Backing up movies DVD

[mis3]

I am thinking to purchase a DVD-Writer to backup my movie DVDs. I am considering the 8x drives from LG and Plextor.

Now, someone told me that most movie DVDs are recorded in dual-layer format, since all the current DVD-writers out there are single-layer, does this mean that I willnot be able to backup the movie DVDs?

 

[Spitfire_x86]

You have to use software like dvdshrink

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[BunnyStroker]

DVD X Copy does this quite well, although it is rather pricey.

<b>1.4 Ghz AMD T-Bird underclocked to 1 Ghz...just to be safe!</b>

 

[BunnyStroker]

To clarify - you really have two options when backing up a typical DVD.

1) Make a "perfect" copy. Because most DVDs are indeed dual layer, this means that a single data DVD will likely not be large enough to hold it. A good DVD copy program like DVD X copy will allow you to split the contents of the original DVD over two data DVDs, which gives you a perfect copy but requires you to switch DVDs at some point when watching.

2) Compress the video and audio. Again, a good DVD copying program has all manner of fancy codecs to compress the audio and video enough to fit on a single DVD. There is a theoretical loss of quality associated with this compression. However, at a typical compression ratio (~30-40%) I doubt you would be able to tell the difference between the compressed audio/video and the original. On my fairly mediocre quality television, I am unable to detect a difference. If you had a really sexy home theatre set-up, perhaps you could, though I still doubt it. This method would not be recommended for making true archival copies, though since a DVD-Burner that could burn dual layer discs will probably eventually hit the market (not any time soon, though - I haven't heard of any companies developing one yet).

<b>1.4 Ghz AMD T-Bird underclocked to 1 Ghz...just to be safe!</b>

 

[phsstpok]

DVD X Copy is off the market. 321 Studios lost their court case and cannot produce any products that break the CSS encryption, not even for true backup purposes.

[Update]
Let me rephrase that. 321 Studios pulled the old, familiar version of DVD X Copy. They will release it minus the CSS crack. This means only non-protected DVDs can be backed up.

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by phsstpok on 03/27/04 04:20 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[mis3]

BenQ makes one which can support dual-layer recording via a firmware upgrade.

See: http://www.supermediastore.com/benq-dw822a-dual-dvdrw.html

On the other hand, big names in optical drives like Plextor, Lite-On, LG do not even mention dual-layer in their sites. I am a bit reluctant to buy BenQ.

 

[mis3]

If I use some sort of DVD copy software to compress the video/audio, would I be able to play it in a regular DVD player?

 

[4Ryan6]

All you need is Smartripper 2.4.1 to rip the DVD to your hardrive, then use Intervideo DVD Copy 1 (DVD Copy 2 Gold and Platinum versions have just been released, but DVD Copy 1, is still on the store shelves),to pull just the movie from the ripped files, and burn it to disk if the movie itself is less than 4.7Gb, it will be burned to disk on a 1 to 1 copy, which is no quality loss at all, or if say the total movie file is 5.1Gb it uses DivX compression and compresses the movie just enough to fit it to disk, also giving an almost perfect reproduction, but no visable quality loss at all. So far I've burnt about 10 reproductions using these two programs after using, DVD Decrypter, DVD Shrink, DVD X Copy, My DVD, ETC. You Name IT!!!, you can download Smartripper online for free but you'll have to look hard to find it, try searching through Google until you find a good download link. And Intervideo DVD copy 1, I bought for about $35.00 US from Best Buy, and I think Circuit City also carries it.

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[mis3]

My question was if I have to use compression to fit the movie into one DVD, will a regular DVD player be able to play it?

I understand that a PC will probably have the software to de-compress the file but not the DVD player.

 

[Rob423]

get your real DVD... Use DVD SHRINK... burn the 2 folders shrink makes for you ... wala! you have a perfect back up that will play on almost all home set players if you use DVD-R media!

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[BunnyStroker]

The CSS copy protection crack has been technically removed from DVD X Copy, but they have a *nudge nudge wink wink* [r]not that you should use this but here it is anyways[/r] link to a free one on their website.

Since a CSS crack is so easy to find and use, this really shouldn't be a mark against DVD X Copy, which is still widely available.

<b>1.4 Ghz AMD T-Bird underclocked to 1 Ghz...just to be safe!</b>

 

[phsstpok]

I didn't notice the link, interesting. Their FAQ states that the injunction bans the company from giving any such assistance. We'll see how long the link remains.

I'm not sure I see the value in the commercial DVD X Copy if one needs to look for a critical utility to make the product truly useful. One can find plenty of free programs, probably in the same places where the CSS utilities can be found. [Not that I know of such things..LOL]

Anyway, I hope that the DMCA is modified to take the concept of "fair use" into account. Some of us really do only want legitmate backups and flexible but legitimate viewing options for DVDs.

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[Rob423]

yeah i wouldn't even bother with xcopy, personal experience shrink does a better job.

Asus A7N8X Deluxe
80gb Maxtor
200gb WD 8mb cache..
Lian-Li PC-60
LiteOn 52X/LiteOn 811s DVD-RW
AMD XP2800+
LeadTek GF4Ti4200 128mb
Hitachi CML174
1GB Corsair XMS PC3200