I'm confused by different kinds of the same disc ID

[JohnnyBob]

I want to buy samples of different kinds of single layer blank DVD discs to test with my many burners and DVD players. For example, I've been using TYG03 (16x Taiyo Yuden) and want to try some TYG02 (8x Taiyo Yuden) to see if they have better compatibility with some of my standalone DVD players. The TYG03 work pretty well in general, but give occasional freezes and skips during playback - sometimes, it's not reproducible. In any case I want to stock samples of different kinds of discs to try with whatever drives and players I'm currently using. That includes TYG02, as well as +R and -R Verbatim. I've never tried single layer Verbatims. The confusion arises because of different kinds of these same discs. Which are the best quality? Which are the worst quality? Etc.

TYG02 - Some are "Value Line" and some are "Premium". Some are silver laquer finish, some are white injet printable. Some are thermal finish, some aren't. Which of those is the best/worst? Does it make any difference where they're manufactured? I also saw a note somewhere that their name is being changed to JVC. Is that a factor? Will the real, best TYG02's please stand up?

Verbatim +R and -R - Should I get the 8x or 16x? I don't care about the speed difference. I just want to know if one kind is more compatible with a wide variety of burners/players than the other? Also there are branded and non-branded varieties, does that matter? And does the country of manufacture matter? Etc. Will the real, best Verbatims please stand up?

Source - I've compared a lot of sources and am thinking about buying from MediaMegaMall because they have a better selection, the best prices, and the best website for ordering IMHO. A negative is their relatively high shipping fees. But I'm not in a big hurry, and wonder if any specials are available, now or in the future(?). I'll probably go for 50 disc cakeboxes if available, otherwise 100's. [No tapewrapped packages, please, it's too much trouble to unpack them.]

Thanks.

[minidv2dvd]

ty - stay away from the valueline - they are seconds.

verbatim - luck of the draw, they have multiple factories in several countries. best are probably singapore, then taiwan, last india.

i use meritline for t.y. newegg or buy.com for verbatim, coupons for under $20/100 with free shipping every couple months.

[samijubal]

I've yet to have any problems with Verbatim discs, MIT or MII. I don't use DL discs so I don't know about Singapore.

I have seen a lot of value TYs with spots, scratches, chips, etc. I haven't used them in a long time and won't ever use them again.

[orsetto]

TY "value line" factory seconds are a poor value when you can get the certified premium TY for just a couple bucks more. TY specializes in -R single layer media, and their best stuff is the TYG02 Premium Silver Lacquer 8x DVD-R. This is the easiest media in the world to burn, and is broadly compatible with most playback hardware. If you need inkjet media, get the TY Premium 8x inkjet. There is absolutely no point whatever in buying TY 16x media: it isn't as good as their superb 8x, and if you're a PC burning speedfreak storebought Verbatim 16x media is more convenient anyway.

Verbatim DataLife 8x DVD-R is equal to or perhaps slightly superior to TY 8x Premium, but 8x Verbs are now very difficult to find and twice the price of TY due to scarcity. Its worth buying as a secondary safety backup for important recordings, but for most users the TY makes more sense economically. The Verbatim 8x may or may not be slightly more hardware-compatible than the TY: its a wash between them. Most stutters and playback issues are caused by aging hardware: dvd players older than four years should be replaced if they have trouble with TY or Verbatim 8x. Playback issues can also result from poor burning ability in your PC or recorder: some do not burn 16x media as well as they do 8x. The laser power required for 8x burning is lower than for 16x. Verbatim 16x single layer, either +R or -R, is about the best 16x media you can buy. But compatibility across burners and recorders varies from batch to batch: it usually works well in PC burners but can be spotty in standalone DVD recorders more than two years old.

Supermediastore is the cheapest consistent vendor of TY premium. They often have great sales priced at $25/100 including free shipping. Unfortunately it is true that the mind-bogglingly inept JVC recently crept into bed with TY, and soon all TY media will be labeled JVC. JVC will probably wreck TY the way JVC wrecked everything else its ever touched: if you want TY Premium 8x, buy it up now before JVC has a chance to contaminate it.

[lordsmurf]

A number of these questions are answered in posts here:
http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/forumdisplay.php/blank-media-19.html

DVD-R over DVD+R for playability, slight advantage
TY Value is getting a bad rap, the media is fine. A TY second is better than most everybody else's firsts.
MediaMegaMall is good, as is SMS, Meritline, Rima, Amazon and GotMedia

[jman98]

Verbatim DataLife 8x DVD-R is equal to or perhaps slightly superior to TY 8x Premium, but 8x Verbs are now very difficult to find and twice the price of TY due to scarcity.

The DataLifePlus series (your post missed the "Plus" in the name) is easy to find. rima.com, supermediastore.com and others have them. The DVD+R and DVD-R DataLifePlus discs are all 8x and are only made in Taiwan by one of Verbatim's best manufacturing plants.

orsetto's post also references the TY Premium 8x inkjet media, but if you want printable media the Watershield line of TY DVD-R discs has been great for me.

[bbanderic]

I'm a huge supporter of the 8x DVD+R Taiyo Yudens (premium line) , the best media I've come across, flawless perfection for me. The 8x -R's are great as well.

Unless you're going to print on the discs, you don't need the white inkjet printables, you're just going to pay more money for something you don't need. The quality on the printable and non-printables are going to be the same. The silver lacquer's will be the cheapest. I recommend Rima.com for the TY's, they only sell the premium line:

http://www.rima.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=R&Category_Code=TAIYOYUDEN

I know Verbatims are good but they're made in so many different places, under different names, that unless you do your homework you're not exactly 100% sure what you're getting so I don't bother with them. The TY's are made in Japan, period, you know exactly what you're getting.

The TYGO3's that you're using now are very good, not sure why you're getting freezes and skips during playback but it's most likely not the media. It could be a lot of things, your player, hardware, software (use ImgBurn for ALL DVD burning for best results) or depending on the speed you're burning at maybe you need to slow it down to 8x or even 4x.

[Gen-An]

Don't forget about TY made in Japan but "packaged" in China. TY hasn't exactly been open about what that exactly means, but people have noticed differences in quality. You only see that indicator on the boxes of spindles so there really isn't a way to tell unless you have a local media seller that can check its stock while you're in the store.