The Blu-ray Replacement Case Thread

[toxsic]

I ordered almost 300 viva elite cases earlier in the year from discmakers and had problems with nearly all of the single ones and around half of the 3 disc ones. i did make a complaint with them. i did not ask for replacements or refunds though even though they tried to get me to take store credit i decided i'd let it slide. i just wanted to make it known to them that were some definite quality issues.

I also noticed this weekend that the actual viva elite website now says the domain has expired. I had the 12.5/15/25mm inlay templates bookmarked and when i went back to check it this weekend was when i noticed it. wonder if there is any correlation?

[thornhill]

So if Viva Elites are not currently recommended, then what is the next best thing?

[DVD Josh]

Originally Posted by MarioG280

The last couple times I needed to restock on cases, I ordered from casetopia via their ebay listings and got them in a week or so.

This seems to be the ONLY way to reliably get merchandise from them, mostly because eBay will hold them accountable.

[toxsic]

so there might actually be something to discmakers no longer having viva elite cases. i just emailed them and got a response from their product specialist and was told that they were discontinued and they ran out of the stock they had left.

i emailed back to find out if by discontinued they meant that they were just no longer selling them or if viva had discontinued them. i'm currently waiting on a response to that question. if viva has discontinued the cases with no plans to make more, then that becomes a problem because i can't stand vortex cases.

[Leeon0]

Originally Posted by toxsic

I ordered almost 300 viva elite cases earlier in the year from discmakers and had problems with nearly all of the single ones and around half of the 3 disc ones. i did make a complaint with them. i did not ask for replacements or refunds though even though they tried to get me to take store credit i decided i'd let it slide. i just wanted to make it known to them that were some definite quality issues.

I also noticed this weekend that the actual viva elite website now says the domain has expired. I had the 12.5/15/25mm inlay templates bookmarked and when i went back to check it this weekend was when i noticed it. wonder if there is any correlation?

Identical scenario with the double-disc cases I ordered last year. F—d up hubs in every case. They were nice enough to offer me a refund.

I assume they finally realized they were getting lemons from the manufacturer, and I'm glad they're no longer selling them.

Originally Posted by thornhill

So if Viva Elites are not currently recommended, then what is the next best thing?

I've been getting the blue single-disc cases from the Checkout Store (they're squarish, thick, and strong but don't have the best hub design); however, they're currently out of stock. The Store carries clear cases too with no Blu-ray logo, but I've never used those. If anyone has, kindly report on the quality.

[toxsic]

Originally Posted by Leeon0

Identical scenario with the double-disc cases I ordered last year. F—d up hubs in every case. They were nice enough to offer me a refund.

I assume they finally realized they were getting lemons from the manufacturer, and I'm glad they're no longer selling them.



I've been getting the blue single-disc cases from the Checkout Store (they're squarish, thick, and strong but don't have the best hub design); however, they're currently out of stock. The Store carries clear cases too with no Blu-ray logo, but I've never used those. If anyone has, kindly report on the quality.

the hubs in all the cases i ordered from them were fine. the problem i had was that the quality of the single & 3 disc cases in regards to the front of the case having much thinner plastic that the older ones. every one of the 100+ single disc cases i got from them had the fronts bowed inward very badly and when i put my covers in them, it caused the covers to bow in as well and look terrible. around half the 3 disc cases were the same since they don't have a hub on the front portion of the case and use a tray instead. all of the 2 disc cases i ordered were perfect other than a couple of cracked ones.

[Leeon0]

Originally Posted by toxsic

the hubs in all the cases i ordered from them were fine. the problem i had was that the quality of the single & 3 disc cases in regards to the front of the case having much thinner plastic that the older ones. every one of the 100+ single disc cases i got from them had the fronts bowed inward very badly and when i put my covers in them, it caused the covers to bow in as well and look terrible. around half the 3 disc cases were the same since they don't have a hub on the front portion of the case and use a tray instead. all of the 2 disc cases i ordered were perfect other than a couple of cracked ones.

I haven't seen any bowing on the single or double cases, but since they're almost as thin as the eco ones, I'm not surprised to hear that.

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by toxsic

so there might actually be something to discmakers no longer having viva elite cases. i just emailed them and got a response from their product specialist and was told that they were discontinued and they ran out of the stock they had left.

i emailed back to find out if by discontinued they meant that they were just no longer selling them or if viva had discontinued them. i'm currently waiting on a response to that question. if viva has discontinued the cases with no plans to make more, then that becomes a problem because i can't stand vortex cases.

It's unlikely Viva is discontinuing all of their cases given they seem to be the primary case used for UHD Blu-ray cases.

[toxsic]

Originally Posted by rdodolak

It's unlikely Viva is discontinuing all of their cases given they seem to be the primary case used for UHD Blu-ray cases.

I should hopefully have an answer from them tomorrow, but i'm guessing they just discontinued the product themselves and will no longer carry them. at least i'm hoping that's what happened. if that's the case then i'll continue trying my hand with casetopia. it just sucks that they quit carrying them because overall they were slightly cheaper than casetopia with shipping included.


***UPDATE***
got an email back from discmakers this morning and was told that they just decided to stop selling them. so looks like we should still be able to buy them from other sellers.

[Steve]

Originally Posted by Steve

I placed an order with them on May 24 and then forgot about it. I realized over the weekend I never got my cases. It's now been 25 days with no communication or product shipment. I've tried calling them over a dozen times today and nobody answers the phone. It gets kicked to a voicemail but the mailbox is full so you can't even leave them a message. I went back and found the confirmation email I received after placing my order and replied to it asking for the status of my order and informing them that I've tried calling repeatedly. I'll give it a day or maybe two and after that I'm going to contact my financial institution and dispute the charge.

ETA: It's also interesting that if you go to their site and click the 'contact us' link nothing happens. The pointer changes to a hand indicating it's a link when you hover over it, but when you click it nothing happens. I tried right clicking on it and opened it in a new tab and it just brought up a blank tab. Granted the phone number (that nobody answers) and email address is displayed elsewhere on the site, but I can't shake the feeling that they do not want to hear from their customers.

There are also nine complaints filed against them with the BBB since September of last year.

https://www.bbb.org/us/tn/chattanoog...492/complaints

They're now reminding me of AV123, who started strong, then ran out of money, ceased contact with their customers, and never shipped out orders or refunded money.

Update: I did some searching and found three phone numbers affiliated with Casetopia's address. Two belong to a Jeff J Graham. They are:

423-475-6663. This is the number on the Casetopia website that nobody answers.

423-710-8717. When you call this number there is a recording that says the call can not be completed as dialed.

There is another business that comes up with the address called Design Associates Inc. The number listed for them is 423-954-3040 but when you call that number it just sounds like the phone is off the hook.

Originally Posted by Steve

I'll give it until close of business tomorrow and then call my credit union and dispute the charge.

They aren't having communication problems. They have cut off communication altogether from what I can tell.

Just following up on this. Once again I got distracted with other things and forgot about this order.

There was never any response to the email I sent and my order still hasn't shipped. I sent another email today but don't expect any response to it either.

I was going to dispute the charge through my credit union, but I can't find where it ever went through. Maybe they only charge when the order is fulfilled? If that's the case it looks like it will be never.

All I can say at this point is to avoid Casetopia. Based on my recent experience with them they absolutely will NOT ship your order and they absolutely will NOT respond to any attempts to communicate.

I won't be surprised if the website vanishes with no explanation in the near future.

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by Steve

Just following up on this. Once again I got distracted with other things and forgot about this order.

There was never any response to the email I sent and my order still hasn't shipped. I sent another email today but don't expect any response to it either.

I was going to dispute the charge through my credit union, but I can't find where it ever went through. Maybe they only charge when the order is fulfilled? If that's the case it looks like it will be never.

All I can say at this point is to avoid Casetopia. Based on my recent experience with them they absolutely will NOT ship your order and they absolutely will NOT respond to any attempts to communicate.

I won't be surprised if the website vanishes with no explanation in the near future.

Have you done what I and a few others have posted in this thread? Find the original e-mail receipt confirming your order. Click reply. Kindly inform them of the delay and that you were wondering if anything else was needed in order to complete your order. You will likely get a reply e-mail in 48 hours or so apologizing and stating that your order has shipped.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by IndyMLVC

Notice I asked for US...
Casetopia's shipping is high enough.
And I need 3/6 disc cases, which they don't sell.

Okay, well, clearly you have specific needs, but for anyone who is not looking for 3/6 4K cases, they're a good option.

Originally Posted by JG85

So is mega disc store reliable? I want to order from there but want to make sure I’ll receive my order & that they’re a good site.

Yes, very reliable. Keep in mind that they are a Canadian company and I'm in Canada so I can't speak to US shipping speeds, but every time I've ordered from them (which is often) they provide e-mails confirming that they've received the order and dispatched the order, the orders always come extremely quickly and the cases are always wrapped together with a sort of cling wrap and in an appropriately sized cardboard box. The cases themselves have always been in perfect condition.

[HonestJohn]

Originally Posted by MarioG280

The last couple times I needed to restock on cases, I ordered from casetopia via their ebay listings and got them in a week or so.

Wasn't aware of the issues, just put in an order from their Ebay Store and it took just 4 days. Perhaps EBay is a better option ... I've always purchased through Ebay from them as Shipping costs were always lower. Fingers crossed next order goes as well.

[bonehica]

Originally Posted by HonestJohn

Wasn't aware of the issues, just put in an order from their Ebay Store and it took just 4 days. Perhaps EBay is a better option ... I've always purchased through Ebay from them as Shipping costs were always lower. Fingers crossed next order goes as well.

Well, that makes sense. If they have issues honoring sales via their eBay storefront, they risk repercussions from eBay. Not honoring sales via their website...who do they need to answer to there? The internet police?! Definitely would order via eBay!

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by HonestJohn

Wasn't aware of the issues, just put in an order from their Ebay Store and it took just 4 days. Perhaps EBay is a better option ... I've always purchased through Ebay from them as Shipping costs were always lower. Fingers crossed next order goes as well.

I always found the total cost to be lower on the Casetopia site, at least for what I was looking for, but that would be expected given they're not paying any fees to eBay.

[BuckNaked2k]

In search of clear single-disc replacement cases for Arrow titles. I saw the listing on their site, but they are not in stock. Did they stop selling them? Is there another source? Thank you!

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k

In search of clear single-disc replacement cases for Arrow titles. I saw the listing on their site, but they are not in stock. Did they stop selling them? Is there another source? Thank you!

You'd have to ask Arrow to be sure, but they're probably just out of stock. It looks like the 2-disc cases are still in stock.

[Bobo1313]

Just bought some viva elite cases from casetopia and man o man were my hubs garbage. My disc were so tight in the hub I thought the disc was gonna crack. I'm returning them, now I don't know what to do.

[TigerManBlu-ray]

I noticed recently that the case designs for Blu-ray in the US are changing from Viva Elite to Finest Products Limited. My Doctor Who Season 19 Set (released 2018) is Viva Elite and the next set in that series Season 18 (released 2019) has a Finest Products Limited Case. The FPL is much better than the Viva. IMO. So maybe they're changing the standard for cases here.

[jackranderson]

Any good UK options? Looking for clear, single disc blu-ray cases.