The Man with the Golden Doujinshi

Every one I've run across says DVD-R instead of DVD. The fact they wouldn't say either way says drop shipping to me.

MooMooMooMoo

You are correct.

I originally posted excerpts of yesterday's email correspondence here. About an hour after my original post, they sent me a scan of a disc, showing it isn't burned. Wonder if they read this forum?

ProfessorEcho

Geff, that lazy attitude and blatant lack of effort doesn't surprise me in the least. It seems that most customer service reps these days just can't be bothered to actually LISTEN to anyone as they are too busy reading the script of what they are instructed to say.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch.... On the remote chance that I am not the only Bob Steele B western fan out there, here is a very nice deal for a VCI set that probably has crappy quality, but still not bad for four movies:

BOB STEELE Who Fought Shoulder To Shoulder With Davy Crockett At The Alamo!

CapeCodKidinLA

I purchased "Actors & Sin" from VCI and it was a factory pressed disc. I bought it in November, however, so I'm not sure if anything has changed since then.

MooMooMooMoo

Is the VCI the one to get for "Return Of Chandu"? I currently have the Alpha.

thetao

That's the one on my list, per the comment here: http://cliffhangerproductionsmessage...rogress?page=1 . BTW, I'd originally intended to buy 6 or 7 VCI serials at once, but put those plans off in favor of a film noir binge. I'll be getting Chandu and the others myself within the next few months.

MooMooMooMoo

Cheap Roan Undersea Kingdom alert (1 copy only)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=290708019404

MooMooMooMoo

Does anyone know if the stock DD/Import CD's (same company) is currently selling of Horror Classics 5: King of the Zombies/Revolt of the Zombies is factory pressed or burned? It's not possible to get a straight answer out of them.

ProfessorEcho

Do you know for sure if there is a burned version for this title? I have the original release and the cover is the same as the one on sale at DD, but that may not mean anything. Also, it's a flipper disc.

MooMooMooMoo

Glen, when it comes to Roan these days, there's very little I know for sure! Just know I don't really want to deal with returning a burned disc to DD!

ProfessorEcho

I don't blame you, Geff! Dealing with DD is kind of like walking on hot coals, it only feels good if your feet are frostbitten. Offhand though, I can't think of any MOD flipper discs, but maybe there are some out there? If this is advertised as one disc that could be an indication that it's pressed.

MooMooMooMoo

AFAIK, they don't make dual sided DVDR's, though it could be split, could be combined on a dvd9, or the esteemed Mr Kaufman could just reauthor at a lower bit rate.

MooMooMooMoo

4 months later I finally got around to watching the Prowler. While i wasn't that taken with the movie, I will say my opinion of VCI has gone WAY up. Outside of Kino/Eureka/MOC/Criterion this is probably the highest quality public domain transfer/restoration I've ever seen; & it's actually better than a significant number of their releases. The picture quality is impeccable.

I wasn't as impressed with the film itself, unfortunately. it's ok; but I don't think I would have given it dvd of the year! IMO, neither of the leads is good enough to carry a film (though both are fine as supporting players) & the script was a bit weak & predictable.

ProfessorEcho

I completely agree with your entire post, Geff. The DVD can't be rated highly enough, but the movie is vastly overrated.

MooMooMooMoo

Just bought a VCI Phantom Creeps on Amazon that the seller claims (confirmed by email) is factory pressed & "like new"/no scratches. Since I paid $16 for a used dvd I really hope it's scratch free & significantly better than the Whirlwind edition i own!

I'm pretty fanatical about scratch free discs (the way some others are regarding case slices which don't bother me), & I've had really bad luck with buying used on the internet.

MooMooMooMoo

(Sigh), this email to "Digital Dog Pound" explains it all (another lousy internet seller),

"Hi, we've got a problem (actually 2 problems).

VCI is now burning this title, rather than pressing it. The reason I was interested in yours was because it was used, I was hoping it was factory pressed.

On 5/14/12, I emailed you:

"2 questions:

1. My understanding is this title is now only being produced as a burned disc. I want to make sure this is a factory pressed VCI.

2. You list it as "Like New". Are there ANY scratches on the disc?"

On 5/15/12 you wrote back,

"This is the VCI version and there is not any scratches."

You sent me a sealed copy, rather than a used. While it's VCI, it is burned as I had feared, not factory pressed. It also is quite scratched, someone (I'm not blaming you) resealed it.

I wish to return it, & under the circumstances i should not have to pay postage."

At least VCI is using quality Falcon blank discs.

MooMooMooMoo

While I have them both here, i did compare the first few minutes Whirwind vs: VCI. Both are watchable, neither is videophile quality! VCI is better.

thetao

Ugh, there's nothing more worthless than a scratched DVD-R. I actually contacted them on 4/2 and received a somewhat different answer:

------------- Begin message -------------
I am sorry, this is sealed so I can not look at the disc. I do not see DVR or MOD listed by it.
--- Original message ---

Item: Phantom Creeps [DVD] [ASIN: B0011Z5NG4]
------------- Begin message -------------
Hello,
I may be interested in your Phantom Creeps DVD, but have a question. I believe there are two versions of this VCI release, a DVD and a DVD-R. (The DVD has a silver-colored laser side, while DVD-R's typically have a purple or blue laser side.) Which is yours? And secondly, I assume there are no "gotchas"...this isn't a former rental or library copy, the bar code is intact, etc.?

-----

Unless they have different people answering their email, they may have given you a deceptive reply. If they respond kindly and process the return without issue, may I suggest a 2-star transaction rating? It took me forever to work out my own Amazon system, which goes something like this:

5 stars (max) -1 (major problem with sale) -1 (could not be corrected by me) -1 (emailed ahead of time about issue(s) that became the problem) -1 merchant was rude

MooMooMooMoo

They are offering a no hassle return. Looks like getting a scratch free real copy of this is going to be similar to the Roan Human Bondage mess.

BTW, the dvd-r is dual layer. If you have one, do yourself a favor & back it up to your hard drive. Dual layer burned discs have a much shorter shelf life then single layer, even if they are using Falcons (aka FTI).

ProfessorEcho

VCI Memorial Day Sale: Take 25% off online prices at site with the following code:

MEM2012

I guess the days of the 40% off sales are dead and buried at VCI.

The Valeyard

FFFFFFFFFF!!!!!

Got The Phantom Empire today from Import CDs. It's a DVD-R. God dammit!

thetao

If it's VCI, somebody really needs to give their web designer a kick so their site accurately reflects what is what. While it's still in your possession (assuming you plan a return), is the "To the Rescue! The Story of the Phantom Empire" featurette any good?

This serves as yet another reminder that I need to place my "big" serial order soon, so I can avoid any surprises...

MooMooMooMoo

I need to pick up Actors & Sin while it's still factory pressed.

ProfessorEcho

Please post if anyone finds any good deals on these indie labels during the Deep Discount sale. Thanks!

MooMooMooMoo

Here's something interesting:

I went to the Roan part of the Troma site last night:

https://www.tromashop.com/roan-group/dvd

It appears they finally have a decent shopping cart through Pay Pal & it also APPEARS that they are showing all the burned titles as out of stock but are still showing a number of titles as available; mostly at good prices. Only bad thing is the shipping is a bit pricey.

With them showing the burned titles as oos, it does once again bring up the question are the burns pirated?