What brands of DVD-RW media work well?

3160 Views 23 Replies 14 Participants Last post by TiVoEvan74, Feb 3, 2006

delta888

Discussion Starter · Jan 10, 2006

I did a search for this, but couldn't find anything.

What brands of -RW media have people tried using? I'm a little frightened by some of the reports here, but I'm trying to begin the Great VHS to DVD Transfer. Sigh.

1 - 20 of 24 Posts

dagap

· #2 · Jan 10, 2006

Ridata aka Ritek.

Why RW, btw? Do you need the ability to erase and reuse the discs? If not, then -R discs are cheaper. 100 Ridata -R discs can be had for under $30. Sometimes as low as $20, if there's a sale and a rebate. Search techbargains.com.

delta888

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jan 10, 2006

I've got a stack of -Rs, but some people mentioned that the Humax DVD writer can begin to fail after a few months. Just thought I might get prepared in case I start to make coasters.

Johnny Quest

· #4 · Jan 11, 2006

This should answer most if not all of your questions:

http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm

Moonreaper

· #5 · Jan 11, 2006

They have found TDK, Sony, Imation and Ver Batem to be the most compatible for the Humax units. That's not to say that other brands won't work but it seems to be hit and miss with the other brands. I would deff. suggest one of those brands and you should have little to no probs.

sweetspirit

· #6 · Jan 13, 2006

What brands are best for Pioneer 810? What I had been using, Fuji, has been discontinued in the 1x speed (which is the ancient - but ONLY speed- that will work on the old-model Recorder used in this machine. I've had it only 9 months, and hope that I'm going to be able to continue to record. I'd hate to have to stop simply due to lack of available media.

I'm afraid, though, that just like the Linksys WUSB12 network adapter that is no longer made - I'm going to run into the same problem with media. I'm not interested in the RW, just the record-once DVD, due to financial considerations.

The Fuji is what came with the Pioneer when I got it as their suggested brand.
Any help from others with the same Pioneer would be very much appreciated.

megazone

· #7 · Jan 14, 2006

I use Fuji 8x DVD-R media in my Pioneer DVR-810H regularly with no problem. And I used to use 2x media. I don't think I've ever used 1x media.

TiVoEvan74

· #8 · Jan 14, 2006

Two of my 3 coasters have been TDKs!! So much for that theory! (The other was a Ritek -RW so we just reburned it.)

Given the potential problems of failed burning, we only use -RWs. That way, one can re-burn and doesn't lost any $$. Plus, one often decides later that the recorded shows aren't needed anymore or discovers that TiVo recorded something else, so being able to reburn is a treat.

We got 50 Ritek DVDs -RW for only $28 from amazon.

But we're also findings that the DVDs start stacking up, just like the old VCR tapes did--and while they are certainly more convenient than tapes, having a stack of DVDs is almost as bad... much better to have a HUGE hard drive in one's TiVo!

evilipoo

· #9 · Jan 15, 2006

I've used Imation, Memorex and TDK (2x, I think), in my 810H. So far I've had 2 failures (knock wood)out of 100+ burns and those were both Imations.

sweetspirit

· #10 · Jan 15, 2006

Thank you everyone for your help. I feel much more confident purchasing media that has worked for others. Do you know places that usually have prices on the lower side? When Best Buy has a sale, a spindle of 100 is $29.99 - but I just can't tolerate that place. Recommendations appreciated. . . .

bnm81002

· #11 · Jan 16, 2006

sweetspirit said:
Thank you everyone for your help. I feel much more confident purchasing media that has worked for others. Do you know places that usually have prices on the lower side? When Best Buy has a sale, a spindle of 100 is $29.99 - but I just can't tolerate that place. Recommendations appreciated. . . .

here's a great site to look for local deals in your area,
http://www.salescircular.com
just enter your state and look for what you want and they will list what stores have on sale for that week :up: :up: :up:

TiVoEvan74

· #12 · Jan 16, 2006

Staples... Office Max. Memorex DVD-Rs at a low price... but I'd still recommend -RWs.

Also, if this is your first time with burning DVDs, I'd recommend getting only a 25 pack or at most 50... you may discover, like us, that accummulating a massive stack of DVDs is no more fun than shuffling through tapes.

sweetspirit

· #13 · Jan 16, 2006

Again, thank you. Let me pass on what I've done to organize my DVD's. I am disabled, and may reach a time when I'm confined to bed. Already, much of my time is spent in my apartment. As I have no family to help, you can imagine the number of hours I end up devoting!

Reading, music, PC, TiVo and my prayer life comprise my whole life. Thus, I'm compiling a large number of DVD's in a variety of topics; from education to entertainment. Money is getting increasingly tight, so the day will come that I can no longer afford premium channels and - perhaps - not even cable.

So: I've purchased albums meant to hold CD's. They work just fine for DVD's. I easily label the DVD's with a CD Marking Pen. The albums have plastic sleeves, into which the DVD slides. These albums hold as many as 100 DVD's, take up no more room than a school notebook, and are very easy to page through and view what is available. It is much easier than going through piles of DVD's, and has the added advantage of protecting them.

This method is much less expensive than the various media cabinets I've seen for DVD storage, as well as consuming less space. The notebooks are labeled by topic and slip into a bookcase shelf for easy access. Hope this idea is helpful for someone else!

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rjlawrencejr

· #14 · Jan 26, 2006

If you live near a Fry's they always carry the Fuji 1x-8x DVD-R. That is my favorite. They also have the Memorex 1x-8x. I often find the pack of 50 for around $20. If you buy two or three packages, I would assume that would last you a while. The Fuji and Memorex both have a purple hue on the the record side (maybe all DVD-R's do). Anyway, I rarely have disc failures (less than 5%).

TiVoEvan74

· #15 · Jan 26, 2006

sweetspirit, you're in our thoughts. Hope the disability doesn't restrict you further. It sounds, though, as if you are richly educating and entertaining yourself!

Appreciate the tip on the CD holder and sleeves... that would help us. We have stacks of DVDs in sleeves and cases, and it's hard to go through them to see what we have...

Do you use any particular magic marker? And do you write right on the outside of the DVD or the sleeve?

Do consider amazon or Staples on line for some DVD-RWs or DVD-Rs... you can get a good price and get it delivered to your door.

We used TiVo without cable for several years... and even now only have the lifeline cable so we don't have to mess with changing the antenna. Your plan of building up a great collection of DVDs and then perhaps cancelling cable is a smart one. People save lots of money that way. Even without real cable, we end up accumulating lots of stuff to watch.

jenlking

· #16 · Jan 26, 2006

I am also interested in the question regarding how to label the DVDs. I use -RW's because we do use them many times. Mostly because our TiVO is not in the room where we end up watching the most TV. (Long story....) Anyway, we have not come up with a good system to label a DVD so that it is removable/erasable so we can re-label it. Any ideas?

TiVoEvan74

· #17 · Jan 27, 2006

Here's what we do so far... we bought a bunch of colorful sleeves which helps (somewhat) categorize the shows. We then lightly pencil in what's on them--on the sleeve. And also bought one of those old-fashioned, large trapezoidal pink erasers. They work wonders for quickly removing the penciled stuff.

The other thing we use is a post-it note where we can tabulate how many shows we've watched... e.g., suppose a DVD has 6 episodes of Numbers on it, well each time we watch one, we put a tick mark on the post-it note... (we could probably do this on the sleeve instead). That way, when a week or two later we pick up the DVD to watch an episode, we'll know which to watch.

Hope that helps. I think combining such a system with the CD or accordion type flip collection could be ideal.

lajohn27

· #18 · Jan 27, 2006

jenlking said:
I am also interested in the question regarding how to label the DVDs. I use -RW's because we do use them many times. Mostly because our TiVO is not in the room where we end up watching the most TV. (Long story....) Anyway, we have not come up with a good system to label a DVD so that it is removable/erasable so we can re-label it. Any ideas?

I got one of those 29$ labelmakers .. has a small keyboard and a little LCD screen.

STICK the label on and leave a tiny piece folded under so it will remove easily.

Occasionally on CHEAP DVD's removing is a problem.. But generally this has worked very well.

darthrsg

· #19 · Jan 27, 2006

i have purchased maxell +r on numerous occasions with no problems what so ever, r02 is media code, ritek i believe

sweetspirit

· #20 · Jan 29, 2006

What a nice group of people in the TIVO Community! :up:

It seems a couple of people have questions on how I label the DVD's. I'm sorry to be so long responding - haven't been well. I write ON the DVD itself, using the colorful CD Markers. It works just as well on DVD's. Currently I have markers by Memorex and Fellowes in Gold, Red, Blue, Green and Black. You can organize a bit further by choosing a specific color for the different types of recording you make.

With the 'notebooks' that have pages of plastic sleeves and the markers, both labeled for CD's, I've found an easy and convenient way to identify, access, and store the DVD's. I do hope this idea helps someone. I really like flipping through the pages to choose much more than I did struggling with stacks of DVD's, with cases or not.

Thanks to those who gave suggestions on DVD's that have proven successful on the Pioneer 810. I hope to either find a great price online with lo-cost shipping or a good price with free shipping. As you might imagine, with the disability, it is difficult for me to shop.

Thanks again everyone!

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