[Matthew Attoe]

Hi,

Does anyone know if there is any actual difference between unbranded Grade "A" cdr and branded ones?

I know that unbranded disks can sometimes bee unreliable when burning, but is this because they are not the grade "A" type? When your data is burnt onto a cd, which has been verified by Toast, is there any chance of the data corrupting at a later data? In other words, do different makes of cd "hold" onto their data longer than others?

I know that a lot of people say that they would never use unbranded cdr but is there and scientific proof about this rather than hearsay.

I would have thought that all cd-r are made in just a few factories around the world and then just labelled for Verbatim, Memorex or whoever.

Anyone got any hard info on this subject?

Cheers,

Matthew

[Mighty Hetfield]

Yes, although it is true that CD-Rs are made in a few factories, like every other product, there are good factories and bad ones. If you plan to do an occasional backup or a quick Audio CD, unbranded media is fine. However they tend to vary a lot in quality (usually smaller Taiwan factories) and some might be unbalanced causing coasters when you burn at high speeds (8X +). But like I said before, some are quite acceptable and can hold data for up to 15 yrs. if properly stored.
My preference when saving important stuff or mixing a good Audio CD is for Kodak, TDK or Mitsui/HP. These brands have the highest reflectivity (more compatible with older players/drives)and their pigment resists time very well, preserving contents for more than 100 years (even though I'm sure you're not going to need them by that time, it just proves they're safer).
Imation and a company in Good Old Mother England (sorry, can't recall the name) also make respectable media.
Some web sites (including manufacturers) offer the specific data, but trust me, after research and experience, nothing beats Kodak, TDK or Mitsui/HP.
Hope I could've helped. Go for it!