CDR Tests

- Procedure

We tested the ASUS drive with latest version of Nero/CloneCD. We used various media for our tests: Mitsubishi Chemicals 80min 40x certified, Mitsui 80min 32x/40x certified, Taiyo Yuden 80min 32x/40x certified, Philips 80min 40x and various HS-RW media. We burned CDs at almost all recording speeds from 16x up to 48x using the SAME amount of data for all tests. The posted recording times are the best we had from our test results. Using other media can increase the final burning time.

Currently with firmware revision v1.00 you can write up to 48x with the following media (from our tests):

• Imation (CMC Magnetics) 80min 32x
• Philips (RITEK) 80min 24x/40x
• Taiyo Yuden 80min 40x

Media from Mitsubishi Chemicals 40x/48x are only allowed to be written up to 24x and Hitachi-Maxell 80min 40x only up to 32x. Check the writing quality tests for details conserning drive's media compatibility

- Recording Tests

For all the recording tests, we used slightly more than 80min data (80:01:47). The CyQve 4048 has the third best recording time for the 16x writing speed. The Philips and Samsung SW-240B have the highest time with 335secs:

ASUS CRW4816A is the faster recorder above 16x recording speed due to its P-CAV recording technology. At the 40x writing speed, finishes first with 161secs, while the second faster drive from CyberDrive, follows with 184secs.

You may wonder where are the results from the 48x recording speed. The truth is that we are confused since the drive made the same recording times for the 40x and 48x speeds (2:41)secs as the following Nero screenshots prove. If we consider the drive's theoretical average writing speed, the recording times should be lower than what we have seen:

- Overburning Tests

- CD-Text Results

ASUS CRW4816A can read/write CD-Text without any problems.

- CloneCD Writing Tests

The CloneCD v4.0.1.6 reports that all drives support the DAO-RAW feature. For the EFM correction (SD2 test) we used 'Serious Sam - The Second Encounter" and "Medal Of Honor" game titles. We performed both software/hardware EFM corrections test. The drive supports both modes (hardware and software), making it very appealing for advanced users. The drive doesn't limit its recording speed under DAO-RAW mode and writes up to 48x, with of course the proper media.