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1. Introduction - Retail Package

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Memorex D² External Burner- Page 1

It was only very recently that Memorex had released the D² (or F16) internal burner. Now, the same drive becomes external. The external version of the D² offers maximum compatibility, with Firewire IEEE 1394a and USB2.0 support. The specifications for this device are the same as those of the internal model. However, different writing and reading behavior is usually observed between internal and external models. Let us see how this external burner performed.

The drive supports 16X writing for DVD+R, and 8X for DVD-R. Of course, Double Layer writing is supported, at 2.4X. It can also write CD media at 48X and ReWrite at 24X. Buffer underrun protection is introduced for safe burning.

- Specifications

Interface:	IEEE 1394a and USB2.0
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 based drive, you can set the drive to region free using several utilities such as Kprobe.

Below is some additional information from KProbe regarding LiteON based drives:

- European Retail package

The retail box includes the external drive, one USB 2.0 cable, one firewire IEEE-1394a cable, the external power supply unit and one CD with Nero Express Software Suite offering: Nero Express 6, NeroVision Express, InCD, Nero BackItUp, Nero ShowTime, Nero Cover Designer, Nero Recode, Nero Media Player, PhotoShow Deluxe. Also included are a DVD+R 16X certified blank media, a quick installation guide and software manual.

Now let's take a look at the drive itself.

The dark colored front panel of the drive remains the same as the internal model, with the Memorex logo and the DVD+R Double Layer and 16X speed logos. The activity led is again blue.

The rear panel has the USB2.0, IEEE 1394a and Audio Out connections, along with the power connector and the power switch.

Removing the screws and opening the drive's cover voids the drive's warranty. So, for reference reasons, we post the following pictures. You can click on the mainboard picture for a higher resolution image:

The following picture shows the laser lens assembly of the Memorex D² External recorder. By clicking on the picture, you can see a higher resolution image.

- Installation

The drive was installed using the firewire connection and under WindowsXP was recognized as "Memorex DVD+/-DLRWL1 F16 ". Below is a picture from Nero Burning Rom, showing supported options such as overburn and buffer underrun protection support.

During this review, we will be comparing the drive with the LiteON SOHW-1633s and LG GSA-4160B.
(Editors Note: While many may have expected that we would have included the Memorex D² internal drive in our comparison, as it turned out the differences between internal and external devices was so insignificant that it would have proved fruitless.)

- Testing software

In order to perform our tests we used:

1. Nero CD-DVD Speed v3.30
2. CDVD Benchmark v1.21
3. ExactAudioCopy v0.9 beta5
4. Nero Info Tool v2.27
5. KProbe v2.4.2 (Reader: LiteOn LDW-811S firmware vHS0Q, LiteOn SOHD-167T firmware 9S13, LiteOn XJ-HD165H firmware CH11, and LiteOn LTD-163 firmware GH5S, Reading speed 8X CAV)
6. PlexTools v2.17 (Reader: Plextor PX-712A firmware v1.05, Reading speed 8X CLV for CD-R)
7. DVDInfoPro v3.16
8. Nero Burning Rom v6.3.1.25
9. DVD Decrypter 3.5.1.0
10. CopyToDVD 3.0.29.48

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2. Transfer Rate Reading Tests

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 2

- CD Format

The Memorex D² External supports up to 48X reading speed for CD-R media and 32X for CD-RW. Below are the transfer rate graphs, where we compare its performance against the other two drives:

The LG GSA-4160B offers 40X CD media reading speed. This explains the low reading speed when compared with the Memorex and LiteON drives that offer 48X reading speed. On the other hand, with US-RW media, the LG model was faster.

- DVD Format

With Single Layer media, similar speeds from all three drives were observed.

With DVD-R/+R media, the LG 16X recorder was again faster, while the LiteON and Memorex drives produced similar results, as expected.

The Memorex drive was the slowest when it comes to DVD Video ripping. However, speed differences are not significant.

- 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: 5175453
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)	Num: 80708	Avg:-53.9 dB(A)	Max: -13.3 dB(A)
Error Muting Samples	Num: 26396	Avg: 1.1 Samples	Max: 12 Samples
Skips Samples	Num: 1771	Avg: 8.2 Samples	Max: 24 Samples
Total Test Result	55.3 points (out of 100.0 maximum)

The drive's ability to correct errors is mostly chipset dependent. Since the external Memorex 16X recorder uses the same chipset as the internal model, similar results are produced in both cases. Around the 32 minute mark it hits its first high peak, and it remains consistently high hovering around -18 dB. At such a prolonged, high level, it is no wonder we get a very high total error count of 5,175,453 and correspondingly high muting sample errors and skipped samples. The total result score of 55.3 out of 100 is a very poor score.

- 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 the disc's errors accurately. 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
Memorex D² External	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.

- Conclusion

The performance of the Memorex F16 was average although with the ABEX TCD-721R disc, it was amongst the worst we have seen.

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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 Memorex D² External drive with scratched / defective DVD media. For the tests we used Nero CDSpeed and not the usual CDVD Benchmark since it couldn't recognize the external drive. 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 Memorex D² External read the disc accurately and no read errors were reported. This graph shows very good error correction capabilities with scratched, single layer DVD-ROM discs.

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.

The same behavior was observed with this media type. No read errors were introduced, as if there were no defective areas or fingerprints on the disc.

- 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.

Again, excellent error correction with DVD double layer media.

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.

The drive kept on producing excellent graphs, indicating high DVD error correction capabilities.

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.

Although the Abex TDV-541 test media is a difficult test for most recorders, the Memorex external recorder passed it without any difficulties.

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.

The drive proves to be an excellent reader, when it comes to defective media.

- Conclusion

The performance of the Memorex F16 with DVD defective media was nothing short of excellent.

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5. Protected Disc Tests

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Memorex D² External 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	483 sectors/sec
Serious Sam The Second Encounter	SafeDisc v.2.50.051	13:18 min	420 sectors/sec
VRally II	SecuROM v.2	2:22 min	2420 sectors/sec

With SafeDisc v2 and PSX protected games, the LG drive's speed cannot be easily matched by any other drive. However, with SecuROM protected games, the Memorex model was slightly faster than the LiteON model, and reported the fastest ripping speed among the three recorders.

- Writing Tests

The D² External supports 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
Memorex D² External

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6. DAE Tests

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 6

- Pressed and CDR AudioCD

The Memorex D² External supports up to 48X CAV DAE speed. When using pressed AudioCD and its CD-R copy with EAC, we logged the following results:

The Memorex drive reports the same results with LiteON drives. The LG model on the other hand, because of its 40X speed, reports slower speeds.

According to Exact Audio Copy drive properties, the Memorex D² External does not support caching but can copy accurate stream and can report C2 errors.

- Advanced DAE Quality

The Memorex F16 received a score of 100 (perfect) in the Nero CD Speed Advanced DAE test. Its average reading speed was again faster than LG GSA-4160B.

- Reading 90/ 99mins AudioCDs

• 90min AudioCD

• 99min AudioCD

When we tested the internal Memorex 16X recorder, we observed a strange behavior, with the drive being unable to read the 90 minute audio CD where it produced an "UNRECOVERED READ ERROR", while the 99 minute audio CD was no problem for the recorder. Exactly the same behavior was reported by the external version of the drive.

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7. Protected AudioCDs

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Memorex D² External 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 Memorex F16 External 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
Memorex D² External	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 Memorex D² External can 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
Memorex D² External	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 graph indicates that the drive managed to produce a very good disc.

Lets try 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. The drive's error correction mechanism corrected the errors.

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8. CD Recording Tests

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The Memorex D² External 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 21.78X and finished at 49.11X, having an average speed of 37.16X. Click on the image below for more details.

• CD-R Recording Times

We created an 80min data compilation with Nero Burning Rom and recorded it on a 700MB disc. The writing performance varies according to the inserted media. Below is a chart depicting all recording times with various media.

All media were recorded at maximum 48X speed. Best performance came with Maxell and Traxdata media. With these CD discs, the drive returned a time of 2:47mins.

- Other features

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

• CD-RW Format

The Memorex F16 External 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.

According to Nero CDSpeed, the drive confirmed the maximum 24X writing speed. The test started at 16.04X and finished at 24.08X, having an average speed of 22.53X. Click on the image above for more details.

- CD-RW Mount Rainier

The Memorex F16 External does not support the Mount Rainier feature.

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9. 3T Jitter Tests

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Memorex D² External 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

Most media performance was not good. BenQ media gave the best performance, but jitter values were again higher than the 35nsec limit in many parts of the disc.

- 3T Land results

Again, the drive's performance was not good. Although best performance came with BenQ media, jitter values were again higher than the 35nsec limit.

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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Memorex D² External 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 v2.17, and more specifically the built-in Q-Check utility. The reader was the Plextor PX-712A (firmware v1.05).

BenQ 80min 52X CD-R @ 48X

Maxell 80min 48X @ 48X

MMore 80min 52X @ 48X

TraxData 80min 52X @ 48X

TY 80min 48X @ 48X

- Summary

We should not forget that the drive writes CD media at 48X. Writing quality is expected to be reduced at this speed. Most media burned ok, while in three cases C2 errors were reported. However, in all 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
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

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11. DVD Recording Tests

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 11

• 8X DVD-R Single Layer writing

• 16X DVD+R Single Layer writing

The drive completed successful DVD writing at 16X in 5:55mins. It started writing at 6.68X, reached a maximum writing speed of 16.02X and reported an average speed of 11.99X.

Below is a table with the average writing speeds for various 16X recorders as measured by Nero CDDVDSpeed, showing that the Memorex achieved the fastest average 16X recording speed:

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
Memorex F16 External	CAV	16X	11.99X
Pioneer DVR-108A	Z-CLV	16X	10.03X

- Burning Tests

We burned 4315MB of data on various DVD±R and DVD±RW media. We used the maximum allowed writing speed for each disc.

• DVD-R media

The Memorex D² External can record up to 8X with -R media. Best recording times came with TY 8X media. The drive needed 9:18mins to finish the burning process. Overspeed burning was not introduced at any instance.

• DVD+R media

The Memorex D² External can burn up to 16X with +R media. Best performance came with CMC Magnetics 16X media (5:56mins). However, you can see that Traxdata and Philips 16X media were not recorded at 16X but only at 8X. On the other hand, recording times at 8X are very good, except for Optodisc 8X media that was burned in 8:59mins and reported the worst results.

- Comparison with other drives

With DVD+R media, all drives gave similar results, with the LG 16X recorder being the fastest of all three. With DVD-R media, the LG GSA-4160B was slower that the other two drives, and the LiteON drive gave the same results as the Memorex drive, a more or less expected behavior.

With DVD+RW and DVD-R media format, the LG model was faster, but differences are not significant.

- DVD Overburning Test

• DVD-R

• DVD+R

Unfortunately, the drive does not support overburning with DVD+R and DVD-R media.

- DVD+MRW Tests

The drive does not support the Mount Rainier feature.

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12. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 1

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 12

CMC 16X DVD+R @ 16X

Verbatim 16X DVD+R @ 16X

- Summary

Although no POF errors were introduced and all media burned at 16X was readable, high PI error levels were reported. According to the graphs above, Memorex needs to improve its writing quality at 16X speed.

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13. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 2

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 13

Philips 16X DVD+R @ 8X

Traxdata 16X DVD+R @ 8X

3A 8X DVD+R @ 8X

CMC 8X DVD+R @ 8X

Intenso 8X DVD+R @ 8X

Optodisc 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

Verbatim 8X DVD+R @ 8X

BeALL 8X DVD+R @ 8X

- Summary

Writing quality is improved when recording at 8X when compared with the 16X writing quality. However, in some occasions, high PI error levels indicate average quality. BeALL 8X +R media was unreadable with the Plextor 712A and reported an unrecovered error with the LiteON drive. Apart from BeALL media, all other 8X +R media were readable. Best results came with TY and TDK media.

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14. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 3

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 14

CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 3

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.

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15. CDSpeed/PlexTools Scans - Page 4

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 15

MKM 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

MKM 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

Optodisc 4X DVD-RW @ 4X

Traxdata 4X DVD+RW @ 4X

- Summary

All RW media burned with the Memorex recorder was readable by both the LiteON and Plextor drives. Plextools, however, returned high PI error levels. Memorex should improve its burning quality for certain media with a future firmware release.

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16. DVD+R DL - Page 1

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 15

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17. DVD+R DL - Page 2

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 16

- Writing Quality

In order to test the Memorex D² External writing quality, we used the LiteOn SOHD-167T and the Plextor PX-712A drives.

• Verbatim 2.4X DVD+R DL @ 2.4X

Using CD/DVD Speed, we got a good scan. Only a small speed dropdown was reported near the "layer switch". Using Plextools, we got a very good scan with low PI error levels.

• Traxdata 2.4X DVD+R DL @ 2.4X

Although Traxdata media did not perform as well as Verbatim media, the disc was readable with the LiteON drive. Plextools indicated PI error levels far below the 280 limit. Again, the Memorex D² External recorder showed very good performance.

- Summary

Writing quality with Double Layer media was very good. Best results came with Verbatim media.

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18. F16 vs. SA300 - Page 1

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 17

For checking exactly what the Memorex D² External reports, we used three different media, burned with other writers. 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 Memorex F16 drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

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

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

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

Again, error levels are different but PIF error rate trend line is similar to that of the SA300.

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

With these test discs, similar behavior was reported by both the SA300 system and Memorex drive, with PIF error levels increasing at the end of the disc. But error values were totally different.

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19. F16 vs. SA300 - Page 2

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Memorex D² External Recorder- Page 18

For checking exactly what the Memorex D² External reports, we used three different media burned with other recorders. The 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
• 4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Memorex F16 drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

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

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

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

The PIF error trend line as reported by the D² External recorder shows the same behavior as the SA300 system but again the levels differ. In most cases, the Memorex drive is reporting better results than the SA300 system shows, leading users to believe that the media is in top shape when in fact, that may not be the case.

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20. F16 vs. SA300 - Page 3

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 19

For checking exactly what the Memorex D² External reports, we used three different media, burned with other recorders. The media were 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
• 4X CLV

Please note that the posted results are only valid for the specific tested Memorex F16 drive. Using other drives, even another F16, can produce totally different results. Be aware!

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

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

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

Again, the Memorex writer reported lower PIF error values than the SA300 system, giving the image of good quality media, when this is not the case.

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21. F16 vs. SA300 - Page 4

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 20

For checking exactly what the Memorex D² External 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 Memorex F16 drive. Using other drives, even another F16, 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







In this case, the SA300 system trend lines are lower than the Memorex scans. This means that the Memorex drive 's results are misleading, showing average media quality. In general, the Memorex D² External cannot be used to accurately scan media quality in any case.

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22. BookType Setting

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 21

BookType Setting

The Memorex D² External supports BookType Setting for DVD+R/+RW formats, with firmware revisions BWSE, while firmware versions BWSA and BWSB did not. There are several utilities you can use to change bitsetting. The most common utility is KProbe:





You can also use the latest Nero version to change booktype setting prior to writing. You will find this option in the "Choose Recorder" tab:



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23. Conclusion

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Memorex D² External Recorder - Page 22

Conclusion

The external version of the Memorex D² model is suitable for users that want to use an external high speed DVD recorder. It supports both USB2.0 and IEEE1394a interface, making it compatible even with MacOS systems. The first thing that users will observe is the stylish case Memorex has designed for this drive, similar to Memorex 8X external writers.

The D² external model proved to be a fast reader, with both DVD and CD media. Fast DAE speed was observed without errors. Although CD error correction needs further improvement, DVD error correction tests indicated high error correction capabilities, and no problems were reported with all test media. On the other hand, the drive cannot read/rip 90mins CDs, while 99mins CDs were no problem.



The drive can backup protected audio CDs without problem, and it can make working backups of SafeDisk protected games up to v.2.8. But protected games backup is not a strong point of the Memorex D² External.

Jitter values and C1/C2 values were increased because of the 48X writing speed. This was more or less expected, since at this high writing speed, more errors are produced during the writing process. Nevertheless, the safest writing speed at which to burn a CD is 16X or 24X, and this applies to all writers.

The drive reported very good DVD recording times with +R media, and average recording times with -R media. Unfortunately, the drive cannot overburn DVD media, and writing quality needs further improvement with certain media. On the other hand, DVD writing quality with Double Layer media was very good, reporting low PI/PIF error values. It even supports booktype setting for +R, +RW and +R9 media.



In general, this Memorex proposal is very appealing for notebook users that want to add DVD recording to their laptop. They should not worry about compatibility problems, since it can be used with USB2.0 or Firewire interface. The drive is priced at US$229.99 on the Memorex web-site.

- The Good

• CD reading speed
• Very Good Double Layer media writing quality
• Can backup SafeDisc2 v2.8x protected discs
• Very good DVD error correction
• Can overburn up to 99mins
• Supports protected Audio discs (CDS200, Key2Audio)
• Accurately backed up "Aiko Katsukino - The Love Letter", Audio protected disc
• Can be used for DVD media error measurements
• High DVD ripping speed
• RPC1 utilities
• 16X DVD+R media included in retail package
• Supports booktype change with firmware revision BWSE
• Supports both IEEE1394a and USB2.0 interfaces

- The Bad

• Poor CD error correction
• Doesn't accurately backup SafeDisc2 v2.9x+ protected discs
• Doesn't support reading of DVD-RAM media
• Retail package didn't include any DVD+R DL media
• Doesn't support DVD overburning

- Like to be fixed

• DVD writing needs improvement, drive produces high PI/PIF error rates (could be fixed with firmware upgrade?)
• Limited support media list for 16X/12X DVD+R writing
• High C1/C2 errors with specific media at 48X
• Retail price

Retail Package
Reading
Error Correction
Protected Discs
Writing
Features

To discuss this drive further or to discuss it with other users, go to our forum.