What are the most reliable optical media brands, discs?

[Aztech]

I want the best discs for data archival. What are the top brands? Last I checked, many years ago, they were probably Verbatim and TDK? Still top dogs?

Thanks!

 

[Shargrath]

Ive been using Sony discs with no problem as of yet for several years...

 

[corkyg]

In general, any optical media made by Taiyo Yuden (Japan) are considered to be top quality. There are several brands that are made by them. Rebranded Taiyo Yuden media can be found under Fujifilm, Fusion, Maxell, Miflop, Panasonic, Plextor, Sony, TDK and Verbatim Corporation brands.

Note that both Sony and Verbatim are by Taiyo Yuden.

 

[Shargrath]

Just as a note, Maxell's have crapped out on me, so I wouldn't recommend them

 

[brblx]

Originally posted by: Shargrath
Ive been using Sony discs with no problem as of yet for several years...

i have an entire spindle of sony dvd-r coasters. blech.

i still like tdk and verbatim.

 

[Aztech]

Originally posted by: corkyg
In general, any optical media made by Taiyo Yuden (Japan) are considered to be top quality. There are several brands that are made by them. Rebranded Taiyo Yuden media can be found under Fujifilm, Fusion, Maxell, Miflop, Panasonic, Plextor, Sony, TDK and Verbatim Corporation brands.

Note that both Sony and Verbatim are by Taiyo Yuden.

I'm not sure I understand that last sentence. Do you mean all of Verbatim and Sony media are the good Tayo Yuden stuff?

 

[corkyg]

I mean that Sony and Verbatim optical disks are rebadged Taiyo Yuden. I use mostly Maxell Lightscribe disks, CDR and DVD, and rarely have a bad one. You can get a bad lot from anyone anytime, and whoever gets that lemon will grouse about it.

 

[heyheybooboo]

Originally posted by: Aztech

Originally posted by: corkyg
In general, any optical media made by Taiyo Yuden (Japan) are considered to be top quality. There are several brands that are made by them. Rebranded Taiyo Yuden media can be found under Fujifilm, Fusion, Maxell, Miflop, Panasonic, Plextor, Sony, TDK and Verbatim Corporation brands.

Note that both Sony and Verbatim are by Taiyo Yuden.

I'm not sure I understand that last sentence. Do you mean all of Verbatim and Sony media are the good Tayo Yuden stuff?

I'm not sure about Sony but I've had Verbatim discs reported as Taiyo Yuden ..

 

[Slugbait]

Originally posted by: corkyg
Note that both Sony and Verbatim are by Taiyo Yuden.

Note that Sony and Verbatim discs are also made by other companies not named Taiyo Yuden. Historically, Verbatim primarily used Mitsubishi media (aka MCC), while Sony primarily used Sony media (aka Daxon). You'll occasionally see TY discs in Sony DVD+R cakes, and sometimes in DVD-R cakes...the words to look for on the label are "Made in Japan", if it sez Taiwan, they're not TY. I personally have never seen a TY Verbatim in North America, but that doesn't mean it's never happened.

It's more than common for brand names to either switch manufacturers regularly, or employ two or more manufacturers at the same time for discs...sometimes with bad results. Also, manufacturer depends highly upon which country you are in. Here's a newegg review on Verbatim DVD+R 16x posted yesterday:

Pros: Great price with the rebate, but too much to pay for coasters.
Cons: 20+ bad discs so far.
Other Thoughts: The quality of Verbatim is gone. I have used Verbatim media for a long time and had great results. These discs are junk. I know it's not my burner or software. I hate to admit it, but I am having better luck with cheap supermarket media. Don't waste your money. Buy anything but these.

Heard some grumblings about Verbatim a few months ago (I think at CDFreaks, not sure).

Someone posted graphs of TYG03 with high error rates, and general consensus is that the TYG01 is the greatest ever (discontinued) and TYG02 is about the best you can currently buy. You can get TY at rima and supermediastore.

 

[TheStu]

I use Memorex disks and haven't had a problem in the past 5+ years of using them They also hold up pretty well with time, no flaking or anything like that.

 

[Winterpool]

You can take some uncertainty out of the picture by simply buying Taiyo Yuden discs from vendors like SuperMediaStore and Meritline. Buy from a reputable retailer because, yes, they're pirating TY discs now. I generally only take the risk of buying a 'brand-name' dvd spindle if they're on supersale at a brick-and-mortar retailer, and I can find the 'Made in Japan' label.

That said, what are the latest results on dvd longevity? If it's not much better than cds, you'll have to recopy all your data within four years. It seems like less of pain simply to keep copying to bigger, cheaper hard drives.

As I'm a little paranoid and do recommend burning critical data (like identity stuff, not your choice pr0n) to a couple of discs in case of EMP. Discs are physical media, not EM, so an EMP should leave the data intact. How likely is an EMP any time soon? Well, I did say I was a little paranoid...

 

[Winterpool]

Originally posted by: Slugbait
Someone posted graphs of TYG03 with high error rates, and general consensus is that the TYG01 is the greatest ever (discontinued) and TYG02 is about the best you can currently buy. You can get TY at rima and supermediastore.

Jah, even Taiyo Yuden quality is getting worse for some reason. And did I read somewhere that TY might be moving production out of Japan?

How much are Blu-ray blanks these days?

 

[Shargrath]

Originally posted by: TheStu
I use Memorex disks and haven't had a problem in the past 5+ years of using them They also hold up pretty well with time, no flaking or anything like that.

Strange how same discs act differently for all people.

My experience with memorex has been that they are basically a waste of money.

Almost every single memorex disc I had crapped out...weird!

 

[abaez]

Originally posted by: Winterpool

Originally posted by: Slugbait
Someone posted graphs of TYG03 with high error rates, and general consensus is that the TYG01 is the greatest ever (discontinued) and TYG02 is about the best you can currently buy. You can get TY at rima and supermediastore.

Jah, even Taiyo Yuden quality is getting worse for some reason. And did I read somewhere that TY might be moving production out of Japan?

How much are Blu-ray blanks these days?

I thought TY moved out of Japan years ago? I stocked up on some TY Fuji discs like three years back because of this. All Fuji discs are now made in Malaysia I think.

Looking at the wiki article, it looks like "THAT's" brand are TY's own disc (not rebrand like Fuji) and made in Japan. I saw a ton of these in all sorts of stores when I visited back in April, so that might be your best bet.

BR blanks are still hella expensive. I bought a 5 pack for 1800 yen a year ago at some vendor in akihabara and I don't think I've seen them as cheap since.

 

[Blain]

Taiyo Yuden & Mitsui (MAM-A)

 

[jackschmittusa]

I still use Verbatim for both cds and dvds. Never had a bad cd, went for years without a bad dvd, now find a bad one in maybe 400. Always got the rebates on the DVDs. Have used burners from: NEC, Lite-on, Pioneer, Samsung, Philips, etc. with equally good results.

I haven't bought anything with the Sony name on it for years. IMHO they are one of the most anti-consumer companies out there.