Taiyo Yuden vs. Ritek/Ridata

[krackato]

When I started burning everyone was all about the G03 and G04 Riteks. They seemed to work fine so I stuck with them. I posted something on Anandtech about some of my old Princo's failing (big surprise) and everyone started saying "Taiyo Yuden! Taiyo Yuden! Riteks are Cheap!"

What happened? Are the Ritek G04's really now considered 'cheap, generic media' and the new king of the hill is now Taiyo Yuden? If so, when did this happen? Everyone always used to say that the Riteks were the best of the best.

The Ritek G04's were selling for 36cents a piece at shop4tech in 100 spindles, while the 1-4x Taiyo Yudens silver thermal bulk are going for 69cents a piece in lots of 100. Are they really worth almost double the price?

[darth rosenberg]

Yes, people said it, but this didn't make it any more true.
Are they really worth almost double the price?For that price you might actually get low quality fake media.

What happened? Are the Ritek G04's really now considered 'cheap, generic media' and the new king of the hill is now Taiyo Yuden? If so, when did this happen? Everyone always used to say that the Riteks were the best of the best. Taiyo Yuden has always been among the best discs, and Ritek has never been any competition to them, quality wise.

But not everyone wants to spend 2, 3 or 4x as much on dvd media, just to get better quality if the own burner can handle Ritek media well (e.g. Pioneer, NEC)

[windtrader]

I started buring Ritek discs and had pretty good luck with them. I tried to be careful sorting out the different kinds of Ritek: unbranded Ritek, shiny unbranded Ritek, branded Ridata, orange top Ritek, etc. I did get some bad batches but the price was good value relative to the TY discs.

As mentioned before the TY discs were alway top quality discs and I do no think you will find a credible source who would say there are any better in its target market.

In the past two months or so, for some reason I still do not clearly understand, the TY (-R) prices have fallen dramatically. You can now get a 100 pack for about 40 bucks - unbelievable prices. I immediately bought a hundred and discovered for myself how superior these disc really are. Not a single glitch, studder, error, or any physical flaw. I'm on my second batch of 100 and still perfect.

As I say, I don't know what the problem is that causes the prices to fall so hard so fast but as soon as the supply starts falling I plan to load up on these discs unless the price of DL discs falls far enough to make the TY discs no longer the value buy they are now.

[krackato]

Where are you getting a pack of 100 TY discs for $40?

[windtrader]

Here: The "super" low price is off sale but still cheap.
http://www.meritline.com/taiyo-yuden-8x-dvd-r-silver-thermal.html

Here is some TY 4x +R media at 37 cents
http://www.supermediastore.com/taiyo-yuden-4x-dvd-plus-r-media-retail.html

[valnar]

I would never use Ritek. Taiyo Yuden or Verbatim make the best DVD-R media, IMO. Taiyo Yuden and Mitsui Gold (if you can afford it) make the best CDR media.

-Robert

[smiller667]

Originally posted by valnar
Taiyo Yuden or Verbatim make the best DVD-R media, IMO.Verbatim labels (yes, they sometimes actually label their own product), TY actually produces discs ...

[int 21h]

After Ritek stopped making G3s, I stopped getting any sort of quality Ritek media (I tried several resellers, problems were always a few discs on each spindle that would not burn completely) :-/ So now I'm using the TY 8x DVD-R (DVD Decrypter shows Manufacturer ID: TYG02)

I got them here (http://www.supermediastore.com/taiyo-yuden-silver-thermal-8x-dvd-r-media-100.html)

So far no problems at all, but admittedly I've only burned one spindle of them. So we'll see.

[krackato]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I picked up a 100 pack of TY at Rima.com here: Link (http://www.rima.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=R&Product_Code=1736-100&Category_Code=DMRTY)

To check for read errors I'm using DVDInfoPro. So we'll see how this new spindle turns out. If a movie breaks down, I'll live with it. But when it's data, I get concerned.

[theReal]

But when it's data, I get concerned.If you're really concerned, you shouldn't buy spindles at dumping price...

It's true that TY has always been one of the only reliable manufacturers, but who knows what they put on spindles for 48 Cent a piece? Maybe their b-production? You can't tell for sure...

In the case of Verbatim, if you buy spindles you probably get CMC discs (not good!) if you buy jewel case or slim case you'll get Mitsubishi or TY (both very good)

Someone mentioned Mitsui CDRs - it's the same for them: Mitsui Gold CDRs in jewel case might still be the best, but what happened to the rest of their line is a shame: I have a spindle of Mitsui Golden Dye CDRs that are worse than some no-name crap. Also I heard their DVD-Rs are not really good, especially not the "Golden Dye"

--> For important data I only use Verbatim (no spindles!) after I confirmed the manufacturer is Mitsubishi or TY. For peace of mind I'm willing to pay 90 Euro Cent a piece (for 4x DVD-R)

[valnar]

Everybody who posted after me was correct. When I said Verbatim, I do mean the Mitsubishi Chemicals media. Even though I haven't used Verbatim media since I owned a 2x burner, all my burns have been flawless. For the last year I've only used Taiyo.

Robert

[theReal]

Little update on this thread (bad news...):

All I knew and said about Verbatim DVD-Rs being excellent still applies to the Verbatim 4x media, but these are not available anymore. Now I heard from my colleague who burns a lot of video DVDs that Verbatim 8x printable (in jewel cases) appear to be pretty bad! Different burners, 4x or 8x write speed and about 30% report sector errors on burning (--> burning not successful)
My colleague said she tried with Verbatims from different batches, about 100 DVD-Rs alltogether and it was always the same.

Seems that TY are the only reliable media left on the market (if that still applies, I don't know about their 8x media...)

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[valnar]

I bought some Taiyo 8x just recently, but haven't cracked the seal yet. I'm still going through my 4x ones. I'll let everyone know.

Robert

[jacota]

ive been using Taiyo 8x for awhile now and they are flawless. i had been using ritek and had too many problems.

[likwid8]

I know this thread is 6 years old but the discussion still stands as a strong question. What about those Taiyo Yuden Value Line dvd-rs? Are they still quality media because its TY, or are they **** because it's their lowest grade?

[Video Dude]

There is no quality DVD media anymore.

Verbatim discs found at retail are now rebranded CMC discs. And according to myce (CDFreaks), Taiyo Yuden disc production is being outsourced to China.

You can check myce for scans of TY Value Line. Most agree they are of lessor quality.

[Przemek_Sperling]

I know only two companies (alright, both are braches of Mitsui) which made decent storage media: MAM-A (America) http://www.mam-a.com and MAM-E (Europe). They both provide REAL archival grade CDs and DVDs used by universities, hospitals, governmental institutions, etc. Unfortunately, they are quite pricy but I made a test once (I put recorded DVDs directly to the Sun in the summer) which convinced me to use them for special recordings. "Regular archival grade" (Kodak and TDK - unfortunately I do not remember their MCCs) DVDs were unreadable after a day or two. MAM-E DVDs needed almost four weeks.

[prOnorama]

There is no quality DVD media anymore.

Verbatim discs found at retail are now rebranded CMC discs. And according to myce (CDFreaks), Taiyo Yuden disc production is being outsourced to China.

You can check myce for scans of TY Value Line. Most agree they are of lessor quality.

Ah so Verbatim is not MCC (Mitsubishi Chemicals) anymore? Those are (were?) good quality discs, I haver some 5+ year old DVD's and they still work fine while the Ritek discs I have from the same period pretty much all died.

I don't use many DVD's anymore for backups but I'd still like to use them now and again for really important stuff (family photo's etc.)

[setarip_old]

I just purchased another 1,000 Verbatim DVD+Rs and just as the previous 1,000 purchased they are all:Disc ID: MCC-004-00

The interesting thing is not the MID, it's the location of manufacture. Both 1,000 lots are identified as being manufactured in the United Arab Emirates...

BTW - Performance of the last 1,000 was wonderful ;>}

[burfadel]

I just purchased another 1,000 Verbatim DVD+Rs and just as the previous 1,000 purchased they are all:

The interesting thing is not the MID, it's the location of manufacture. Both 1,000 lots are identified as being manufactured in the United Arab Emirates...

BTW - Performance of the last 1,000 was wonderful ;>}

Setarip_old has pointed something out there that a lot of people get confused with. If you wanted to extend this argument further, you could ask what company produces the best DVD -R's and what company produces the best +R's (they're NOT the same!!!).

The DVD -R standard was the original standard and is typically more common. DVD +R is a standard devised by a different group, that was made later, and has only in the last couple of years become an official standard.

In terms of reliability, DVD +R's are the better choice. I know saying 'the best' is a bit iffy on here, but the statement is a valid one and isn't about personal preference. This doesn't mean a cheap DVD +R is better than a good quality DVD -R, just that the better standard for an equivalent quality disk (such as Verbatim DVD -R vs Verbatim DVD +R) is the DVD +R. If you are going to use the DVD on an old player, DVD +R's may not work though.

Another consideration is the burner used. Some burners work better with some media than others. A lot of people don't realise that optical drives (CD/DVD/blu-ray drives/burners) have firmware that is updateable, and most do end up having updated firmware available. Firmware is usually released to either improve burning performance with some media, or improving reliability with some media. Like with any firmware/bios update, whether it be the computer, video card, I've even seen one for a Logitech wireless keyboard/mouse dongle, there is a risk involved with the update process. Follow the procedure stated and you should be ok.

[Video Dude]

Ah so Verbatim is not MCC (Mitsubishi Chemicals) anymore?

The Verbatim currently found in retail in the US is the new Verbatim Life Series, which are rebranded CMC.

Verbatim DataLifePlus can still be found online. These have the Azo logo and are MCC. DataLifePlus is made to Verbatim standard even if they are outsourced to a CMC plant for production.

[setarip_old]

@Video Dude

Hi! DataLifePlus is made to Verbatim standard even if they are outsourced to a CMC plant for production.Such a statement can be misleading.

A good example is that more than a year ago (perhaps two), Verbatim started using Moser Baer (India) for production of Verbatim D/L DVD+Rs - and for about 4 months, there were reports from everywhere of the atrocious failure rates of these specific discs. So it would seem that, despite supposedly using Verbatim's standards, quality control was severely lacking.

It should be noted that this problem has since been overcome...

[Ghitulescu]

It should be noted that this problem has since been overcome...

DL from India are still on sale in Germany, luckily along with Verbatim MIS.

[setarip_old]

@Ghitulescu

Hi!

I don't understand what point you're trying to make. As I said, the Moser Baer-produced Verbatim D/L DVD+Rs are fine now - and are available everywhere...

[Ghitulescu]

The MIS are considered the best DL from Verbatim. The MII are available as 25 or 50pack (spindle) and given my previous experiences with MII I won't risk some money for nothing. I did once (maxell, MIT) and still regret it.

Maybe you should share with us the burner (FW), the MID and the burning speed (and some PI/PO if available). Burning without burning errors is not really a sign of quality.

[setarip_old]

Burning without burning errors is not really a sign of quality.By itself, perhaps not. But when coupled with non-problematic playback, that's all that counts in the REAL WORLD (PIs/POs notwithstanding)...

[Ghitulescu]

I don't want to deviate from OT, this was also discussed in other fora as well, however most drives are perfectly capable of reading out-of-specs disks* (more than 280 PI and/or 4 PO and/or jitter) and yield a perfect reading curve - it's all what I need for daily work TODAY but maybe not in 2 years ...
... unless one uses them the very same way I use to burn CDRs for my auto - I don't care about the brand but the price (I keep however a decent burnspeed) since they get scratched anyway much faster than they get their aluminium/dye degraded by moisture/UV/heat.

*I have a DL disk that is perfectly read by all my drives, yet it has around 1200 PI for a contiguous zone of about 1/4 of its size. It was burned by a standalone. :)