Cardboard digipaks scratching CDs?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Graham, Nov 20, 2014.

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  1. HGN2001

    HGN2001 Mystery picture member

    I see a lot of angst on this forum about scratched discs, and I suppose it's a matter of degrees. How big are these scratches? Do they impair your ability to play the disc?

    I occasionally see hairline scratches on CDs - usually used ones or eBay prizes. Rarely do I notice anything on new, purchased CDs. I have only twice, ever, encountered a defective CD. One was a VERTIGO soundtrack on Mercury that had a small pinhole on the label side. I later replaced it with another one that was perfect and passed the defective one on to a knowing friend who managed to get it to play without error.

    The other defective CD came used from eBay. It was a Carpenters ANTHOLOGY disc that was scratched beyond repair. It had big gashes that circled the playing side causing it to skip and not rip. Again, I replaced the CD set, passed along the defective set to another friend, and provided a CD-R of the defective disc made from my replacement set.

    Every other CD I own plays perfectly, with or without hairline scratches.

    Harry
     
  2. botley

    botley Forum Resident

    Thank you to those who recognize and point out the distinction between generic cardboard sleeves and the DIGIPAK (which is a registered trademark in the USA, I believe, and may therefore only correctly refer to a specific design concept for plastic CD trays glued to a stiff card wraparound).

    I have encountered this maybe twice in almost twenty years of buying CDs (and Digipaks have not been around much longer than that). In my experience, this breaking of the hub (and, worse, shedding of its plastic bits that then roll around inside and cause havoc) happens far more often with "slimline" jewel cases that hold two discs in a standard-width case. Those plastic central spindles tend to break up badly when there is jostling and stress in the middle of the case. Lots of that can happen when the arm holding the two discs bumps around inside the case. Yes, that can happen with Digipaks — probably more than it does with standard one-disc jewel cases, because the outer cardboard can bend more in transit than hard plastic does. But if you beat up ANY form of CD case enough in transit it will likely suffer damage.

    The discs themselves are pretty durable and as long as they're not sliding around with something rubbing against the data surface, and I find their playback will usually not be affected by most damage. Yes, superficial scratches can happen with cardboard cases that fit too tightly around the disc. But the idea is that the edge of the CD (where there is no data written) is the contact point. In hub-based designs, the point of contact should be the centre part, again where you can't scratch any data. But no design is perfect.
     
  3. motownboy

    motownboy Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington State
    If the digipak has a spindle, then the CD has a relatively secure place to sit. When it comes to sliding the CD into a cardboard pocket, I don't like those and that feels so cheap and tacky, especially when a major label releases a title with that kind of packaging. I like the jewel box, especially the latest ones with the rounded corners that are often used in the UK and Europe.
     
    Alan2 likes this.
  4. Alan2

    Alan2 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Good summary. I still hate card LP style packaging, sans inner, the worst of all. Sure, I've had a few with no damage at all,but it's a matter of luck, and I'v e had as many that look second hand, they're so badly marked. It also kind of irritates me that the people who make the decision to go with this type of packaging - -record company execs?- don't seem to regard CDs as a permanent collectible thing at all - -just something to chuck around and use carelessly until it's unusable.

    I had a theory that the broken hub phenomenon might be something that happens in the factory when the disc is inserted mechanically into the tray. ??
     
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2014
  5. With ones like the OP mentioned, yes, they will usually make some surface scuffs, but still play perfectly, so
    ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
     
  6. DannyC

    DannyC Forum Resident

    You will get the odd surface scuff.. Personally I cant see how that makes much difference to the SQ of a CD.. In a Blind test I would say zero..

    I cant say I have ever had a CD thats actually been damaged by one of these slips though either digi pack or sleeve.. Though oddly I did snap one in a standard jewel case where the CD was held to tight.
     
  7. MaximilianRG

    MaximilianRG Forum Resident

    Just noticed 3 scratched CD's today, while re-ripping some CD's.

    Kate Bush: "50 Words For Snow" & "Directors Cut" (these are a unique type of digipak)
    Regina Spektor: Bonus DVD of "Far" (Standard Digipak)

    I really wish that artists/labels/factories who decided to not use jewel cases would learn how to make a proper Japanese style mini LP complete with the plastic inner sleeves. They need to do away with any other type of packaging.
     
    footlooseman likes this.
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