Thought I'd better spam a post over here that I made in the HTPC Blu-Ray thread.

I have always bought the best of optical media (Verbatim, TDK, BASF). Recently I found I was unable to write to my blank Verbatim CDRWs without getting complete failures. One after another was unwritable... couldn't even start. I'd had these for three years, stored in the plastic pancake stack case in my home office, safe and sound. I then went to some of my other older CDRWs and found that they had gone bad as well.

A little research showed that manufacturers have been using cheep dyes in even the best brands and the aluminum substrate oxydizes rather quickly. So if you want a CD or DVD to last any real length of time (like my mother's memorial CD), it must be burned on archival quality media. Only one company (http://www.mam-a.com/products/general_information.html) makes these, using a special gold process.

You have been warned.

Thanks for this information... I've got some media that is about the same age that have been failing recently. I thought they were good quality brands, but I guess it doesn't matter.

Again, thanks.

To reiterate, -RW has *little* to do with -R/+R media- very different recording layer tech.

Plus, DVD+/-R physical structure is very different than CD-R, with DVD-/+R's having far better protection of the data/recording layer.

The good brands like Verbatim use the good AZO dyes, too.

IIIIIIIII doan trust 'em...

IMHO, anytime you're using optical media for archival purposes, you should check it for errors at least once a year and copy it to new media every three or four years (depending on how your testing results turn out).

To reiterate, -RW has *little* to do with -R/+R media- very different recording layer tech.

Plus, DVD+/-R physical structure is very different than CD-R, with DVD-/+R's having far better protection of the data/recording layer.
True, RW technology is different than R, but I also had a stack of Verbatim CD-Rs (the silver ones) bought at the same time as the RW silver ones, and they'd crapped out too. Had to throw out a half stack of each. (~15)


The good brands like Verbatim use the good AZO dyes, too.
That's what I used to think too.

Oh well, do as you will.

True, RW technology is different than R, but I also had a stack of Verbatim CD-Rs (the silver ones) bought at the same time as the RW silver ones, and they'd crapped out too. Had to throw out a half stack of each. (~15)
.


I would never burn anything archival to CD-R.

All archival burns (photos, lossless audio rips from Cd's, DVD backups, recordings from ATSC/QAM sources, recordings from analog cable, personal data, etc) I've done are to good quality DVD+R.

After burning 1000's of discs on 10's of burners since 1995, I'm pretty confident with the discs I've burned, though it would be impossible for me to check them all.

It's all about media quality, burn process quality (what burner software, how fast you burn, etc), burner quality and basic care and storage practices.

I agree, a good burner and slow burning speed (2x-4x) is at least as important as good media.
Personally I only use Panasonic DVD-RAM media for archiving as DVD-RAM is more fault tollerant than DVD-/+R.
I also still have a box of unused Kodak CD-R Gold discs, which was one of the best long term archive media available, but can never bring myself to use them for anything as I never consider any data precious enough to use them up for it. :)