Early Blu-rays that may have playback issues (Criterion, Well Go USA, etc.)

[RupertPupkin]

yes you are right : if the mould ID is the one on top of the transparent/translucide inner circle of the blu-ray : I can read (it's very small) :

IFPI KK--- for all the Blu-Ray Criterion I have checked for the last year (Tree Of Life, Moonrise, etc...)


moult code (as I can read on top of the inner circle/transparent circle of the disk (not on the surface layer) :
IFPI KK01 for Blonde Venus (Marlène Dietrich)
IFPI KK0M for Scarlett Empress (Marlène Dietrich)

what does the 2 first "KK" refers to (in French we would read it as "caca" - I won't dare to translate this word ;-) : which plant is it ?
what does the 2 last code means ?

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by RupertPupkin

yes you are right : if the mould ID is the one on top of the transparent/translucide inner circle of the blu-ray : I can read (it's very small) :

IFPI KK--- for all the Blu-Ray Criterion I have checked for the last year (Tree Of Life, Moonrise, etc...)


moult code (as I can read on top of the inner circle/transparent circle of the disk (not on the surface layer) :
IFPI KK01 for Blonde Venus (Marlène Dietrich)
IFPI KK0M for Scarlett Empress (Marlène Dietrich)

what does the 2 first "KK" refers to (in French we would read it as "caca" - I won't dare to translate this word ;-) : which plant is it ?
what does the 2 last code means ?

KK is for the plant in Mexico - that's the last Blu-ray replicator in North America, and I expect all or at least the vast majority of North American blu-rays to come from that plant from here on out.

I don't know what the last two numbers mean, they are just for different machines that are in use at that plant. They likely evenly spread the load across their different machines, so it's effectively random which discs are pressed on what machines. I wouldn't give the last two digits much consideration unless we started to see some pattern.

[RupertPupkin]

Originally Posted by neo_reloaded

KK is for the plant in Mexico - that's the last Blu-ray replicator in North America, and I expect all or at least the vast majority of North American blu-rays to come from that plant from here on out.

I don't know what the last two numbers mean, they are just for different machines that are in use at that plant. They likely evenly spread the load across their different machines, so it's effectively random which discs are pressed on what machines. I wouldn't give the last two digits much consideration unless we started to see some pattern.

ok that explains the "made in mexico" printed on the plastic wrap.

I have to add that "visually", the inner circle when you look at the surface layer of the Criterion BR from the last year (probably another plant), you can clearly see a "clean" white surface below the plastic of the inner circle (I mean : you could see a "clean white surface" below/under the printed/artwork of the disk when you look the side of the "playable" surface of the disk, whereas from this new plant, the inner circle looks a bit bronzed).
that's just a "visual" look; it does not imply of course that this plant doesn't know to manufacture blu-ray.
That's just this Blu-Ray alteration of the inner circle for two recent titles is not a good sign for me and reminds me the infamous QOL plant from France (my Dear country

[neo_reloaded]

Of the various bronzing cases, zero have been reported from the Mexico 'KK**' plant. The Criterion bronzing discs were from Sonopress in North Carolina, USA; the Well Go USA discs were from UTech in Taiwan; and the few Lionsgate and Paramount discs were from Technicolor and Discmakers in, if I remember correctly, Pennsylvania, USA. The Mexico plant has long been one of the biggest manufacturers in North America, and now they are the only one, and there have, thus far, knock on wood, been no problem with its discs.

I understand it reminds you visually of QOL, but even for the QOL discs, this particular visual attribute was not even found to be linked to whether discs were defective or not.

[Torrente]

"Funny" to remember a Mexico plant was already the manufacturer of most of Warner HD DVD that are dead

So yeah, "knock on wood"... big time!?

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by Torrente

"Funny" to remember a Mexico plant was already the manufacturer of most of Warner HD DVD that are dead

So yeah, "knock on wood"... big time!?

Everything I've ever seen has indicated that Warner HD-DVDs were manufactured at the Cinram plant in Olyphant, PA, USA - which was also the site of Warner's DVD problems (which makes sense because HD-DVD is a slightly modified DVD process, whereas Blu-ray required entirely new machines). So I think you're wrong. The only Mexico problems I've heard of requires going back to the early days of DVD - Universal "flipper" aka double-sided DVDs from Mexico in the early 2000s had some issues, but those were cleared up like 15 years ago (and you rarely see flipper discs anymore, thank god).

Also, I'm starting a new drinking game. Every time there's a fatalist post from Torrente, we all have to drink.

[Torrente]

It was just a joke

But... you give me the opportunity to dig deeper...
So when the packaging states "Manufactured in Mexico" on my dead HD DVD, you mean they're not always manufactured in Mexico
That's interesting. Maybe it's just the packaging/assembling of the discs which was made in Mexico after the discs have been pressed in the US.

Do you have a list of all the HD DVD that were manufactured in the US and are reported to be dead so that I could check mine?
I wasn't aware of the Mould codes and everything at the time, too.


PS: you'll lose at this game with me, you know that, right?

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by Torrente

It was just a joke

But... you give me the opportunity to dig deeper...
So when the packaging states "Manufactured in Mexico" on my dead HD DVD, you mean they're not always manufactured in Mexico
That's interesting. Maybe it's just the packaging/assembling of the discs which was made in Mexico after the discs have been pressed in the US.

Do you have a list of all the HD DVD that were manufactured in the US and are rported to be dead so that I could test mine?
I wasn't aware of the Mould codes and everything at the time.


PS: you'll lose at this game with me, you know that, right?

Some HD DVDs were probably manufactured in Mexico, but all the reports I've seen of Warner HD DVD rot have specifically mentioned the Cinram plant in PA, USA (mould IFPI of 2U** I believe). Universal, Paramount, etc. HD DVDs have not rotted the way Warner ones have, and Warner has had the vast majority of its pressing done at that Cinram plant until 2011 or so. Warner actually OWNED that plant (under the name WEA) until 2005ish. And I think Warner was even pressing its UK HD DVDs at that plant.

I have long gotten rid of my HD DVDs so I cannot check, but be my guest to confirm what mould IFPI codes you have.

I can't stop you from freaking out about everything, but I can continue to provide rational fact-based analysis.

[rdandura]

Maybe it's not such a good idea to manufacture all discs for an entire continent in one location. Does Europe, Asia, etc have only one manufacturing plant for pressing physical media? It doesn't make any sense and with these rumors of bronzing discs happening YET AGAIN, it just makes me anxious.

[RupertPupkin]

one existential and a bit stupid question : are the UK Criterion Blu-Ray (such as H-G Clouzot "La Vérité") pressed in a "local" European plant ?; or are these Blu-Ray which are region B produced at the same plant than the US BR then important to Europe (since the region code is different it implies a different glass-master; thus different pressings for the same title (I'm only aware of the Bergman box set to be region ALL; which is a premiere for Criterion Blu-Ray)

[MassiveMovieBuff]

Just tried to watch my Unfaithful blu ray and it won't play at all. It's been a couple years since I've watched it but never had any issues before with it. I got it when it first came out. Disc is in mint condition. Very strange. Never had a Fox title go bad on me that I know of. Well I did have skipping and freezing issues with my first copy of Speed a couple years after it was released but my replacement has worked fine since. That was a more common issue though.

[sonny gaunt]

I cannot play Synapse's Vampire Circus-the disc has "waves" around the edge. I ordered a new copy from ebay, hoping my defective copy is an exception.

[gobad2003]

Originally Posted by sonny gaunt

I cannot play Synapse's Vampire Circus-the disc has "waves" around the edge. I ordered a new copy from ebay, hoping my defective copy is an exception.

Just checked my copy which has waves around the edge also won't load on either of my players I know the disc worked when I first bought it. Looks like Synapse has some defective discs floating around.

[Crimson King]

Originally Posted by gobad2003

Just checked my copy which has waves around the edge also won't load on either of my players I know the disc worked when I first bought it. Looks like Synapse has some defective discs floating around.

Me three, just checked mine, won't load, dead as a door nail...

[iamnoone]

Checked my VAMPIRE CIRCUS and no waves on disc and it loads and plays fine, but for how long? Bought it when it first came out.

[neo_reloaded]

What do these waves look like (picture if possible), and what is the mould IFPI number on the disc?

[gobad2003]

I

Originally Posted by neo_reloaded

What do these waves look like (picture if possible), and what is the mould IFPI number on the disc?

[Show spoiler]

There is no mastering code, It just says Vampire Circus L0 and L1 and the mould code is too small to read. I don't have pictures but you can actually feel the wavy ridges along the edge.

[darkness2918]

Originally Posted by gobad2003

There is no mastering code, It just says Vampire Circus L0 and L1 and the mould code is to small to read. I don't have pictures but you can actually feel the wavy ridges along the edge.

Off hand I don’t remember the title/s but I know I have a couple of BDs with wavy ridges like that. Last I checked all played fine. Will have to dig through my discs now to find them when I have the time & check again.

[neo_reloaded]

The waves are probably unrelated to the disc dying. I thought it was visual waves at first, which might be an indicator of some kind of disc rot - but physical waves did not emerge from the disc over time, it had to be like that from the beginning.

However, the waves might act as a way to differentiate pressings, which is useful. The mould IFPI code might as well, if someone is able to see it, perhaps with a magnifying lens if necessary.

[shinobipopcorn]

Originally Posted by darkness2918

Off hand I don’t remember the title/s but I know I have a couple of BDs with wavy ridges like that. Last I checked all played fine. Will have to dig through my discs now to find them when I have the time & check again.

My F13 set is like that, and from what I hear a lot of those are duds. I keep it in it's new viva case instead of the original storybook, in a state of Schrodinger's blu-ray.