What type of discs do the big film companies use?

[boing]

Simple question, but maybe requiring a complex answer?

As part of my journey learning all I can about the mind bending game of domestic DVD production, I find myself regularly pondering a few questions, one of which is concerned with the differences between the materials available to the home/domestic user, and those as used by Hollywood type studios, and thus the subsequent 'success rate' (or lack thereoff) of home produced DVD's (compatibility issues etc)

In what way are the discs you find inside commercial/hollywood DVD releases different to the films burnt at home using top flight domestic blank DVDs by companies such as Taiyo Yuden et al

Do they used the same dye, are they burnt in a mass produced way? or is there a different method used for commercial products?

Fundamentally, I am trying to elucidate why it doesnt seem possible to produce 1000 domestic discs that play on all DVD players without a hiccup, but if one was to buy 1000 commercial films, the 'plays fine' rate would be far higher (perhaps with zero hiccups) why is this?

What do the top DVD producers do differently?

[edDV]

They use press technology not DVDR.

It is a completely different process.

[boing]

They use press technology not DVDR.

It is a completely different process.

I figured that might be the case, do you have any details?

[classfour]

Commercial DVDs are pressed (like a music CD or software CD) and are uniform as long as the die maintains integrity.

Burned DVDs are just that: Burned
And subject to variances in tolerances between the drive, it's moving parts, and the quality and consistency of the media, including the dye layer (just under the label) and plastic layer at the bottom of the disc.

[boing]

I take it that a domestic pressing machine doesnt yet exist then?

[lordsmurf]

You can pay for a press run. Usually there is a minimum of 500-1000 discs. The same disc, that is. www.newcyberian.com is one such vendor.

[SLK001]

Commercial DVDs are pressed (like a music CD or software CD) and are uniform as long as the die maintains integrity.

There is no dye in a commercial DVD.

[SLK001]

... including the dye layer (just under the label)...

Not to pick on classfour, but on a DVD (and a DVD-/+R) the dye layer (or metal layer, for a pressed disc) is not just under the label. It is sandwiched between two plastic discs to give them more protection from scratches. For a CD, it is just under the label. The DVD standards committee recognized the vulnerability of the CD metalization layer being just under the label, and took positive measures to address this.

[Marvingj]

This is what the DVD replication machine looks like....

[boing]

This is what the DVD replication machine looks like....

Hmm, dont think thats going to fit in the study :/

On that note, why are so many bootleg DVD's crap quality? do these facilities cost WAY too much? I mean, in the world of fake pharmaceuticals, the ampule and tablet making machines cost about £50,000 but a lot of counterfeiters obtain them

Or have some DVD bootleggers, after being busted, been caught in possession of some quality manufacturing equipment like that pitctured?

[edong]

Commercial DVDs are pressed (like a music CD or software CD) and are uniform as long as the die maintains integrity.

There is no dye in a commercial DVD.

He wrote "die"

[Maestro Mister]

Commercial DVDs are pressed (like a music CD or software CD) and are uniform as long as the die maintains integrity.

There is no dye in a commercial DVD.

He wrote "die"

I think s/he (they) meant "die" as in tool and die maker, not "dye" as in How do you like my tie dye t-shirt.

[thecoalman]

On that note, why are so many bootleg DVD's crap quality?

Guess that depends on the source but there's no reason a pirated version couldn't be an exact duplicate of the original. The only limitation they have is the pressing facility because any legitimate business isn't going to touch it, AFAIK most pressed pirated copies are coming from overseas. As far as the ones in the US using duplicators they like any other "businessman" want to protect their bottom line and buy cheap media to burn... it's not as if they need to maintain strict quality control like a legitimate business because of returns.

[jman98]

boing - Are you 5 years old? Because it's really starting to seem like an endless series of "Daddy why is ...?" questions from you.

Bootlegs are often crap quality because they get made as quickly as possible, not as correctly as possible. With a commercial DVD, if they botch it (and I've known of some production runs that were botched), they have to replace it and that money comes out of their pocket. If you get a bad bootleg DVD from that dealer in the Night Market in some Asian town, do you think that the dealer is going to take it back? I don't. They just press discs as quickly as possible to make as much money as possible. Somebody buys a commercial DVD, squeezes it down to 1 layer if necessary, produces some sort of master, and then it gets duplicated. A guy gave me a DVD he bought somewhere in Malaysia of an old Jet Li movie and although it is pressed, it is definitely a bootleg. The field order is wrong in the disc and I know no legitimate company would ever release a disc like this.

I read about some bootleggers in Shanghai who got busted and I think they did have replication equipment like in the photo. I've heard of CD bootleggers in the USA getting busted with CD replication equipment, probably similar to what we see in that photo.

[oldandinthe way]

Some bootlegs look like crap because the source is crap.

Bootlegs of some recent movies (not already out on DVD) are camcorder images taken in a theatre.

[filmboss80]

The link below offers a simple explanation to the differences in DVD replication and duplication:

http://www.history2u.com/DVD_manufacturing_process.htm

It's a good place to begin...

[akrako1]

I've seen a bootleg or two... and was surprised that the movie didn't even fill up the whole disc! The movie was at a horrible bitrate, and only about 1.5 GB. Why would you want to waste the whole rest of the disc? Maybe to save time while burning, but these were pressed - and I thought that it takes the same time to press each disc, regardless of data size (correct?). Just jerks trying to make money, that don't really know/care about quality.

[SCDVD]

Stamping and pressing are two terms that are often used but they aren't accurate terms. The discs are injected molded. Here is a brief description of the process.

Injection molding is the process used to form the plastic substrates of CDs and DVDs. Raw plastic is fed into the machine in the form of small granules or pellets. The plastic enters a barrel where a screw moves the plastic forward and applies an increasing amount of pressure while heating and melting the plastic. The screw turns on each backstroke, pushing molten plastic in front of it. When the mold closes, the screw pushes forward during the injection stroke, forcing liquid plastic through a nozzle into the mold cavity. With DVD molding, the cavity is 120 mm. in diameter, and only 0.6 mm thick. On one side of the cavity, the mold holds a metal stamper, which has the pattern of pits (for pre-recorded discs), or grooves (for recordable media). The mold stays closed for a few seconds, while the plastic cools and hardens. The plastic enters the mold at around 350 degrees Celsius, but the mold is a large block of metal with water cooling, held at a temperature of roughly 95 degrees Celsius. The mold opens and the disc substrate is removed by a robotic take-out arm. The small center section of the molded substrate is discarded, leaving a 15 mm diameter center hole.

Sometimes erroneously referred to as "stamping". Even though the process uses a stamper, it is commonly referred to in the disc replication business as injection molding, or simply, molding.

[rijir2001]

There is a show called "How its Made" and they had an episode where they showed the whole process of making a CD/DVD. It was quite interesting to see.

[Maestro Mister]

If you get a bad bootleg DVD from that dealer in the Night Market in some Asian town, do you think that the dealer is going to take it back? I don't.

I don't either.