Duplicated and Replicated Discs
Most of the music CDs and DVD movies purchased are replicated. These discs are mass-produced in large quantity. Duplicated CDs and DVDs are made either one-at-a-time or in very small batches using recordable media.
Whether replicated or duplicated the sound quality (in the case of a CD) or the sound and picture quality (in the case of a DVD) are identical. There are, however, two major differences between duplicated and replicated discs.
First, the readable surface of a replicated disc is silver. This provides a high-contrast for the laser, so that players have a fairly easy time reading replicated discs. The gold or blue-green surface of recordable CDs and the red surface of recordable DVDs, are not as high-contrast and can cause problems with some players, especially if the burn exposure is not correct for that particular brand of disc.
Second, because duplicated discs use an organic dye that reacts to the laser to create the data, these discs are not as long-lived as replicated discs. Also, duplicated discs are much more susceptible to damage from the heat and light.