TDK CyClone 12/10/32 IDE CDR-W - Page 4

DAE Tests

Test Method:
We used CD DAE 99 v0.2with AudioCDs in order to check DAE performance of the Ricoh drive and we compared it with the Plextor PX-W1210A and Sanyo BP3.

- Pressed AudioCD results:
The TDK CyClone seems to keep to the promise of the best current DAE performance that you can get. Even the though the drive goes only up to 24x max, it managed to sustain an average 21.02x when ripping from a pressed AudioCD. The Plextor PX-W1210A had exactly the same performance as the TDK. The Sanyo came in third with a DAE speed result of 12.6x.

- Princo 74min AudioCD:
The TDK and Plextor drives shares the first place with an average 21.6x DAE speed:

- Advanced DAE Quality

The Advanced DAE quality test puts lot stress on the motor of the drive and reveals any possible DAE problems that a drive may have. Our tests revealed a slight problem with the PX-W1210A and the TDK CyClone. We found some potentially serious problems with the Sanyo CRD-BP3. The TDK and Plextor drives shared first place with a 98.5 quality score (out of 100). Both drives gave 2 Sync errors, which cost them the absolute 100 (and maximum) score. The Sanyo drive appears to have problems when trying to read scratched or well used CDs.

Verdict of DAE Results:
The TDK CyClone drive has very good DAE performance. It will rip your AudioCDs with 21x average ripping speed and will return almost perfect wavs back.  The Plextor PX-W1210A has the exactly the same performance while the Sanyo BP3 has its DAE speed locked at 13x and cannot really compete with the other two drives.