What is Disc Rot? Will your discs all eventually become unplayable?

There are a lot of misconceptions about Disc Rot floating around the internet, and the very idea of Discs "rotting" has a lot of people very concerned. What can you do about it? Can it be stopped?
Free tool to create digital copies for your DVD collections to avoid disc rot: bit.ly/373rxto
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#DiscRot #VideoGamePreservation #VideoGameCollecting

[@peerboom]

I learned about disc rot last week. In all my years of collecting DVD and Blu Ray, this was the first I’ve never came across this and immediately became horrified for my collection. Thank you for this video explaining what DR is and how it can be prevented. I take care of all me belongings and do what you suggest with storage of discs. I’m less paranoid now.

[@NerdCrave]

Glad I could help!

[@Attmay]

It started with laserdisc, but when laserdiscs rot, they don’t rot the same way as DVDs, Blu-ray, and UHDs when they start getting old. Up to a point, a rotting laser disk can still play back, but it is just unpleasant to watch the worse it is. I had to replace a laser disc of *Some Like it Hot* for that reason and also had to replace a UHD of *The Shining* that my Play I refuse to play because of a “copyright violation.“ I replaced them with laser discs.

[@GenerationPixel]

Hit the nail on the head, cheaply made discs is the number one reason for "disc rot" followed closely by poor maintenance.

[@Shvabijan]

Man this video needs WAY more attention!

[@NerdCrave]

Tell it to the algorithm!

[@thomashutt8992]

thought my headphones were broken lol

[@zensai-gaming]

"these disc will out live you." lol very true. people need to educate themselves on this matter because its gotten out of hand already. the hysteria over disc rot needs to seriously stop. great informative video.

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks! Yes disc rot exists, but it's on a case by case basis and not system wide

[@groofoot]

Amen to that!!

[@iancurrie8844]

Simply not true. I had a Bluray of terminator 2 go bad stored completely properly and only played once in its life. Next time I tried to play it, appeared largely delaminated and played partially and with major corruption.

[@zensai-gaming]

@@iancurrie8844 sounds like you bought a defective disc some disc are manufactured with defects. You said it lost lamination that is super rare and not common especially for a blue ray. I have ps3 blue rays from launch that still play like new. Are you sure they are stored away from light and upright at room temperature? If so then it’s safe to say you bought a defective disc. The fact remains your issue and disc rot is rare and many factors contribute to a disc going bad and often it’s manufacturing or user mishandling.

[@iancurrie8844]

@@zensai-gamingYes I'm completely sure.

[@Kyle-pj2vc]

I'm more afraid of physical damage to the disc over disc rot.

[@luigibrown263]

Isn't disc rot physical damage?

[@Kyle-pj2vc]

@@luigibrown263 yes but your disc is far more likely to get scratched up via human error over disc rot and you can only resurface so many times

[@gregmoisan5629]

@@Kyle-pj2vc sorry but you are wrong on this one. 15 of my hddvds have disc rot and don't have scratches on them. It is physical. It is like air gets in-between the layers. It's pretty bizarre

[@Kyle-pj2vc]

@@gregmoisan5629 usually that's manufacturing error, and HD DVDs probably weren't around long enough to be perfected to be reliable like some of my DVDs and CDs I've had and are still flawless.

[@gregmoisan5629]

@@Kyle-pj2vc it's the only physical media that one has problems with

[@justbadgaming4196]

Never really thought about disc rot, but definitely good to know!

[@josephcalabrese6337]

I have personally started an animation DVD collection in 2020. Xaiolin Showdown, Invader Zim, Gravity Falls, Steven Universe, Stripperella. A small collection of shows and movies I like. Watching this video made me realize I need to keep a good eye on everything I got.

[@NerdCrave]

Most of it will be fine, I have thousands of discs, actual rot is rare

[@sakura_sauce]

I’ve had my fair share of disc rot, in my experience it’s mostly been on music CDs of mine that have been stored away in humid conditions such as attics, or were burned on extremely low end, cheap CDRs from the late 90s or early 2000’s. CDRs with printed labels on them were especially bad, I recently picked 2 up while thrifting and both had multiple distorted tracks, one disc just refused to play past a certain track. I’ve also found that CDs made by certain manufacturers such as Nimbus or PDO U.K were especially bad when it comes to rot, a few of mine have bronzing and pinholes and one has severe problems reading the last track.

[@NerdCrave]

Yeah, me too. CDRs were always bad

[@Colorcrayons]

Same. When I lived outside of air-conditioning in south Texas, the disc rot was real on my music cds, even way back in the mid 90s.

[@sakura_sauce]

@Free in Jesus I think they were .wav files when they were burnt, although I can’t say for certain.

[@meiinuyasha]

When I was 7 in 2006 I knew I have to save my ps2 games from getting scratches so I burned them to Cheap DVD and keepd the originals in plastic covers I have played the heck out of those games and to my surprise the cheep dvds are still working 💪 and some of my sealed ps2 originals have rot and couldn't even be read on my pc 😢 wtf

[@MrRoko91]

Before you get too worried about disc rot read this fun story first: I used to burn dual layer DVDs back in 2010. The discs were cheap brand discs, almost half the price of the best quality ones. They were abandoned in my old place without any temperature and humidity control for at least 5 years and recently I finally decided to move them to my new home. In the process of moving I forgot them in my car's glove box for the whole summer. Most of the summer the temperature was between 32°C to 40°C (90°F to 104°F) with occasional raining (rapid humidity changes). The temperature inside of the car was much higher (probably more than 10 degrees higher) due to heat accumulating. When I finally realized how much I've tortured these poor discs I decided to test them - all 3 discs worked perfectly and all contents copied successfully without even a slowdown. Keep in mind that burned discs are suppose to have significantly shorter lifespan then pressed ones (the originals you collect) so the end result after so much abuse and more than a decade really surprised me. Moral of the story: if you are lucky with good disc samples, even the cheaper ones can last a loooong time. I'm not saying you shouldn't store your discs properly, you absolutely should. But from my experience what matters the most is the individual disc being manufactured well in the first place, and as we can see even cheap blank ones can achieve that... it would be massive screw up if pressed ones perform worse than that 🙂

[@williamwilson480]

Thank you I'm OCD and I'm starting to think all my dvd and cd rotted🤯

[@groofoot]

Thank you for sharing that story! It's very reassuring; ...... like Mr. Wilson, who commented 10 months ago, I am a Big time OCD sufferer too, .... and all the fear mongering had worried me that my CDs were in danger .... lol ....

[@groofoot]

@@williamwilson480 Ditto! I commented, here, too

[@wizardsavage.9436]

blueray lasts way longer.

[@weldonyoung1013]

My problem with burned media discs is, the recorded format has a good chance of not being supported on new or future equipment. Have already encounted this problem on a series of Panasonic recorder and player.

[@markgreet3543]

Great to hear excellent longevity, its like cds, vinyls, and blurays just keep them away from certain places and they should be fine.

[@philfortner1805]

Discs are created when ants use machine pistols to encode them.

[@kma4835]

The fact that my games will eventually become unplayable even after I die urks me to no end I want them to last forever as silly as that sounds

[@NerdCrave]

Totally understand

[@sdjslkdjlsskldjslkdjsl8262]

Even stone tablets don't last forever. Look into Buddhism or something, and relax.

[@kma4835]

@@sdjslkdjlsskldjslkdjsl8262 truth sad to see art will always inevitably be lost to time

[@rickershomesteadahobbyfarm3291]

We used to live in a house that didn’t have central heating and air. We only heated or cooled the areas of the house we were currently in. Some of our media did degrade but it was mostly the VHS tapes. We lived there for 8 years. We own alot of retro games and thousands of movies on VHS, DVD, and Blu-ray. I lost alot of burned CDs during that time but they were already degrading due too being stored in a vehicle for years. I’m located around an hour from Myrtle Beach and it does get hot. But as far as DVDs and Blu-rays go, they held up pretty well.

[@NerdCrave]

Good to hear!

[@StefanHomberger]

The only issues I've had with disc-based formats were discs with manufacturing issues or they were mishandled by former owners. The oldest optical disc I own is a Olivia Netwon-John and ABBA televised concert LaserDisc made in late 1979/early 1980, and it still plays perfectly.

[@NerdCrave]

That's awesome to hear!

[@groofoot]

@@NerdCrave The youtube research I've done has led me to believe that CDs which were made (properly) by a major label will, if cared for properly, Play perfectly for Well over a Century ... and possibly close to 2 centuries 8-)

[@oldcat1790]

The problem is, we can't know for sure how long discs will keep being operational. So it's always better to have a digital/other copy than not.

[@RebeccaTurner-ny1xx]

@@groofoot Hmmm... that's what I thought. Today I bought from a charity shop (a pricey 40p) a boxed set of the Karajan/Berliner Philharmoniker Beethoven Symphonies CDs, on the prestige Deutsche Grammophon label from 1985. All of the discs are afflicted with a grainy discolouration on the text side which surely must be rot. The discs still play, though I suspect not for much longer.

[@groofoot]

@@RebeccaTurner-ny1xx Well, if you don't know where those discs have Been for the past 30 years, it's possible they were sitting in a very moldy, airless basement ..... me, I've never had a disc with rot ....

[@SmashJT]

Great job on this one, man - the intro especially! Super professional, all the way. Disc rot is a concern I definitely have and the thought has crept into my head enough to hold off on some retro disc-based purchases.

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks man! High praise coming from you!

[@HalfEatenBattery]

Thank you for making this! I joined a dvd collection collection subreddit and every now and then people mention it. I’m young, but I have a size-able collection. It was would SUCK if it all just rotted away and there is nothing I can do about it, but knowing that it’ll last my lifetime if treated properly puts that anxiety to bed.

[@NerdCrave]

Where it can get dicey is buying used discs. If you don’t know the history of how it was treated you can’t predict how it will last. Often though, if the case and manual are minty it shows that it’s been treated well

[@albertwesker2050]

Thanks! Makes me feel better about my collection. Wii game prices are down and just boosted my collection big time, but then I heard about this disc rot panic

[@NerdCrave]

Don’t panic! Treat your stuff well, and it will be ok. You may lose a disc here and there, but it’s not a widespread problem

[@JammyGuns]

Really appreciate this vid, thanks for the detailed explanation. Been panicking about my collection - weirdly I hadn't really caught onto this issue before.

[@NerdCrave]

Glad I could help!

[@MrMario995]

Very solid video! Very informative and to the point. Theres too many people spreading misinformation on disc rot, its not just going to magically dissipate on you if you are decent to your discs, the only people that may experience disc rot are people that treat their games badly. Too many discs are treated like coasters/hockey pucks/Frisbees, especially from the PS2 to Xbox 360 era games. Awesome video :)

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks! I’m constantly surprised at how many people think disc rot is a huge problem. It’s a minor problem that mostly affects only certain discs

[@joshuagraham2843]

well there’s a disc surface repair eco pro it will clean disc like a brand new

[@Attmay]

I’ve tried every product you can name that claims to fix disc scratches, and I am not impressed with any of them. I even bought some machine that was supposed to do it automatically with some cream applied to the discs as a round thing rotated against them to remove it, but it was a pain in the butt to operate, so they should’ve put in some cream for that! And it didn’t really work. Meanwhile, I was able to get better results washing records with something that cost a lot less money, but I don’t really recommend using things intended for vinyl on plastic because I have concerns about whether they will react the same way to repeated exposure to the same product.

[@lozu8947]

The only disc rot I have ever experienced is on cd-r recordable discs. I have cds from the 80’s that are still in pristine condition. This disc rot is overblown

[@biglew1161]

I have manufactured disks from the 90s that playperfectly. I have experienced older cdrs not working properly. If you have stuff on cdr that you don't want to lose make copies. But manufactured disks seem quite reliable.

[@KlingonCaptain]

I have a music disc from 1986 that is still in perfect condition. So I know that it's not a universal problem.

[@NerdCrave]

I have quite a few old discs too, disc rot is actually pretty rare

[@biglew1161]

I I have disc from early 90-91 and up that still play perfectly today in 2025. I have always taken quite good care of them. In storing and handling. I do however have my whole collection 900+ ripped as flac files for archival and portability. And have 4 copies of them all. I listen mostly to the digital copies for convenience but will pull a cd out for that physical nostalgic feeling of putting a disk in and pressing play.

[@Mrs.Jekyll]

Also, I try my absolute best too preserve my discs. When I herd about disc rot, they all said bad manufacturing, and bad conditions. Non of them said its because they degrade over time

[@ceilingsandfloors]

The oldest CD I have is a 1992 pressing of U2's The Joshua Tree which I bought second hand and predates all but a few Console Games to be released on optical disc. Gave it a whirl recently for the first time in years and no problems. I think I'll hold onto it, keep in a cool dry place, and see if it will last another 10...20...30 years...

[@NerdCrave]

Good luck! Great album!

[@reginaldforthright805]

Check on it in 3 million years and report back

[@weldonyoung1013]

By then the glue holding the layers together will be gone.

[@GavGaming15]

Very informative video! Good to hear I’ve been treating my discs right!

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks!

[@Tromeo1988]

I just had a look at my oldest dvds! The DVD of "The Exorzist" which I bought with sixteen is now 22 years old (and back there as i was young i didn't went very well with my movies)! It played fine! I looked at many others very old dvds i bought (20 years +) i couldn't find one! We will see what the future will bring!

[@jaxh4x]

I collect mainly ps1/ps2 games. I have yet to buy a disc with rot and I hope it’s never an issue I really have to deal with. However, I’m currently embarking on backing up my entire collection to two SSDs and an HDD just in case.

[@NerdCrave]

Good plan

[@cyberwolfe]

WHAT I LEARNED TODAY: Store your discs in space while not in use.... 💿🌌✨

[@NerdCrave]

While the vacuum would theoretically be excellent, the extreme cold, and radiation...not so much lol

[@1805movie]

This was actually very informative and helpful. I love physical media and will do anything to preserve them as much as possible. Thank you.

[@NerdCrave]

I’m with ya man! Preserve that media!

[@Mrs.Jekyll]

Same here, I'm more afraid of my accounts getting banned (or becoming like PT) so I want to have things physically

[@triledink]

Also sometimes you might see light through a disc thats not disc rot. Sometimes if the print in front of the disc is scratched you might see a small dot through the disc but its not disc rot, its just because the printing on the front side of the disc is scratched, Not scratched deep enough to damage the information layer. You will notice if its disc rot since the dots looks different. I have a disc that with light have a a bunch of dots on it and it works all the way through without any problem. But seriously people take care of your discs, as he said. Store them in the same enviroment that you're comfortable living in.

[@NerdCrave]

Spot on man!

[@marcboulware6242]

Whatever the Reason for the Defect, I have determined that if you can shine the bottom of the Disc up to the Light, and see clean through to the Top of the Disc, then you have "Rot". This can be prevented, in the future, by slapping an Avery CD/DVD Label on the Top of the Disc. However, the Damage [to the Existing Disc] has already been done. There will be Data Loss, Unfortunately.

[@sabbathbloodysabbath3351]

@@marcboulware6242 not exactly true. Many CDs have pinholes from manufacturing that can be seen through strong light. Slapping on a sticker or label will ruin the discs as they can create a negative chemical reaction or other wear to the disc.

[@mattbaker5757]

Hello, you mentioned in the video that damaging discs by storing discs horizontally is a myth. It is a true fact, not a myth, but it only pertains to vinyl LPS and the old CED video format which was on vinyl LPS within a plastic caddy. Those can get ruined by stacking one on top of another because of the weight it presses down on all the vinyl discs and it smashes the grooves at the needle reads. Depending on how high the stacks are and how much weight is on some of the vinyl records/discs, the damage to the lower vinyl discs can be instant or happen over an amount of time depending on the weight above. However, this problem was never meant to pertain to digital disc media in the first place. So if you're talking about digital media discs, it's just misinformation from ignorant people who heard about it with vinyl records or CED discs and just assumed it meant all discs.

[@NerdCrave]

Absolutely true.

[@Attmay]

I also do not recommend stacking laser discs horizontally more than 12 at a time. The boxes don’t provide much space between them the way DVD boxes do.

[@iiqulo]

Yeah, people get way more panicky than they need to be. I have found cheap-ass burnable cd's are the ones that fail over time. Otherwise, music CDs that I have had for decades are just fine.

[@DominiqueDeMann]

Exactly

[@redbrainsleven8862]

I have about 100 burned PS1 games that my grandpa got from a friend from work in the late 90’s and they were stored in his basement for about 20 years. I’ve recently recovered them and most seem to work just fine still.

[@iiqulo]

@@redbrainsleven8862 being stored might have protected them. Or maybe they weren't cheap-ass. Who knows.

[@Lewiiugamepad]

Great explanation and well produced video. To put in perspective, in my 2000+ games collection, only one disc malfunctions from disc rot. It doesn’t happen a lot and I am suspecting bad manufacturing or mistreatment from its previous owner since it was a 3DO that I received and started not working 3 days after, sad.

[@NerdCrave]

i’ve heard stories about other 3DO games as well

[@user78738]

I have huge collection of DVDs and blu ray, this video made me test out the first DVD I owned and played on my PlayStation 2 in 2001 "Unbreakable" . The disc is still working over 20 years later even with scratches. Interesting topic I hadn't thought about my discs rotting.

[@NerdCrave]

Most discs are ok if treated with care

[@59thSurvivor-of-VHS]

My CBS Fox VHS hardcore magnetic heavy tapes going to out tank an entire format lol. VHS will never die, not in my lifetime. Keep on Huntin' I heard the Warner Brothers are rough

[@Sonya_Makepeace]

I still use tape. Mini DV. Still working after 16 years.

[@59thSurvivor-of-VHS]

@Sonya_Makepeace I believe it! Some of the early CBS Fox VHS tapes were built like tanks, heavy magnetic component on scotch tape, I bet they could function in 100 years stored in proper conditions.

[@PapMasterOST2]

I found you in the wild

[@59thSurvivor-of-VHS]

@@PapMasterOST2 I have commented on my own comments that have the same H.U.N.K. avatar LOL, on My OG account I am locked out of is called BOB DENVER so if you see that and my Survivor handle comment I was talking to myself LOL One guy even was thinking it was a Matrix or YTUBE glitch LOL Keep on huntin' You are good at it, why you are JOHNNY MO BROSKI!!

[@T00muchF00Dchannel]

This is why if there’s a game I want available on cartridge or memory card, I get it over the disc. If it is disc only, I get the disc over Digital.

[@NerdCrave]

I'm kind of in the middle. I will choose digital on my switch pretty often, particularly when it's a game I expect to play often. I usually only buy physical switch carts when I think they will be limited or valuable down the road. I'm selling off a lot of the filler in my collection, and focusing on games that mean something to me, because having thousands of physical discs just doesn't seem like a good investment anymore. I'm really focusing my collecting habits on 3 or 4 major libraries and thinning out the rest

[@garylikesgames]

Oh man, I'm so glad to hear that disc rot isn't what I thought. I genuinely thought the days of my games were numbered.

[@NerdCrave]

Oh, they are numbered, everything degrades eventually, but with proper care most disc based media should last many decades. You’ll have a disc here and there die, but I wouldn’t be concerned in a broad way. I’d be more concerned about the electronics used to play them

[@superj2644]

Disc rot is extremely rare. If you buy pre-owned you can come across it, but odds there's a disc rot disc in your collection is extremely rare

[@NerdCrave]

Exactly

[@JH-pe3ro]

Regarding the adhesion layer issue, here is something that can help add some perspective: We've been making and using wood glue for centuries, starting with glues based on animal products, and more recently using industrial chemistry. We rely on it all the time to support load-bearing structures in all weather conditions. And it works - enough that we can usually leave it there for decades and not think about it. The job the adhesive is being asked to do for an optical disc is comparatively narrow in comparison: when stored reasonably well, maintain a tight seal that keeps the layers together indefinitely. At the beginning there is a learning curve to this - and early instances of CD and DVD have examples of getting it wrong or simply cutting too many corners. BD has done comparatively better so far, even though at the beginning there was some kerfuffle about which recordable dye to use. Since I'm using my setup primarily for storing personal projects and rips, it makes sense to use BD-R for just about everything, and when the next big optical format comes around I'll give it a few years to settle down, and then consolidate onto that.

[@NerdCrave]

Probably a good plan Blu-ray seems to be a really stable platform. I have no problem investing in Blu-ray for the long-term preservation of my collection.

[@gourry47]

Man what a relief I already took great care of my stuff so I was worried for nothing

[@NerdCrave]

Do I sense some sarcasm there?

[@gourry47]

@@NerdCrave no not really I've been listening to all that psn shutdown stuff and it's kinda freaking me out

[@devonmacdonald4439]

@@NerdCrave I keep my ps collection in plastic sleeves in my cabinet will my collection be OK? Just asking

[@MistaFiOth]

Amazing vid man. Thanks for the info!

[@thelastdefenderofcamelot5623]

I think I figured it out. It is the double sided DVDs that are more prone to disc rot. Examples are discs that include both theatrical and a special edition like Alien director's cut and Gladiator extended edition. Both play really choppy every couple minutes (even more noticeable when the camera pans) and both versions freeze at the same scenes and also the discs take an unusually long time to load. You should probably check all the double layered ones. If I'm wrong, I apologize for wasting your time.

[@Diamond_Dust2.0]

This is really depressing when you think about it. Especially when you realise builds like the sonic X-treme with functioning metal sonic boss fight has not only been lost to time, if it is ever discovered. The disk is probably damaged

[@NerdCrave]

Quite sad

[@pentiummmx2294]

Definitely the issue with collecting for disc based consoles (Sega CD, Jaguar CD, Sega Saturn, 3DO, PS1, Dreamcast, etc.) the dreaded disc rot, and the lasers are burning out, nothing ever lasts forever. eventually all those discs you have will just decay and become unreadable. Good thing we have emulation, optical drive emulators, flash cartridges. and preservation needs to be a thing, but i hate that the copyright holders and lawyers think that it is illegal.

[@NerdCrave]

Emulation is the future

[@KaosNova2]

Yes, it’s really key the environment that you expose media to. I see plenty of people not putting their media in a good casing or not concerned about the temperature or humidity in the house, etc. Thanks for mentioning this. I also seemed to have issues with the laser in my disc player. Would the laser be degraded by similar environmental factors as the discs?

[@NerdCrave]

Lasers usually suffer from wear and tear

[@coincollectingtime821]

I had a christmas cd that I found inside a c d player that I got from a thrift store and some Gunk got on it. And when I Try to clean it off, is the data ripped off. I was pissed when it happened

[@NerdCrave]

That stinks

[@michaeldietz2648]

I have well over 1000 movies across DVD Blu-ray and 4K, I have been collecting since DVDs first came out and they still work perfectly fine every single one of them as far as I know. Every music CD I have from the early 90s works perfectly fine. If you take care of your stuff you have nothing to worry about

[@NerdCrave]

Mostly true. Some rare exceptions

[@seoyeon_csr]

Are you sure they work fine or are you just assuming they do? Get a few dvds from 2004 and watch them from beginning to end. I bet you will find some that freeze (due to disc rot). i tried to watch casino royale and i can't get beyond 1 hour 17 minutes due to disc rot(which isn't visible on the disc).

[@michaeldietz2648]

@@seoyeon_csr As far as I know they all work perfectly fine, but if you’re not seeing anything on your disk it might be a player.

[@JRLopez13]

Good video! I have my collection in a very humid room and the only way I can control the temperature is with an Air conditioner. 40% of my DVD collection suffered from rot deterioration and most of those discs are from WB, and it is a coincidence that most of them where released after 2005 meaning that they switched to a bad quality materials. I still have my 1st DVD that I bought back 2002 and it has a two side data recorded and still play like the first day. I started making backups of the entire discs without compression and stored it on a HD. Studios should be ashamed of throwing poor disc materials and charge us 15-20+ with no guarantees.

[@zeny5159]

How do you make backups of discs?

[@JRLopez13]

@@zeny5159 with DVDs I use DVD decrypter (which is free software) to get the untouched uncompressed data or you can use a disc burner software to make an ISO image file, later you can reproduce it wit VLC or media player

[@zeny5159]

@@JRLopez13 Nice. Thx. But you only saves the movies right? I wish there was a way to save the menus and especial features too

[@JRLopez13]

@@zeny5159 The software saves the entire disc with menus and extras, it’s an exact copy. You can also copy it later to a dual layer DVD if you still want to use your DVD player

[@jordanking7711]

In my opinion, EVERYBODY needs to watch this and stop panicking, and think the main takeaway here, apart from poor manufacturing, is look after your discs.

[@NerdCrave]

You got it!

[@lucacivitillo179]

Disc rot is appearing in many of PS4 physical games... it appears in like very little tiny spots. I was organizing my collection of physical games and I took a horrible surprise 😞 Great video!! Thanks for explaining!

[@MrBrownstoneSESH]

What state you live

[@GamerBoy870]

I didn't know Blu-Ray discs could get disc rot

[@angolin9352]

That sucks, but at least it happens to a console that will become totally unplayable in a decade or two anyways. Look up the PS4 time bomb/CBOMB issue. PS5 has the same deliberate design flaw. PS3 has it too, but only for digital games.

[@jakehunter3434]

@@angolin9352 the PS5 is only digital, just like the ps3. Ps4 is the unlucky one, all digital and physical disks are worthless after that battery dies and you can't get access to the internet for it to work.

[@lrc173]

@@jakehunter3434 the battery is super easy to be replaced. once you do that console is fine again.

[@collectthemall]

Sadly I got a brand new discs with that issue . Luckily seller offered replacement . It seems to happen when someone messed up something during disc production and not age. The entire batch of discs had that issue.

[@NerdCrave]

Manufacturing is the biggest weakness

[@seanrodrigues8184]

What about game cartridges? Are they more acceptable to preservation or less so?

[@NerdCrave]

Everything has a lifespan, but most cartridges are much more reliable than discs

[@TrunkJunky]

That strange smash cut after "these discs will outlive YOU" bothers me.

[@NerdCrave]

Sorry?

[@TrunkJunky]

@@NerdCrave 5:43 "I expect these discs to outlive YOU!" sounded pretty ominous then the video smash cuts to "disc rot isn't something you need to be afraid of!"

[@amin2636]

Super informative thank you ❤

[@OphieTV]

So I have a very big collection of GameCube games due to growing up playing the GameCube as a kid and I’ve have them stored in a moderately dark spot in my living room. my living temperature changes due to the seasons as I live in the Midwest. My question is a whether cooler or warmer temperature is better for media preservation.

[@NerdCrave]

Cooler is always better for almost everything in terms of longevity not just media up to a certain point if it’s below freezing that can introduce moisture issues as the temperature fluctuate but generally cooler is better

[@DullSkaterBlade]

Lol i panicked when you said dont leave your discs in a cold unfinished basement😂 I ran down there, snatched my ELO disc and showed it the love it deserved😂😂

[@NerdCrave]

Lol

[@RadioWhiz]

We should try to find something to repair the media or something diy or anything

[@Topbeehler]

I actually came here to do research. A friend of mine has been having this problem with Blu-rays of shows we both like, I have them too as part of my collection. But mine are all pretty much mint and still working and theirs keep failing and not reading after just a couple years. I store mine on a shelf in my room, and theirs are in a box in a shed by his house. Guess this kind of explains why he's having trouble and I am not. I'll have to help him move his stuff safely into his house so he can keep his collection nice lol

[@NerdCrave]

There you go!

[@Topbeehler]

@@NerdCrave Yeah thanks for the help! Also inspired me to look at all of my disk to check them and they are all in perfect condition. To be fair I am more a collector, I watch something once or pirate it then buy the blu-ray of it so as not to damage it at all. Needless to say keeping everything is spectacular condition is important to me so again thanks for this info as I was scared what was happening to my friends collection would happen to mind as well

[@dew4915]

So for a typical and well treated DVD/Blu-Ray collection, it's not much of a concern for me?

[@NerdCrave]

The majority of them will last a very long time unless physically damaged

[@FreelancerFreak]

I haven't used discs in like a decade, my computer doesn't even have a disk drive. But i understand that there is a lot of people who love discs and they have my sympathy

[@Sl0nk0b0mb]

I literally just heard about this for the first time the other day 😮the algorithm blessed me with this video today 😎 thank ya for more explanation

[@NerdCrave]

It’s funny how this works! This video is evergreen, it just keeps getting views! Glad you liked it!

[@ORLY911]

This gave me peace of mind. Thank you. I was worried maybe my OG Xbox games would start deteriorating due to the age. I keep them all in their cases and handle them properly like all my other games, I just was in that worry of "for just happens" but that seems to not be the case. On that topic though, do you know if Xbox discs have substandard materials?

[@NerdCrave]

Generally Xbox games are ok, there have been a few individual games that consistently have problems, but mostly I think you’re ok

[@stephaniekinast9632]

Very good informational video. Thanks brother, cheers.

[@SaucyBoiYt]

I just so happened to learn about disc rot as soon as I bought a pre-owed Wii U. Even though I have a small amount of Wii U games, it was enough to slightly justify it, and now I'm left with hole-ridden translucent discs and a hdmi Wii with a tablet.

[@NerdCrave]

WiiU discs are not generally known for disc rot, you may have a different problem

[@HaythamGruxton]

Very well made and informative video! I think owners of video games on discs should be more worried about the hardware definitely. Something like a Xbox 360 or PS3 is at a lot more risk of dying. Between the laser, hard drive, and moving parts in general I think the breakdown of the machines will be the problem.

[@NerdCrave]

Absolutely true!

[@jamesperkins7716]

I would know about that too. It was my XBOX 360 laser disk reader that failed after a few years. People blame the cds, when for the most part, the real problem is the cd player!

[@the199dirtrider]

Awesome video!

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks! Stay tuned for a follow up video shortly’

[@segaretrojoker1887]

Video of the year 👍

[@SteffDev]

Lot's of good information , thanks !

[@NerdCrave]

You’re welcome!

[@granhairdo]

i've only had two or three discs rot in my years of physical media collecting, and they were all discs that were notrious for having manufacting errors. since i keep all of my discs in optimal condition, my biggest concern is not rot, but rather simple wear and tear of using the disc for 10-20+ years. as i collect rare media at high risk of being lost in the case of a faulty disc, i keep multiple digital backups in case of rot, or something as simple as wear and tear from there being a complete lack of unopened copies available secondhand. while rot is something to be concerned about, its much more important to physically handle your discs correctly than fuss about rot

[@NerdCrave]

Absolutely!

[@spookymulder945]

I still have an ACDC CD that I bought back in 1991. It's pretty scratched but all songs still play.

[@NerdCrave]

It’s actually pretty amazing how durable they are when you think about it

[@AndrewsGamingChannel9]

Great video

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks!

[@redking8585]

I'm glad those aren't my discs. I've got a lot of discs still from the 90s and they all work fine when I use them even though I keep hearing people say that discs will deteriorate, the only storage medium dying on me time and time again are harddrives.

[@NerdCrave]

The discs were props. No actual media was harmed!

[@user-zz2de6nd9e]

Excelente.

[@chomper720]

still a good idea to backup the favorite shows with both analog and digital options.

[@yollabolly7944]

I wonder if the middle of the disk where it's clear could rot if there is paint.

[@yollabolly7944]

If you know what i'm talking about.

[@linearpcmrecorder]

the terminator 1984 MGM original cardboard box version has this issue. it sucks big time. the original menu is awesome too 😭

[@NerdCrave]

Good to know!

[@timothyds7453]

My biggest fear always is with taking a disc out of the case. It has never happend to me ... but ... often the clamps on the hole of the disk in the box are rather tight and it feels like you could bend and break the disk.

[@NerdCrave]

It can be sketchy sometimes

[@timothyds7453]

@NerdCrave Indeed, and since it depends on the type of case used and you have some that even help getting the disk out safely, it almost feels like it's a planned obsolescence thing that some distributors are going for. x amount of removals from the case before it breaks and you need to buy a new one. I bet some would be that sneaky 😅😆

[@marcse7en]

I don't play games, but I have Compact Discs that are 30+ years old, CD-R that are 20+ years old, and I recently opened a 25 year old shrink-wrapped DVD, and all are 100% fine. However, in over three decades of Compact Disc, I have experienced disc rot two, maybe three times, and those were due to well-known manufacturing defects. Look after your discs.

[@NerdCrave]

Exactly

[@lobsterwhisperer7932]

I used to back-up my rental videos, after 20 plus years I went back to them and was surprised that all of them, so far still work..maybe the dvd-r's were of better quality in early 2000's?

[@freedom_rock18]

Would this also be the reasoning why I’ve bought two dvds of the same movie which happens to be a scanner darkly and they both froze at the 43 minute marker.. for no reason and I tried changing over to my mom’s DVD player from my Xbox..

[@freedom_rock18]

I’m thinking of buying a new Blu-ray copy off of Walmart

[@NerdCrave]

Bummer

[@newphilmz3605]

The more time that goes on I'm having more problems with it. The ones that are going are my mixtapes from the early 2000s that are burned CDs by DJs and rap artists. Some are still playable, but others are degrading usually at the edge of the disc which are the later tracks. The ones with sticky labels went first, the glue does something to the data. But even ones with printed titles on the disc are starting to go. I keep them all in a case too, so they've been stored good. Factory pressed discs, I'm still good for the most part, but I think it's only a matter of time before they go.

[@NerdCrave]

Time will tell but it’s wise to have digital backups these days

[@newphilmz3605]

@@NerdCrave I ripped them 5 years ago they were fine, now I'm having trouble with some of them so I know time is a factor

[@RenderGT]

Great video!

[@NerdCrave]

Thanks!

[@Thatguyy002]

Much appreciated my friend, I can live in peace 👍🏼

[@TheRocco96]

I just discovered that my Kylie Minogue 2008 concert blu ray no longer plays. Tried 4 different blu ray drives. Earlier my Saving Private Ryan blu ray also stopped working. Bit rot is a real problem, even with blu ray. HD DVDs were also notorious for becoming unplayable, I lost dozens of those.

[@NerdCrave]

HD DVDs were quite bad blue rays and generally bulletproof. But I have had a couple of Blu-rays let me down over the years.

[@lakibody]

Good thing my dad during the early 2000s made our home betamax,vcd, and dvd digitalized through drives or yahoo cloud because he said sooner or later these will soon deteriorate.

[@evamaraj6023]

let me add to this, as you were mentioning collectibles. So items generally made from plastic do not like big temperature changes neither aggressive chemicals (that can even be in some cleaning products. And also sun cream or some types of creams you may use for your skin or hands. ) Sadly unlike car parts, they are not produced in mind to withstand big temperature differences and quick temperature changes. Color pigments do not like sun and light in general, but that means mostly UV light. As over time they can become pale if exposed. so that means all those nice covers can get damaged that way. And even some plastic itself can get faster aging or coloration from such exposure. Paper products (for example paper boxes, manuals) on the other hand like normal environment. As too dry room can cause paper to be brittle. And as opposed to that electronics (that includes game cartridges) that loves dry environment and dislikes humidity a lot. So for these combos (game cartridge in a paper box) I guess in general it is better to come closer to the comfty level of electronics, as paper can withstand lack of humidity as long as you do not manipulate it too much.

[@NerdCrave]

Absolutely true!

[@michaelhonormusic]

Discs wants a dry, dark environment (a closed case) around 21/22 C. I had Tex Murphy Pandora Directive in the basement for many year, when I wanted to play the game on my old computer 4 of 6 discs was rotten and unplayable. The basement had to much humidity.

[@NerdCrave]

Exactly

[@Betonoszlop]

The well-stored and handled pressed (!) CD can last 300 years

[@blodguizer]

I just watched a video about Warner HD DVDs becoming unwatchable most likely due to manufacturing defects. I have been buying cd's since they were first released as a physical medium, some over 30 years old and no problems at all.

[@NerdCrave]

By and large, discs are extremely durable, but there are exceptions. Most manufacturers accept a 98% QC status, meaning 2 in every 100 discs could be faulty from day one

[@fatmanjstyle5306]

My mind is going rampant just trying to save my discs. But none of them have disc rot. I guess my question is, with careful handling and cleaning are all discs just eventually gonna have scratches. Even if it’s small tiny ones. I keep them all in a CD case, vertically, and away from Heat. Are small scratches out of my control?

[@NerdCrave]

Some discs scratch easier than others, BluRay is much harder to scratch than cd and dvd, and recordable DVD’s are notoriously bad but some scratches are inevitable

[@yollabolly7944]

It is just 2 videos about the middle of the disk because one of my disks has pin holes in the middle near the hole.

[@landrybasket]

At some point I should probably take my game collection out of our external storage locker, thanks for the informative video

[@NerdCrave]

Good idea

[@BLM_Big_Lipped_Marxist]

True if we’re talking about AUTHORIZED OFFICIAL ORIGINAL COMMERCIAL FACTORY PRESSED DISCS. Unfortunately you failed to mention that there’s a longevity difference between original and bootleg and counterfeit aka fake discs. Official DVD discs, given you take care of them, should last AT LEAST 50 to 100+ years. Official Blu-ray and CD discs AT LEAST 100 to 200 years. That’s my understanding from extensive research. Now bootlegs/copies and unauthorized overseas, mostly from chinavirusville, factory pressed counterfeit discs won’t last nearly that long. So there’s most definitely a longevity difference between genuine/authentic and fake/counterfeit.

[@NerdCrave]

You're absolutely right. Any burned CD or DVD in general is more prone to it

[@Westbird1]

Any idea if vacuum sealing them will protect them from rot?

[@NerdCrave]

That would help provided. They weren’t already compromised before you put them in the vacuum seal.

[@joshj88]

I was wondering what you all thought of CD wallets/cases. Like the ones you can get from wal-mart or Amazon. Are they generally long-term safe? I have my whole Xbox 360 collection in a DVD binder with pockets for the manuals. I had to downsize the space or I couldn’t keep them all together and wanted to take them with me.

[@NerdCrave]

I did it for a couple years when I moved across the country, and they were fine, but I think you really want to avoid heat and especially humidity because the disc art can become stuck to the sleeves and damage them

[@joshj88]

@@NerdCrave well that’s fine. At least as of now I’m in an air conditioned apartment. Humidity isn’t an issue. And these wallets are much better made them past ones that were omg horrible.

[@juliobro1]

That "poor manufacturing" bit seems to be the one at the core of the problem. I have DVDs with more than 20 years and most are OK, but it's surprisingly frequent that I go..."Hmm, I wanna show my daughter the origin movie of that character, with a soon to be released sequel."..., pick the disc from the rack in my living room, starts fine, and at some point...screws up. It's sooo frustrating, specially when it can't be found streaming at the same quality. And that's a risk with copies, quality. I want that pristine HD look, with a lossless DTS soundtrack, how is that copy made? And what about blu-ray?

[@NerdCrave]

BluRays in general are more durable, but they are also “younger” so we have less of a concept of how age affects them

[@yollabolly7944]

You know what else I get scared about when a screw in a game cartridge is striped because I might not be able to get it out.

[@Yt-Viewer0]

I've only witnessed disc rot once, in my lifetime.

[@NerdCrave]

It’s rare and misunderstood

[@mohameddokkan6802]

Hi amazing video learned a lot from it could you make a video about disks that crack in the middle i seen this problem alot with second hand games and what are the consequence of this and how long would a disk last with disk crack in the middle

[@NerdCrave]

I’ll look into it

[@_teem_]

very good to know. does this also go for game cartridges?

[@NerdCrave]

Cartridges have their own problems but they are generally more durable than discs

[@matthewgaudet4064]

my nes and snes, and gameboy cartridges are fine except for dead battery for saves.

[@healthbeauty7853]

I had a game with disc rot, patches In the disc, got the disc resurfaced, and came out looking like brand new.

[@NerdCrave]

Crazy!