Is Dual Layer DVD a bad idea?

J

James Gerber

Well-known member
I'm almost done a DVD I'm working on. It's a few hours long, and approx. 8 gigs in size.

Originaly I was going to burn the project to a DUAL Layer Disc, but have recently heard that certain Stand Alone DVD Players have problems with consumer made Dual Layer Discs. So now I'm having second thoughts, and am thinking of maybe breaking it up into two parts, and creating two Single Layer Discs.

Has anyone else heard/experience problems using Dual Layers, and is it best to avoid using them (when considering playback on various Stand Alone DVD players?)


Thanks,

jg
 
The DL discs I've burned have been somewhat hit or miss, kind of like the way single-layer discs were a few years ago. It'll mature, but if you want a 90% success rate, I'm not sure DL is there yet.
 
Thanks!

As far as Single Layers go, are they all pretty much the same as far as playback is concerned?

jg
 
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you could try using a program called DVD Shrink (just google it) - it's a free download and does a pretty decent job of compressing a longer dvd onto a single disc. just output your vob to a file and import it into the program. Once youve made one copy you can make more without recompression, I've used it for wedding discs that run a little longer but not worth breaking into another disc and have been pretty impressed with the quality retained. Something to try anyway's. of coarse the current cost of an extra disc may not even matter since they've come down so much in price
 
James Gerber said:
Thanks!

As far as Single Layers go, are they all pretty much the same as far as playback is concerned?
jg
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Not at all. There are decent discs, and there are junk discs. Buying decent discs can go a long way towards ensuring compatibility.

Taiyo Yuden are my faves.
 
You know, I hear all this stuff about people worrying about dual layer disks and such, but most Hollywood movies today are dual layer disks. I have never seen/heard/encountered a problem with one.
 
I think that's because they have their disks professionally mastered to ensure the maximum ammount of compatability
 
There's quite a difference between Hollywood-produced dual-layer discs and home-burned ones. The hollywood discs are produced from a glass master, which is a totally different type of replication and requires you to deliver the original on a DLT tape, and a very expensive master copy to be made, from which all subsequent discs are produced.

It get cost-effective to do when you are running 1000+ discs with full-color silkscreening, custom packaging, etc. Under that amount, it is often more cost effective to just split the program on 2 discs and deliver them in a dual-disc case.

The specifics of your situation will dictate, of course. Do you have a DLT drive? How big is the budget? etc., etc... But be warned that any dupe house who says they can assure you of a reliable DL DVD without doing a glass master replication either doesn't know what they're talking about, or is outright lying.
 
I've decided to play it safe (or at least increase the chances of successful playback), and split the video to 2 discs. And free up my DL Discs for data storage.

David, I noticed you mentioned SL Discs were sort of 'hit and miss' when they were first introduced. Anyone think there might be a similar issue when blank consumer 'BluRay' discs/technology first become available to home users?

jg
 
James Gerber said:
David, I noticed you mentioned SL Discs were sort of 'hit and miss' when they were first introduced. Anyone think there might be a similar issue when blank consumer 'BluRay' discs/technology first become available to home users?
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I suspect any home-burned technology will follow a similar path. But who knows? They have to make it to market before anyone can say.
 
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