Pioneer uses "so called" write strategies that are directly tied
to the disk make and model #...  If the disk info is not in the firmware,
the drive will use default settings, and "generally" also burn at a more
conservative speed...  (Say 1X for a disk marked as 2X.)
(Really cheap disks give me a "power calibration" error, and will not
burn at all...)

I don't use DVD-RW or DVD+RW too much, but a DVD-RW disc
that came with one of my earlier burners (a Pioneer A-104) was an
unmarked and unbranded   Optodisc  "Optodisck001". (Spelled right.)
(Note that for DVD-R, I use brands other than Optodisc.)

Nero has additional utilities for reading what "used to?" be called
the ATIP info track, when it is/was on a CD-R. They may not call it ATIP
anymore since standards change, but the info is available and looks
almost the same.  This info tells you who made the glass master,
(and hopefully that is the maker of your disk...).  Knowing who "actually"
made the disk helps you in finding more compatible disks when shopping.
Note that the better sites actually list the "ATIP" manufacturer code
as a way to help buyers.
The program for seeing this code is called (Ahead/Nero) CD Speed.
http://www.cdspeed2000.com/  If you had installed this with Nero 5(+)
as part of the suite, get the upgraded newer version from their site.

Note also that Pioneer has a certification lab that will put their quality
stamp of approval on certain disks.  When buying, I looked at sites
that actually offered Pioneer certified disks... These were not MADE
by Pioneer, (there is a big price difference), they were just quality passed.
I hesitate to name the site here since they were not entirely accurate in
their description and the certified 2X disks I bought for my 2x drive
would only burn "locked at" 1X...  The bad part is they would not do
anything except refer me to the actual manufacturing plant in Taiwan.
(They worked fine at 2X in a different Pioneer drive, so I let it slide...)

If you remember the compatibility issues when CD-R disks and drives
came out, this area is going through the same "roll-out" type of problems...

                                             Rick Glazer

From: "bob warasila" <[log in to unmask]>

> I just tried to burn DVD-RW (Verbatim) disk on my Pioneer
burner.  I normally burn CD's on it without any problem.  I wanted
to backup some data files.  It gave me an error message
saying the media was incorrect.  Are these devices very
sensitive to the brand of disk?  If so what is the best brand
for DVD-RW?

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