Burned DVD won't play in DVD player, but will on Mac?

nobodyhome · Jan 29, 2014

I ripped my dvd and created an iso file then used Burn to burn the disk, but my living room dvd player won't read it.

Here are my steps:

- Ripped dvd to .dmg file using SimlpyBurns then extracted/saved VIDEO-TS and AUDIO_TS to a folder.
- Used a ported version of DVD Shrink to shrink the dvd to fit on standard single layer dvd and saved to iso.
- Used Burn to burn the iso files to dvd.

The disc plays on my computer, but not my dvd player. Why? What am I missing?

I had DVD Fab, but apparently the trail dies if you use the compression feature and I used that ages ago. Thus, my trial ran out.

I'm open to freeware alternatives to rip and compress so that dvds will fit on a regular DVD5, but not really shareware since this is pretty much a highly rare thing for me.

Any advice?

phrehdd · Jan 30, 2014

nobodyhome said:
I ripped my dvd and created an iso file then used Burn to burn the disk, but my living room dvd player won't read it.

Here are my steps:

- Ripped dvd to .dmg file using SimlpyBurns then extracted/saved VIDEO-TS and AUDIO_TS to a folder.
- Used a ported version of DVD Shrink to shrink the dvd to fit on standard single layer dvd and saved to iso.
- Used Burn to burn the iso files to dvd.

The disc plays on my computer, but not my dvd player. Why? What am I missing?

I had DVD Fab, but apparently the trail dies if you use the compression feature and I used that ages ago. Thus, my trial ran out.

I'm open to freeware alternatives to rip and compress so that dvds will fit on a regular DVD5, but not really shareware since this is pretty much a highly rare thing for me.

Any advice?

DVDs for DVD players are expected to be formatted a certain way and include certain files within the DVD disc. If you only have the VOB media, it may not play. Also, but less likely, some players will play only DVD-r but not DVD+r and visa versa and then again, some wont play rewrite-able discs unless they are properly "closed."

Chad3eleven · Jan 30, 2014

Thats the case sometimes.. The optics used in optical drives range in quality and tolerance, which means some DVD drives can read burned and/or scratched discs better then others.

I've burned many discs over the years and we always checked them in a PC, then a Mac, and then several set top DVD players to ensure they would work.

Most of the time I used DVD Studio Pro (part of the FCP Studio package) but I've also used Toast.. Toast and a shrink to fit feature as well.

You might want to look into that program to see if it will work for you.

sjschall · Jan 30, 2014

...some players will play only DVD-r but not DVD+r...

+1

This is common, and very likely to be the issue

jimsowden · Jan 30, 2014

nobodyhome said:
I ripped my dvd and created an iso file then used Burn to burn the disk, but my living room dvd player won't read it.

Here are my steps:

- Ripped dvd to .dmg file using SimlpyBurns then extracted/saved VIDEO-TS and AUDIO_TS to a folder.
- Used a ported version of DVD Shrink to shrink the dvd to fit on standard single layer dvd and saved to iso.
- Used Burn to burn the iso files to dvd.

The disc plays on my computer, but not my dvd player. Why? What am I missing?

I had DVD Fab, but apparently the trail dies if you use the compression feature and I used that ages ago. Thus, my trial ran out.

I'm open to freeware alternatives to rip and compress so that dvds will fit on a regular DVD5, but not really shareware since this is pretty much a highly rare thing for me.

Any advice?

Is the player a sony? Sometimes they don't play anything burned in general.

nobodyhome · Jan 30, 2014

Thanks for all the replies.

@phrehdd What do you mean properly closed. Doesnt the burning software make it so it can play?
I made sure that the VIDEO_TS folder had more than just the VOB files. The IFO and BUP files are there.

@Chad3eleven All the discs I burned to were brand new straight off the spindle. I know sometimes scratched discs will play on my Mac, but not my cheap little player from Target.

The discs I was using were DVD+R. Are DVD-Rs better? More universally accepted by dvd players?

@jimsowden The player I tested it on was a Samsung DVD/VCR combo. Im going to be mailing these to my father and I dont know what brand player he has.

Am I messing up any steps or is what I'm doing right?

Oh, I'm using a new (probably a few months old) Apple SuperDrive. Would've sprung for a BD/DVD drive, but well there were circumstances so I got a SuperDrive.

sjschall · Jan 30, 2014

The discs I was using were DVD+R. Are DVD-Rs better? More universally accepted by dvd players?

Absolutely. Many older players especially will not play DVD+R discs. Newer ones usually will. I would try burning a DVD-R and see if that solves the issue.

nobodyhome · Jan 30, 2014

sjschall said:
Absolutely. Many older players especially will not play DVD+R discs. Newer ones usually will. I would try burning a DVD-R and see if that solves the issue.

I see. I only have what's left of a DVD+R spindle. I'll grab some DVD-R dvds and try again tomorrow. Sure hope that's all I'm doing wrong.

For the future which type of DVDs should I choose for doing different things? Like DVD-Rs for playable dvds. Does it make a difference what I use DVD+Rs for?

phrehdd · Jan 30, 2014

nobodyhome said:
Thanks for all the replies.

@phrehdd What do you mean properly closed. Doesnt the burning software make it so it can play?
I made sure that the VIDEO_TS folder had more than just the VOB files. The IFO and BUP files are there.

@Chad3eleven All the discs I burned to were brand new straight off the spindle. I know sometimes scratched discs will play on my Mac, but not my cheap little player from Target.

The discs I was using were DVD+R. Are DVD-Rs better? More universally accepted by dvd players?

@jimsowden The player I tested it on was a Samsung DVD/VCR combo. Im going to be mailing these to my father and I dont know what brand player he has.

Am I messing up any steps or is what I'm doing right?

Oh, I'm using a new (probably a few months old) Apple SuperDrive. Would've sprung for a BD/DVD drive, but well there were circumstances so I got a SuperDrive.

When burning discs, there are those that are write once and those that are re-writable. Of the latter, some players wont play a disc that still can be written on and thus the option to "close" the disc (making it not re-writable anymore) is needed.

Dave Braine · Jan 31, 2014

In Burn, did you make a video dvd as below? Obviously not using an mp4 file.

nobodyhome · Jan 31, 2014

phrehdd said:
When burning discs, there are those that are write once and those that are re-writable. Of the latter, some players wont play a disc that still can be written on and thus the option to "close" the disc (making it not re-writable anymore) is needed.

Those are RW discs, right? Is there a program that "closes" the disc or a step I'm overlooking with the DVD+Rs? It finally worked with DVD-R, but I'm asking for future knowledge.

Dave Braine said:
In Burn, did you make a video dvd as below? Obviously not using an mp4 file.

Image

Nope. I only did that with my individual m4v video files and I believe it converted them into mpg. I chose "Copy" for the iso files. This is what it showed me:

Everything finally worked when I used a DVD-R dvd (man, I feel stupid). I had no idea that the type of DVD would make such a huge difference. I thought they were about the same.

For the future which type of DVD is generally better? Should I avoid DVD+R all together?

Thank you to everybody who replied for helping me out. I'd probably be sitting at my computer wondering what I was doing wrong and trying different apps over and over otherwise.

DeltaMac · Jan 31, 2014

nobodyhome said:
.
Everything finally worked when I used a DVD-R dvd (man, I feel stupid). I had no idea that the type of DVD would make such a huge difference. I thought they were about the same.

For the future which type of DVD is generally better? Should I avoid DVD+R all together?
...

I keep some of both.
Use the type that works. Now you know that your DVD player needs the DVD-R
You might find situations in the future where the DVD+R will work better.

nobodyhome · Jan 31, 2014

DeltaMac said:
I keep some of both.
Use the type that works. Now you know that your DVD player needs the DVD-R
You might find situations in the future where the DVD+R will work better.

So confusing. I will certainly keep my DVD player's preference in mind and hopefully it will play on my Dad's player.

Guess it boils down to what works. Thank you. I'll keep some of each just in case.

phrehdd · Feb 1, 2014

nobodyhome said:
So confusing. I will certainly keep my DVD player's preference in mind and hopefully it will play on my Dad's player.

Guess it boils down to what works. Thank you. I'll keep some of each just in case.

Really glad it all worked out for you and that it is only at the cost of the media discs. Btw, bring BOTH* types to your Dad to see which one works. If -R works then you only need buy -r type discs for future purposes.

mtngoatjoe · Feb 7, 2014

You might be able to get away from DVD altogether. If you and/or your dad have HDTVs, get an AppleTV. It's very handy for sharing photos and videos (and watching Netflix). There are other options, but I like AppleTV.

If you have an iPad, iPhone, or iPod, you can sync your media with that and share via an SD, component, or HDMI cable. I use the SD cable when I go to my grandmother's. It works pretty well (and lets me watch Netflix at her non-internet home).

Good luck!

nobodyhome · Feb 7, 2014

mtngoatjoe said:
You might be able to get away from DVD altogether. If you and/or your dad have HDTVs, get an AppleTV. It's very handy for sharing photos and videos (and watching Netflix). There are other options, but I like AppleTV.

If you have an iPad, iPhone, or iPod, you can sync your media with that and share via an SD, component, or HDMI cable. I use the SD cable when I go to my grandmother's. It works pretty well (and lets me watch Netflix at her non-internet home).

Good luck!

Hm. I don't see how this addresses the central topic of the thread (which has been resolved). I have looked into AppleTV extensively and it just doesn't align with how devices or media get used or viewed in my family. Not yet anyway. While I understand your benefits with AppleTV they sadly do not apply to me nor my father. I mainly had trouble burning a dvd to accommodate a purpose use which, again, had been resolved.

Thank you though... I think? :/

mtngoatjoe · Feb 10, 2014

nobodyhome said:
Hm. I don't see how this addresses the central topic of the thread (which has been resolved). I have looked into AppleTV extensively and it just doesn't align with how devices or media get used or viewed in my family. Not yet anyway. While I understand your benefits with AppleTV they sadly do not apply to me nor my father. I mainly had trouble burning a dvd to accommodate a purpose use which, again, had been resolved.

Thank you though... I think? :/

Your welcome..... I think?

Ps. My post was just a suggestion about another option. Since there's no way to know how much someone who still burns DVDs knows about other options, I thought I'd throw that out there as something that might help. I had no idea another option would be confusing. Sorry.... I think?

Vwluva23 · Jun 12, 2014

Dave Braine said:
In Burn, did you make a video dvd as below? Obviously not using an mp4 file.

Image

How do you get to this "burn" option? I am having similar trouble. I have a video in mp4 format and am burning it to DVD-R and it plays on macs, but not on my DVD player. I figure it has something to do with the mp4 format, but I don't know how to change that. I'm using a usb external drive to burn the dvd-r also. Anyone have any tips? Thanks!

Vwluva23 · Jun 12, 2014

I figured out how to download burn and I followed the directions from @Dave Braine and burn it. But when it plays its just has a black screen and is 0 seconds long. Help please!

I converted the video from mp4 to mpg

Dave Braine · Jun 12, 2014

Don't convert the mp4 file, just drop it in the Burn main window.

Vwluva23 · Jun 12, 2014

Thanks for the response Dave, but when I select the mp4 file it asks if I want to convert it to mpg. If i say no, it can't add it to the queue.

Dave Braine · Jun 13, 2014

Sorry, thought you were converting it yourself. Burn needs to convert to mpg, so chose Yes. Can't think why it's not working right though.

Burned DVD won't play in DVD player, but will on Mac?

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