Safe speed for data backup onto DVD+-R?

[lgmayka]

With my old Pioneer DVR-103, I used to back up large files onto DVD-R at 1x speed without verification failures.

With my new LG GSA-4040B, I was hoping to back up files onto DVD-R/+R at faster speeds. But I have found that:

- Burning onto a RitekG03 (Imation DVD-R) at 2x gives data verification failure, even though burning a home movie onto the same media at 2x appears to work properly.

- Burning onto a RicohJPNR01 (Memorex DVD+R) at either 4x or 2.4x gives data verification failure. Again, burning a movie onto such media at 4x appears to work properly.

I should point out that in all these three cases, I am trying to write a >4GB image (ISO) file. Nevertheless, I have written the same file as a DVD movie successfully; and I have written similar-size files to DVD-RAM (at 1x and 3x) as well as DVD+RW (at 2.4x).

These data verification failures are really shaking my confidence in DVD burning in general. Do other people encounter similar data verification failures on DVD-R/+R at any speed higher than 1x? I'm beginning to think that DVD-R and DVD+R are "junk" media, suitable only for error-tolerant video.

By the way, I am running Nero 6.0.0.11 for these burns.

[lgmayka]

I now suspect that the primary issue here is that the file I want to back up is >4GB. I suspect that previously, whenever I backed up a >4GB file, I either used DVD-RAM (which is formatted for a UDF filesystem and can easily accept large files) or I burned with Easy CD Creator 5.3.5 (which automatically realizes that a >4GB cannot be written onto the old Joliet filesystem and uses UDF instead).

My problem is that while resolving burn-software conflicts, I uninstalled Easy CD Creator 5.3.5. This was apparently a major mistake. Nero 6.0.0.11 OEM apparently offers *no* way to back up a large file onto a UDF filesystem; nor does B's Recorder Gold 5.32. B's Recorder Gold at least gives an error message, whereas Nero (IDIOTICALLY!) writes the DVD even though it cannot possibly be read in again.

It is surprising to me that so many people speak ill of Easy CD Creator, and yet it acts sensibly when presented with a large file whereas the others do not.

[myckee]

Is the ISO image you are trying to write one solid chunk of 4gig+ of data?

Maybe the verification utility is buggy? Have you tried the file scan and surface scan tools in Nero? Maybe you should update Nero to 6.0.0.15?

[lgmayka]

Indeed, Nero 6.0.0.15 apparently fixes this serious bug: Now, when I choose a >4GB file to burn, Nero 6.0.0.15 notices that the file cannot be written to an ISO (CDFS) filesystem, and informs me that it will use a UDF filesystem instead.

So my GSA-4040B does now correctly write files to 4x DVD+Rs (Ricoh-made, Memorex brand). But on writing at 2x speed to a RitekG03 DVD-R, verification does fail, and the FC program confirms the presence of occasional one-byte differences. Specifically, out of the entire >4GB file, the FC program found 8 incorrect bytes. But of course, even 1 incorrect byte is enough to make me conclude that the GSA-4040B cannot safely write to RitekG03 DVD-Rs at 2x speed.

[lgmayka]

I successfully burned a couple of data-backup DVDs onto RitekG03 DVD-R disks at 2x, so I guess I will assume that the one failed disk was an aberration.

My ugly-orange RitekG04 4x DVD-R disks arrived today, and burn correctly at 4x on the GSA-4040B.