# Need DVD help

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [March 23, 2003, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515 "2003-03-23T05:33:30Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![riserius1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ab992/32.png) [@riserius1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/riserius1)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515/1 "2003-03-23T05:33:30Z")

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Back around January we acquired a DVD/VCR combo. Things have been going fine for a while, but I noticed a couple DVDs we rented began to stop…and then start again, as if someone had hit the pause button for about 5 seconds. We put it down to the fact that these were NOT brand new dvds, but rather had been handled and abused so much, they were causing problems.  
The REAL problem began when we put a brand new DVD in and the same thing happened. Now, we still have plenty of dvds and vcds that play fine on this unit. The question is, what do I do? Will running a cleaner through help, or is this symptomatic of a greater problem?

Any Thoughts?

Chris W

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**Author:** ![Lizard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@Lizard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lizard)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515/2 "2003-03-23T05:43:07Z")

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A good first step is trying to google the model and manufacturer, and try to find their homepage, if they have one. They might have an FAQ that answers this very question. It could be a million different things, and nobody here is likely to know as much as the manufacturer.

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**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515/3 "2003-03-23T06:44:57Z")

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If the “pause and restart” thing happens only once during the viewing, and in about the middle of the film, you may just be seeing the layer switch. Some players pause briefly as the laser refocuses. It only takes about a second, and movie studios usually try to place the layer switch where it won’t be too noticeable.

To verify that this is what’s happening, find a review for one of the DVDs you own on the review pages at [The Digital Bits](http://www.thedigitalbits.com). In the “Specs and Features” list, the layer switch, if there is one, will be listed. For example, on the new DVD for **The Ring** , the layer switch occurs at 1:03:30 in chapter 13. If that’s where your player pauses, mystery solved.

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**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2003, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515/4 "2003-03-23T23:39:17Z")

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Yep, a wise observation Max Torque, they even mention that on the back of the dvd case sometimes. Inotice the switch sometimes slices the captions in two… it shouldn’t happen with a dvd5 disk, which is one layer.

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**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2003, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-dvd-help/163515/5 "2003-03-24T01:26:26Z")

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Also, there’s been some “compatibility” issues between certain DVDs and various players. Apparently, DVDs will play perfectly fine in one player, but not work at all in another.