Quality of Dual Layer

[standish]

Sorry to ask so basic a question but I have been searching the forum and haven't been able to find an answer to the question Is the quality on a dual layer disc any better then a single layer disc? Can you guys tell the difference when you are viewing one vs the other.

Appreciate your answer

[rr6966]

Right now the only DL DVD+R's that I like are the Verbatim's which burn at 4x on my Pioneer 108.

[arrived03]

it all depends on the size of the original file , most movies fit on a 4.7G disk without compression if you remove all the extra languages & special features.

[Skith]

If your talking about the quality of the actual media, single layer (DVD +/- R) is more reliable (less coasters), and cheaper. DVD+R DL discs have not been around very long, and manufacturers have not perfected thier creation process. This leads to lower quality (less yield), availability, and higher prices.

Simply put, your success with DVD+R DL may vary, and require expirementation to succeed. It may well be cheaper to buy a second copy of that $15.99 DVD if a DL disc is required.

[lordsmurf]

The general concensus is: NO!
Expensive, higher coaster rate, and compatibility issues abound.

It's not perfected yet. Feel free to dabble, but do not go in expecting awesome results.

[SaSi]

Dual layer is great for storing data (!!). 8.5Gb on a single disk and my backup archive can be a lot more compact now. However, lot's of DVD-ROM drives on PCs still can't read DL media (same like +R and RW media in the past). I cannot even begin to imagine what it would be like to try a DL DVD-VIDEO on my DVD player.

[standish]

Thanks for all the answers on this.

More specifically if evrything is equal and the compatability issues are resolved and I have a set top palyer that will play DL, a burner that will burn DL, I'm using the right media, the file is under 4GB and I use material from a mini-dv tape transferred to a pc.
Is there a difference in the quality of the viewing experience between the two?

[lenti_75]

NO

[Mawdryn]

Most of the replies here don't really answer your original basic question (in my opinion). Back to the original question: is the quality better on a dual layer disc than a single?

Setting aside compatibility issues for the moment, the simple answer is yes, if the original is dual layer. If the original disk is single layer, then a single layer copy will have the same quality as the original. Making a dual layer copy of a single layer original would be a waste of money, and would not gain anything. To make a single layer copy of a dual layer original, you have to either remove content or compress the video, or both. DVD Shrink can do both of those things. If you remove enough content that the copy can be made without compression, then the quality of the single layer copy will be just as good as the original. If you have to compress the video, there will be some loss of quality. The more it has to be compressed, the more the quality suffers. This is where a dual layer copy is better. A dual layer copy of a dual layer disk will have exactly the same quality as the original.

That being said, there are serious compatibility concerns that the others have mentioned. I have been very fortunate with my dual layer experiences so far. I've burned 20-30 disks and they all work perfectly for me. I have not yet had the pleasure of burning a $10 coaster. Others have not been so lucky. I think the only way to find out if dual layer works for you is to try one yourself on your equipment. They work great for me, but a dual layer disk that works perfectly for me won't do you any good if it doesn't work on your player.

I prefer the Verbatims over the Riteks because one of my players (a Philips 642) has trouble occasionally playing back Riteks. (Even with the same exact disk, sometimes it will play and sometimes not. They always play fine on my other players.) Verbatims also burn at 4x on my Pioneer 108.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

[standish]

Thanks Mawdryn for your detailed response.

The issue for me isn't making copies of previously encoded discs but creating dual layer DVDs from material I shoot on my digital camcorder.

Can you help me understand why say for example a 1 hour mini-dv tape that usually takes up about half the space on a single layer disc would result in a lower quality viewing experience then the same material, compressed at the same bitrate, viewed on a dual layer disc?

[mrswla]

Can you help me understand why say for example a 1 hour mini-dv tape that usually takes up about half the space on a single layer disc would result in a lower quality viewing experience then the same material, compressed at the same bitrate, viewed on a dual layer disc?

It will not result in a lower quality viewing experience. If you are only burning approx half the space on a single layer disc (2.35g), then you should stick with single layer disks! If you use dual layer discs you will be wasting a lot of space, approx. 6g...

[Mawdryn]

Can you help me understand why say for example a 1 hour mini-dv tape that usually takes up about half the space on a single layer disc would result in a lower quality viewing experience then the same material, compressed at the same bitrate, viewed on a dual layer disc?

Nothing would be gained by putting such a video on a dual layer disk. The only time dual layer will be better is when the original file(s) is too big to fit on a single sided disk. If you have to compress the video (re-encode at a lower bit rate), you will lose some quality. How much loss depends on how much you have to compress.

I'd stick with single layer disks for what you're talking about, unless you absolutely have to put more than about 2 hours on 1 disk. They are much cheaper and a lot more compatible. Use high quality media though, especially if this is original content that can't be easily replaced.

[ice-berg]

ive stumbled upon some maxell's DL DVD+R while surfing the net. apparently these discs are sold only in japan for now. i'd surely like to know how these discs fair though. anyone from japan?

[bluemoss]

I as well.

[Gen-An]

They're just rebranded Mitsubishi Double Layer discs.