How are CDs/DVDs/BluRays made?

TheRoadWarrior · 9 Nov 2009 at 09:39

Does anyone know? I dont mean the actual disc, but how does the software/movie/game or whatever data get on to the disc?
I'm guessing the discs you purchase with software or films on are not simply write once dics?
I heard they were stamped.. but is that really possible? Surely the pits would be so tiny that stamping would be so unreliable?

Engram · 9 Nov 2009 at 10:09

Here ya go!

DVD-R:

Blu-ray:

mac1st3 · 9 Nov 2009 at 10:49

they teach pixies to recreate the movie/music, then grind the pixies up and sprinkle them onto the discs, that's why they're so shiny

"andy" · 9 Nov 2009 at 10:54

its really bloody complicated actually

J.B · 9 Nov 2009 at 11:09

They are stamped. They are made up of lots of tiny pits and grooves, ups and downs (let me just say to understand this explination you need to accept that everything can be turned into binary. 1s and 0s). These pits and grooves are read by a laser, working in a similiar way to a radar. It sends out a beam then awaits its return. If there is a pit it will take longer to recieve the laser back and therefor will be able to set that bit to a 1 or a 0.

The Re writable media you buy in shops has a die in it.

I was once told that part of the reason CDs took off was the manufacturing process is reasonably similiar to vinyl records in the sense they are stamped. This meant big manufacturers didnt have to change the way thier factories worked to make the adjustment.

TheRoadWarrior · 9 Nov 2009 at 11:43

mac1st3 said:
they teach pixies to recreate the movie/music, then grind the pixies up and sprinkle them onto the discs, that's why they're so shiny

I knew it!

Thanks for the vids, very informative