DVD Shrink - error playback pauses with errors

[SKiNFreak]

I have backed up several DVDs with DVDShrink 3.1. Towards the end () 1/2 to 3/4 through a movie) the film pauses and then pixelates on my DVd player. On a friends player (PC DVDROM drive) the software crashes completely and restart is required. I am not sure if this is due to the layer change and all discs are comressed with extras and superfluous soundtracks cut out. I use the Deep Analysis option.

Is this issue common? Are there workarounds? My drive is an NEC-2300a.


Thanks!

[Phil Thomas]

Soinds to me like all the classic signs of bad media .... what media are you using ?

[VicodiN]

Is it an older DVD player? I sometimes get that problem on older players.. If I stop the DVD, and fast forward to where the problem occured - it fixes itself.

Shouldnt be a layer change issue because, well, youre only burning single layer (unless you got your hands on a duel layer burner somehow)

Bad media is another possibility, but Ive never had bad media that screwed up half way thru... The only bad media Ive ever burned was bad toward the end of the film (around the edge of the disc due to bad inking).

[Phil Thomas]

I would say if his burnt dvd crashes the PC, it's gotta be bad media/bad burn.

[WILLYJO423]

Hi, you're not alone now as I started encountering some problems with my 4x Memorex Dvd-Rs after burning a movie. I tested a movie after burning by putting it in my Toshiba Dvd player (SDK-610) and it wouldn't even read the newly burned media. Sometimes it would read the dvd-r but in the middle of the movie, a chapter would start to pixelate and bummed-out altogether. Now, I'm not sure if this is a case of a very Bad Media or is there something wrong with the burning software that I use (Nero 6.302). I rip with Dvd Shrink 3.16.

That's all.

[Phil Thomas]

It's your media m8

Memorex are crap .... get yourself some Ritek G04's and you'll lose the problem.

[SKiNFreak]

My media are BULKPAQ 4.7GB DVD-R x4 speed PRINTABLE. I read good reviews on them....are they crap?

The media cause pixelation on my home DVD player (cheap Tescos £40 jobby) but actually crash a DVD-ROM software player on a laptop. The laptop isn't too old (2 years-ish).

I'm gonna try identical DVDs on DVD+R media and see if that makes it better.

[Phil Thomas]

Like I said .... try Ritek G04's ..... Bulkpaqs are known as Bulkcraps m8.

It really aint worth wasting time with cheap media. Even if you do manage to burn them, the data may disappear 6 months down the road and there's no cheapness in that.

Riteks ar known for their reliability & compatibility. I have burnt hundreds, maybe a thousand of these and wouldn't use anything less.

[SKiNFreak]

So DVDshrink doesn't have issues with removing the layer change? As long as that isn't the problem....

[cybertlc]

VERY SIMILAR problem. I had it pixelate at ONE specific scene after encoding it TWICE, and it pixelated at the SAME SPOT for about 3 seconds.

This was NOT due to the source disc being dirty as I had it copied to my hard drive with DVD Decrypter, and playing it from my hard drive gave no pixelation.

It was also NOT due to bad or cheap media, as I used high quality Memorex DVD+R media.

This is an issue within DVD SHRINK itself. The only workaround I found was to use Pinnacle Instant Copy 8 to give me a perfect copy. It's slow, but worth it!!!

[nickelzy]

It's your media m8

Memorex are crap .... get yourself some Ritek G04's and you'll lose the problem.

With all due respect, how on earth can you make such a definite conclusion? I had some problems about a month ago (stuttering, freezing, etc.) and I use Memorex DVD+r media. If I had listened to you back then, I would have discarded all my media for the wrong reason! In my case, it was NOT the crap media (as you put it), but a couple of other things that I've now changed in how I copy my movies. Since these changes, I haven't had a single problem in the last 60 or so movies that I've copied (and I'm still using Memorex DVD+r media - and I've pulled discs from 3 different spindles all bought from different sources).

My point is that, even though you may be right in your assumption that Memorex is not as good quality as other media, to make a conclusion without considering other factors is not a good idea. Too often I believe people blame one thing when it's something else that's causing their problems. What works for you may not work for me and vice versa.

[SKiNFreak]

What works for you may not work for me and vice versa.

So what should work for me and my NEC 2500A?

[nickelzy]

I think you missed my point - I nor does anyone else on this forum know for sure what will work for you since we don't have the same exact configuration and copying methods as you do. I justed wanted to point out earlier that be careful with blaming one thing (such as media) before you know for sure that this is your problem (because in my case it wasn't although many people at the time were telling me it was bad media that was the culprit). If I were you, I would just try doing one thing at a time, and see what happens. For me, when I stopped using labels, that decreased my bad copies significantly. Then when I stopped using Nero and went with CopytoDVD to burn my movies and upgraded to the newest version of DVD Shrink, I've had nothing but success! So far, my problems are behind me (and hopefully that's where they'll stay).

However, with all this being stated, my changes may not work for you because you don't use the same methods as I do. So, just try one thing at a time, and see what happens. Eventually by doing so, you'll find the answer. One thing I CAN tell you with certainty is that unfortunately there is no ONE single solution to problems copying movies (for reasons that I've already stated). So I would definitely listen to suggestions that have been given, but before making any conclusions, experiment and try some new things and see what results you get. I would wager that by doing so, you'll reach the success that you're looking for. Good luck to you!

[bransholme]

It is unlikely to be crappy media, i've had similar problems lately with the movies "Unforgiven" "The Money Pit" "Dawn of the Dead(1978 version). all tested on different media, and all three lock up at the same points(different points foe each film tho), Ive tried ripping first with dvddecrypter, i've also tried re-authoring, and removing extras, this worked with "unforgiven" but not the two others, I have two different standalone players and they both lock up at the same points again, I also tested "The Money pit" on my mates XBOX and got the same problem. It seems to be a problem wth dvdshrink, in the end I got around it by ripping with dvddecrypter and then using dvd2one to compress to one disk. try using a different tool, if you dont want to use dvd2one, try one of the other free tools out there. Dont throw your blank dvd's away just yet. Post and let us know how you get on.

[Chip718]

I had the exact same problem with my backup of School of Rock I made with DVDFab on a Imation 2x DVD-R. The backup worked flawlessly until approximately 1 minute before the end. The video became pixlated, then paused, after about 30 seconds the movie started again. I went back and watched it again and this time the movie stopped and I got an error message c13:00:00 on a Sony player. When I tried it on a Toshiba the video just paused until I hit stop. I did have the same happen on some of the backups I made with DVDShrink, but since I used DVDFab on this one it may not be a DVDShrink issue.

[Gazorgan]

I have that problem only with TDK -2x on a single player. It doesn't happen with RITEK G04's or on my APEX player. The disks test 100% in my PC. My conclusion is a DVDRW power calibration issue. It's usually at the spot the laser would change intensity when doing CAV burn.

It's a combination factor you can 'fix' by changing media/burner/player. i don't think it's shrink, it happened for me doing ISO burns with DVDDecryptor.

[SKiNFreak]

Someone mentioned labels....it's funny that all the backups that are screwed have labels on them. Is there a reason for the lables interfereing?

[nickelzy]

Check out the "Media" section of the forums on this website. There is a thread that remains at the top which discusses this issue in great length. For me, I had problems with stuttering/freezing 2/3's into my movies about 20% of the time. Once I stopped using labels (and also started using CopytoDVD instead of Nero), I haven't had a single problem that I'm aware of. I tend to think its more likely that my problems were label related rather than caused by Nero, but now things are working so if it ain't broke...

I even peeled a couple of labels off and the dvd then worked. Unfortunately this didn't work with other dvds that I peeled the label off of (I still had problems). This is what leaves me scratching my head - I really think that labels were causing the problems for me, but then why woudn't ALL my dvds that were stuttering work fine when I peel the labels off? I don't know, but like I said earlier, I no longer fool with labels and I haven't had any more problems. There are so many factors in the copying process so it's very difficult to pinpoint the true cause of your problems, but I would stay clear of labels.

What I now do instead of using labels is put my dvd's in a large 208 disc capacity case, save a picture of a poster of a movie from either movieposter.com or amazon.com to my computer, reduce the size to 4.5 x 4.5 inches in Photoshop, cut it using my paper trimmer and then stick it in front of the dvds. I like the look of this better than I did the labels anyway, and it's easier. More importantly though, I have dvds that work now all the way through - no more stuttering and freezing!

[Phil Thomas]

@ SKiNFreak

It certainly looks like labels could be your problem, but you still need to get some decent disks.
I stand by my earlier comment about Ritek G04's. Try them and see how you get on.

[Phil Thomas]

@ nickelzy

The post regarding Memorex specifically referred to dvd-r's, which is what I was replying to and I stand by my comment. DVDR+r's are generally have a little more integrity, but they are usually more expensive and would still not be my recommendation.

As a general rule 95% of playback problems are due to bad media/compatibility issues. You may manage to burn movies that will play OK on your own standalone player, but will prove to be incompatible with a whole range of other standalones.
Many people on this forum will suggest a media change first, before looking for hardware or software issues, because it's the easist and cheapest thing to eliminate from the equation and often resolves the problem.
It's a process of elimination and choosing a logical order of diagnosing the problem .... this is what most experienced users would try first, together with checking out the standalones playback capabilities.

[Chip718]

I was testing out my backup that I made with Shrink on a labeled Imation 2x DVD-R. The first episode played fine. During the middle of the second episode I noticed some pixelation and the I got a "cannot play disc" error. I took the disc out and cleaned it hoping it would solve the problem. I started watching it again and that scene played fine, but a few minutes later it happened again on a different scene, so I fast forward the disc every time it started to pixelate, which was quite a few times.

I took the same disc and played in a cheap Toshiba. It played for about 1 minute and it stopped playing by itself. I took the disc out and put it back in the player and I got an error right away. I tried ejecting and reinserting it again and I didn't have a problem.

I personally feel it is the media. I had the same problem with pixelation and the disc stopping when I bought 'Unbreakable' from Amazon.com a while ago. I have also tired Shrink, Clone, DVDFab, etc. on many differnt brands of media labeled and not, and some backups play fine while others don't. I think it is impossible to pinpoint the problem, but I would put money on the media being at fault. The funny thing is I never had a problem with cheap Starlogic media. Well, that is just my 2 cents.

[joepic]

My experience with media and labels:

The problem is media, media, media NOT the labels.

If you have a DVD that might play in a standalone and you put a label on it (my experience) says DVD will fail. I was using OptioDisc recording at 2x. Sometimes they would play OK but putting a label on killed everyone.

I have switched to Ritek G04 and record at 4x. NO PROBLEMS with labels on the DVD's on ANY standalone player I have used (or PC for that matter). I ONLY use DVD Decrypter to burn my DVD's.

Bottom line is media, media media. Buy the good stuff and your problmes will go away.

[nickelzy]

Phil Thomas -

What you say about media might very well be true. However, what I took exception to is that you made a strong conclusion of the person's problem based on very little knowledge of how he was making his copies. It's one thing to suggest using different media and it's another out right claiming as you did that media was his problem (without further investigating the problem). That's just simply not very good problem solving. And by the way, since making the changes that I've mentioned above and NOT changing my "crap media", I've tried my discs on 5 different dvd players (4 of which were different manufacturers) so I think it's pretty safe to say that my discs are now working fine and it's not just the lucky case of them now working on my dvd player only.

As for changing the media being a cheaper solution - not so in my case. I just stopped using labels and changed burning software (no extra charge there either) and presto, everything seems to be fine now. If I had of tried using different media, I would have incurred the expense of shelling out bucks for media (which as you know is not cheap!)

Joepic -

Here we go again. The problem IS NOT always media. Get off that already!! As Phil mentions, and I don't disagree with him, that in most cases this may be true, however to flat out make a blanket statement to someone that this is their problem without taking into consideration other factors is ludicrous. I can tell you from my own experience that your statement is NOT always correct because in my case, IT WAS the labels that were causing at least some of my problems (if not all). Just because you don't have a problem with labels doesn't mean that other people won't either - just read the hundreds of posts on this topic and my point will be proven. It's not that labels always give you problems, but sometimes they can. In my case, it was only about 20% of my labeled discs that were faulty. However for me, that's WAY too many considering the expense and time that goes into the copying process.

[joepic]

Joepic -

Here we go again. The problem IS NOT always media. Get off that already!! As Phil mentions, and I don't disagree with him, that in most cases this may be true, however to flat out make a blanket statement to someone that this is their problem without taking into consideration other factors is ludicrous. I can tell you from my own experience that your statement is NOT always correct because in my case, IT WAS the labels that were causing at least some of my problems (if not all). Just because you don't have a problem with labels doesn't mean that other people won't either - just read the hundreds of posts on this topic and my point will be proven. It's not that labels always give you problems, but sometimes they can. In my case, it was only about 20% of my labeled discs that were faulty. However for me, that's WAY too many considering the expense and time that goes into the copying process.

Let's go at this another way since you seem to be missing the issue (problem), MEDIA in 90% of the time. Of course you MUST be using the latest version of DVD Shrink 3.1.7 as there were issues with drop outs in earler versions.


Have you every used the program DVDINFOPro™ ( http://www.dvdinfopro.com/
) to check out your DVD's? I believe it is the RPM test that you need to try. When you run the test (and have questionable media) you will see the RPM's drop at the point of read problems. Typically this is at the 80 - 90 % complete area of the DVD. This test takes a little time to complete but it is worth it to get a visual idea of the quality of your media. I am sure there are other programs that can do the same test.

For a quicker test of your media, I like to use PowerDVD to play back the completed DVD in the DVD ROM reader not the burner ( if you only have a burner then use it). Use the SLIDER BAR located at the top of the control panel to position the play back in different locations on the DVD. Go from the start of the movie to the last 80 -90 % area and back again. Any hang ups is caused by MEDIA.

I always use DVD Decrypter to burn my DVD's. So I always have a .ISO file that DVD Decrypter uses. I use DAEMON TOOLS to mount the .ISO and do the same procedure described above to prove that the movie is OK (not a DVD Shrink problem). This leaves only two main items that are failing, MEDIA or burner. On rare occasions you might have a software confict that is causing a problem.

Now YOU do these test and tell us your results!

MEDIA, MEDIA and MEDIA

[Vejita-sama]

You know it's really hard to say what the problem is. I personal use princo 4x media for most things and have not had a single problem. Some of the stuff I burned (princo 1x) is over 3 years old and still working fine. Then other people have princo discs fall apart after a few months, m8 sucks, etc. etc.

I think that DVD Shrink doesn't like certain discs. Since a new verison just came out give it a try but you might never figure out what the problem is. IC is another choice, or if you've got the time re-encode then re-author. That results in the best quaility backup.

[nickelzy]

Joe - I don't really think I'm missing anything and instead, I believe you're missing my point. I understand what you and Phil are saying about the media and the importance of it. And yes, I use DVDInfoPro to check my media. But back to the issue - my point was not that media isn't the problem in most cases - and if you want to claim that 90% of the time this is the case (then fine, I'll go with that even though I don't know how you can accurately come up with such a figure - but that's fine) but instead that making the statement like you did...

The problem is media, media, media NOT the labels.

is greatly overlooking other possible causes. In addition, lots of people on this forum including me, would disagree with you about labels not sometimes causing problems.

Bottom line is that you are correct about media being a HUGE factor in the success of your movie duplication. However, my point to you and Phil is to be careful in jumping to conclusions (with such authority) before you know more about a persons problem.

[joepic]

Bottom line is that you are correct about media being a HUGE factor in the success of your movie duplication. However, my point to you and Phil is to be careful in jumping to conclusions (with such authority) before you know more about a persons problem.

My bottom line:

Try the Ritek G04 ( this is my MEDIA of choice today) media with labels. Try YOUR media with labels. Do the above test and publish YOUR results.

I am looking forward to seeing your results

[nickelzy]

Joe -

I'm not going to get into a pissing contest with you. You're missing the point and I don't think a sledghammer to your head would probably help. As for looking forward to seeing my results - why?? Everything is working great for me now. I would understand wanting to see my results if I was the person who was having problems, but I'm not. You must be confusing me with the person who started this thread.

Maybe you're just not happy that I'm using Memorex DVD+R media and am having great results. In the last 60 or so dvd's that I've copied, I haven't had a single problem. Now that doesn't mean I won't encounter one later. However for now, suggesting that I change my media when all is good would be ridiculous (and I don't mean to imply that you would suggest that). If I do encounter any problems in the future that seem to be media related, I will definitely make a switch (perhaps to Ritek). But for now, I'll keep smilin so long as my movie copying goes like it has the last 3 weeks or so.

[dbarry]

Hello I’m new here,
I was going along happily burning DVD’s using DVDShrink and Nero, now I can’t burn crap. I even tried using CloneDVD or Roxio on 2 different machines and the same thing seems to happen. I get near the end and the burn either fails or the movie’s ending locks up. I even tired going back to DVDXcopy and I still crap out and error near the ends of the disks. The forums point at bad media but I have tried Verbatim DVD+R, Phillips DVD+R, and a no name –R discount bundle I bought on the Internet because it was printable. I had burned like maybe 20 movies on the discount –R media without any problems and now I can’t seem to burn to crap.
I just bought another new multi-format burner for one of the PC’s and it does the same thing. I’m going to buy a batch of Ritek DVD-R’s online and give them a try, but wanted to know if any of you had any thing else to add…?
Thanks

[Phil Thomas]

@ nickelzy

I repeat again, the post regarding Memorex specifically referred to dvd-r's, and this is what I was replying to.
You are using Memorex dvd+r's, which have a totally different burn strategy, therefore you cannot liken your situation to that of the original poster.

I have over 18 months experience of burning dvdr's, both + and - formats and post regularly on many on-line forums.
Consequently my comments were based on knowledge of others who had experienced specific problems with Memorex dvd-r's.
Similarly I commented in the same manner regardong Bulkpaqs, when mentioned by another poster, as these are also known to be troublesome.

You keep referring to your own situation, which is not comparable and is not the issue here. It turns out that the original poster seems to have a label issue, but it remains to be seen whether his Memorex dvd-r's will work for him, without the labels and if they do, whether they will be compatible with his standalone player(s).

Clearly there are all manner of possibilities, when playback problems occur, but as mentioned more than once, media is very often the main culprit. It is not possible to check every aspect of every user's hardware, software etc., so the best normally that can be done, is to suggest a number of things to try and media is the first thing to eliminate, because this is simple and not expensive.
If this doesn't resolve the problem, then further things would obviously be suggested by forum members, but it would not be logical or good problem solving, to suggest hardware or software changes, before eliminating media.
I really cant see what your problem is here, but this will be my last word on the subject, so hopefully you will now understand my logic.