"DVD Rot" problems (1 Viewer)

[Tom Ryan]

I've been reading over at DVD Talk about the possibility of some widespread "DVD Rot" problems. Now this isn't traditional rot as with LDs, but rather a euphemism used to describe what happens when the glue used in dual-layer DVDs starts to loosen and affect DVD playback. Have you guys had any problems with DVDs where initially they played perfectly but after some time wouldn't play correctly in any player, no matter how you clean them?
http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=170454
-Tom

 

[Jerry Gracia]

No,

But then again, who has time to re-watch all their DVDs in a large collection.

 

[Sean Conklin]

All I can say is, I sure hope NOT! I was kinda hoping DVD's would last a lifetime, they should, they cost a lot!

 

[David Ki]

Is it possible that it is the DVD players fault, I noticed my new Sony 700p gets the disc very very hot compared to previous dvd players.

So is it possible that the player is reheating the glue or something. It seems the most of these problem occur at the dual layer switch from what I have read.

 

[Ed St. Clair]

Contact is the only DVD, that I know of, that has constantly come up with this problem.

 

[Jeff]

David people have tried different DVD players and the disc has the same problem so I think in most cases, DVD players can be ruled out.

Jeff

 

[Carlo_M]

Quite a few problems with My Fair Lady (another WAMO disc) as well. My Contact is going strong, but MFL chokes up both DVD players at the change. Also, I've heard that Devil's Advocate suffers from the same problem. I hope not because I have the pre-we-got-sued-and-had-to-change-the-sculpture version that is now OOP. If that goes...

 

[GlennH]

I'm always amused when this topic comes up. You can bet that several replies will be along the lines of "make sure the disc is clean," "it's your player," etc.

While those things certainly matter the absolute fact is that some discs have gone bad after initially being fine, and that in nearly every case they were manufactured by WAMO and are dual-layered (RSDL) discs.

So far for me it has happened with MY FAIR LADY, YELLOW SUBMARINE, and GHOSTBUSTERS. All played fine upon purchase, all later wouldn't play correctly in the second layer. Discs were clean and unscratched and the problem occurred on multiple players.

 

[Carlo_M]

Good point, Glenn. I keep my discs clean, never handling them outside of touching the ring and edges, and no one, I mean NO ONE ELSE handles them. When I encountered the MFL problem I looked at the disc in interior, and then natural light to see if I could see any fingerprints, dust, etc. Nada. But I did see towards the outer edge of the gold disc (RSDL) some slight discoloration of that gold, like it had changed properties or something.
Still waiting for WB to respond to my letter.

 

[Clinton McClure]

The Kentucky Fried Movie also experienced this problem.

 

[KevinJ]

the only disc i've had this problem with[so far]is the yes house of yes dvd

 

[Kevin McCorry]

Was watching my Planet of the Apes TV series disc 2

and when putting it back in its case saw a small area

of foggyness at the outer rim. Incipient DVD rot?

Needless to say, I'll be studying that disc carefully

in the coming months. This is not a WAMO disc, but then this problem doesn't seem to be limited to WAMO discs.

Regarding WAMO, though, I had a three-disc set of Fawlty Towers replaced because one had problems and so had a couple of spare discs at hand. Decided to subject one of them to a stress test. I bent the disc to and fro. I stuck my fingernail under the inner rim of the layers and heard the glue separate. Air poured into the inner ring. Didn't take much to start the separation. Eventually the disc broke from bending, and to my amazement I found I was able to *peel* the two layers apart with NO difficulty. What were they held together with? I've seen better adhesive in model glue. If this is all that keeps discs from delaminating and allowing air inside to react with the aluminum, I think we'll be seeing much more reports of rot. I should NOT have been able to peel the layers apart with my own fingers but did.

A couple of years ago I tried the same test with a slightly cracked Star Trek TOS disc, and the layers in that disc were much too tightly bonded for me to pull them apart after the disc had broke from the bending test. If memory serves, I also had to bend that much more drastically.

I suggest the next time someone has had a disc replaced, rather than just dispose of the old one, do the stress test.

In my estimation, WAMO discs aren't as well put together as the ones pressed by Paramount.

 

[David Ki]

David people have tried different DVD players and the disc has the same problem so I think in most cases, DVD players can be ruled out.

What I meant was: Is it possible that the disc is perfect before playing, then the dvd player is so hot that it melts the glue in a way that makes it impossible for any DVD player to play the disc properly.

 

[RickardL]

My "Yes: House of Yes: Live from the House of Blues"

went bad the other week. Played fine when I bought it.

 

[Tim Hoover]

I've had this happen with a couple of discs, both WAMO product:

The Postman - yes, I actually bought that movie!

Eyes Wide Shut - worked once, then failed around the orgy scene. Talk about disappointment.

I haven't had any problems with really early WAMO discs, like the aforementioned Contact. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

[JohnHN]

The layers separated on my copy of Shakespeare in Love after about a year. The separation is clearly visible. I have three different players and the disk is unplayable on any of them.

 

[Kevin McCorry]

For a product that's supposed to have a shelf life of

50 to 100 years and not degrade with use, DVD seems

not to be living up to expectation. 1 year shelf life?

I suspect that WAMO is the primary problem and that

the ease with which I separated the layers is not an

aberration but the norm. Their bonding agents are

grossly inadequate. Whether it's true for all of

the replicating plants or just some, who knows? The

instances of rot in other studios' discs may be due

to lapses in quality control.

In any event, this is serious business, and Warner

faces the biggest consumer backlash in history unless

this problem is addressed and corrected.

As far as I can tell, Region 2 MGM discs are not

manufactured by WAMO. Wonder if it might be a good idea

to stock up on those.

 

[Bjorn Olav Nyberg]

I've had this happen with R1 Ghostbusters and R2 L.A. Confidential.

Of course I haven't really got an idea whether socalled DVD Rot is the problem or anything else, but those are pixellating.

 

[Martin Jeeves]

Does anyone know if this has anything to do with the 'cloudiness' that you can see in 90% of DVD discs? I've had 'cloudy' discs for years and they still play, but are these the discs that will go first in the future? Does anyone know?

 

[Martin Jeeves]

In other words - should I get rid of ALL my 'cloudy' discs (which is many, many of them)!?