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1. Introduction - Retail Package

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 1

LiteON recently released their latest 16X recorder, following on the footsteps of other manufacturers. The new LiteON SOHW-1633S supports up to 16X DVD+R recording speed, being capable to burn a full Single Layer disc in almost 5:50mins.

The drive also supports writing speeds of 8X for DVD-R, 4X for DVD+RW and DVD-RW, and 2.4X recording speed for Double Layer media. When it comes to CD writing speeds, the drive can write CDs at 48X and can rewrite at 24X.

- Features

The SOHW-1633S features SMART-BURN avoiding buffer under run errors, automatically adjusting writing strategy and running OPC to provide the best burning quality. The SMART-X function adjusts CD-DA/VCD/DVD data extraction to the fastest allowable speed depending on both the data request rate from the host and the disk quality.

- Specifications

Interface:	E-IDE/ATAPI (Ultra DMA Mode 2)
Write Speeds:	DVD+R:16X / -R: 8X, DVD+R9:2.4X DVD+RW: 4X, DVD-RW: 4X
	CD-R: 48X, CD-RW: 24X
Read Speeds:	DVD+R/-R/+RW/-RW: 8X
	DVD-ROM: 16X, CD-R/RW: 48X
Random Access:	DVD: 160msec, CD: 160msec
Buffer Size:	2MB
Supported Disc Formats:	DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD+R9, DVD-RW, CD-Extra, CD-I, CD-ROM, Audio CD, CDR,CD-RW, CD-ROM, CD-ROM XA, CD Test, Photo CD, Hybrid CD
Supported Writing Types:	DVD±RW: Disc-at-once, Incremental recording, Multi-border recording, Restricted overwriting
	CD-R/RW: Variable Packet, TAO, SAO, DAO, Raw Mode Burning & Over-Burn
Software Details:	Nero Express 6, Nero InCD, Nero Vision Express 2, Nero BackITup, Nero Showtime, Nero Recode 2, Nero Cover-Designer, Nero Tool Kit, PhotoShow Deluxe

Below are the drive's main specs as given by NeroInfoTool and DVDInfoPro:

The drive also uses the RPC II region control, allowing a user to change the drive's region at most 5 times. However, since this is a LiteOn drive, you can set the drive to region free using several readily available utilities such as Kprobe.

Below is some additional information from KProbe regarding LiteON drives:

- European Retail package

The retail package includes the LiteON SOHW-1633S, a quick installation guide, audio cable, mounting screws, DVD+R and DVD-R media. Also included are CDs with application software, DVD authoring, writing and editing software, DVD playback software, BackUp software and User's Manual. Nero 6 is included for all your writing/authoring needs, along with PowerDVD 5 for your DVD playback needs.

The front panel is the same as on previous LiteON models, with the activity led lighting up green when the device is active. Also on the front, the user will discern the DVD+R Double Layer logo.

The rear panel has the usual analogue and digital outputs (SPDIF), IDE connector and power input.

Opening the device's case will void the warranty, so we advise against it. Instead, use the photos in this review for a closer look under the hood. Clicking on the image below will reveal a high resolution image:

.

The following picture shows the laser lens assembly of the LiteON SOHW-1633S. By clicking on the picture, you can see a higher resolution image.

- Installation

The drive was installed as secondary master and under WindowsXP, recognized as "LITE-ON DVDRW SOHW-1633S ". For this review, the drive is flashed to the latest firmware available for now, version BS0G. Below is a screenshot from Nero Burning Rom, showing supported options such as overburn and buffer underrun protection.

During this review, we will be comparing the drive with the NEC ND-3500A and Philips DVDR1640P drives. The performance of the Sony DRU-710A is also shown in the comparison charts to demonstrate the drive's change in performance with different firmwares.

- Testing software

In order to perform our tests we used:

1. Nero CD-DVD Speed v3.21
2. CDVD Benchmark v1.21
3. ExactAudioCopy v0.9 beta5
4. Nero Info Tool v2.27
5. PlexTools v2.16 (Reader: Plextor PX-712A firmware v1.05, Reading speed 8X CLV for CD-R)
6. DVDInfoPro v3.16
7. Nero Burning Rom v6.3.1.20
8. DVD Decrypter 3.5.1.0
9. CopyToDVD 3.0.29.48

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2. Transfer Rate Reading Tests

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 2

- CD Format

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports up to 48X reading speed for CD-R media and 24X for CD-RW media. Below are the transfer rate graphs, where we compare its performance against the other three drives:

As we can see from our tests, with CDR media the drive is faster with than both the ND-3500A and Philips DVDR1640P. Using CDRW media, the Philips' drive was the fastest while the LiteON and Sony drives were the slowest.

- DVD Format

With Single Layer media, the LiteON SOHW-1633S was the fastest drive in our tests, but speed differences were not significant, except in NEC's case, where the NEC drive was almost 1385kb/sec slower.

With DVD-R/+R media, the NEC ND-3500A was fastest, reaching 11.92X reading speed while all other drives were restrained to ~6.2X. With ReWritable media, the times between the drives is negligible.

In our DVD ripping test with a pressed DL movie, the LiteON had the fastest transfer rate, due to the SMART-X function it uses.

- Appendix

Nero CD-DVD Speed Graphs

• CD Pressed / CD-R / US-RW
• DVD Pressed SL / DVD Pressed PTP DL / DVD Pressed OTP DL / DVD-R / DVD-RW / DVD+R / DVD+RW

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3. CD Error Correction Tests

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In the following tests, we check the drive's behavior when it comes to reading scratched / defective discs. The test discs we use are the ABEX series from ALMEDIO.

- ABEX TCD-721R

Errors total	Num: 5177235
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)	Num: 80405	Avg:-53.7 dB(A)	Max: -13.2 dB(A)
Error Muting Samples	Num: 26392	Avg: 1.1 Samples	Max: 12 Samples
Skips Samples	Num: 1769	Avg: 8.1 Samples	Max: 23 Samples
Total Test Result	55.4 points (out of 100.0 maximum)

The drive managed to achieve a total test result of 55.4 out of 100, which is not good. The 13.2dB(A) maximum loudness level is high but more or less usual for these drives and coupled with the extremely high error total count (over 5 million), results in a high error muting samples and skipped samples counts.

- ABEX TCD-726

Errors total	Num:
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)	Num: 0	Avg: -174.0 dB(A)	Max: -174.0 dB(A)
Error Muting Samples	Num: 0	Avg: 0 Samples	Max: 0 Samples
Skips Samples	Num: 0	Avg: 0 Samples	Max: 0 Samples
Total Test Result	100.0 points (out of 100.0 maximum)

The behavior of drive was much better in this case where it managed to correct all the disc's errors. The result was a perfect 100.

- CD-Check Audio Test Disc

The CD-Check Test Disc is a very useful tool for evaluating the Sound Reproduction / Error correction capabilities of a CD player. The disc offers a signal combination with disc error patterns to rate the drive's ability to read music and reproduce it completely. Five tracks on the disc contain a sequence of progressively difficult tests. These tracks are referred as Check Level -1 through Check Level -5.

The tracks are reproduced (played) through a software multimedia player (i.e. Windows Media Player). Each level is considered as passed, if the tone coming out from the speakers is smooth, continuous without interruptions, skipping or looping. The higher the Check Level passed, the more reliable the sound reproduction of the tested device.

Error Level	1	2	3	4	5
LiteON SOHW-1633S	5/5	5/5	5/5	0/5	0/5

The drive passed only the first three Check Levels of the test. The performance reveals average sound reproduction and error correction. The fourth and the fifth levels include an error size of 1.125mm and 1.500mm respectively, and the drive produced continues audible clicks over those tracks.

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4. DVD Error Correction Tests

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In the following tests, we examine the DVD reading capabilities of the LiteOn SOHW-1633S drive with scratched / defective DVD media. For the tests we used CDVD Benchmark and Nero CDSpeed. The reference test media comes from ALMEDIO.

- Single Layer media

ABEX TDR-821

This is a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with 4.7GB capacity, and its surface has an artificial scratch of dimensions varying from 0.4 to 3.0 mm. The following transfer rate picture comes from the CDVD Benchmark v1.21 transfer rate test.

The LiteON SOHW-1633S is capable of reading this test disc without errors. Very good performance.

ABEX TDR-825

This is also a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM of 4.7GB capacity. The data structure of the disc is exactly the same as that of the TDR-821, with the difference that there are no scratches on it but instead, defective areas of dimensions ranging from 0.5 to 1.1 mm. There are also fingerprints sized between 65 and 75 micrometers.

Again, the disc is read as if there are no defective areas or fingerprints at all. No errors were produced, even though the drive reduced speed at the middle of the reading process just before the area with fingerprints.

- Dual Layer media

ABEX TDR-841

This is an 8.5GB dual layer, single sided DVD-ROM disc with artificial scratches of dimensions ranging from 0.4 to 3.0mm, on both layers.

Excellent performance again. The smooth graph is indicative of the high error correction capabilities of the drive.

ABEX TDR-845

This test disc is a single sided, dual layer DVD-ROM disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The only difference between the TDR-845 and the TDR-841 discs is that the first includes defective areas and fingerprints. The dimensions of the defective areas ranges from 0.5 to 1.1 mm and the fingerprints are sized from 65 to 75 micrometers.

One more time the transfer rate graph was very good. No errors reported.

ABEX TDV-541

The TDV-541 is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc, with a capacity of 8.5GB. The disc is based on the TDV-540 series which is designed for inspection and adjustment of DVD-VIDEO players. The disc checks the layer switch operation from layer 0 to layer 1 and also includes test pictures and test signals for DVD sound files. The current TDV-541 also checks the error correcting capabilities of the drive and includes scratches from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.

In most cases, this type of disc is a "headache" for DVD recorders, but with LiteON SOHW-1633S, there were no problems reported reading this disc.

ABEX TDV-545

The TDV-545 disc is based on the TDV-540 series. It is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The TDV-545 includes artificial black dots on the data surface, sized from 0.4 to 1.0 mm. It also has 65 - 75 micrometer fingerprints.

Again, no problems were reported when reading over areas with artificial dots or fingerprints.

- Conclusion

All the graphs above indicate that the drive has high DVD error correction capabilities.

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5. Protected Disc Tests

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 5

- Reading Tests

To create an image of the various protected titles to the hard disk, we used Alcohol 120% software with the appropriate settings depending on the protection type of the inserted discs. Below you can see the duration of each process as well as the transfer rate in each case.

Game Title	Protection Scheme	Duration	Reading speed
PSX "NBA Jam Extreme"	Lybcrypt	3:07 min	484 sectors/sec
Serious Sam The Second Encounter	SafeDisc v.2.50.051	13:21 min	408 sectors/sec
VRally II	SecuROM v.2	2:23 min	2421 sectors/sec

The drive was the fastest among the drives in this comparison with SecuROM and SafeDisc protected discs. With the PSX disc though, the drive was the slowest. Similar speeds were reported by the Sony DRU-710A as expected, since both drives are based on the same chipset, and their ability to copy protected games is therefore the same.

- Writing Tests

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports the DAO-RAW writing mode. For checking the drive's EFM correction status, we used 3 different game titles with different SafeDisc 2 versions having the latest software patches installed. After making the images of the various titles onto the hard disk, we burned them (maximum speed) with Alcohol 120% v1.9.2.1705. Two different discs were created for each title; one with the "Bypass EFM error" enabled and one more with the function disabled.

• Fifa 2004 - Safe Disc v3.1x
• The Sims Superstar - Safe Disc v2.9x
• The Sims Unleashed - Safe Disc v2.8x
• Serious Sam Second Encounter - Safe Disc v2.51.021
• Max Payne - Safe Disc v2.51.020

The table below shows the results of the attempted backups and whether they worked (game installed / played normally), or not.

Drive	Fifa 2004 SD v3.1x		Sims Superstar SD v2.9x		Sims Unleashed SD v2.8x		Serious Sam-Second Encounter SD v2.50.051		Max Payne SD v2.51.020
	EFM OFF	EFM ON	EFM OFF	EFM ON	EFM OFF	EFM ON	EFM OFF	EFM ON	EFM OFF	EFM ON
Toshiba SD-M1502	No				Yes
Creative CD5233E
LiteON SOHW-1633S

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6. DAE Tests

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 6

- Pressed and CDR AudioCD

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports up to 48X CAV DAE speed. When using pressed AudioCD and its CD-R copy with EAC, we logged the following results:

The LiteON drive's performance was great in this test. Fast ripping with no problems at all, and in fact faster than the NEC and Philips drives.

- Advanced DAE Quality

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports reading of SubChannel data Leadin / Leadout data and CD Text and was, again, the fastest of all drives in this comparison. The Sony DRU-710A reported similar speeds. The SOHW-1633S received a score of 100 (perfect) in the Nero CD Speed Advanced DAE test.

- Reading 90/ 99mins AudioCDs

• 90min AudioCD

Unfortunately, the drive could not read 90mins discs, reporting the above error.

• 99min AudioCD

99mins discs were no problem for the LiteON SOHW-1633S, but reading speed was reduced just before the end of the reading process.

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7. Protected AudioCDs

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 7

For this test procedure we used three audio discs with different audio copy protection schemes. The ripping process for all protected Audio discs was carried out with Exact Audio Copy v0.9beta5.

The tested protected Audio discs were:

• Sony's Key2Audio from "Celine Dion - New Day Has Come"
• Cactus Data Shield 200 from "Natalie Imbruglia - White Lilies Island"

The Cactus Data Shield 200 contains artificial errors that are not easy to bypass with a reader, while the Key2Audio contains a second session, causing problems for readers when they attempt to read the Table Of Contents (TOC).

The tested tasks are:

• Recognition of the inserted disc (Yes/No)
• Ripping all wavs (with EAC's Burst Mode) to the hard disk with copy&compare function.
• Listening to the produced wavs for any clicks/skips.

The LiteON SOHW-1633S recognized up to the 12th Audio track of CDS200 disc,

and with the "Retrieve Native TOC" option removed, it then recognized the 13th Data track.

The test results are shown in the following table:

	Key2Audio	CDS200
LiteON SOHW-1633S	Ripping process completed, EAC reports no problems, Read&Test CRC comparison successful for all tracks	Ripping process completed, EAC reports timing problems, Read&Test CRC comparison not the same for all tracks

The LiteOn SOHW-1633S will rip both Key2Audio and CDS200 protected audio discs. Both discs were recognized and their contents were ripped at the maximum speed.

• Cactus Data Shield 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a (Aiko Katsukino - The Love Letter)

This is a "special" CDS200 build, since it doesn't contain any artificial errors during the ripping process. Most problems occur when trying to write the ripped wav files, since the produced CD-R disc contains C2 and CU errors! This "problem" is rumored to be associated with specific chipset weaknesses.

We ripped the disc contents with EAC and burned the produced wav with the latest Nero version as AudioCD+CD-Text. The burned media was checked for C1/C2 errors with PlexTools using the Plextor PX-712A (firmware v1.05).

 

	CDS 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a
LiteON SOHW-1633S	Reading performed without any errors, writing produces few C2 spikes

• C1C2 Error rate from PleXWriter PX-712A (8X CLV reading speed)

• BETA/Jitter Error rate with the PleXWriter PX-712A

The C1/C2 error graphs show that the drive managed to produce a 100% error free disc.

We then tried to extract all the wav files with the Plextor PX-712A and PlexTools DAE with Error Correction 5th Level enabled:

No errors were reported after extracting all files.

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8. CD Recording Tests

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The Memorex F16 supports 48X CD-R and 24X US-RW recording speeds.

• CD-R Format

The drive supports the following speeds for CD media recording, illustrated in the screenshot below:

According to Nero CDSpeed, the drive confirmed the maximum 48X speed. The test started at 21.66X and finished at 48.78X, having an average speed of 36.97X. Click on the image below for an enlarged view.

• CD-R Recording Times

For the burning tests, we created an 80min data compilation through Nero Burning Rom, recording the data on several 700MB discs. The LiteON SOHW-1633S needed only 2:43 minutes to complete this task at the maximum 48X writing speed.

The writing performance varies according to the inserted media, as our tests showed. Below is a chart demonstrating all recording times with various manufacturers media.

- Other features

Overburning writing	Up to 99min
CD text reading/writing	Yes

• CD-RW Format

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports 24X Z-CLV rewriting speed with Ultra Speed Rewritable Media (US-RW).

Below you can see the Nero CD-DVD Speed writing simulation test with blank 24X US-RW media from Mitsubishi Chemicals.

The drive starts the writing task at 16X and reaches a maximum of 24X at the 13:00 min address mark on the disc. The test started at 16.01X and finished at 24.25X, having an average speed of 22.49X.

We also used Nero Burning Rom in order to burn a data disc with 24X US-RW media from MCC. The data compilation we burned had a size of 651 MB and the duration of the recording process was 3:58 minutes.

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9. 3T Jitter Tests

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 9

On this page you can see the 3T Pit & Land Jitter graphs using various media burned at 48X CAV writing speed.

- 3T Pit results

High levels were reported with most media, indicating bad performance at 48X writing speed. Best results came from BenQ and SKC media.

- 3T Land results

Again, high average 3T Land results were reported. Best results were observed with MMore, SKC and BenQ media.

On the following page, we check the C1 and C2 error rates of the same discs, to come up with more specific conclusions.

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10. C1 / C2 Error Measurements

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 10

We measured the C1 / C2 error rate on the recorded discs we burned at the maximum supported writing speed of 48X. The software we used is PleXTools Professional v2.16, and more specifically the built-in Q-Check utility. The reader was the Plextor PX-712A (firmware v1.05).

SKC 80min 52X @ 48X

BenQ 80min 52X CD-R @ 48X

MMore 80min 52X @ 48X

Waitec 80min 52X @ 48X

Maxell 80min 48X @ 48X

TY 80min 48X @ 48X

TraxData 80min 52X @ 48X

- Summary

CD writing quality performance was rather good with the LiteON SOHW-1633S for 48X writing speed. C2 errors were reported with Waitec, TY and MMore media. However, in these cases there was no error with CDSpeed.

- Appendix

• Media ID codes

Media Label	ID Code	Manufacturer Name	Lead Out TIme
BenQ 80min 48X	97m22s67f	Daxon Technology	79:59.74
Maxell 80min 48X	97m15s17f	Ritek	79:59.70
SKC 80min 52X	97m26s26f	SKC Co., Ltd.	79:59.73
MMore 80min 48X	97m17s 6f	Moser Baer India, Ltd.	79:59.74
TraxData 80min 52X	97m15s17f	Ritek	79:59.70
Taiyo Yuden 80min 48X	97m24s 1f	Taiyo Yuden	79:59.72
Waitec 80min 52X	97m28s26f	Multi Media Masters & Machinery SA	79:59.74

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11. DVD Recording Tests

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 11

• 8X DVD+R Single Layer writing

• 12X DVD+R Single Layer writing

The test started at 6.67X, reached a maximum writing speed of 12.08X and reported an average speed of 10.91X.

• 16X DVD+R Single Layer writing

The drive completed successful DVD writing at 16X in 5:48mins. The test started at 6.66X, reached a maximum writing speed of 16.00X and reported an average speed of 11.97X.

• 8X DVD-R Single Layer writing

The drive completed successful DVD writing at 16X in 9:12mins. The test started at 4.03X, reached a maximum writing speed of 8.15X and reported an average speed of 7.13X.

Below is a table with several 12X and 16X recorders, listing their average writing speeds as measured by Nero CD-DVD Speed and showing that the LiteON SOHW-1633S is the fastest 16X recorders for +R media format.

Drive	Writing Strategy	Writing Speed	Average Writing Speed
Plextor PX-712A	P-CAV	12X	10.62X
LG GSA-4120B	Z-CLV	12X	9.87X
BenQ DW1620A	CAV	16X	11.52X
ASUS DRW-1604P	Z-CLV	16X	10.11X
TDK 1616N	CAV	16X	11.86X
NEC ND-3500A	CAV	16X	11.86X
LiteON SOHW-1633S	CAV	16X	11.97X
Pioneer DVR-108A	Z-CLV	16X	10.03X

- Burning Tests

• DVD-R media

The drive supports up to 8X writing speed with -R media. Best performance came from DataWrite 8X media that was burned in 9:12mins. Overspeed burning was not introduced in any instance, and all media were burned at their intended speed.

• DVD+R media

Best performance was reported with CMC Magnetics media that was burned in 5:56mins (16X writing speed). Again, no overspeed burning technology is introduced, and all media was burned at their intended speed.

- Comparison with other drives

With DVD-R media, the LiteON drive was slower than the other two drives due to its 8X supported speed. On the other hand, with DVD+R media, the drive performed well, being the fastest 16X recorder.

With DVD Re-Writable media, all drives support the same speed. The LiteON was again the fastest of all three drives, while the Philips DVDR1640P was the slowest.

- DVD Overburning Test

• DVD+R

• DVD-R

Unfortunately, the drive does not support DVD overburning for both -R and +R media formats, giving the above error messages.

- DVD+MRW Tests

The drive does not support the Mount Rainier feature.

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12. Media Support list

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 12

Media Support list

You can see a comprehensive list of media supported by this recorder in the following tables (the tables apply for firmware version BS0G). It should be noted that Traxdata and Philips +R 16X certified media can only be recorded at 8X.

DVD-R

DVD+R

4M SYS 202C1/52 [ 4x ] AML /52 [ 4x ] AN30 /52 [ 4x ] AN31 /52 [ 4x ] AN32 /52 [ 4x ] Auvistar /50 [ 2x ] BeAll G00001/50 [ 2x ] BeAll G40001/52 [ 4x ] BeAll G80001/52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] CMC MAG. /50 [ 2x ] CMC MAG. AE1/52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] CMC MAG. AF1/52 [ 4x ] DATA TRACK /52 [ 4x ] DAXON004 /52 [ 4x ] DAXON008 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] DKM_01 /52 [ 4x ] Dvsn /52 [ 4x ] FORNEX001 /50 [ 2x ] FORNEX101 /52 [ 4x ] FUJIFILM03 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] GSC001 /50 [ 2x ] GSC001 /52 [ 4x ] GSC002 /52 [ 4x ] GSC003 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] INFODISC-R01/52 [ 4x ] INFODISC-R20/52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] ISSM 01 /52 [ 4x ] LD /50 [ 2x ] LEADDATA /50 [ 2x ] LEADDATA S03/52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] LEADDATA01 /52 [ 4x ] LGE04 /52 [ 4x ] LGE08 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] LONGTEN 001 /52 [ 4x ] LONGTEN 009 /52 [ 4x ] MAM4XG01 /52 [ 4x ] MBI /50 [ 2x ] MBI 01RG20 /52 [ 4x ] MBI 03RG30 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MCC 00RG200 /50 [ 2x ] MCC 01RG20 /52 [ 4x ] MCC 02RG20 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MCI4XG01 /52 [ 4x ] MCIG01 /50 [ 2x ] ME 153 /52 [ 4x ] MEI 00V001 /50 [ 2x ] MUST 001 /52 [ 4x ] MXL RG01 /50 [ 2x ] MXL RG02 /52 [ 4x ] MXL RG03 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] NANYA-JC001 /52 [ 4x ] ONIDTECH /52 [ 4x ] OPTODISCK001/50 [ 2x ] OPTODISCK001/52 [ 4x ] OPTODISCR004/52 [ 4x ] OPTODISCR008/52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] Plasmon1A /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] POSG04 /52 [ 4x ] POSG06 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] POSJ 01 /50 [ 2x ] PRINCO /50 [ 2x ] PRINCO /52 [ 4x ] PRINCO8X01 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PRINCO8X02 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] ProdiscF01 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PRODISCG02 /50 [ 2x ] ProdiscS03 /52 [ 4x ] ProdiscS04 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PVC001001 /00 [ 2x ] PVCR001002 /52 [ 4x ] RITEKG03 /50 [ 2x ] RITEKG04 /52 [ 4x ] RITEKG05 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] RITEKM02 /52 [ 4x ] SKC Co.,Ltd./52 [ 4x ] SKC M801 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] SONY /50 [ 2x ] SONY04D1 /52 [ 4x ] SONY08D1 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] TAIYOYUDEN /50 [ 2x ] TAROKO-MX4 /52 [ 4x ] TDKG02000000/50 [ 2x ] TTG01 /52 [ 4x ] TTG02 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] TTH01 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] TYG01 /52 [ 4x ] TYG02 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] UME01 /52 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] VANGUARD /52 [ 4x ] VDSPMSAB 01 /52 [ 4x ] VDSP­SAB 01 /52 [ 4x ] Yi Jhan 001 /52 [ 4x ]

AML /001/00 [ 4x ] AML /002/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] BeAll000/P40/00 [ 4x ] BeAll000/P80/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] CMC MAG /E01/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] CMC MAG /F01/00 [ 4x ] CMC MAG /F01/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] CMC MAG /M01/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x, 16x ] CMC MAG /R01/00 [ 2.4x ] DAXON /AZ1/00 [ 4x ] DAXON /AZ2/00 [ 4x, 6x ] DAXON /AZ3/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] DT-D02 /02 /00 [ 4x ] DT-D03 /004/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] EMDP /000/00 [ 4x ] GSC502 /002/00 [ 4x ] GSC503 /H01/00 [ 4x ] INFODISC/R10/02 [ 4x ] INFODISC/R20/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] INFOME /R20/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] ISSM /001/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] LD /001/00 [ 2.4x ] LD /A02/00 [ 4x ] LD /S03/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] LONGTEN /002/00 [ 4x ] MAXELL /001/00 [ 4x ] MAXELL /002/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MAXELL /003/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MBIPG101/R03/00 [ 4x ] MBIPG101/R04/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MCC /001/00 [ 2.4x ] MCC /002/00 [ 4x ] MCC /003/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MCC /004/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x, 16x ] MEDIA ID/001/00 [ 4x ] MPOMEDIA/001/00 [ 2.4x ] MPOMEDIA/040/00 [ 4x ] MPOMEDIA/080/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MUST /002/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] MUST 002/ /02 [ 4x ] NANYA /CHX/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] NANYA /CLX/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] NANYA /DR /00 [ 2.4x ] NANYA /RJB/00 [ 4x ] OPTODISC/OP1/00 [ 2.4x ] OPTODISC/OP2/00 [ 2.4x ] OPTODISC/OR4/00 [ 4x ] OPTODISC/OR8/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] Philips /081/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PHILIPS /C08/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PHILIPS /C16/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] Plasmon /c01/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PRODISC /R01/00 [ 2.4x ] PRODISC /R02/00 [ 4x ] PRODISC /R03/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] PRODISC /R04/04 [ 4x, 6x, 8x, 16x ] RICOHJPN/R00/00 [ 2.4x ] RICOHJPN/R01/02 [ 4x ] RICOHJPN/R02/03 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] RICOHJPN/R03/04 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] RITEK /M02/01 [ 4x ] RITEK /R01/00 [ 2.4x ] RITEK /R02/01 [ 4x ] RITEK /R03/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] RITEK /R03/02 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] RITEK /R04/01 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] SKYMEDIA/R01/00 [ 2.4x ] SONY /D01/00 [ 4x ] SONY /D11/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] SONY /D21/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x, 16x ] TDK /001/00 [ 4x ] TDK /002/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] TDK /003/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x, 16x ] ULTRAN /202/00 [ 4x ] VDSPMSAB/001/01 [ 4x ] YUDEN000/T01/00 [ 4x ] YUDEN000/T01/01 [ 4x ] YUDEN000/T02/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ] YUDEN000/T03/00 [ 4x, 6x, 8x ]

DVD-RW

DVD+RW

CMCW02 /00 [ 2x ] CMCW03 /00 [ 4x ] DAXON_RW2X01/00 [ 2x ] JVC/VictorT7/00 [ 1x ] JVC0VictorD7/00 [ 4x ] JVC_VictorW7/00 [ 2x ] MCC 00RW11N9/00 [ 1x ] MCC 01RW11n9/00 [ 2x ] MCC 01RW4X /00 [ 4x ] OPTODISCK001/20 [ 1x ] OPTODISCK001/21 [ 2x ] OPTODISCW002/21 [ 2x ] OPTODISCW004/21 [ 4x ] PRINCO /20 [ 1x ] PRINCO /21 [ 2x ] PRINCORW0004/31 [ 2x ] Prodisc DW04/21 [ 2x ] Prodisc DW06/00 [ 4x ] ProdiscDVDRW/00 [ 1x ] PVCW00D002K9/21 [ 2x ] PVCW00V00245/00 [ 2x ] RITEK000V11A/00 [ 1x ] RITEKW01 /00 [ 2x ] RITEKW04 /00 [ 2x ] SONY000000U9/00 [ 1x ] TDK501saku]3/20 [ 1x ] TDK502sakuM3/00 [ 2x ] TDK601saku /00 [ 4x ]

CMC MAG /W01/00 [ 2.4x ] CMC MAG /W02/00 [ 4x ] DAXON /D41/00 [ 4x ] DAXON /D42/00 [ 4x ] INFODISC/A01/00 [ 2.4x ] INFODISC/A10/00 [ 4x ] MBIPG101/W03/00 [ 2.4x ] MCC /A01/00 [ 2.4x ] MKM /A02/00 [ 4x ] NANYA /DRW/00 [ 4x ] NANYASC /DRW/00 [ 2.4x ] OPTODISC/OP1/00 [ 2.4x ] OPTODISC/OP4/01 [ 4x ] PHILIPS /010/02 [ 4x ] PHILIPS /041/00 [ 4x ] PRODISC /W01/00 [ 2.4x ] PRODISC /W02/00 [ 4x ] RICOHJPN/W01/00 [ 2.4x ] RICOHJPN/W11/01 [ 4x ] RITEK /001/01 [ 2.4x ] RITEK /004/30 [ 4x ] RITEK /W04/00 [ 4x ] SENTINEL/W01/00 [ 2.4x ] SENTINEL/W02/00 [ 4x ] SONY /S11/00 [ 4x ]

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13. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 1

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 13

CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 1

In order to test the writing quality and readability of the burned media we used two readers with two software applications:

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve, very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times however, even though a disc has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth containing dropoffs. Due to the fact that we overspeed the reading capabilities of the LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the burning quality, but as an indication level.

16X DVD+R Writing Speed

• CMC 16X DVD+R @ 16X

• MKM 16X DVD+R @ 16X

- Summary

According to Plextools, best results came with MKM 16X media, but the disc was unreadable according to CDSpeed. Judging from the PI/PIF scans we can say that the SOHW-1633S needs improvement at these recording speeds.

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14. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 2

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 14

CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 2

In order to test the writing quality and readability of the burned media we used two readers with two software applications:

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve, very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times however, even though a disc has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth containing dropoffs. Due to the fact that we overspeed the reading capabilities of the LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the burning quality, but as an indication level.

8X DVD+R Writing Speed

• Verbatim 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• 3A 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• BeALL 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• Intenso 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• Traxdata 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• Philips 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• Ricoh 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• TDK 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• Traxdata 8X DVD+R @ 8X

• TY 8X DVD+R @ 8X

- Summary

Some media reported read errors, and some reported high PI/PIF levels. Only a few media burned with the LiteON SOHW-1633S had low PI/PIF levels, like Verbatim 8X media. This is a point that LiteON should concentrate on for future firmware releases.

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15. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 3

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 15

CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 3

In order to test the writing quality and readability of the burned media we used two readers with two software applications:

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve, very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times however, even though a disc has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth containing dropoffs. Due to the fact that we overspeed the reading capabilities of the LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the burning quality, but as an indication level.

8X DVD-R Writing Speed

• Verbatim 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• 3A 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• CMC 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• Datawrite 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• Intenso 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• TDK 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• Traxdata 8X DVD-R @ 8X

• TY 8X DVD-R @ 8X

- Summary

Although most media reported PI/PIF levels lower than the 280 limit, we were expecting to see better results than these. No read errors were reported for all media. Perhaps future firmware releases will include improved writing quality.

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16. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 4

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 16

CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 4

In order to test the writing quality and readability of the burned media we used two readers with two software applications:

In general, a "perfect" disc should have a smooth reading curve, very low PIE/POE and zero (0) POF error rates. Most times however, even though a disc has very low PIE/POE error rates, the reading curve may not be smooth containing dropoffs. Due to the fact that we overspeed the reading capabilities of the LiteON SOHD-167T, such drops are expected, especially near the outer area of the disc.

The measurements below should be taken not as the absolute criteria of the burning quality, but as an indication level.

4X DVD-R Writing Speed

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17. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 5

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 17

CMC 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

Optodisc 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

Traxdata 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

MKM 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

MKM 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

- Summary

No read errors were reported with Re-Writable media. Worst results came with MKM -RW media, that reported PI/PIF levels higher than the 280 limit, but again, media was readable.

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18. DVD+R DL - Page 1

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 18

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19. DVD+R DL - Page 2

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 19

- Writing Quality

In order to test the LiteON SOHW-1633S DVD+R DL writing quality, we used the LiteOn SOHD-167T and the Plextor PX-712A drives.

• Traxdata Double Layer media @ 2.4X

Using Nero CD/DVD Speed we got the above scan, indicating good quality writing performance with this media. Speed was automatically reduced when the drive started to read the second layer, but no errors were reported during the reading process.

On the other hand, using Plextools, we got the above scan. You can see that high PI/PIF levels were reported, higher than the 280 limit. However, no errors were observed. We hope to see LiteON improve DL writing quality with future firmware releases.

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20. SOHW-1633S vs. SA300 - Page 1

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 20

For checking exactly what the SOHW-1633S reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

• 3~8X CAV
• 2~6X CAV
• 4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested LiteON SOHW-1633S drive. Using other drives, even another SOHW-1633S, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

The PI/PIF error rate trend line is similar to that of the SA300. However, error values are different.

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

Again, the PIF error rate trend line is similar to that of the SA300, but PI error values are different. On the other hand, PIF error values seem to be more or less similar.

#1st Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

Again, at 4X speed, although the SOHW-1633S tends to follow the error rate trend line produced by the SA300 system, it can only give us a first impression of what the SA300 curve will look like. Error values are lower than the values reported by the SA300 system.

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21. SOHW-1633S vs. SA300 - Page 2

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 21

For checking exactly what the SOHW-1633S reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

• 3~8X CAV
• 2~6X CAV
• 4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested LiteON SOHW-1633S drive. Using other drives, even another SOHW-1633S, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#2nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

The error values we observed with the SOHW-1633S were totally different from the error values obtained by the SA300 system. However, again, all graphs indicate increased error values at the end of the disc.

#2nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

Much lower error levels were reported by the LiteON SOHW-1633S. The LiteON drive cannot produce error trend lines similar to those of the SA300 system, not even at 6X speed.

#2nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

The LiteON SOHW-1633S continues to report lower error values than the SA300 system reports, even at 4X speed.

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22. SOHW-1633S vs. SA300 - Page 3

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 22

For checking exactly what the SOHW-1633S reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The three media have been measured with the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements for various reading speeds:

• 3~8X CAV
• 2~6X CAV
• 4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested LiteON SOHW-1633S drive. Using other drives, even another SOHW-1633S, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#3nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed

#3nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 6X Reading speed

#3nd Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed

In all the above graphs, you can see that the LiteON SOHW-1633S drive reports totally different results than those of the SA300S. The drive produces misleading results about the written media quality.

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23. SOHW-1633S vs. SA300 - Page 4

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 23

For checking exactly what the SOHW-1633S reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The three media have been measured using the well known AudioDev SA300 DVD CATS system at 1X.

The drive is capable of reporting PI/PIF errors, so we will compare those measurements at various reading speeds:

• 3~8X CAV
• 2~6X CAV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested LiteON SOHW-1633S drive. Using other drives, even another SOHW-1633S, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

#4th Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 8X Reading speed







#4th Test Disc - PISum8/PIF Comparison - 4X Reading speed







Not even with this disc could the LiteON SOHW-1633S produce similar results to the SA300 system. In all the graphs above, the SOHW-1633S drive reports higher error level values than the SA300 system.

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24. BookType Setting

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 24

BookType Setting

The LiteON SOHW-1633S supports the BookType Setting for DVD-R/+RW formats, as expected, since all LiteON DVD recorders support this feature. Users should change to the preferred booktype setting prior to burning +R, +RW or +R9 media. Of'course, -R and -RW media booktype changes are not supported, as usual.



We used KProbe to easily change the default booktype setting for several +R, +RW and +R9 media. Default booktype setting was set to normal DVD+R (for DVD+R media):



...and we easily changed it to DVD-ROM booktype:



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25. Conclusion

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LiteON SOHW-1633S Recorder - Page 25

Conclusion

The LiteON SOHW-1633S is a fast CD/DVD reader, reporting high reading speeds. Video ripping was also fast and with no problems or delays. Great DVD error correction capabilities were observed but only average CD error correction. Nero CD/DVD Speed reported very good Audio Extraction speed, giving the drive a perfect score of 100. Not even protected Audio CDs could stop the drive from ripping flawlessly and fast. On the other hand, protected games were not a strong point of this LiteON drive, since it managed to make working backups of SafeDisk protected games up to v.2.8.

The drive offers 48X CD writing speed, the highest that is offered by all recorders on the market for now. On the other hand, writing quality at 48X is not as good as expected, and users might consider writing discs at lower speeds to achieve improved quality.



16X CAV writing speed for DVD+R media makes the drive one of the fastest available. It takes only 5:48mins to burn a full Single Layer disc. Quality at such a high speed is a real headache for recorders, and LiteON needs some improvements. We hope to see future firmware releases resolving minor problems that occurred with certain media written at different speeds. 8X writing speed for DVD-R media is more or less usual for all DVD recorders hitting the market lately, but there are several others that offer a higher writing speed (16X).

A big advantage of this drive is the Booktype setting support. With Double Layer media, we observed medium write performance. The SOHW-1633S offers 2.4X writing speed with DL media. Writing quality can be further improved with future firmware releases.

- The Good

• Low priced
• Very good DVD error correction
• Supports protected Audio discs (CDS200, Key2Audio)
• CD reading speed
• Can overburn up to 99mins
• High DAE speed
• High DVD ripping speed
• Region free utilities
• Supports booktype setting changes.
• Can be used for DVD media error measurements

- The Bad

• Poor CD error correction
• Doesn't accurately backup SafeDisc2 v2.9x+ protected discs
• Single Layer media writing quality
• Cannot write certain +R 16X certified media at high speed
• Doesn't support DVD overburning

- Like to be fixed

• DVD writing quality needs improvement with certain media
• Limited support media list for 16X DVD+R writing
• High C1/C2 errors with specific media at 48X

 

Constantinos Kioulafas