DVD Burning on PC - Skips in Playback

[opieandy]

DVDs I burn on my PC sometimes have sections that skip during playback in various DVD players in my home (three different players all skip in the same spots, so the issue doesn't seem to be with the player). The video will freeze momentarily and then skip ahead 5-10 seconds. Some DVDs might not have any skips, most have several skips, and occasionally there are many skips batched close together.

I'm running XP Pro on a 2GB RAM machine.

Are there best practices to avoid this? Can other programs running on the PC interfere with the burn process?

I have tried closing programs and not using the PC while burning, but it hasn't seemed to solve the issue, and I can't find a pattern to why some DVDs burn better than others. I'm using Maxell DVD-Rs that I have burned hundreds of successfully on my Philips 3575HDD burner, never had an issue. I understand different media might work differently on different components, so maybe trying different media will help even though the Maxells work fine on my Philips.

So I've got only two ideas:

1 - close all programs except DVD burner
2 - try different brands of DVD media

Is #1 even helpful? Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks,

Chris

[fritzi93]

A few more possibilities:

3) Try a slower burn speed.
4) Maybe the burner is on its way out?
5) Does your computer need some maintenance, i.e. defrag, registry cleaning?
6) What is the MID (actual manufacturer). IMGBurn can tell you this. You may have crap media and have just been lucky so far.

As to #1, given your computer specs, you should do that anyway.

Good luck.

[opieandy]

Thanks, Fritzi. I am using WinX DVD Author and have it set to the lowest speed (highest quality). The burner is not very old and has not been used until now. I run a program that cleans registry, temp, startup, etc, every week, but have not done a defrag in a while so will give that a try. Media seems OK but I am going to try some different brands.

Thanks, appreciate your thoughts and ideas on this.

Chris

[fritzi93]

I'm not familiar with WinX DVD Author, are you burning with that? The usual advice here is to use *only* ImgBurn for burning DVD-Video.

[guns1inger]

The lowest speed for authoring has nothing to do with burning and won't fix your problem. Lowest speed for authoring generally means higher quality video encoding, which is a good thing, but the burning stage is totally separate.

I second fritzi93's recommendation of Imgburn fopr burning, and suggest you get verbatim or TY discs.

[opieandy]

Thanks, guys. I tried several different methods before I bought WinX DVD Author. Imgburn was one of the first I tried, and it's been awhile (I gave up on burning for about a year before recently trying again). Is it an all-in-one program? My recollection is that you need Imgburn plus another program, perhaps one does the prelim work (vob files or whatever) and the other actually burns? If all else fails, I could give it another shot, I just recall that I couldn't get it to work and couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. WinX DVD Author is very easy to use, and sometimes produces perfect discs, which leads me to believe it's not the software, and it has been reviewed online by a reasonable number of users.

I just ordered a batch of premium TY discs, so we'll give that a shot. If anyone can refer me to an idiot's guide to using imgburn, I'll give that a look too.

Thanks again,

Chris

[guns1inger]

Imgburn burns discs. That is all it does, and it does it very well (OK, it can also create disc images). You have to author the video into a DVD format first - video_TS or an ISO image - so that Imgburn has something to burn.

[opieandy]

Thanks, guns1inger, that's what I thought I remembered. WinX DVD Author does it all (author and burn) with a few clicks, so very easy to use. I'm going to try the TY discs, and making sure all other apps are closed, and system is clean, and see if that works first, and if not, re-try imgburn and whatever authoring app I had previously d/l'd. Appreciate the help.

[JohnnyBob]

I would bet it's the media and recommend Verbatim. I've tried TY too but Verbatim is more compatible with standalone DVD players in my experience.

[stackner]

I use a lot of different media and a lot of different apps (to author only) however i ONLY use imgburn to actually burn my dvds (and now blu-rays). In doing this i have no problems with playback on about 8 different dvd players and 3 different blu-ray players.

[opieandy]

Thanks, guys. I used Verbatim for awhile for my Philips 3575 HDD recorder, but then had 2 batches in a row with immediate failures (like 5-6 in a row off the top), so quit using them. However, they may work just fine with the PC so will give them a shot if the TY don't work. Failing that, will try imgburn. Thanks again.

[pratikpatel101]

Thanks, guys. I used Verbatim for awhile for my Philips 3575 HDD recorder, but then had 2 batches in a row with immediate failures (like 5-6 in a row off the top), so quit using them. However, they may work just fine with the PC so will give them a shot if the TY don't work. Failing that, will try imgburn. Thanks again.

I also have same problem. I used TY media to burn, at slower rate. Burner is Samsung SATA Superdrive, which I got 2 months back.

My machine specs:
E6600 Dual Core
3GB RAM
600GB HDD
DG965WH MOBO

I tries with ImageBurn, Nero 6, DVD Shrink, AnyDVD. So far have burned about 10 movies on TY media, all run good until 3/4 time and then skips or Froze. I tried on SHARP and Philips DVD players and is same.

Help me ,

-Pratik

[opieandy]

UDPATE
I have tried a couple of different things over the last 10 days or so.

1. Burning on different computer.

I tried burning the discs on my laptop (3 GB Ram, 2.2 ghz, Vista Home) with the Maxells and...SUCCESS!!!

That told me that the desktop PC (or its burner) is likely the issue.

2. Burning with Taiyo Yuden premium DVDs and all programs, including virus protection, spyware, etc., turned off, and choosing 8x speed instead of 16x.

The first burn I tried with the TY had a failure (did not burn at all, burning software reported DVD failure). First actual failure I've had. The back has the burn lines like a burned DVD. However, I popped it into my Philips 3575 HDD and it showed that it was fully available (4424 MB, same number I always see on an empty disc). However, a Philips burn failed. I trashed that disc and popped another into the Philips and it's burning fine now. Maybe the PC burn damaged the disc. I'm about to try another TY disc with the PC in a few minutes.

The Maxells are not the problem. I have had a 100% success rate on approx. 1000 Maxell DVDs with the Philips 3575. The laptop burn with the Maxells worked great.

I believe the issue on the desktop PC is system resources. I have Symantec anti-virus that has a real-time scanner (Rtvscan.exe) that takes up a whopping 162k of system memory, by far the largest memory hog I have unless I have 8-10 IE tabs open. I turned off all components of this program and Rtvscan.exe would not go away. I tried to delete the process but still no success. This PC was given to me by my employer so I can work at home, and I'm hesitant to remove the entire program. I shut down every other process related to Symantec (and there were about 5 of them all using a decent amount of memory). The memory usage is now very, very low, around 1-2%. I also turned off the screensaver. Hopefully all of this will give better odds for a successful burn. I'll report back.

[opieandy]

Well, 2 failures in a row with the world-famous TY premium discs. At least the one I tried in my Philips 3575 HDD recorder worked fine, so I don't have 100 coasters. My PC just doesn't like 'em.

Need to watch the Maxell I burned today with all programs, spyware, anti-virus, etc, disabled, and see if there are any skips.

[fritzi93]

@ opieandy: It might help if you tell us the exact model number and manufacturer of your DVD burner. Also how old the burner is. Why? I hear you asking. Because your present firmware may be less than optimal, particularly if the burner is a couple of years old. The burner may not have the correct burn strategy for certain discs. Your problems with known good quality discs seem inexplicable otherwise.

Anyway, it's possible a firmware update could improve your burns. Or you could just get a new burner, they're cheap.

[EDIT] @ pratikpatel101: You too might consider a firmware update. Good luck.

[opieandy]

The DVD burner is a LITE-ON SHW-160P6S

I know nothing about this burner as it was on the PC my company gave me. I did a 'update driver' from the DVD's properties screen and it returned that it could not locate software that was more current than what I have.

[fritzi93]

http://www.firmwarehq.com/Lite-On/SHW-160P6S/files.html

At first I thought that was the only available firmware, but that's incorrect. Do a search with your model number, adding firmware to the search term, and you'll find several out there for that unit.

[EDIT] Here's another link with more:

http://www.cdrlabs.com/News/lite-on-releases-new-firmware-updates-for-shm-165h6s-shw-1...-and-more.html

And it appears that drive model is several years old. The first link above is probably the most recent firmware.

[opieandy]

So you think that firmware might be more current even though the 'update driver' function couldn't find anything newer? If so, I'll check it out.

I'm sure the hardware is at least 3 years old because the PC is that old. Still, that doesn't seem so old that it's antiquated.

[fritzi93]

Nah, but new discs have come out in the meantime, don't you think? I remember in the early days of DVD burning when keeping one's firmware updated was more important. The technology is more mature now. In fact, the last 3 or 4 burners I've had I didn't bother updating the firmware at all, as they worked perfectly well with my discs of choice (Verbatim). But oh, in the early days it was hit and miss.

Like I said, worth a shot for you as you're having pretty serious problems. No guarantees though. I'd use the 2008 firmware, just take your time and don't screw the pooch. Good luck.

[EDIT] BTW, driver update is an entirely different thing from firmware update.

[opieandy]

Thanks, fritzi. I am generally decently savvy with PC things but I am totally lost when it comes to disc burning. Are you saying that the firmware might be too old to work perfectly with current DVD discs? That might explain the total failure of the TY premium discs.

I downloaded the 2008 file, and it said it was incompatible because my device is a SHW-160P6S PRS2.

I don't know where it's getting the PRS2. I don't see that as part of the model # on the device's properties, and I also don't see any model with a PRS2 available on the firmwarehq website.

Found this issue discussed here: http://club.myce.com/f44/shw-160p6s-firmware-prs2-cant-flashed-197978/

Apparently, the firmware I have is an Acer OEM version (I have an Acer PC). They recommended backing up the firmware before "flashing" to the new firmware, and they gave a link to flash from (rather than the one I was using), which is at the codeguys.rpc1.org website. They also noted updating the firmware would void the warranty, which is not a big concern. I'm more concerned with just killing the functionality of the device, such as it is (works fine for reading dvds, installing programs, etc, everything but perfect burns).

I downloaded the recommended flash utility (Flash_Utility-3.03.rar). Then it was confusing but I chose 'read flash', it brought up PRS2 and asked me where to save it as a .bin file. I chose a location and saved it. I am assuming this accomplished the backup that the forum was referencing but am not sure.

Next step would be to try the firmware from http://codeguys.rpc1.org/firmwares.html#SHW-160P6S as they suggested.

What is your advice from here? Should I try to install the firmware from the link they provided? And do you think I achieved a successful backup of my current firmware?

Really appreciate your help.

[fritzi93]

You've really been doing your homework. :P Okay, it's a matter of having write strategies compatible with current production discs. The last burner I flashed was my beloved BenQ 1620 (rest in peace); it was about the same vintage as yours, and yeah, the firmware update(s) were worth the small risk. You close all programs, start the utility and do nothing until it completes.

There are members here who are highly knowledgeable on this subject, and perhaps one will weigh in here.

Double-check with ImgBurn. Mode -> Discovery -> Tools -> Drive -> Check For Firmware Updates.

It does seem to me that it would be worth trying in your case, given all the information you've provided. But one gets wary of saying something will definitely help, there are often too many factors involved. Good luck.

[opieandy]

So if I get a new internal burner, I have a few questiosns:

1. Are Samsung and LG good models? Amazon has a few each at ~$30 shipped.

2. SATA or PATA? Have no idea what this is or whether it's important.

3. Can I be sure the new drive will fit in the slot where my old one is? I have an Acer desktop that is about 3 years old.

4. Is this fairly easy for a novice like me to install? I've installed video cards, RAM, and laptop hard drives, but never a DVD burner.

Thanks!

Chris

[buzzbomb]

opieandy
try this to check your dvd burner and media
https://www.videohelp.com/tools/Opti_Drive_Control
and are you sure you were not scammed with
Winx dvd author im sure its freeware also burn
with imgburn start at 2x write speed
buzzbomb

[classfour]

I author with TDA3, then burn with imgburn. I know it's an extra step, but how hard is it to steer a program to a folder? I run two hard drives, with one partitioned into two secondary HDDs - typically the largest capacity of drive that I can afford at the moment. So I split my DVD folders between drive "D" and "E". Easy enough to find with imgburn. Also: If you use imgburn for burning, it includes documentation of the burn - which you can save, copy and paste when you have an error - so folks can tell you why the burn failed. I doubt winXdvdauthor includes this feature and the potential support mechanism.

Using TY, or even "el cheapo" CMC Magnetics crap media - all burns okay.

opieandy, the difference between firmware (stored on the memory of the burner) and driver is credible, and likely the reason the drive will not recognize (and burn) the newer media.

As to drives: Except for blu-ray, most drives are $20 or so these days, and are SATA. If you have an IDE interface on the machine, use an IDEtoSATA converter to change the gender from the MOBO. It's better than a MOBO swap.

Otherwise, you may as well start looking at a different machine to burn DVDs.