Problems burning a dual-layer DVD with PgcEdit

[BZCat]

2 DVD movie re-authored to 1 Dual-layer size via DVD shrink. 1^st used DVD-9 setting in DVD Shrink and PgcEdit said it was unable to find a place for a the layer break. Assuming DVD Shrink made the movie too close to the maximum for a DVD-9, I redid it using a custom setting of 8100MB instead of the default 8124MB. PgcEdit found a place for a layer break. DVD Decrypter burned about half of the movie before giving a write error.
<o></o>

Info from DVD Decrypter log:

I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Source File Implementation Identifier: mkisofs
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Destination Device: [1:2:0] PLEXTOR DVDR PX-740A 1.01 (X (ATA)
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Destination Media Type: DVD+R DL (Disc ID: RITEK-D01-01) (Speeds: 2.4x)
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Destination Media Sectors: 4,173,824
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Write Mode: DVD
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Write Type: SAO
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Write Speed: 2.4x
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Link Size: Auto
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> Test Mode: No
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> BURN-Proof: Enabled
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:05</st1:time> User Specified L0 Data Zone Capacity: 2,081,520
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:06</st1:time> Filling Buffer...
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:06</st1:time> Writing LeadIn...
I <st1:time minute="58" hour="10">10:58:23</st1:time> Writing Image...
W <st1:time minute="20" hour="11">11:20:41</st1:time> Failed to Write Sectors 2081824 - 2081855 - Write Error
…<snip>...
W <st1:time minute="29" hour="11">11:29:35</st1:time> Failed to Write Sectors 2081824 - 2081855 - Invalid Address For Write<o>
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From PgcEdit log:

<o></o>mkisofs 2.01x (i686-pc-cygwin)
Layer break is at absolute sector 2081520. (Offset in L0 is 9.)
Layer break cell:
2081511: VTST 1 , 1 TTN 1 (<st1:time minute="23" hour="14">2:23:20</st1:time>) Title 1 Cell 25 (00:03:08.26), V/CID: 22/1

<o> </o>The pad was 25 for file VIDEO_TS.IFO<o>
</o>

<o> </o>
Will appreciate any help getting this movie burned (two dual-layer coasters so far).<o></o>

[blutach]

DVD Decrypter confirms how many sectors are on your disks. A standard +R DL is 2,086,912 sectors per side.

Have you tried Verbatims? Those Riteks do not have the greatest rep.

BTW: The ideal place for the LB is right at the start of "Disk 2".

Regards

[BZCat]

I'll keep an eye out for Verbatims on sale. The ones I have now are Memorex which I've used successfully with Nero 6.6.0.16 (sort of - it will play on one standalone but will not load on another). PgcEdit only gave me one place for the layer break with DVD Shrink set to a 8100MB output. I may try again witn a smaller sized output to see if I get more choices. Thanks BZCat

[blutach]

PgcEdit will calculate the exact places that a LB can exist. If you set your size to 8152Mb (the size of your DL disk=4,173,824 sectors), then it should find a position for the LB, as 8152 > 8100.

I'd shrink this way:

Disk 1 < 4070Mb (which is just less than L0 real size)
Disk 2 < 4050Mb (which is less than a full L1 and less than the data in L0)

PgcEdit will find the LB right at the start of disk 2.

Regards

[BZCat]

I set disk 1 for 4056MB and disk 2 for 4048MB. PgcEdit says it can't find a suitable cell for the layer break. I went and checked the files DVD Shring created - The VOBs for disk 1 totalled 4075.8MB and for disk 2 4029MB. I'd try DVD Remake and DVD Rebuilder but they look like they have a big learning curve and no guides for what I'm trying to do. I'll recheck my setting and try DVD Shrink again. BZCat

[blutach]

Another one for r0lZ - this is unusual. I will email him.

Edit: Your PgcEdit setup is correct in the number of sectors on your disks?

Regards

[r0lZ]

How many cells are in the main movies? If the movie is only one cell long, that may cause the problem.
Currently, PgcEdit must set the layer break at the beginning of a VOB cell. It doesn't support setting it at the beginning of an IFO or BUP file. So, if your first disk fills almost completely the first layer, it may be impossible to put the first IFO of the second 'disc' on the same layer.

BTW, why do you want to burn 2 movies on a double layer? It's difficult, expensive, and not as safe as using single layer discs. Furthermore, you will have a little bit more place for your video if you use 2 single layer discs.

[BZCat]

I'm pretty new at this. I believe I read that each chapter is a cell. There are 11 chapters in the 1st part of the movie and 10 chapters in the 2nd (actually there are 4 parts and I'm attemping to condense these into 2 dual layer disks - also for experience working with this media and programs).

[blutach]

Good enough. Maybe you can zip up your IFOs and post them here.

Regards

[BZCat]

This last problem while setting custom sizes for disk 1 and disk 2 (and maybe the original problem that started this thread) turned out to be operator error. I set the sizes in the compression settings tab of DVD Shrink and didn't realize that the size shown on the other side of DVD Shrink was larger - Thus disk one extended into the second layer. When I set DVD Shrink properly, PgcEdit found a break point at the start of title two, cell one. I elected not to burn it as I had gone ahead and burned each disk individually. I'm sure I'll have another chance to try a two layer burn. Thank all of you for your help. I did learn a lot. BZCat

[blutach]

Thanks for reporting back BZCat - you had me really worried that something was really wrong with PgcEdit's DL burning

Good luck.

Regards

[r0lZ]

OK. I prefer that!

This thread was useful for me too. I wonder now if it is important to let the user position the layer break just before an IFO or BUP file.
When I first though at this problem, it appeared to me that it was not necessary, because usually the movie is in a titleset too large to fit on a single layer. The layer break must therefore be somewhere inside the titleset's VOBs.
But now, I realize that it is possible to author 2 different movies or several episodes on the same DVD. And, in the US, it is common to have a widescreen and a pan&scan version of the same movie on one DL DVD. Therefore, it may be necessary in some very rare cases to put the layer break just before the IFO of the 2nd. movie titleset.
In the other hand, an IFO file is very short, compared to the size of the VOBs, therefore it should be almost always possible to put it on L0.
And adding this feature in the burn function is not easy, because I have to introduce many new parameters in the calculation of the possible layer break points.
What do you think? Is it really useful to add this feature?

[blutach]

If possible, I'd position it before the IFO (of course the entry point to the VOB would also be an STC discont and a non-seamless cell). It seems reasonable to keep things together. I don't think this adds risk.

Regards