ImgBurn newbie - Are these the best settings?

[ojed4r]

Hi! ImgBurn newbie here

 

Since this is my first time using the program  I've been looking for tips when burning different types of discs, these are usual recommendations that I've found and I would like to know if I'm on the right track and if these settings are safe to use:

 

*The recommended speed for burning DVDs and Blu-Rays is 4x as using the lowest speed or above 4x is not safe. However, I've read that for M-Disc the recommended speed is 2x, should I use that one or 4x is sufficient?

 

*Before burning, it is better to convert the data to an .iso and burn it,
or can I just drag up data the data and move it to the blank disc and then burn it?

 

*When burning double layered DVDs, you have to set the "layer break" to 1913760, is that correct?

 

*I've read that you have to select UDF over ISO9660 as there might be some issues
when reading discs on Windows 7, which UDF should I pick: 2.60 or 2.50?

 

*I have some music files named with special characters like "？" , will there be an issue with those files
after burning? For non-unicode file names is there something that I need to keep in mind?

 

*For blanks, Verbatim seems the best choice, but do Sony's have good quality as well?
For DVDs, should I pick DVD-R or DVD+R?

 

*And this might be off-topic and kinda a dumb question but for labeling discs can I use a marker like Sharpie or it has to be a special one? I've read that for DVDs and Blu-Rays it's fine if you use a sharpie but for CD-Rs is not recommended because the ink can pass through the layer and damage the data, is that true?

 

That's what I've gathered so far, are there other useful tips that I'm missing?

Thank you!

[dbminter]

Some of the answers:

 

It's not necessary to create an ISO first.  However, if you don't and your burn fails, you have to go through the entire process you just went through of beginning the burn all over again.  If you create an ISO first, you just start the ISO burn again.

 

No, you don't need to set to the layer break position to the same arbitrary position every time you burn a double layer DVD.  In fact, you really CAN'T.  The layer break is set based on the contents that are loaded from the VIDEO_TS.  Plus, you may want to set the layer break at one of the different available options.

 

As for questions about music files named with a question mark, the bigger question is HOW you named a file with a ? in its file name.  ? is not an allowed character on Windows for file names.

 

DVD-R has better compatibility with older DVD players.  However, most modern DVD players have no problems with DVD+R.  I believe DVD-R is SLIGHTLY larger so you can fit a few more MB on it.

 

The question about Sharpies is a long standing one with no really specific answer.  To be safe, I have both Sharpies and CD markers.  If the disc has an inkjet printable label on it, I feel comfortable writing on it with a Sharpie.  I've also used ultra fine Sharpies to write on branded DVD label surfaces.  As for CD's, I only ever used the CD markers for those, just to be safe.

[ojed4r]

Hey! Thanks for the advice.

Regarding the filenames, the symbol ？that I have on those is not the same as the regular question mark (?). I was looking for a symbol that resembled a question mark that could be used in filenames, and digging out I found this weird question mark symbol that works, I also found one that resembles a backslash and it works as well, I will attach some pictures

 

 

 

So, you think should I rename those files and remove the symbols, or there won't be issues when burning?

Regarding the speed, is 4x enough for all types of discs?

[dbminter]

Interesting.  I was not aware of alternate symbols that resembled question marks and backslashes.  Since I don't know what file set they are from, I couldn't say if ImgBurn will remove those special characters or not.  You can find out, though, easily enough.  In Build mode, add one of these alternate ? files for creating an ISO and then exit out of the Advanced interface.  Check the ImgBurn log window for any yellow triangles that would say something like file names altered to conform to the file system standard you set.  If there are any such, ImgBurn can't use those alternate symbols in the file system you selected.  So, possibly UDF 2.60 would.  That's the newest standard supported, so if UDF 2.60 doesn't work, nothing most likely will.

 

4x would be fine.  I always burn at the fastest speed possible and rarely have an issue.  I don't particularly care about lower speeds.  As long as a burn completes at the highest speed I set and passes Verify afterwards, that's my main concern.

 

Also be aware that if you set the speed to a certain value, the drive won't always honor it.  The speed set is always down to the hardware.  So, sometimes, the drive ignores the speed values set in ImgBurn and burns at whatever it wants to.

[ojed4r]

Thanks for the info. Once I start using the program I'll try what you suggest

And regarding the UDF settings, I've read that you have to set it to 2.50 if you want the data being read on Windows 7, is that true or 2.60 has no issues?

[dbminter]

Oh, I forgot you had mentioned you wanted backwards compatibility with Windows 7.  I don't know if UDF 2.60 works on Windows 7 or not, so I couldn't say.  But, I also don't know if UDF 2.50 was around before Windows 7 or not.

[ojed4r]

Is there a special config I should use for win7? Will that config also work for win10?

[dbminter]

Unfortunately, it's been so long since I used Windows 7, I don't remember what the maximum file system versions were that were available in ImgBurn.  I do know UDF 2.60 works on Windows 11, which is basically just an advanced Windows 10.  And if UDF 2.60 is an available option in the current version of ImgBurn, which was released 10 years ago, it should work with Windows 10.

[ojed4r]

Are there any noticeable differences between 2.50 and 2.60? 2.50 has issues?

[dbminter]

I really don't know much about the file systems.  I just always used the latest UDF version available because backwards compatibility with older Windows systems wasn't a concern of mine.  The only time I never use UDF is when I'm creating DVD Video discs, which requires ISO9660.  And I would guess Audio CD probably doesn't use UDF, but I don't know what it uses.

[ojed4r]

Got it! Thank you so much for all the tips

[ThaCrip]

On 10/5/2023 at 5:34 AM, ojed4r said:

*For blanks, Verbatim seems the best choice, but do Sony's have good quality as well?
For DVDs, should I pick DVD-R or DVD+R?

I would say Verbatim and Taiyo Yuden are the two best options in general. Verbatim tend to be a bit cheaper then TY though, which probably makes it the best all-around choice. but outside of those two you start to gamble a bit more as you might find other decent brands of discs with decent quality, but maybe not.

but between DVD+R vs DVD-R, I doubt it matters much, but DVD-R does hold slightly more data, maybe 5-10MB more off the top of my head.

 

On 10/5/2023 at 5:34 AM, ojed4r said:

*The recommended speed for burning DVDs and Blu-Rays is 4x as using the lowest speed or above 4x is not safe. However, I've read that for M-Disc the recommended speed is 2x, should I use that one or 4x is sufficient?

I generally stick with the following as they are probably safe bets...

-DVD = 16x (or 8x or 12x)

-CD = 16x

while some might say as long as a disc burns okay and then verifies with ImgBurn is 'good enough', at least with DVD recordable discs, I tend to prefer checking it with programs like KProbe as this gives you a better ball-park indication of burn quality (which is a good idea to do in my opinion for anything you really care about long term). because if you start off with good burn quality, even as the disc degrades slowly over time, I figure, at least in theory, it will buy you more time before the disc is unreadable, especially assuming discs degrade slowly and not slowly and then suddenly a lot all at once (my Verbatim and Taiyo Yuden discs, the last I knew, seem to still hold strong even after 10-15+ years which is why I expect these discs to last decades at least). I guess main thing is you don't want initial burn quality running too close to the edge as in my estimations good discs with decent initial burn quality will probably last decades (at least 10-20+ years for a conservative estimate, especially with Verbatim/TY) before any failure to read them occurs.

p.s. if I recall correctly, there was only one time where burning slow (I want to say 4x or less burning was required(but it's been a while since I did this so I can't recall exact details)) actually mattered on DVD. which was creating a boot DVD for a original XBox console that was moded. but for general data backup etc this probably is not going to matter for most people.

[dbminter]

I somehow overlooked the DVD brand question.

 

I would only use Verbatim or TY.  If you're using Verbatim, be sure to get the DataLife Plus or AZO listed media.  NOT the Life Series.  The Life Series are junk.

 

A few years ago, I recently went through my DVD collection to copy the non Verbatim and TY discs to the better quality media.  Those discs I made unwittingly before I knew of things like CMC, etc.  After 18 or 19 years, my Verbatim and TY's were all still readable.  And all of those were burned at the highest rated speed, but back then, the highest rated speeds were like 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x.  Lower speeds than available today.  The unreadables were the junk like CMC, Vanguard, Ritek (DVD+R DL only).  And some "higher" quality discs like Maxell had a few that weren't fully readable.

 

In fact, I've only ever had 1 Verbatim high quality disc, a DVD+R DL, that was partially unreadable after passing a burn and Verify some short time later.  1 in like a thousand.

[ojed4r]

On 10/7/2023 at 1:06 PM, dbminter said:

I would only use Verbatim or TY.  If you're using Verbatim, be sure to get the DataLife Plus or AZO listed media.  NOT the Life Series.  The Life Series are junk.

Yeah, I've read AZO is recommended for DVDs and for Blu-Rays "HTL" blanks are preferable.

About using sharpies for labeling discs, should I use the regular ones or the "ultra fine" points?

amazon USA has this pack with both points: https://www.amazon.com/Sharpie-Permanent-Markers-Ultra-Fine-32175PP/dp/B00L3Y27N0/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=sharpie%2Bcd%2Bmarker&th=1

 

Should I get that one or is there a specific brand that you recommend me? And for CD markers, which is a good-quality brand?

[dbminter]

You never want LTH BD-R's.  They use organic dyes so they'll die faster.  Their only benefit is to the manufacturers as LTH allows them to repurpose DVD production lines which are not longer making anything into producing BD-R's.  They also have higher compatibility and read issues.

 

The ultra fine points have their advantages.  They won't write as much ink on the disc.  You can fit more writing on the discs because the lines are thinner.

 

I've used those dual tipped Sharpies in the past.

 

To be honest, it's been like 15 or 20 years since I last bought CD markers, so I don't know of any particular brand to get over another.  In fact, last I needed them, those 15 to 20 year old CD markers still hadn't dried out yet.

[ojed4r]

I've also read that you have to write on a specific part of the disc to not damage the data, is that correct?

Using this image as example, on which part should I write down?

[dbminter]

Most branded discs like that one, with the company logo on it, limit to where you can write.  You can write anywhere, but to clearly see it, you have to write on the lines at the bottom.  However, I think the lines are only for sake of clarity.  Meaning, that they're not limiting you to just that area.  I would think, though I have no scientific data to back this up with, you could write anywhere.