1. Retail Package - Installation
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 1
ASUS
recently introduced its latest DVD ReWriter supporting both 8 X DVD-Write
and 8 X DVD+Write. The all-new ASUS DRW-0804P also features 4 X DVD-ReWrite,
4 X DVD+ReWrite, 12 X DVD-ROM, 24 X CD-Write, 24 X CD-ReWrite and 40 X CD-ROM
to provide flexibility with high-speed operation.
- Features
- FlextraLink
Buffer Underrun Errors Prevention Technology
- FlextraSpeed
Optimal Writing Speed Adjustment Technology
- Superior Stability with DDSSII
- Optical Pickup Head LCT
Liquid Crystal Tilt Technology
- Specifications
|
|
Buffer
Size
|
2 MB |
Access
Time
|
DVD Family :140ms
CD Family : 130 ms
|
Write
Speed
|
DVD+R: 2.4X, 4X, 6X, 8X (ZCLV)
DVD+RW: 2.4X, 4X (CLV)
DVD-R: 1X, 2X, 4X, 6X, 8X (ZCLV)
DVD-RW: 1X, 2X, 4X (CLV) |
CD Family
CD-R: 4X, 8X, 16X, 24X (ZCLV)
CD-RW: 4X, 10X, 16X, 24X (ZCLV) |
Read
Speed
|
DVD Family
12X max. (CAV) |
CD Family
40X max. (CAV) |
Supported
Read Formats
|
DVD Family
DVD-ROM, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM |
CD Family
CD-ROM, CD-ROM
XA, Photo CD, CD-DA, CD-Extra, CD-R, CD-RW
|
Writing
mode
|
DVD Family
DAO, Incremental Recording, Multi-Border Recording
DVD-RW: Restricted Overwriting
DVD+R: Incremental Recording
DVD+RW: Random Recording |
CD Family
CD-R/RW: DAO, TAO, SAO, Packet Write |
Support
OS
|
Windows XP/ NT/ ME/ 2000/ 98SE |
Dimensions
|
148 x 42.3 x 198 mm (WxHxD) |
Weight
|
1100g g |
Interface
|
Enhanced-IDE (ATAPI) |
Support
both 8 cm and 12 cm disc of CD and DVD family |
|
|
As shown in the above snapshots, the drive has 2MB buffer, supports TAO, DAO,
SAO, and RAW modes but does not support DVD+R DL reading and writing.
- Retail package
The
retail package includes the well packaged Asus drive, an IDE cable, mounting
screws and one emergency eject pin.
For reading reference the user will find a printed two language manual with installation
and usage details. On the software side, there is one CD with Nero Burning
Rom
and the firmware upgrade utility.
- The drive
The drive's front panel, has
an activity
led indicator, the eject button and the emergency eject hole, as well as the
usual array of CD and DVD logos.
- Installation
Our test PC was a 1.8 GHz P4 configured with 512Mb RAM, an 80GB 7200rpm
hard drive and Windows XP Professional SP1. The drive was connected to our
test PC and was identified as "Asus DRW-0804P ". All
reading tests were done with firmware v1.12.
- Firmware upgrade process
2. Data CD Reading Tests
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 2
Data CD Reading Tests
In order to test the reading performance of the Asus drive, we used the latest
version
of NeroCDSpeed with different CD media formats.
- Pressed CD results (Click for
CDSpeed results)
To check the reading performance of the Asus with pressed CD media, we
used
NeroCDSpeed and a data pressed disc.
The Asus DRW-084P was fastest in the comparison with an end speed of
42.26X with CAV reading strategy. The seek times graph shows that the Asus
drive had the highest
seek times in all modes, with an especially high full seek time.
- CD-R results (Click for
CDSpeed results)
To check the reading performance of Asus with CDR media, we used NeroCDSpeed
and a clone of the previously tested pressed media.
Although the Asus drive had the fastest reading speeds in the transfer rate
test, as was the case with pressed media, it also had the slowest seek times,
especially the full seek.
- ReWritable Media (Click for
CDSpeed results)
To check the reading performance of the Asus with US-RW media, we used NeroCDSpeed
and an USRW disc from Mitsubishi Chemicals.
The Asus DRW-0804P supports 32X RW reading speed and therefore the
drive reported the slowest reading speed.
3. Error Correction Tests
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 3
Error Correction Tests
In the following tests we check the drive's behavior when reading
scratched / defective audio discs. The test discs used were the ABEX series
from ALMEDIO.
- ABEX TCD-721R
Errors
total
|
Num:
1266600
|
Errors
(Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num:
60324
|
Avg:
-73.2dB(A)
|
Max:-34.9
dB(A)
|
Error
Muting Samples
|
Num:
3957
|
Avg:
1.0 Samples
|
Max:
40 Samples
|
Skips
Samples
|
Num:
0
|
Avg:
0 Samples
|
Max:
0 Samples
|
Total
Test Result
|
76.4
points (out of 100.0 maximum)
|
The maximun error loudness is quite good.
- ABEX TCD-726
Errors
total
|
Num:
522
|
Errors
(Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num:
23
|
Avg:-62.8
dB(A)
|
Max:
-50.4 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
|
92.7
points (out of 100.0 maximum)
|
This is about average performance with both the Abex TCD-721R and TCD-726
test discs.
- 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 reading music abilities
and reproduce it completely. Five tracks on the disc contain a progressively
difficult sequence. These tracks are referred to as Check Level-1 through
Check Level-5.
The
tracks are reproduced (played) through a software multimedia player (i.e.
Winamp, PowerDVD, Windows Media Player). Each level is considered as passed,
if the tone coming out
from the speakers is clear and continuous without interruptions, skipping
or looping. The higher the Check Level passed, the more reliable the sound
reproduction
of the drive.
Error Level
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
Asus DRW-0804P |
5/5
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
0/5
|
0/5
|
The drive managed to playback the first three levels of the audio check
disc without problem. The drive played back the three tracks without audible
clicks
while
it found it hard to pass the last two error correction levels. Again, average
performance.
- Summary
Test Disc
|
Reading Speed
|
Score
|
ABEX TCD-721R
|
Max
|
76.4
|
ABEX TCD-726
|
92.7
|
Average Score
|
84.55
|
The Asus DRW-804P received an average score of 84.55 points out of 100 with
the two Abex test discs.
4. DVD reading tests
Asus DRW-0804P -
Page 4
DVD reading tests
- Single Layer DVD-ROM (Click
for CDSpeed results)
To check the reading performance of the Asus drive with single layer DVD-ROM,
we used NeroCDSpeed and the 820A test disc from Abex.
The Asus drive read the single layer DVD-ROM with CAV reading strategy
and showed the fastest reading speeds of the comparison in all three
modes. On
the seek
times
test, Asus proved slow once again, as was the case with the previously tested
CD-ROM media seek times. The drive reported a full seek of 310ms.
- Dual Layer PTP DVD-ROM (Click for
CDSpeed results)
The two layers of a PTP DVD-ROM disc are read sequentially, with the drive
starting the read process from the inner tracks on the disc, where lies the
beginning of each layer and progressing outwards towards to the outer tracks
for each layer. The tools for this test are Nero CDSpeed and Abex 840 test disc.
The drive returned fast average reading speeds but not the fastest
of the comparison. On the seek times test, the drive proved quite slow
on full seek
time.
- Dual Layer OTP DVD-ROM
The first layer of an OTP dual layer DVD-ROM is read exactly the same way
as the first layer of the PTP disc we tested previously. The difference here
is the reading strategy of the second layer on the disc. The beginning of the
second layer is located in the outer part of the disc, so the drive starts
reading from the outer tracks inwards towards the inner tracks of the disc.
The CDSpeed screenshot shows smooth reading performance during the OTP reading
test. The drive read the disc with CAV reading strategy and as the screenshot
shows the performance was good.
- DVD Ripping Tests
We measured the DVD-Video ripping speed of the Asus drive using the latest
version of DVD Decrypter using the Main files and Info option to rip the "Matrix" movie
sized 4.7GB
The ripping performance of the Asus drive could be considered as slow since
According to DVD decrypter, the drive had an Average Read Rate of
4.550 KB/s (3.3x),
Maximum Read Rate: 7.424 KB/s (5.4X) while it needed 20:37min to finish the
task.
- DVD Recordable / Rewritable reading Tests
The chart below shows the Nero CDSpeed average reading speed results for
the following formats:
The Asus drive returned very fast average reading speeds with all four
tested media. The drive read all media with CAV strategy and reported
about equal
reading
speeds for each format. The above two graphs show that the Asus' fastest time
was with DVD+RW.
5. DVD Error Correction Tests
Asus DRW-084P -
Page 5
DVD Error Correction Tests
In the following tests we examined the DVD reading capabilities of Asus
with scratched / defective DVD media. For the tests we used CDVD Benchmark
and
Nero CDSpeed. The reference test media come from ALMEDIO.
- Single Layer media
ABEX TDR-821
This
is a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with a 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 above screenshot shows that the Asus drive managed to finish the error
correction test without problem. The process was fast and with CAV reading
strategy
the test finished without read errors.
ABEX TDR-825
This is also a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with 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 the surface and instead defective areas ranging in dimensions from 0.5 to 1.1 mm. There are also fingerprints with height between 65 and 75 micrometers.
Although this is test disc has more defects than the previous
test media, the error correction test finished without read errors. Moreover,
the
drive
didn't
change
reading
speed while reading through the defective areas as the above screenshot shows.
- 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.
The Dual layer media was not a problem for the Asus drive. Once again with
CAV reading strategy and a high end speed, the error correction test completed
without read errors.
ABEX TDR-845
This
disc is a single sided, dual layer DVD-Rom disc with capacity of 8.5GB. The
only difference between the TDR-845 and the TDR-841 is that the first includes
both defective areas and fingerprints. The dimensions of the defective areas
range from 0.5 to 1.1 mm and the fingerprints have height sized from 65 to
75 microns (micrometers).
The above screenshot comes from CDVD and shows the reading performance
of the Asus DRW0804P during the reading process of the most difficult defective
media. Once again the error correction performance
of
the Asus drive was excellent, since the drive finished the test without
read errors and with a high end speed. As the screenshot shows,
at some
areas,
the
drive changed reading speed to overcome the defects but the overall performance
wasn't effected.
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 sized from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.
On this test, although the drive managed to read the first layer without
problem, after the layer switch operation it changed the reading speed from
8X to 6X
in order to read the defective areas. Although the average reading speed
of the Asus wasn't as high as in the previous error correction tests, NeroCDSpeed
reported no errors.
ABEX TDV-545
The
TDV-545 disc is based on the TDV-540 series. It is a single sided, dual layer
Video/S-2
disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The TDV-545 includes artificial black dots on
the disc's surface, sized from 0.4 to 1.0 mm. It also has 65 - 75 micrometers
high
fingerprints.
The last DVD error correction reading test, finished fast with a high end
speed and no read errors.
6. Protected Disc Tests
Asus DRW-0804P -
Page 4
Protected Disc
Tests
- Reading Tests
To create an image of the various protected titles onto a hard disk, we
used Alcohol 120% and the appropriate settings, depending on the protection
type of the inserted discs. Below are summarized the capabilities of the Asus,
according to CloneCD software. The summary below shows that the drive supports
writing of CD+G under RAW DAO:
The game titles we used to test the reading speed for each protection scheme
are given in the table below:
Game Title
|
Protection Scheme
|
PSX "NBA Jam Extreme"
|
Lybcrypt
|
Serious Sam The Second Encounter v1.07
|
SafeDisc v.2.60.052
|
VRally II
|
SecuROM v.2
|
PSX Pressed Media
SafeDisc v.2
SecuROM v.2
- Writing Tests
The drive supports the DAO-RAW writing mode.
For checking the drive's EFM correction status, we used 3 different game titles
with different SafeDisc versions.
After making the image files of the various titles to the hard disk, we burned
them (maximum speed) with Alcohol and we played each burnt disc on
the
following
three
devices. Two
different
discs
were
created
for each
title; one with the "Amplify
Weak Sectors " enabled and one with
the
function disabled.
The table below shows the results of the attempted backups and whether
they worked (game installed / played normally), or not.
Drive
|
Fifa 2004
SD v3.1
|
Sims Superstar SD v2.9
|
Sims Unleashed SD
v2.8
|
Serious Sam-Second Encounter v1.07
SD v2.60.052
|
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
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No |
No |
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Creative CD5233E
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Asus
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
The Asus drive proved weak with backups of protected games. Although
the drive made copies up to v2.8, the discs were only playable on the Asus
device itself while
the other two readers couldn't start the backed up games.
7. DAE Tests
Asus DRW-0804P -
Page 7
DAE Tests
- Pressed and CDR AudioCD results
The new Asus drive supports 24X maximum reading speed for
DAE media and uses CAV reading strategy, and Nero CDSpeed confirmed these specifications.
- Advanced DAE Quality
CDSpeed advanced DAE quality test reported 26.95X average reading
speed and award the tested device with a quality score of 100 (perfect). According
to the software, the drive can safely be used as a reader for on the fly copying
for speeds up to 16X. Moreover, on the advanced features, the drive does not
read leadin and lead out information but can read subchannel Data and CD Text.
- Support of 90/99mins AudioCDs
The Asus drive managed to rip the contents of our 90/99min test discs successfully.
- Reading/Ripping Protected AudioCDs
For the test procedure, we used two audio discs with different
audio protection schemes. We tested for both recognition and ripping to the
hard disk. The software used was Exact Audio Copy.
* Pressed Audio disc protected by Sony Key2Audio (Celine Dion
- New Day Has Come)
* Pressed Audio disc protected by Cactus Data Shield 200 (Natalie
Imbruglia - White Lilies Island)
|
Key2Audio
|
CDS200
|
EAC
|
Asus DRW 0804P
|
Recognizes disc contents but cannot rip tracks
|
OK
|
Optorite DD0405
|
OK
|
Recognized the disc. Ripped and played all tracks on the disc except the first.
|
AOpen
8x8 Dual DVD
|
OK
|
OK
|
On the above table we summarized the results for the three devices after
the end of the protected Audio discs test. The Asus drive managed to read and
rip only the
CDS200 protected disc and could only recognize the Key2Audio media.
8. CD Recording Tests
Asus DRW-0804P-
Page 8
CD Recording Tests
- CD-R Writing Tests
To test the writing speed and writing method of the drive we used a blank
80min
CD-R disc from TY and NeroCDSpeed to emulate the writing process.
The above screenshot comes from NeroCDSpeed and shows that the Asus drive
managed to reach the 24X maximum writing speed at around the 20min mark on
the disc. The
writing process started at 15.92X and finished at 24.92X resulting in an
average speed of 22.47X
- Recording Times
We created an 80min data compilation with Nero Burning Rom and recorded it
on a 700MB disc.
The graph shows the different writing times for each drive. The difference
was to be expected since each device supports a different maximum recording
speed.
According to the above graph, the Asus drive managed to write all media with
about same average time.
- CD-RW Writing Tests
To test the writing speed and writing method of the drive we used a blank
74min CD-RW disc from TY and NeroCDSpeed to emulate the writing process.
Below we provide a comparison of the three drives where we used Nero Burning
Rom software to burn a 651MB data compilation onto a 24X US-RW media from Mitsubishi
Chemicals.
As the above graph shows, the Asus drive proved faster than the Aopen but
slower than the Optorite. For a full erase of rewritable media,
the Asus needed
260sec.
9. Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests
Asus DRW-0804P -
Page 9
Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests
Asus DRW-0804P supports a maximum writing speed of 24x and uses
P-CAV writing strategy for the writing tasks. We expect to see quality values,
since
the
supported
writing speed could be considered as a safe writing speed for all writers since
most currently available CD and DVD writers, support much faster writing CD-R
speeds up to 52x and 40x respectively.
- 3T Pit results
The Pit Jitter measurement of all recorded CD-R media was in the main satisfactory.
All discs gave returned values below the acceptable RedBook limit of 35ns,
with the only exception being BenQ media which reported increased values
at its outer
area.
The average Pit Jitter values of the tested media, written with
the Asus writer, were lower than the 35ns RedBook limit. According to
the above graph, BenQ reported the lowest average value, despite having
high Pit Jitter values at the end as we saw on the previous graph.
- 3T Land results
The Land Jitter results are slightly increased in comparison to those of the
Pit values. Mam and TraxData recorded some high readings,
while
BenQ again had the highest values reaching 45ns.
The average Land Jitter values are higher in comparison to the Pit values.
Despite this, the average Land Jitter values for all media are under the 35ns
RedBook limit.
Recording Speed |
Average 3T Pit Jitter (ns) |
Average 3T Land Jitter (ns) |
> 35ns |
Max 3T jitter values (ns) |
MAM Golden Dye 52X |
31.63 |
33.39 |
Yes |
34 Pit, 36 Land |
MMore 52X |
30.85 |
32.46 |
No |
33 Pit, 35 Land |
BenQ 48X |
27.20 |
28.78 |
Yes |
45 Pit, 45 Land |
TraxData 52X |
33.00 |
34.22 |
Yes |
38 Pit, 38 Land |
TY 48X |
27.71 |
30.17 |
No |
31Pit, 32Land |
According to the above table 3 out of 5 written media reported values over
the 35ns RedBook limitation while TY showed the best quality writing.
10. Writing Quality Tests - C1 / C2 Error Measurements
Asus DRW-0804P- Page 10
Writing Quality Tests - C1 / C2 Error Measurements
The C1 / C2 error rate was measured for the recorded discs burned during
the previous writing tests (jitter). The software used was Plextools v2.11
and the reader was the Plextor Premium drive.
-
MMore 48X recorded at 24X
-
TraxData 52X recorded at 24X
The quality measurements of the discs showed that the Asus is a quality writer
with the CD-R format. Most discs gave back no CU errors while the C1C2 error
levels were low.
11. DVD Recording Tests
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 11
DVD Recording Tests
- Writing Performance
The Asus is a dual writer so it supports both minus
and plus formats. The supported speeds are 8X for DVD+R/-R media and 4X for
DVD+RW/-RW formats.
8X DVD+R/-R
The drive displayed the same writing strategy for the writing tasks
of
both
+R
and
-R
. NeroCDSpeed reported 8X maximum writing speed with P-CAV strategy.
4X DVD+RW/-RW
For the rewritable media the supported speed is 4X for both minus and plus
formats. The drive wrote the disc with CLV, with average writing speed
of 4X.
- Burning Tests
The following graphs show the maximum writing speeds of the three devices
with all available DVD writable and rewritable media.
The Asus drive proved a fast DVD writer. The device had the fastest
writing times among the tested devices with [+-]R formats but had slightly
higher times from among the drives with RW media.
The above screenshots comes from Nero and show the times that the Asus needed
to finish each media writing task.
Disc Label
|
Disc Information
|
Speed
|
CMC Magnetics 8X DVD+R
|
CMC MAG E01
|
4X
|
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8X DVD+R
|
MCC 003
|
8X
|
MMore 4X DVD+R
|
MBIPG101R03
|
4X
|
Traxdata 8X DVD+R
|
RICOHJPNR01
|
8X
|
CMC Magnetics 4X DVD-R
|
CMC MAG AF1
|
4X
|
MMore 4X DVD-R
|
MBI 01RG20
|
4X
|
That's 8X DVD-R
|
TYG02
|
8X
|
Traxdata 4X DVD-R
|
RITEKG04
|
4X
|
Traxdata 8X DVD-R
|
RITEKG05
|
8X
|
Verbatim 8X DVD-R
|
MCC 02RG20
|
8X
|
Traxdata 4X DVD+RW
|
RICOHJPNW11
|
4X
|
Traxdata 4X DVD-RW
|
RITEKW04
|
4X
|
12. DVD Writing Quality Tests _ Page 1
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 12
KProbe PI/PO
quality results for DVD+R/RW
The following screenshots show the PI/PO scans for various DVD-/+R and DVD-/+RW
media, recorded with the Asus writer at the maximum permitted speed.
The software used for the measurements was KProbe v2.1.0, the ECC was set
to 8 and the reading at 8x with reader the LiteOn LDW-811s. The specific methodology
is very dependent on the drive used as a reader, while the reliability of the
PI/PIF provided output is also not technically confirmed. Hence, we cannot
safely come up with conclusive results, although we do make a comparison of
the drive
behavior when using various DVD recordable/rewritable media.
The recordable discs we used came from CMC, MMore, Maxell, Mitsubishi Chemicals,
Taiyo Yuden and Traxdata. Further details about each disc type are presented
at the
bottom
of this page.
CMC DVD+R 8x (Recorded at 4x)
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8x DVD+R (Recorded at 8x)
MMore 4x DVD+R (Recorded at 4x)
TraxData 8x DVD+R (Recorded at 4x)
Taiyo Yuden 8x DVD+R (Recorded at 8x)
3A 8x DVD+R (Recorded at 4x)
TraxData 4x DVD+RW (Recorded at 4x)
Disc Label
|
Disc Information
|
Speed
|
CMC Magnetics 8X DVD+R |
CMC MAG E01 |
4X |
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8X DVD+R
|
MCC 003 |
8X |
MMore 4X DVD+R
|
MBIPG101R03 |
4X |
Traxdata 8X DVD+R
|
RICOHJPNR01 |
8X |
Taiyo Yuden 8X DVD+R
|
YUDEN000T02 |
8X |
3A 8X DVD+R |
PLASMON1C01 |
4X |
Traxdata 4X DVD+RW
|
RICOHJPNW11
|
4X
|
13. DVD Writing Quality Tests _ Page 2
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 13
KProbe PI/PO
quality results for DVD-R/RW
The following screenshots show the PI/PO scans for various DVD-/+R and DVD-/+RW
media, recorded with the Asus writer at the maximum permitted speed.
The software used for the measurements was KProbe v2.1.0, the ECC was set
to 8 and the reading at 8x with reader the LiteOn LDW-811s. The specific methodology
is very dependent on the drive used as a reader, while the reliability of the
PI/PIF provided output is also not technically confirmed. Hence, we cannot
safely come up with conclusive results, although we do make a comparison of
the drive
behavior when using various DVD recordable/rewritable media.
The recordable discs we used came from CMC, MMore, Maxell, Mitsubishi Chemicals,
Taiyo Yuden and Traxdata. Further details about each disc type are presented
at the
bottom
of this page.
CMC 4x DVD-R (Recorded at 4x)
MMore 4x DVD-R (Recorded at 4x)
Thats 8x DVD-R (Recorded at 8x)
TraxData 4x DVD-R (Recorded at 4x)
TraxData 8x DVD-R (Recorded at 4x)
Verbatim 8x DVD-R (Recorded at 8x)
3A 8x DVD-R (Recorded at 2x)
Mam 4x DVD-R (Recorded at 4x)
TraxData 4x DVD-RW (Recorded at 4x)
Disc Label
|
Disc Information
|
Speed
|
CMC Magnetics 4X DVD-R
|
CMC MAG AF1 |
4X |
MMore 4X DVD-R
|
MBI 01RG20 |
4X |
That's 8X DVD-R
|
TYG02 |
8X |
Traxdata 4X DVD-R
|
RITEKG04 |
4X |
Traxdata 8X DVD-R
|
RITEKG05 |
8X |
Verbatim 8X DVD-R
|
MCC 02RG20 |
8X |
3A 8X DVD-R |
POMS3A |
2X |
MAM 4X DVD-R |
MAM4XG02 |
4X |
Traxdata 4X DVD-RW
|
RITEKW04
|
4X
|
The above screenshots show that the Asus drive burned most media at an
acceptable quality. The drive showed higher quality writing with the plus
format since the
average PI/PiF errors were down in comparison to the minus format. In any case,
all media was playable with CDSpeed.
14. Conclusion
Asus DRW-0804P - Page 14
Conclusion
Pros
|
Cons
|
- Full package
- Fast CD/DVD reading speed
- Good CD/DVD error correction
- Fast DAE speed
- Quality CD/DVD writing
- Supports both +R/-R writing.
|
- BookType
change features
- CD/DVD
seek times.
- Weak protected
games back up abilities
- Cannot backup
Key2Audio protected CDs
- Restricted
CD-R writing speed at 24X
|
The latest Asus dual dvd writer is labeled and identified as the DRW-804P.
The retail package was complete except for the inclusion of blank media.
The drive supports both DVD+R and DVD-R writable format at the maximum current
available speed of 8X, while for the rewritable
format, the writing speed is 4X, and finally, the Asus drive is a
CD-R writer with maximum supported writing speed of 24X.
Through the CD-R reading tests, the drive proved fast with quite acceptable
reported speeds but had increased seek times. In all the reading tests,
the Asus
drive managed to surpass the manufacturer's specification for maximum reading
speed while on the error correction tests, the overall performance could be
considered
as good since the drive finished all the tests without problems.
In the DVD reading tests, the drive reported results that met and slightly
surpassed the manufacturer's specifications. The seek times, although high,
just like in the CD reading tests, a factor that could be considered
as a
negative
for the drive. On the other hand, the performance of the drive during the DVD
error correction tests was quite acceptable as the Asus drive managed to finish
all error correction tests without reading problems, meaning that the drive
can
be safely used a a reader for defective and old DVD discs.
A weak feature of the Asus writer was its inability to make working
backups of protected games. The image making process of all tested media was
not fast
but not the slowest we have experienced. The resulting games backups were
fully playable up to version 2.8v of Safedisc on the Asus
drive itself, but
the
same media
could not
play
on
other
drives.
In the DAE tests, the Asus drive proved fast with a high average ripping speed
of about 27X and it was awarded with a good quality score by NeroCDSpeed advanced
DAE
quality
check. The Asus drive could not handle the KEY2Audio protected
audio disc but had no problems with the CDS200 protected disc.
For CD-R writing, the drive uses P-CAV strategy and supports 24X maximum writing
speed. Since the maximum supported speed is lower than the competition,
we didn't experience compatibility problems at the maximum writing speed
with all tested media. The drive wrote almost all media with similar times
while
the quality measurement of the burned discs was quite acceptable, without C2
errors and low C1C2 errors.
In the DVD writing tasks, the Asus drive showed that media compatibility
is restricted. NeroBurningRom was used for the writing tasks and most of the
tested
media reported 4X maximum writing speed despite some being
certified for 8X maximum writing. Despite this, the drive managed to write
a few media
at 8X.
Their quality measurements were quite acceptable and all burned media was
fully readable.
The drive is already available on the market at prices between $95~120.