Spindle Color Not Helpful - How else do I avoid CMC's?

[8trackkid]

Hi everyone,
Just a little pissed off today after my pack of 50 (2*25) Imation gray spindle +R's from Staples were CMC MAG R01's! I thought that the black spindle were CMC, and the Gray spindle were Ricoh or TY.
Anyone know how else to avoid the CMC's in retail brands? I'd rather just buy what's on sale at the local B&M, if there's a better way to know what's what without having to read the media codes first. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks...

[mats.hogberg]

I know CMC has a bad reputation, but recently I bought 10 Maxell DVD+RW. I've burned 7 of them, filled to the brim, and not an error, neither burning nor playing. They turned out to be CMC!

/Mats

[8trackkid]

Thanks mats.hogberg for the info

Well, I tried one out tonight and it burnt and played well. I am just so paranoid after reading everyone's posts about CMC that one day I'll wake up and find that none of these disks will work. They are the same media code as the dreaded Verbatim, so I was afraid that they were junk.

Any more members' personal experiences with CMC would be helpful. Also, anyone know of a free program to check media for defects/errors before burning? Thanks...

[lordsmurf]

Quit shopping in stores. Takes all the mystery out of it. Online sells by media ID most times.

[garryheather]

I must admit the last lot of CMC's I had were a lot better than they used to be. I still had to throttle back my write speed somewhat, but the resulting burns were a lot more reliable than they used to be.

Personally I too still try to avoid them, but if I need any discs desperately I don't have a panic attack if I'm faced with CMC like I used to.

[ebenton]

A few months ago, I bought a 25-pack spindle of 4X Memorex DVD-R that were CMC. Every single one of them burned perfectly at 4X, with no read errors afterward.
Then, a few weeks ago, I bought a 10-pack in jewel cases of Memorex DVD-R made by CMC. I thought, "Well, that spindle burned OK, so these should be OK, too."
Unfortunately, I had to cut back on the burn speed on all of them, after the first 2 or 3 had read errors after burning them at 4X.
So, based upon my own experience, I would say that maybe CMC has good manufacturing plants and bad manufacturing plants, and good batches and bad batches.
Because they're inconsistent, I will always avoid them, and when unintentionally faced with using them, I will always be nervous.

[Craig Tucker]

Quit shopping in stores. Takes all the mystery out of it. Online sells by media ID most times.

Agreed, its also a lot cheaper than buying in stores over here.

[capvid0429]

The grey vs black spindle theory was for 25 pack TDK dvd-r's only, not Imation.

[8trackkid]

Thanks everyone for your replys!
Yeah, I am going to take Lordsmurf's advice and just buy online next time. I can't risk losing my data with CMC's reputation.
Also, didn't know the gray vs. black spindle was only for TDK. I thought that it might hold true for others, as the CMC Imation use the same gray spindle and clear cover as my TDK branded media. Exact same. Hmmm...
Thanks!

[jlc_38]

Also, didn't know the gray vs. black spindle was only for TDK. I thought that it might hold true for others, as the CMC Imation use the same gray spindle and clear cover as my TDK branded media. Exact same.

Are you saying that you have gray bottom TDK's that are CMC? In another thread in this forum :TDK +/- at Staples 25pk Spindle for $24.94
It seems that the gray spindles are not CMC. As for the gray vs black, it does seem that it's carrying over to other brands as well. I've read many posts in this forum about black spindle Memorex that are CMC as well, while the gray's are RICOHJPNR01. The disc's that I'm referring to are all +R X4.

[Kingnog]

I am just so paranoid after reading everyone's posts about CMC that one day I'll wake up and find that none of these disks will work.

Oh no! It's the end of the world! What are you going to do now?

[jlc_38]

Quote:
I am just so paranoid after reading everyone's posts about CMC that one day I'll wake up and find that none of these disks will work.


Oh no! It's the end of the world! What are you going to do now?

He has a very valid point. If you spend a lot of time right here in this forum, you'll get so confused that you'll start to think that there's no good media left. In one thread you can read 20 different opinions about the same brand. I'm going through the same thing being new to all of this and coming here to learn. I'm finally getting it figured out but it's been very confusing. What I can't stop thinking about is the majority of people never know the differences. They have no clue what MMC.CMC,Ritek, or any of the others mean. So when ever I start to get bogged down I just remember that I could just be dumb about all this and live my life in happy bliss

[crashnburn]

Don't rely on what people say about CMC. They say it suck because maybe that had a bad batch or user error. I say it good because I have no problem with it so far. Who cares what people say, buy and test it out for yourself instead of being paranoid about the negative comments. For me I will continue to buy only the CMC and hope everything I buy is by CMC because it burn perfectly and plays on all my DVD playa. eom

[8trackkid]

Hey Kingnog,
Yeah, my video means alot to me, as it consists of both rare footage and family videos. Time is not on my side, as many of these videos are VHS from the early 80's.
It also means my time invested per project: Capture(2hrs.) +Conversion (9 hrs.) + Authoring (1hr) + Burn/Data Error Check(1/2hr.) = 12.5 hrs/disk. I'm not doing this all to bootleg movies from my local video store.
I just appreciate the ease of being able to purchase good media at the local B&M on sale when I need it. From other posts just a few days ago, the Imation were all Ricoh, so I thought why not just go get them. I know only a few brands have the whole gray/black spindle distinction, but I still tried to check in case it held true for the Imation. I said the Imation came in the same exact type of gray spindle as the TDK branded media, so I figured it would be ok. It wasn't, and thus my post to see if anyone else knew something more about this. So give me a F...... break, or I'll start asking whether +R or -R is better, or why my 4.7GB disks only hold 4.38GB.

[lordsmurf]

Hey Kingnog,
Yeah, my video means alot to me, as it consists of both rare footage and family videos. Time is not on my side, as many of these videos are VHS from the early 80's. It also means my time invested per project: Capture(2hrs.) +Conversion (9 hrs.) + Authoring (1hr) + Burn/Data Error Check(1/2hr.) = 12.5 hrs/disk. I'm not doing this all to bootleg movies from my local video store.

For the record, this is why I ONLY use MXL (Maxell or Apple branded media) for valuable stuff. I feel the same.

[Kingnog]

I was just trying to tell you not to get so worried about material things

And since they're originally from VHS, keep a backup copy on VHS. From my experience, a VHS in storage lasts longer than a cd or DVD in storage.

[bahl]

8trackkid

I bought a similar deal a couple of weeks ago from staples. Imation DVD+R spindle in box. I was hoping they wouldn't be CMC, but they were.

Even thought they are CMC I have not had one burn or playback problem through the first 16 disks. My only complaint is they only burn at 2.4x. I can put up with the slow burns as long as they record and play without any issues.

[8trackkid]

To Lordsmurf,
Thanks for the advice on Maxell. I will be only buying good media from now on. Just too much at risk: I've seen some VHS tape deterioration after three years, as the videographer must of used the cheapest tapes available. Also got 20 year old Maxell tapes that look better than my
so-called "digital cable" does sometimes. So my masters may not always be around.
To Kingnog,
Point well taken. Yeah, I have to remind myself sometimes its more important to enjoy the moment rather than to record the memory on film.

[Faustus]

I had not heard that the spindle color helps on Imation disc. I can however vouch that a few weeks ago we were able to pick out both the +R Ricoh and -R Riteks from Verbatims at office max by getting the grey bottomed ones.

Now I can't swear its still that way but it was then.

[ebenton]

Regarding the original question: "How else do I avoid CMC's?":
There is probably no foolproof method to avoid buying CMC. Companies change with whom they contract for making disks all the time. You never know, one day TDK might get cost-conscious and start using CMC for TDK-labeled disks.
Most brick-and-mortar stores will probably give you at least a partial refund if you bring back the spindle and/or box and say you want a refund because they weren't what you expected.
Online stores, such as Meritline, have disclaimers that say their disks are non-refundable, and exchangeable only for the same item.

As far as the statement about: "They say it suck because maybe that had a bad batch or user error. I say it good because I have no problem with it so far."
The reason people are nervous about CMC is because "maybe that had a bad batch..." . People want media that is consistently good, not media that is sometimes good when you get a good batch or sometimes bad when you get a bad batch.