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What's up with Memorex?
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bob_c_o
Newbie
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12. August 2006 @ 16:02 |
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I've been looking at threads with a lot of poeple complaining about Memorex (the term Memorsux has come up a lot), and I was wondering what was the problem with them? I have used their media for quite some time, with only a few problems, until today. I purchased over 200 discs because they were on sale for $7.99 for 25, and as I tried using one, my DVD Decrypter gave me some sort of error, saying there were format issues. I came here to do some research and saw a lot of "stay away from Memorex", and I will from now on. The DVDs did work on another computer, though as well as my DVD recorder. Any ideas on why this was happening? Thanks...
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Member
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12. August 2006 @ 18:53 |
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bob_c_o:
Memorex has to be one of the most, if not THE most unreliable media on the market as far as DVDs are concerned, most especially DL. The media is jobbed out to the lowest bidder and as of late, that bidder is CMC; a low-end bargain basement producer.
You may have successful burns at first, but you will begin to experience media-rot. The disc will start pixelating, stuttering, or just quit. Memorex offers a mere one year warranty and they bank on consumers just throwing away a bad disc and not worrying about it.
Stick with Sony-MIJ (usually TY), Verbatim, or most epecially TY. Some Fujifilm-MIJ is actually TY.
Your top drawer stuff is MIJ, except for Verbatim. They have plants in Taiwan and Singapore. But Verbs are excellent quality. But you can get a wealth of information from the good folks here. Welcome aboard!
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 12. August 2006 @ 18:54
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Moderator
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13. August 2006 @ 02:12 |
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Quote:
I have used their media for quite some time, with only a few problems, until today.
- herein lies the problem with Memorex, all depends which manufacturers' disc are within the Memorex tub, one day it could be one manufacturers' discs, another day it could be a completely different manufacturer.
..also there's a link in my sig..
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AfterDawn Addict
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13. August 2006 @ 02:45 |
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basically EXACTLY what creakster said,
Memorex outsources to several vendors to produce there media.
Some are ricoh-jpn and are decent.
Some are CMC magnetics and they are bottom of the barrel.
Check the media ID code and see what you got.
Memorex is always a gamble and not one Im willing
to risk my time and money on.
http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm
The following list is in preference order. The best discs are near the top of the list. The discs at
the bottom of the list are suitable only for a landfill.
Almost flawless burns with 95-100% reliable results:
PVC = Pioneer = (-R)(-RW)
MXLRG01, MXLRG02 = Maxell = (-R) ... be aware of unbranded fakes
MCC = Mitsubishi Chemicals = (-R)<-----------------VERBATIM MY CHOICE #1
TDKG02 = TDK Corp = (-R) ... be aware of unbranded fakes
TAIYOYUDEN or YUDEN = Taiyo Yuden = (-R)<--------------FUJIFILM (made in japan) MY CHOICE #2
Possunt Quia Posse Videntur. |
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bob_c_o
Newbie
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13. August 2006 @ 11:20 |
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Thanks for the help, guys...I see what you mean about diffrent quality/vendors. The discs I've had problems with are somewhat shiny, and the older ones have a dull coat. I have returned the discs to Radio Shack and will stay away from them in the future. Thanks again...
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AfterDawn Addict
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13. August 2006 @ 12:23 |
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I'll burn memorex +8x Ritek-R03 in a heartbeat. One of the few,quality manufacturers they use. Very difficult to know which memorex +8x that are made by ritek. Chance of low quality manufacturers are very high- 70% and higher.
Quote:
purchased over 200 discs because they were on sale for $7.99 for 25
Too much $$$$ in my book! That's 32 cents each,not counting shipping and sales tax.
The price is what get me with memosux media. AVG sale price is $15 per 50 pk. For that same price,I get taiyo yuden sony,maxell hitachi,maxell ritek,and verbatim.
For $10 a 50 pk, I could get Office Depot brand and get Ritek or Ricoh media,when on sale. Look at my maxell riteks at 30 cents each.The same Office Depot riteks were 20 cents each. Huge price difference,even though they were exact same MID code!
Less that $10 a 50 pk, I picked up teons that were made by cmags. Also playo with the UME and AML media codes.
Stick around here once a week for the sunday media sales. You'll get quality media cheaper than what you paid for those memosux that were on sale.That's guaranteed!
I got 4 benqs a burning. Prices of cmags is what gets my goat.I got no trouble burning them,but stand alone players will have a harder time reading the backups that are on low quality discs. Maybe not a new player,but those older players with more wear and tear.
Some models of burners also have trouble with low quality media,the reason why so many people hate memosux. You get 5 or so burn errors in a row,and windows reverts your dma's to Pio mode.
Quote:
saying there were format issues.
That's the main reason some media gets a bad rap. All the 4x speed media is virtually gone. Same is going on for 8x speed. Now,16x speed media is taking over.
Going from +8x memorex to +16x memorex?
When anyone gets an error message like that,usually it's a firmware issue. Updating a burner to the latest firmware version usually takes care of that issue. Older drives,or new drives that stood around a while, will have outdated firmware versions.
Firmware controls the writing strategy for burners.It controls how fast/slow/and the increments of burn speed.If your firmware isn't programmed for a certain MID code-which would be the newer/faster speed media,then it acts like you don't have a blank disc installed.
HP a1118x-b/athlon 64-3300+/BenQ 1650 BCDC/LG 8163B/Modded Wii/Epson-R300 and Ty Watershields!!! |
Senior Member
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14. August 2006 @ 12:24 |
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Quote:
Too much $$$$ in my book! That's 32 cents each
You can get Taiyo-Yuden for 31 cents each delivered to your door, and that's for the premium stuff. TYG02 no less.
DVDR-blank-dvd-media-highest-price.html" class="korostus" target="_blank">http://www.supermediastore.com/dvd-r-media-DVDR-blank-dvd-media-h...
-Do you believe you own your computer and shouldn't be told what you can run and do? Then say *NO* to Microsoft Vista!
-Since half the questions here involve media problems, here ya go: Only use Verbatim or Taiyo-Yuden discs (get your TYs from Rima.com, not Supermediastore or meritline). Forget the rest, no matter what "brand" they sell under. Always burn at 4x speed regardless of the speed rating of this discs or your drive. If you have burn problems with these then you have to update your drive's firmware. For double-layer discs, only use Verbatim DVD+R DL and burn them at 2.4x speed.
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AfterDawn Addict
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14. August 2006 @ 12:44 |
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Quote:
You can get Taiyo-Yuden for 31 cents each delivered to your door, and that's for the premium stuff. TYG02 no less.
Try getting Yuden000-T02 or Yuden000-T03 off the net stores for that cheap price! Not!
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Senior Member
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15. August 2006 @ 22:07 |
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That's another reason why I stick to -R, not +R.
-Do you believe you own your computer and shouldn't be told what you can run and do? Then say *NO* to Microsoft Vista!
-Since half the questions here involve media problems, here ya go: Only use Verbatim or Taiyo-Yuden discs (get your TYs from Rima.com, not Supermediastore or meritline). Forget the rest, no matter what "brand" they sell under. Always burn at 4x speed regardless of the speed rating of this discs or your drive. If you have burn problems with these then you have to update your drive's firmware. For double-layer discs, only use Verbatim DVD+R DL and burn them at 2.4x speed.
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JoeRyan
Senior Member
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16. August 2006 @ 13:05 |
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rcm999--
Verbatim has no plants in Taiwan. CMC makes their discs, the company that you called "a low-end, bargain basement producer." Some burners have problems, not just with low quality media, but with media that use Taiwanese MID codes. That's CMC's problem; and it affects Imation, Memorex, HP, and TDK because they all use CMC MID codes for the discs made in that factory.
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Moderator
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16. August 2006 @ 13:07 |
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Those company names have pride of place in my sig
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Member
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17. August 2006 @ 03:49 |
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You're right, JoeRyan - Verbatim has a plant in Thailand, not Taiwan. I was all discombobulated, sorry. But I thought they were made by MCC/MKM (Mitsubishi Chemical Company/Mitsubishi Kagaku Media), not CMC. Atleast all the Verbs I have are MCC and MKM.
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JoeRyan
Senior Member
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17. August 2006 @ 08:19 |
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The MID code is issued to a manufacturer or brand by Philips. This code appears on the stamper used to mold the polycarbonate substrate used for optical discs. The code for Mitsubishi Chemical starts with either MCC and MKM, and this code goes on the stampers used for most of their optical discs. The stampers can end up in the few plants Mitsubishi has or in plants that manufacture the bulk of their discs, namely CMC and MBI. The code identifies the stamper, not the factory.
When people deride CMC and "all its products," it becomes difficult for them to understand that the "world's worst factory" makes most of the "world's best discs" (other than Taiyo Yuden). It's not CMC that is at fault, although their processes are being cleaned up to improve consistency at the insistence of HP, Imation, and Memorex. It is not the difference in dyes--they are usually identical except for some no-name brands using cyanine instead of azo-cyanine. The problem is in lack of drive support for CMC and some of the political reasons for it. (Another, often unrecognized factor is stamper groove geometry--but that is an even more complicated issue.)
Memorex has nearly a third of the retail market share for DVD recordable discs in the U.S. It's been this way for the last five years. Poor quality generally brings market shares down slowly or quickly, depending on the severity of a problem. A look at sales volumes vs. manufacturing capacities makes it obvious that no single disc factory could supply them with enough discs to keep up that kind of market share, and relying on one factory is too risky anyway. Verbatim faces the same kind of problem because their markets include industrial and duplication as well as retail. That's why multiple factories have to supply them, too. One difference between Verbatim and Memorex is that Verbatim generally insists on using the MCC MID code for discs produced by other factories, and that helps compatibility enormously. Good drive compatibility appears as good quality to non-technical users. Memorex does not produce its own discs at all and cannot get a unique MID code; so they are at the mercy of the MID codes of the suppliers, and CMC has work to do there to mend fences with the Japanese manufacturers of drives.
It's a complicated issue that cannot be rendered naively as "avoid CMC products because of bad quality." That is innacurate. It is effective to avoid CMC and stick with Verbatim and TY to improve compatibility, but that is like staying indoors to avoid getting the flu. It works, and some may be comfortable with it. Other users have consistently good results with HP, Imation, and CMC products, probably because they are using certain NEC, Lite-on, or Memorex drives. That's why a few members on this site do not understand the anti-CMC attacks and question those attacks until they themselves are beseiged by a mob mentality condemning them for their ignorance. When the air clears around the NEC/Lite-on/BenQ (Philips;Plextor)/Sony consolidations for optical drive manufacturing, I hope that improved compatibility will result. So far Sony's large share of the consolidation appears to have reduced cooperation with non-Japanese disc manufacturers, and LG has become more open and cooperative. Time will tell.
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Moderator
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17. August 2006 @ 09:06 |
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Joe, all of this is fine, but people such as myself are not doing our readers a disservice by recommending Verbatim and/or TY media. Whether or not discs are bad quality or just not well supported enough is moot at the end of the day, all that we care about is whether or not people are able to burn and keep burning, and whether their data is sufficiently well protected (as best as can be expected with the farce that is DVD burning).
Why all this concern about CMC et al, who the hell cares about the welfare of companies such as them ?, most of us are here to provide help for people on the street. I visit sites such as cdfreaks and i am well aware of other people's opinions/knowledge about hub codes indicating that certain discs are made in such and such country by such and such factory (for instance). All very nice and important info but what we mainly do at this site do is try to get people up and burning and burning consistently (without costing them more money).
At the end of the day if some people get good results with CMC etc media then good for them but people such as me only push Verbatim and TY as it helps people get quality end results for the most part with the least amount of wated money hopefully; coming here constantly defending CMC et al and belittling us 'Verbatim and TY pushers' may well in your eyes be giving the site a more balanced view but our readers and posters are more important to us than CMC et al's welfare.
Quite a few regulars here use a wide range of burners & firmware too; at the end of the day what works for the minority is good for the minority not the majority; it's not a mob mentality at all, just people advocating better media (whether that media is better made or simply better supported doesn't matter a bean, it should just bloody work); i no longer waste my money on media that might work, i spend my money on media that 99.9% will work; ie i don't gamble with my money anymore, why should i gamble with our readers' money ?; i recommend Verbatim and TY to the majority, not because it buys me anything, because at the end of the day people's money is better spent on stuff that works for the majority; if people choose to buy other media that's their choice.
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This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. August 2006 @ 09:13
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JoeRyan
Senior Member
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17. August 2006 @ 11:21 |
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Creaky,
I entirely agree with you about recommendations for Verbatim and TY, and I have never belittled anyone recommending them. I have recommended them myself in other threads. What I find objectionable is references to "Memosux," "CMC crap," and charges of poor quality media when quality is not the problem. Recommending Verbatim and TY as the "most reliable media" in terms of both compatibility and quality is accurate. But many people don't stop there--they have to attack the other media as if that might make Verbatim and TY better. And that's neither accurate nor nice.
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Moderator
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17. August 2006 @ 11:33 |
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yeah, i'll try and nudge people to refrain from unhelpful comments such as that in future
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ddmp
Junior Member
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2. September 2006 @ 10:44 |
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my dad bought a 100pack 1-16x DVD-R (part#3202-5642), made in taiwan, and its opened so i can't return it. I don't have any more dvd-r's left, so i was wondering if i should use them for backups, or anything for that matter. i've heard about them wearing out the laser, and becoming defective over time, or not working at all, and how they use different manufacturers. I was wondering if someone could tell the manufacturer from what i have described, and if so, what is it. if not, how would i find out. Thanks very much,
Dan
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AfterDawn Addict
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2. September 2006 @ 10:59 |
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You've opened them up so use dvdidentifier-free- to find the MID code of them and post back.With all the many different manufacturers memorex uses,very hard to tell you.
http://www.afterdawn.com/software/video_..._identifier.cfm
If you get ritek/ricoh/MMC,you'll be ok.
It'll look just like:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unique Disc Identifier : [DVD+R:CMC MAG-M01-000]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Disc & Book Type : [DVD+R] - [Not Available]
Manufacturer Name : [CMC Magnetics Corp.]
Manufacturer ID : [CMC MAG]
Media Type ID : [M01]
Product Revision : [Not Specified]
Blank Disc Capacity : [2,295,104 Sectors = 4.70 GB (4.38 GiB)]
Recording Speeds : [1x-2.4x , 4x , 6x-8x , 6x-16x]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
[ DVD Identifier - http://DVD.Identifier.CDfreaks.com ]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
This pic is cmags,but some +16x Fuji- prodisc- are a lot worse than these cmags.
Insert memorex disc,open up dvdidentifier,select drive,identify,click the notepad. Then paste in your next post.
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ddmp
Junior Member
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2. September 2006 @ 11:05 |
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Disc & Book Type : [DVD-R] - [DVD-R]
Manufacturer Name : [Ritek Corp.]
Manufacturer ID : [RITEKF1]
Blank Disc Capacity : [2,298,496 Sectors = 4.71 GB (4.38 GiB)]
That's what it said. RitekF1. I hope that's good. Before I burn any, do they cause any problems like wearing laser, freezing, or defective after time? Also, will the manufacturer change later on in the spool? I pulled one out at random and the code was different in the middle- some say dr5f60-00286, some say dr5f60-00356, some say dr5f52-00372, etc. Thanks u very much already :D
EDIT: I read somewhere that some guy was having problems running naruto narutimatt hero 3 of off his ritekf1, and it kept slowing down and freezing. Is that common?
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 2. September 2006 @ 11:35
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AfterDawn Addict
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2. September 2006 @ 12:55 |
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Those should be pretty decent.I haven't tried them.
The MID code shouldn't change throughout the spindle.With memorex,who knows? LOL
Freezing and other playback issues are mostly stand alone player issues. The players with a lot of wear and tear on them will act up more with dvd backups.If you get freezing/skipping/jumping/or no disc errors: It usually means there's something wrong with a backup,because that player is having a difficult time playing them.Another drive may play them perfect.
For better playback,here's my formula:
No multi-tasking
Quality media
Avg burn of 4x-8x
Defrag the hd/s
Keep all background apps turned off
Keep compression to a minimum
Even burn engines can contribute to those playback issues
Quality burners
Media quality and compression are the most likely candidates for issues.
After ruling out all those possibilities,then usually a laser lens cleaner on that player that shows those issues.That cleaning is a last resort,before drive replacement. Those discs are known to bump the laser off alignment and ruin a drive.
Main thing: The DVD-RW drive that burned them, should play them,while viewing on your pc. The quality should look near original.
Verify where those issues show up during playback- pc playback or stand alone player. 95% of the time it's stand alone player at fault.Verify on other pcs and stand alone players.
OSU-28
NIU-3
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ddmp
Junior Member
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2. September 2006 @ 14:42 |
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thanks for your help, i got lucky i guess :D
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AfterDawn Addict
6 product reviews
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3. September 2006 @ 11:10 |
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Joe,
You keep saying that cmc mag coded discs are no worse than verbatim or taiyo yuden, then answer this for me please, Why is it that all the media I have tried with the cmc mag coding have playback issues in 6 months to a year? If it is the same dye then why do my verbatim mcc003 discs still playback flawlessly after 2 or even 3 years? I understand what you are saying about the stamp and compatability but what about the so called "dye rot" issues with cmc mag discs? You can't convince me cmc mag's dye is the same. It isn't a compatability problem if the disc will burn and play fine right after it is burned but then 6 months down the road it is unreadable or has playback problems. That is not compatability that is dye deterioration.
If you want to use cmc mag coded media that is your perogative but I don't understand why you keep defending cmc mag coded media when they are more likely to cause problems than verbatim, taiyo yuden, maxell, or ritek and they are all priced competatively.
Rig #1 Asus Rampage Formula Mobo, Intel Core2Quad Q9450 CPU @ 3.55ghz, 2gb Corsair DDR2 1066 Dominator Ram @ 5-5-5-15, TR Ultra 120 Extreme w/ Scythe 9 blade 110 cfm 120mm Fan HSF, HIS Radeon 512mb HD3850 IceQ TurboX GPU, Corsair 620HX P/S, CM Stacker 830 Evo Case, Rig #2 Asus P5W DH Deluxe Mobo, Intel C2D E6600 CPU @ 3.6ghz, 2gb Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800 Ram @ 4-4-4-12-2t, Zalman CNPS9500LED HSF, Sapphire Radeon X850XT PE GPU, Corsair 620HX P/S, Cooler Master Mystique Case, Viewsonic 20.1" Widescreen Digital LCD Monitor, Klipsch Promedia Ultra 5.1 THX Desktop Speakers, http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc.php?id=348351 http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc.php?id=236435This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. September 2006 @ 12:11
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3. September 2006 @ 12:02 |
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AfterDawn Addict
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3. September 2006 @ 12:24 |
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please do not say any thing about my coded Memorex cmc mag disks..
there great...for the bottom of my brides planter and bottom of my fish tank..............
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JoeRyan
Senior Member
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4. September 2006 @ 04:45 |
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Mort,
I have never once said CMC is no worse than TY or Verbatim. They give more problems than those two brands (usually but not always compatibility problems) and they are not as consistent in quality. If TY and Verbatim are priced the same and just as available, it would be foolish at this time (or in the past) to buy the CMC. As for the playability problems over time, that is not necessarily a dye problem. It may be dye, it may be groove geometry, it may be a less-than-ideal burn, it may be an adhesive problem (if the outer part of the disc, not the inner, cannot play) or it may be a combination of all four. Playing correctly right after recording is not an accurate way to judge the quality of the recording. One has to measure I3/I14 values and asymmetry to determine how well marks have been made by the drive. Faulty discs I have examined generally have less than ideal burns, and this is typically a drive/disc compatibility problem. Poorly formed "pit" marks degrade faster over time than sharp, contrasting marks. That degradation correlates to increases in jitter and, in fact, is the major cause of jitter.
You misunderstand my point. I have never stated that CMC is as good as TY or Verbatim. I have only pointed out that calling them "garbage" or attacking their factory as incapable of making a good disc is not accurate unless one can mention the quality parameters that are out of spec. Recommend and use TY and Verbatim all you want. Great discs. But attacking a particular brand without technical ammunition or by making false claims, as some do, is neither correct nor helpful. "Use Taiyo Yuden," is good advice. "TDK sucks," is not. I apologize if that upsets some people.
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