Since I'm new here, I'll post this here, and see if it gets moved. I can't seem to find any other forum posts that had a full discussion on this.

I'm in the process of rebuilding my audio collection, as all my CDs were destroyed. I am doing this mostly through borrowing the CDs from people who owned the same stuff, and actually re-buying the rest.

The problem I've always had in the past is that it is so easy to scratch CDs on the label side, which is of course unrepairable. I know that DVDs actually sandwich the data layer between plastic, so are there any CD-R's that do this? If not, what are some of the most scratch-resistant CD-R's on the *label* side. LightScribe-capible media would be a bonus.

Thanks in advance.

How did this tragedy happen??

If you want this, LS CDs may be an option for you.
DVD media is produced in a different way, like you already posted.

I trusted them to a friend who lost them while moving. We've spent days looking for them. She feels awful, but things happen, and I knew I should have backed them up in the first place.

Anyways, are LightScribe CDs better protected on the label side, like DVDs are?

Due to the physical specification for CDs, the recording layer (shiny metal) is directly under the label. There is no way for manufacturers to change this. The best you can hope for is to find some that claim to have a scratch resistant label side.

RM

Because of the extra layer required to do the extra LightScribe stuff, it probably is better protected.

I just checked my Maxell Pro CD-R [made in Japan by Taiyo Yuden], and they didn't scratch so easily on the label side. They still scratched, but it seemed that [for the most part] only the gold labeling surface came off, and not the reflective layer. It's probably still less protected than LightScribe discs, though.

In Europe, the Verbatim (Super) AZO CD-R with Crystal surface is the most scratch resistant CD-R I have tested.

In North America the equivalent is the Verbatim DataLifePlus CD-R, but it's not clear to me whether these also have the Crystal surface.

The Maxell CD-R Pro mentioned by Albert should be a good choice, but probably a bit expensive - but LightScribe CD-R are also a bit expensive.

Welcome to CDFreaks, s0dium!

Does anyone have a LS disc to test this with? Kinda an expensive test, considering the cost of LS media to regular CD-R's, though...

Thank you for welcoming me here. I've been to this forum in the past, but never registered.

I noticed there is a version of the DataLifePlus with the Crystal:

http://www.amazon.com/Verbatim-DataL.../dp/B00069IQO2

However, i heard that this only protects the bottom, and not the label side. Do you know?

Crystal only protects the top (label) side - it does not protect the bottom (data) side and neither does any other CD-R media I have seen (although I have seen announcements of such media).