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When I saw "DL," I assumed it was for double layer rather than Data Life. My mistake.
If changing the recording software makes no difference in results, we can rule that out for the time being. Since the Plextor records on the TDKs as before, we can temporarily assume that the drive is OK, too. That leaves the media themselves. The rings are changes in power settings during recording. The fact that some Verbatim discs have uniform color after recording and the ones that have playback problems have colored rings means that the drive has applied uniform laser power to the working ones and has altered its settings during the recording of the ringed ones. Assuming that the MID codes are identical, and assuming that the drive is OK, that means that there is likely a difference in the two spindles.
Verbatim uses azo-cyanine dye from MCC, its parent company. TDK manufactures its own azo-cyanine dye. The dyes must be uniformly applied across the substrate in a spin-coat process with precisely the right viscosity to spread evenly. Even if the coating is perfect, the substrate must also be ideal; and this is an often overlooked criterion when consumers criticize media--measuring groove geometry is not possible without very sophisticated equipment.
It's possible that the ringed batch is not the same as the performing batch, but it is not possible to tell if the quality is bad unless some testing is done. Recording that questionable spindle at lower speeds may improve results. (The last thing I would want to do is to accuse any manufacturer of making "crap" just because his discs did not work! There are just too many variables.)
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