Did you know your old cds go blank after years no matter what

Question

I have at present a CD that is over ten years old. I put it in my cd player nothing happens I put it in my laptop and I am told it is empty. Now for the part I wish to ask about, Did the record labels have on this disk that after years this disk shall go blank, The point is I have a product that is not suitable for it's purpose. So I go to some site and download all the songs from that album and the other four that have had the same experience over the last six months. I have a very old collection of cd's So am i a pirate for replacing these items that are what I bought in good faith, believed all their statements about cd's lasting forever not scratching so on. The record companies have not held up to their side of the agreement on the product lasting forever? Opinions please?

Answer 1

Never heard of a CD going blank. All mine from way back still play fine.  

Answer 2

I have cd's which date from 1985(!) which still play perfectly, in either the home or the car.

Twenty-three years and counting! No conspiracy here.

Answer 3

stick to good quality cdrs , not the rubbish faceless ones they sell in tescos 100 for £2 , stick to sony or tdk makes

Answer 4

No,you hum it and I'll play it.

Seriously, I have ones yonks older.

Answer 5

You got that one right mate.

Remeber how they told us the CDs were indestructable?  Ever scratched one?

LOL

.

Answer 6

The average life of a CD or DVD is 50 years.  If they are real I would send a letter and see what they say.  Probably though you will get nowhere with them, they are greedy bastrds.

Sorry to say, all digital media errodes over time.  No matter what condition it is kept in.  It is not like an LP record album.

Answer 7

sue the manufacturer.

Answer 8

Not mine and mine are older than yours.

Answer 9

Indeed I did not know. Nor do i believe that actually happens. It may have happened to you but it doesn't mean it happens to everyone.

Answer 10

mine still work.

Answer 11

Compact Discs that you purchase from a shop with  music on are plastic discs pressed from a metal master. They are CD ROMs - Read Only. The data on them can not be altered. They are produced in a way very similar to a vinal record. Would you expect a 12" to suddenly go blank? A CDROM consists of holes 0.5 microns wide and 125 nanometers deep pressed into a plastic disc. It cannot be set to "self destruct" or "auto delete"

CDR's contain a dye which basically changes colour when it is heated with a laser. Thee discs, especially cheap ones, can sometimes become unreadable after time if they have been stored in poor environmental conditions. Music CDs you buy from a shop will never have been CDRs.

A cd may become unreadable if the surface is scratched. They are usually quite resilliant to minor scratches and radial scratches. The worst damage is a "scuff" as  this will diffuse the laser and the cd player will receve no data. Minor cracks can be common in discs around the hole in the middle where they are extraced from players and cases. This can also damage them beyond repair.

Answer 12

Mine are still going strong

Answer 13

I have plenty of CDs over twenty years old with no problems - may be the way you're treating them!

Answer 14

I have some over 20 years old still working fine