up and it has a read speed of 16X. Does that mean the DVD's I burned on my laptop that reads 8X will be playable on my desktop? Or do I have it all wrong? Thanks for all the replies so far!

[normcar]

I have a QSI DVD+-RW SDW-082 Drive. I did some Googling and I got to the manufacturer's website. It says the read rate is up to 8X, and so is the burn rate. So is the problem with my Blank DVD's? They are 1X-16X DVD-R's. I thought that if you just burned them at 4X or so speed there wouldn't be a problem. But is it a speed issue? Because I looked at all the DVDR's that WERE universally readable, and the highest "recordable drive speed" was 8X. The ones that weren't universally readable were my "up to 16X speed" DVDR's.

Some of what the recorder does is to read the info from the blank DVD before beginning writing. It may not be able to adjust the 16X media because the manufacture did not intend it to do so. Therefore, that may be your problem. However, incompatable DVD media may also be the problem. I would try with some 8X Sony DVDRs (made in Japan).

On another note, another of my desktops (that is not available to me now) has that NEC 3540A drive. I looked that up and it has a read speed of 16X. Does that mean the DVD's I burned on my laptop that reads 8X will be playable on my desktop? Or do I have it all wrong? Thanks for all the replies so far!

Read speed has nothing to do with writing speed. It is only the max speed that can be used to read from the DVD. You can read 4X media at 8X for example. My DVD drives sometimes do not even get to the max speed for reading.

[lordsmurf]

Sometimes a DVD burner gets "locked up" after you burn discs on it, so reboot and then try again. Because I have more than 1 burner in my system, I never have to reboot, I just use another drive to read. The burner can keep burning fine, but it's not wanting to read the new discs. It has nothing to do with the media.

[LittleSwallow]

Rebooting doesn't work; I've tried it before. I think I'll just stick to the 8X discs; it burns fast enough for me. The problem is probably my crappy burner.

[normcar]

Rebooting doesn't work; I've tried it before. I think I'll just stick to the 8X discs; it burns fast enough for me. The problem is probably my crappy burner.

It may not be crappy, you just tried to do something which was not designed for writing 16X DVDRs with an older writer that only writes at a max of 8X.

My Benq drives write at 16X, but I only write at 8X. I believe that in the past, testing decided that burning at a slower speed may increase the quality of the burn. Since I can do other things while I am buring, I have no problem with 8X. 16X does not burn twice as fast anyway.

[LittleSwallow]

Yeah so that was the confusion. I didn't know at what speed my drive could burn or read. I didn't even know if the max recording speed of the disc (8X or 16X) had anything to do with the drive itself. I was trying to figure out by trying different discs, but I decided to go on the forum because it gets expensive buying and trying out different discs.