dollfins1

i've had no trouble with universal cs. go to their website and fill out the form. had to do this for my alfred hitchcock presents season one. the downside is you will have to send in the whole set. fox is the same way.

Manzana

Have all of those who have successfully done a DVD exchange with Universal have done it via their customer service web page rather than calling them (do they have a toll free number for customer service)?

Has anyone received a good set of Universal DVD-18s (even if they were the ones made in Mexico) and then later discovered that those good discs went bad? (That's just another way of asking my main question... is this problem due to degrading discs or a defect caused at the time of manufacture which does not get worse over time?)

Too bad Universal won't go back to DVD-9s. It would be worth raising the price of these sets a little to avoid the potentially bad DVD-18s.

Also, a very large number of the discs I've bought lately have had Made in Mexico stickers on the back. Does everything made in Mexico come from this disliked Techicolor plant (perhaps the same Technicolor of laserdisc rot fame?) or are there good DVD manufacturers in Mexico?

It would seem odd that DVD-9s from Mexico seem to be OK, but DVD-18s often are not. Wouldn't that mean the problem is in gluing the 2 halves together rather than in the individual DVD-9 sides?

Sex Fiend

Manzana,

To answer the main question you are posing, I'm not sure that anyone is certain whether the manufacture flaw in these disks will not lead to degradation of the disk at some point. Probably very few people who have had "good" Universal DVD-18's have re-watched them that much over the time they've had them, and even if they had, who would be able to judge whether enough time had passed for the degradation to actually kick in? You could re-watch these disks a year after buying them and they might play fine, but who's to say that in another year they won't?

My gut instinct is that the manufacture problem is probably limited to causing problems on initial playback, and if you get a good working copy right away, it will probably hold up okay. Hence, the problem is most likely not one of the production materials being bad, as much as the process. Again, that's not based on any scientific research, but only on anecdotal evidence.

On the other hand, there do seem to be some folks who have problems playing the disks on one player, while being able to play them fine on another player. All of which means, you may get a set that works well with your current player, but may not work at some point in the future when you get a new player. That is a prospect that is not very pleasing.

So to sum up, Universal sucks...

grundle

Here's another thread:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...=442435&page=1

Seashellz

UNIVERSAL-break open the moth-filled wallet and spend the extra fucking nickel per disc, to make DUNE a two-disc set , in a double-slim amaray.
Christ, wake up. hellooooo

Alan Smithee

DVD is a 2-sided medium, and 2-sided discs CAN be made that don't screw up.

dvd_luver

Agreed. Universal is getting way to cheap with these DVD-18's.

darkside

I have several other DVD-18s from Artisan, Warner and Fox and they have all worked fine with no issues. This problem is more about the how lazy and cheap Universal has become than anything.

Nebiroth

The joke is that they're probably not saving money as DVD-18's are much more difficult and expensive to make and have a higher failure rate.

It is not Universal as such, it is whoever they employ to make the things.

JerryKILL

I received my replacement disc from USHE for disc 2, Hammer Horror Series. My original disc pixelated/locked up during "Nightmare" around the 30 minute mark (chapter 6). The replacement disc played through that chapter without a hiccup. I also watched both films on side B (Night Creatures/Evil of Frankenstein)...again no problems. So, after one exchange I feel I have a working set. My player is a Denon 1600.

I initiated the exchange by contacting
[email protected]

Good luck.

theflyingdutch

Anyone having problems with Leave it to Beaver yet? I haven't had any real problems beyond a slight hangup on the pilot episode.

cerial442

Universal released Orgazmo as a DVD-18, but in Canada it was released as a two disc set, on DVD-9s. Are any of their other releases done like this?

Also, if you avoid the ones with the Made In Mexico sticker, it probably will work then, right?

Premise

Is there any way to tell which version of "Ray" is the two disc set,and not the dvd-18? Also,are there two disc sets of Schindlers list,and the pianist?

KingSausage

I just received my replacement disc for "Hammer Horror Series," Disc 2. It freezes in EXACTLY the same damn spot as my first copy -- right toward the beginning of chapter 2 in "Nightmare." Dammit. And the new disc is worse than my first in that it has this strange ring of tiny scratches all along the surface of Side A.

They claim, by e-mail and by a slip of paper packaged with my replacement disc, to "test" every replacement disc they send out. Bullshit. Worse -- the slip of paper said that it was found to fit "DVD specifications," and that I should contact my player's manufacturer for a firmware update if I have continuing problems. Outrageous!

So, it's a "firmware problem" even though scores of people are having random skips on various machines...sometimes at different spots of different copies of the same disc? Why can't somebody take some sort of legal action against Universal? They are fleecing their customers, boldly and blatantly.

I'm going to contact them to get a replacement for my replacement, but I'm not expecting much. Grrr.....

PJAceto

Exactly the same response I got. I replied that the "new" disc was bad as well. They claim to be "looking into it" again. I think I'll insist that they send me the DVD-9 version they sell to Netflix.

KingSausage

It's so dishonest of them to try and pass this off like it's the failure of DVD player manufacturers! Don't try and blame Sony, Pioneer, etc. for your mistake, Universal. Fix this problem now so you can cut down on your future losses. With all the returns and angry customers, they're going to be cutting into their profit margin soon.

Victor Nettoyeur

I contacted Amazon for a replacement after my second set (itself a replacement) of Alfred Hitchcock Presents froze up on me. The reply:

"I am sorry that your replacement shipment was also problematic.

As it seems that the problem with this item is more widespread than
we originally thought, we are not able to send another replacement.
We will investigate and remedy the situation with the item; however,
I cannot guarantee when the error may be fixed."

The problem is "more widespread than we thought" Very nice.

Nebiroth

AFAIK Amazon had to do this with other Universal DVD-18 based sets as well (I think it was either the Columbo or Abbott & Costello ones).

This is good, in a way, because as a major store, Amazon's voice with Universal is a great deal louder than any of ours.

It would really help is Amazon threatened not to sell future Universal releases, because they were losing money servicing the number of returns, not to mention losing customer goodwill.

Universal's stock reply of "it conforms with DVD specifications" and "we test all discs" or "it must be the player" is typical studio denial.

Easy

I don't know about that. I have no great love for Universal but I have had two or three DVD-18 Warner sets that screwed up royally. Early seasons of ER spring to mind... To Warner's credit however, they seem to have given up DVD-18 (at least the latest ER has single sided discs).

speedy1961

From Home Media Retailing:

DOUBLE-SIDED DISC PROBLEMS
Consumers say some won't run in DVD players
By Susanne Ault 12/5/2005

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Double-sided DVDs help studios pack the same amount of content in half the amount of discs, but the innovation isn't without its downside.

A number of consumers are grumbling about glitches with the DVD 18 format, where each disc holds content on each side. DVD enthusiast Web sites such as TVShowsOnDVD.com and Home Theater Forum are full of posts describing DVD 18 sets skipping or failing to play. Universal Studios Home Entertainment titles are drawing the bulk of the complaints, including TV DVD sets of The A-Team, American Gothic, Miami Vice and Las Vegas. Not coincidentally, Universal also releases a lot of DVD 18 sets.

It's proving tough to pinpoint the exact source of the problems, according to industry sources.

One possible problem involves a paucity of DVD 18 manufacturing plants to handle the current demand, with just a handful scattered throughout North America.

DVD 18 sets makeup just 0.52% of all titles released so far in 2005, according to the Nov. 18 edition of the DVD Release Report. But as the TV DVD category explodes, space-saving DVD 18s are becoming more widespread. The number of DVD 18 titles out in 2005 year-to-date has doubled over the comparable year-to-date 2004 period.

"There has been talk about opening [more facilities]," said Luis Guerrero, sales and customer service manager of one DVD 18-capable plant, Mexico-based Vigobyte. "But with the creation of new technologies like HD DVD and Blu-ray, there are not a lot of people who want to invest in something that may become obsolete."

Simply by virtue of holding more material, the surfaces of double-sided discs also are more likely to get nicked.

During shipment, discs often become dislodged from the packaging and sometimes scratched. Some consumers are discovering that a DVD 18 might get stuck in one DVD player but work fine in another.

"I've gotten hundreds of complaints," said TVShowsOnDVD.com creator Gord Lacey. "It skips around. It doesn't work in their player. Some people have returned the same [title] three or four times. Personally, what I think is happening is that these plants are running above capacity. Quality control is going out the window."

There are signs studios are acknowledging DVD 18 trouble.

Houston-based anime supplier ADV Films has switched from DVD 18 to DVD 9 on all of its releases, starting with Farscape Starburst Edition Vol. 3.1 on Dec. 13. ADV also will gradually replenish earlier DVD 18 Farscape volumes as DVD 9s.

"[DVD 18] attracted us because it could hold so much data," ADV spokesman Chris Oarr said. "We could put two discs into a simple Amaray case. We thought it was cool too, as our consumers are tech savvy and attracted to bright new shiny things. … But we had an unusual amount of problems with DVD 18."

ADV's latest Farscape set will come out as four discs in slightly wider packaging than earlier releases.

Warner Home Video has recently switched from DVD 18 to DVD 9 on certain TV DVD titles.

Dukes of Hazzard was released on DVD 18s for season sets one through three and DVD 9s for season four, out Aug. 2, and five, coming Dec. 13. Similarly, The West Wing was DVD 18 for seasons two and three and DVD 9 for seasons four (released April 5) and five (coming Dec. 6).

Universal declined comment on format decisions.

"We have not received any consumer or retailer complaints for the titles we have released using DVD-18 discs," a Warner spokeswoman said. "We continue to sell a handful of TV DVD titles in this format, although the vast majority continues to be released in single-sided discs. The change in disc format on West Wing and Dukes of Hazzard was not related to specific consumer complaints but rather to operational capacity constraints on the manufacturing of these discs."

As the amount of DVD 18 product in the market is small, complaints still seem out of earshot for major retailers. Best Buy spokesman Brian Lucas said the chain was not aware of problems with the format.

Yet National Entertainment Buying Group president Todd Zaganiacz has dealt with upset customers. Suspect discs are first tested in a variety of players at stores, and those deemed totally unplayable are sent back to NEBG distributors.

Some consumers also are calling studios directly to get replacement copies.

"I think with TV product [suppliers] are trying to cram more and more on there," Zaganiacz said. "But single-sided discs we know will have more durability."

exharrison

What a surprise. Kudos to ADV and other acknowledging it.

darmok

yeah, and Bestbuy is right in bed next to them. Figures they're just as clueless, though i'm sure the field personnel can attest to the massive returns.

Commander Dan

Well, I just recently became a “victim” of this DVD-18 fiasco.

I purchased Season 1 of seaQuest DSV from Amazon.com, and unfortunately, I have encountered a playback problem with Disc 3.

Disc 3, side A: Better Than Martians (Episode 13) skips and pixilates near the end of the episode (picture pauses, breaks up, stutters, jumps). The same disc (3) also skips and pixilates considerably on side B during the final 4-5 minutes of “Whale Song (Episode 16). So much so, that the final minutes of the episode are not even viewable.

Results are similar when played on either of my DVD Players: a Malata DVP-520 or my Philips HDRW 720.

I emailed Universal, and also submitted my issue to Gord Lacey at TVShowsonDVD.com.

grundle

amazon will pay to ship you a second copy. If the disc on that one plays fine, you can swap the discs, and send the defective set back at their expense.

thundergod

I hate those Universal dvd-18 so much I have now refused to buy any tv series released by Universal.

MY best advice is to wait for the UK Region 2 release of any tv series released by Universal.