Media Issues - What is Genuine? - PERIOD

[vettesea]

I realise that this question is rather impossible to answer, however I shall ask and see what response I get.

Money really is not the issue here, I have bought two types of media (one I now know to be crap and the other was a Ritek Orange top DVD-R). Now the issue is that my movies end to start jumping towards the end, I realsie this is a common problem. With the Ritek I manage to resolve this by burning at a slower 2x. However, I thought I had it cracked with the Ritek until I noticed that there was clearly a label placed on top of the original disk. I can make out the DVD symbol and writing guide lines on the disk below the Orange surface.

Are these disks the same as the orange tops people talk about. I ran the DVD Info tool that LordSmurf recomends and it claims the manufacture code is indeed RITEK G4. So, why can I not burn reliably at 4x (my burner is SONY DWU-14A.) Is this media any good? If it is not then I am concerned that there are very few places in the UK that will sell spindles of good brand DVD's.

Ultimately I just want to know that the media I have is the real deal, then i can look to the burner to solve the jumping problem. (I have posted a query about upgrading firmware on the SONY to the 510A version).

[lordsmurf]

Sounds fake to me. The real RITEKG4 orange discs are screened, not stickers or labels.

The biggest issues are "where did they come from" ?

If from RIMA or a verified trustworthy distributor, then they would be real most likely (unless the place also got duped, which has happened). Using RIMA as a specific example, they buy direct from Ritek, so fat chance of them getting duped.

Everything can be faked, media ID, labels, etc... this is why it becomes important to buy from trustworthy places.

[vettesea]

Firstly, thanks for an exellent web site, I have found it very usefull.

That is what I thought, when they arrived. Arround the rim of the surface label it states "Made by Ritek Taiwan". I know that you said Taiwan was bad, but I was not to know that they are until they arrived. When I used the DVDInfo tool i thought maybe I was OK. However, it is certainly a sticker on top of original surface (very well done mind you) and the dye is purple.

I am buying from the UK. It is a good site so i was a little surprised (www.scan.co.uk). Do you know of / heard of any realiable UK sites, I am happy to pay a little more to get genuine articles. How can I know before purchase?

[lordsmurf]

Ritek is the main exception of the Taiwan rule. They are a mostly Taiwanese company (in terms of the blanks production factories).

UK is across the Pacific for me... a long swim away... so I'm not too much of a help for shopping tips outside the USA.

[hech54]

I was given the links to the following places by a "poster" on dvdplusrw.org. He says he has never had any problems with media from these companies:
http://www.blankdiscshop.co.uk/acatalog/copy_of_FOR_DVD_R_RW_CLICK_HERE.html

These guys are in California...haven't checked their shipping policy yet:
http://www.netsoftmedia.com/

Also check one that I MAY purchase from....the company below is in the U.K. but will ship to me here in Germany:
http://www.ketta.com/catalog/default.php?language=en

[vettesea]

OK, that is good to know. However they probably are still dodgy disks I would imagine.

Yes, I thought that may be case!! Worth asking though!

[vettesea]

My last post was in reply to Lordsmurf.

Hech54, many thanks for your input, I will look into those websites.

[garryheather]

It sounds like you have bought overprints - they're usually OK, but have been handled at least twice before you got them.

An overprint usually means the manufacturer made the discs, which was then printed on (usually by someone else) but that print was flawed for some reason. For example, it says 4x on it when it should have been 2x, or the spelling was wrong, or even the labels printed off center so they couldn't sell them as A1.

So, they go back to the printers, where another label is applied over the top of it to hide the mistake. They are then sold off cheaply and therefore not a total loss.

Generally speaking, overprints are OK, but they may not be as clean, for example. You should expect fingerprints, light scratches, etc.

If you are not happy with them and did buy them from SVP, then send them back. They warranty their discs unless otherwise stated (like the B Grade DVD-R's they had a while back, which were clearly advertised as NOT being warrantied).

SVP are a good company and probably would exchange them, but you might be expecting too much if you buy overprints. You certainly should not expect a premium product.

[vettesea]

Cheers for that Garry

I just had a quick look at the website (www.scan.co.uk) and they do not have the ones i bought (not a good sign) however they talk alot about their disks being Branded (as is what they said for mine), is this a similar thing to overprints. Although I have seen reference to overprints on other sites.

I think that I will go for the white Ritek 4x DVD-R Inkjet printable ones on the SVP webite. At least these claim to be neither Branded or Overprints. I find it strange that there is no real official seal of approval and that you simply take the word of the seller that what they are selling is what they say. Although having read previous discussions on these Forums perhaps that is just impossible.

[vettesea]

Ignore, just realised you can edit previous posts.

[garryheather]

Overprints can be knocked up by anyone - hell, I could buy a load of blanks and get my local printers to silk screen them and have my own "brand" if I wanted.

Don't confuse brands with manufacturer.

Ritek Overprints for example would be made by Ritek, but rebadged by another company, like Traxdata or DataSafe. An overprint will have gone through this procedure twice. They didn't actually make the disc, only pay for their logo to be applied. They buy cheap and in mega bulk, then charge a bit extra to cover their costs and make a bit of profit too.

Dig out your copy of DVD Info Pro - that will read the media code on the disc and tell you who really made it... so long as it isn't faked like the infamous Princo / TDK fiasco - and try it on some other discs and see what you get. You were lucky to get Ritek manufactured discs with Ritek printed on them, that is rarely the case as Ritek are quite commonly used by some of the better "no-name" brands. For example: beg, steal (only kidding) or borrow (but for God's sake, don't BUY) a Bulkpaq, and see who made that. It will probably be Optodisc or Princo, both of which can make good media, but often tend not to. Companies like this get a bad name through other people. They didn't make the disc but they do put their name to it.

Personally I don't trust overprints, and you don't usually save a lot of cash buying them. However, some are unusual (I had some once that looked like an explosion in a paint factory) and can be real bargains if you don't mind their appearance. Bear in mind that the legend on the top will be a little thicker than the norm because of the extra density, so if you find applying labels buggers up your playback, overprints may not be for you.

In short, anyone can get "branded" discs made up. You want to look for the real manufacturer because branded could (and often does) mean ANYTHING. You could buy two boxes of say Memorex and find each box contained discs by a different manufacturer. They may look identical, but that does not mean they will perform identically.

Another example - McDonald's don't make cows. But they do process them when they make their burgers. In fact, several companies make burgers for McDonalds... so Maccy D are in a way "overprinting" burgers !

[vettesea]

OK, that all makes sense, good analogy.

So, do you purchase from SVP, and if so what set brand do you get. I realise that this is not a guarantee but it is a start.

[garryheather]

Do I buy from SVP ? Hell, if I don't get a Christmas card from those guys this year I'll be very upset !!

First of all, I'm biased by my media. I have a Sony DVD player that is a real pig when it comes to media. So my definition of good media is a disc that plays properly from the very start to the very, very end without problems on my lovely but very fickle Sony.

Therefore, from SVP's current range, I would recommend:

The white topped DataSafe Riteks - the G03's are bargains.
The white topped Datasafe Riteks - the G04's are good disks and rated that bit faster
The Ridisk... Ritek's "brand", so you know these will be good, they've put their own name to them !
Mirror / Eclipse Platinum - the AN31 is VERY compatible with my deck. Bargain price, too. NO GOOD FOR THE NEC's though !! You have been warned !
Nan-ya - Hell, these discs are good IMO. A rank outsider showing the big boys how it should be done.
Datawrite Classic with the PRODISC ID - Prodisc made e-Proformance discs which worked well, BUT I can NOT vouch for the current CG02 variant.

There you go, that should get you going. May I suggest you get one of their sample packs before commiting to a larger quantity ? I would say that would be a very wise investment.

Don't forget, SVP - Christmas card !!

[vettesea]

Thanks for all your assitance with this Garry.

I am new to this Forum and like the website it appears it is going to be a great source of knowledge and information.

Thanks a gain to everyone who has replied on this topic.