DVD will not play everywhere

[mdechristi]

Hi,

I created my first dvd with IDVD and it plays fine at home on my dvd player, but not at my sister's house. Her dvd player plays everything else just fine, but this dvd is shadowy and the audio is barely audible.

What could be the problem?

 

[xStep]

Is your sisters player rated to play home made DVDs. Not all players are.

 

[MisterMe]

...

What could be the problem?

You have two different issues:

• The poor quality of the audio and the shadowy nature of the video are artifacts of the source material, the person who constructed the DVD, or both.
• xStep's post is only the tip of the iceberg. Commercial and homemade DVDs are fundamentally different media. Even if a DVD player is rated to handle homemade DVDs, the arbitrary combination of blank media, burner, and player will not work. You still have to identify the right combination of blank media and burner used to create DVDs that will play in a particular player. The standard recommendation is to start at the high end of blank media and then move progressively down market until you find media that do not work. Be warned, however, you must shield burned DVDs from light. Exposure to light will soon turn your homemade DVDs into coasters.

 

[mdechristi]

You have two different issues:

• The poor quality of the audio and the shadowy nature of the video are artifacts of the source material, the person who constructed the DVD, or both.
• xStep's post is only the tip of the iceberg. Commercial and homemade DVDs are fundamentally different media. Even if a DVD player is rated to handle homemade DVDs, the arbitrary combination of blank media, burner, and player will not work. You still have to identify the right combination of blank media and burner used to create DVDs that will play in a particular player. The standard recommendation is to start at the high end of blank media and then move progressively down market until you find media that do not work. Be warned, however, you must shield burned DVDs from light. Exposure to light will soon turn your homemade DVDs into coasters.

Thanks for responding guys.

Wow! I didn't realize burning a dvd was so complex. I guess I have a lot of research to do before I continue.

Thanks again.

 

[neutrino23]

It is a complex topic. In our experience discount blank DVDs cause more trouble than brand name. We've had good luck with Ritek. Also, cheap DVD players have more trouble than component style brand name players.

It is kind of odd that the sound was weak and the video shadowy. Usually the problem is that parts are skipped or it doesn't play at all.