Archival CDs?

[baytonemus]

I've read some things about archival quality gold CDs although I'm not sure if they're really worth the extra money. Has it been established that these are really going to last longer? If so, is this the case only with a product like the Delkin Archival discs or are some others also in this category? I'm thinking about delivering projects that customers bring me to transfer from other media on this type of disc. I just thought I'd ask around to make sure it isn't just a scam.

Thanks - JAY BEECH

[monkey man]

The state police department here in Victoria uses the same ones I do - Verbatim UltraLife™ Gold.

The gold backing is certainly less prone to degradation (oxidation) by definition. As a bonus, it seems this category of disk allows for slower burning speeds; I can burn at 2x from the Finder. Yay!

FWIW, I like to keep these disks on hand for super-critical backups; it's normal for me to make 2 or 3 standard Verbatim copies and one gold one for good measure. I mix and match as I see fit, but I've stuck with Verbatim since the DataLife floppies of the '80s based upon personal experience.

[kassonica]

I saw some archival grade (i think kodak) one's recently that are touted as lasting 500 years.

They were $80AUD for 50 i think or maybe 25.

Expensive but if you have sensitive data, worth it IMHO

[baytonemus]

I'll probably be dead before that, so who gives a crap...

Seriously, though, I guess it's all the "touting" that I'm trying to filter through. I've read an opinion that gold is actually an interior medium to silver because of its reflective properties. I've read several places that Phthalocyanine is the coating that is really important to have. I've read that the Mitsui/MAM-A discs are absolutely the best. I've also read that their reputation is all hype.

I'd especially value both real world experience and some scientific data that isn't coming from the companies that are trying to sell me the product.

Thanks.

[therealbigd]

I'll probably be dead before that.

Probably???



I use HHB Golds. They're considered pretty highly by everyone audio here.

[kassonica]

The really stupid thing is, AS IF DIGITAL WILL EVEN BE REMEMBERED IN 500 YEARS


And yes I hazard a guess too that we all will be dead and not remembered.

[monkey man]

The only "real-world" data I can offer you, baytonemus, is an experiment I conducted 6 or 7 years ago and my record with Verbatim:

As I said, I've always used Verbatim (since the floppy days), because the failure rate on the DataLife™ range since the '80s has been astounding for me. In fact, I copped 2 dud DS/DD floppies out of 2000 disks which were used on an ATARI, an Ensoniq SQ80, an EPS and then an ASR-10. That's a 99.9% success rate, and only one of the two disks was certainly defective physically.

I transitioned to DataLife™ CD-Rs when I switched to Mac. Two discs out of 1000 didn't verify properly after burning. That's a 99.8% success rate.

The move to DVD-R saw 3 out of 1000 failing, one boasting obvious factory-handling-induced scuff marks, and the other two of course could not be definitively blamed as the computer/burning app may have played a role. Still, I'll take the 99.7% success rate any day, especially at the reasonable price they go for.

I always sought the darkest possible disks, which just happened to be the DataLife™ ones anyway. The branding has now changed after all these years, and the DataLife™ specification (ValueLife™ was the cheaper option since the floppy days) has given way to a single, standard offering along with the gold discs I mentioned earlier. As I think I said, I use a combination of these to back stuff up, always ensuring at least one gold copy in the case of serious data.

Anyway, so impressed was I with the continued reliability of the brand that I tried the following:
I placed a number of burned discs (CD-Rs) face-up under a bright aquarium tri-phosphor tube. Actually, it was a daylight tube unintended for aquaria, but I've always purchased lighting on its merits as opposed to any branding involved. The discs were 1-2 inches from the closely-spaced tubes (a double housing), and were left under this constant light for 3 months. Both read back perfectly. I was, needless to say, impressed.

[C E Barry]

"There are none so blind as those who will not see"

Butterflies Are Free

cb

[baytonemus]

Thanks for your detailed report, monkey man.

[monkey man]

Hey, I just hope it helps a little, baytonemus.

C E Barry, I concur.