CDR Tests - Page 2

- 80min CD-R Tests

In our normal burning tests the 80min CD contains slightly more than 80min data (80:01:47):

With 80min CDs, the Yamaha CRW3200E holds the first place with 333secs. The Freecom 32A comes second and the Mitsumi CR-480ATE third. The LiteOn comes last.

Again at the 20x writing speed, the Freecom 32A takes the second place. The PleXWriter PX-W2410A come first with 278secs, the LiteOn LTR-32123S comes third 284secs and AOpen CRW2440 last with 285secs.

At the 24x writing speed, the Yamaha CRW3200E still holds the fist place with 240secs. The TEAC CD-W524E follows with 247secs and the Mitsumi CR-480ATE comes third with 253secs. The LiteOn LTR-32123S comes last with 255 secs.

With 80min CDs, the time differences between Freecom 32A and the competition are increased. The Freecom 32A drive comes first with 220secs, the Mitsumi CR-480ATE is 9secs slower than LiteOn LTR-32123S 11secs slower.

- Comparison of different writing technologies

The above graph shows the main differences between 24x Z-CLV, 24x P-CAV and 32x Z-CLV recording speeds. The Freecom 32A is the faster recorder at the maximum speed of 32x and its time differences at 74min CDs are:

- 25secs faster than TEAC CD-W524E
- 14secs faster than Yamaha CRW3200E
- 7 secs faster than Mitsumi CR-480ATE

With 80min CDs, the time differences with rest of the recorders are now higher:

- 27secs faster than Samsung SW-224B
- 20secs faster than Yamaha CRW3200E
- 9 secs faster than Mitsumi CR-480ATE

The time differences between various technologies points that 32x Z-CLV isn't really a major breakthrough. Of course there would be users that always seek for the faster and best recorder but...speed has its cost. In order to get maximum speed you must use at least 32x certified CDs which not only would be hard to find but possibly even higher priced than 16/24x media. Yamaha, with P-CAV, shows the way to real increased speed towards rest manufacturers. Most next generation recorders would use P-CAV in order to boost up further recording speeds (up to 40x/48x).

- Zone-CLV visible zones

As most users have noticed, when using Zone-CLV recorders and specific media (mostly based upon Cyanine) you can separate the recording zones with an eye view. This effect happens due to different laser power and due to the reflection of the light upon each zone. The visible separation of recording zones doesn't affect the readability of the drive.

Below are 2 examples of written CDs with the Freecom 32A and LiteOn LTR-32123S:

The above pictures don't reflect the true image of the burned CDs due to a limitation of the scanning process. However after the addition of the recording zones you can separate each zone. From what our eyes have seen, the recording zones between 24x and 32x for the Freecom 32A are harder to disguise from the zones of the LiteOn LTR-32123S. You can easily see, after lead-in, the first zone (20x CLV) but not rest (24x/32x). At the LiteOn LTR-32123S we have 4 zones (16x/20x/24x/32x). With other media (mostly GOLD) the visibility of the zones becomes almost impossible.

- Overburning Tests

Using Nero CD Speed, we saw that the LiteOn drive can overburn up to 99mins, while Freecom 32A stops around 93mins.

- CD-Text Results

We created several AudioCDs with CD-Text enabled. Both Freecom/LiteOn drives can read/write CD-Text AudioCDs without any problems.

- CloneCD Writing Tests

The CloneCD v3.3.2.1 reports that both drives support the DAO-RAW feature. We performed our usual tests and we confirmed that both drive support the DAO-RAW writing mode at the following CD protections: SafeDisc 1.0, LaserLock 1/2 and SecuROM 2. Note that the Freecom 32A writes only at 16x when DAO-RAW writing mode is used :(

- SD2 Support
For the SD2 test we used the "No One Lives For Ever", "Max Payne" and "Emperor Battle of Dune" game titles. We used the LiteOn/Freecom drives both as reader/writer. The produced backup from Freecom 32A didn't work using the same or any drive we tested with. Therefore, the Freecom 32A cannot produce SD2 working backups. On the other hand, the produced backup from LiteOn LTR-32123B did work in many drives we tested. Therefore the LiteOn 32x model can produce SD2 working backups.