Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I had no idea that the 'From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler' was going under a different name 'The Hideaways' - god, I haven't seen that since I was a kid, and even at that screening we never saw the actual end of the film, cause the print up and burned...

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Some of Warner's standard DVD titles including Trog have been replaced with DVD-R versions. Really seems like a step backwards when it doesn't cost that much to make a REAL DVD, and it blurs the line between a legit original and an illegal copy made from an original disc.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

^Many of the Hammer Horror titles have also been downgraded to DVD-R versions. While I have a *few* Warner Archive titles (stuff I though I'd never see on DVD) I'm only be willing to purchase titles that have *never* had a proper DVD release and only then during a sale where it's under $10. Frankly, even at $10 any title on DVD-R is overpriced. IMHO $10 should be the "regular" price with sale prices of $5 or less. There's absolutely *no* reason these should cost more than pressed disks.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Trust me, a LOT more titles formerly available on "regular" DVD are making their way into the archives. There's just no market for them anywhere else these days. I just recently received an Archive email announcing the widescreen debuts of VISION QUEST and another title the name of which escapes me. It still costs more to make a real DVD than a DVD-R, and both are "legit" in their own ways. Someone further back mentioned that studios could press as few as 500 "official" DVDs at a time, but why? That's 500 copies (of how many hundreds of films that currently reside in the archives?) that need to be shelved/stored until someone buys them all, IF someone buys them all, copies that for the most part will never see the inside of a retail outlet. The DVD-R's require NO storage beyond that required for the blank discs (and I doubt they need mountains of those on hand every single day), the plastic cases, and blank paper to print the sleeves, all of which can be ordered as needed, using up considerably less space at any given time.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Incidentally, I just got an email this morning that the Warner Archive has now added the MGM/FOX MOD titles to their library. Awesome to have nearly everything under one roof now.
http://www.wbshop.com/MGM/WAMGM,defa...ny&src=EWSONY1

That's in addition to the Sony Screen classics they've had available for a while now, of course:
http://www.wbshop.com/Columbia-Class...ny&src=EWSONY1

As well as the HBO line of MODs. Not sure how long these have been available through the Archive, but there's some good stuff there:
http://www.wbshop.com/HBO/WAHBO,defa...sortd1=1&sz=49

I wholeheartedly agree with those who say these discs are overpriced, but question the sense of anyone who would actually pay those prices in the first place. Like others here, I've never spent more than $9 each (always with free shipping) during the countless "multiples" sales they have throughout the year. In fact, most of my orders have worked out to about $8 per disc thanks to discounts off $100 orders posted by other members here.

And I've never had a problem with any of the approx. 70 that I've ordered over the years (most as a direct result of Glenn Erickson's thoroughly-researched and informative reviews; the bastard's bankrupting me! :lol: ), though I do rip back-up copies just for protection.

.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Do you mind me asking how you're accessing the WBShop from Canada? I'm in the same situation and, although you can get them through Amazon.com, you can't access the uber good pricing you mentioned direct from WBshop sales.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

As mentioned above, I'd guess there is a small bit of storage involved. They probably keep x copies of the popular titles on hand then replenish as they go. That'd allow for faster turnover of customer orders rather than burning each order individually. Then they'd likely crank up more inventory in advance of their big sale events.

The business model works. We know that they're overpriced and wait for sales, but if it was regular pressed stock--heck, we often refuse to pay as much as 10 bucks for catalog Blu-ray, but we stock up on these at that price.

I've played probably four of these and had no issues. I own a lot more than that and should spot-play them just to check.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

My secret weapon is a U.S. mailbox that I've rented for about 15 years. I live in Toronto, but my family's in a border city a couple of hours away. I visit regularly, so I order the vast majority of my DVDs, Blu-rays and other media online in the U.S. and have them shipped to a Michigan postal outlet (where I'm told most of the boxes are rented by Canadians! :lol: ). The WB Archive discs were tricky in the early days as they wouldn't ship to P.O. Boxes, but simplifying the address to "Box 12345" seemed to do the trick. Not sure if that's an issue anymore. Beyond that, there really is no other reasonably-priced option for Canadians to get these things. Amazon's Canadian site has tons of them, but they're $25 a pop; here in Toronto, the only retailer I've seen them at is Sunrise Records' flagship store downtown, where they have virtually the entire Warner, MGM and Sony MOD libraries available, but want over $30 each for them (which is robbery if they're somehow taking advantage of the cheap sales too). So, if you're within range of the border by even an hour or so, it's definitely worth looking into a P.O. Box on the other side. Then it's just a matter of timing your purchases.

Another nice thing about getting these for $8 or $9 is the resale in Canada remains high, so if you don't like a title you purchased, you can turn a tidy profit on Amazon.ca's Marketplace.


That's good advice. I do the same thing, chapter-skipping through each one before I store it for later.

.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I do live in a border community so that could certainly be possible so I may consider it. Thanks for the FYI.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

If you're on the border already, there's no reason not to do it! I can't even begin to calculate how much I've saved over the years. The small mailbox I rent in a USPS outlet in a Michigan mall costs about $60 per year, but I split that cost with a friend who still lives in my old home town, which means the box gets visited more frequently so nothing gets sent back, and the savings I've incurred on just my own purchases more than cover the expense. Being able to take part in the American Black Friday online sales, various Amazon.com sales throughout the year (not to mention their regular pricing on a lot of stuff), the Barnes & Noble 50% off Criterion sales, the Deep Discount sales (especially back when they actually meant something), and little pop-ups here and there (like the recent $20 Transformers 3D blu-ray offer on Facebook) has been key to both building my collection and expanding my knowledge without breaking the bank. As I hinted above, one advantage of doing this is that the resale for DVDs and Blu-rays on Amazon's Canadian marketplace is relatively (and often considerably) higher than it is for U.S. sellers on the U.S. site, meaning you can often break even or make a solid profit if you decide to sell U.S. purchases down the road. Just some more Timbits, err, tidbits to chew on . . . ;)

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

arrgh. finally got around to seeing some more movies in the Mexican Spitfire collection. Just got a Blu-ray player (high end Sony) and they won't play. freeze up every time and locks the machine.

Will now have to buy another HDMI cable, dust off an old DVD only player and hope it works.

Will never buy another archive disc.

Technology is supposed to get better over time, not worse.

Put in a disc, watch a movie. Disc bought from reputable dealer (WB). Decent player (Sony). This should not be complicated.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

One bad experience with these dvds shouldn't put you off them all together. Sounds like you just got a bad disc. Happens sometimes. I had several sets of dvds I got from Canada that I had to replace at least one disc out of each set. After 2 or 3 times, I finally got dvds that worked.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

If you complain on their facebook page, they'd probably replace it. WB is gonna turn people off when they get the inevitable bad disks.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

He mentioned "they" so it sounds like it's more than just the one. That'd really suck if this is a regular thing.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Well, 3 years after this post. I must say that I have tried out a few of these DVD-R discs. Not just from Warner, but other companies also. Out of a handful that I have bought, they have held up pretty well. I have been pretty happy with them. As a matter of fact, I just ordered another one yesterday, Diary of A Madman- Vincent Price. For which I am looking forward to. Although they still are a bit on the high side for pricing, if there's a movie that I want I wouldn't hesitate to get it even if it was only offered as a DVD-R. But I still would prefer the state of the art copies.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I just got four titles yesterday afternoon in the mail, so I'm going to try to watch them all this coming week - so far 'War of the Button's is playing without any kinks.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Yes. there are 8 movies in collection.. I know at least 2 won't play. maybe more.. I just got so frustrated I stopped trying to play them in my blu-ray player. I have exactly one DVD player that might work- haven't tried that one yet.

I understand 'this could be a fluke' - but I have bought/rented literally thousands of DVDs (now recently dozens of Blu-rays) over the years. some freezes? yes - but 1 or 2 out of 2000 and they were used. I have purchased 3 new archives sets - and 1 has major problems in that it won't play at all.
So yes, consider me hesitant to buy another.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I've had new, studio pressed discs that were completely blemish free and just wouldn't play. They'd start to play but then freeze, skip, or skip entire scenes. I think wether it's an archive collection type of disc or a studio pressed disc isn't the issue. I'm pretty sure it's more of an authouring problem.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

This has been an interesting read. I'm finally getting around to buying my first (and depending on how they turn out ..last) Warner archive movies. Only difference for me is I'm going with bluray. Cost is still about the same as a new DVD movie. Picking up "The Hunger" and "Ladyhawke". They are both MOD...so not sure how good they will turn out. Guess I'll find out next week.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

The Warner Archive Blu-Rays say MOD, but according to Warner, these are traditionally replicated BDS, not BD-Rs. I've bought several, and they play just great.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I've bought several of these dvd-r's. I just rip them to my harddrive and serve them to my tv with Plex.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I'd love it if they could give us more of these for 80's shows we haven't gotten yet. :(

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

The thing that bothers me the most about "WACS" is that most blank discs have a "mid" code that software can read & tell you what brand & "model" of blank was used. Quality of blanks varies wildly. Warner has found a way to hide that code.

I give this same advice with any purchased dvdr, but especially with "WACS": Back it up immediately before you even pay it, either to a hard drive or a quality blank (the best discs on the market today are Tayio Yuden 8x DVD-R+ Premiums).

Just about everything else out there (& everything you can buy at Walmart, Kmart, etc) is junk. At one time TDK & Verbatim were quality, that is no longer true.

I scan EVERY burned disc that matters to me with disc quality software (you can find Nero's cd/dvd speed, or "disc speed" for free. I think they stoped making it, but it's all over the net.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

My understanding is all the "MOD" blu's are actually factory pressed (the pressed discs are likely cheaper for the manufacturer for one thing!)

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I don't buy them anymore because of too many problems to my taste. Tonight, I started to watch Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (bought in early 2015) and it froze at 54 minutes. I stopped the movie and when I tried again, the movie won't play at all on my bluray player. I tried on my DVD player and my computer and they could not read it either. I simply got fed up and threw it in the garbage. I stopped buying them around June last year because I had problem with a movie and they did not want to replace it. Since then, about six movies froze the same way. A few years back they seemed to be better, but last year I received defective ones. I find them too expensive for what we get. Many are not cleaned up and they have no extras at all. The best thing they could do is sell them $5 each online and we can download them with a file for the cover of the DVD boxes. I would buy the best quality possible DVD-R to save them. I have many old movie of Warner Bros. before they went with DVD-R and I never had any problems. 20th Century Fox did the same thing as them and they are too expensive also. So many I want from both companies, but I will not buy any of their movies until they are better priced and they are real DVD.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

Your understanding is correct. All WAC blu-rays are pressed discs, so no worries there.

Re: "Warner Archive" DVD-R Discs
 

I was under the impression that they pretty much had a "lifetime" warranty on them if purchased directly from the archive. That if you *ever* had a issue with a burned title they'd replace it, no questions asked. That's the *only* reason I own the few MOD titles from them that I do, and I *only* purchased from the archive, never from a third party for that reason.

But since those first few I only purchase early *if* a title shows "limited pressed due to high demand" on the listing.

Yes. They are *far* too expensive for what you actually receive.