Need IDE CD-R/RW purchase advice

[Knack]

My old SCSI CDROM drive finally died. Would like to replace it with a new
IDE CD-R/RW drive. Which model is currently the most dependable at burning
CD-R and CD-RW disks?

 

[Arno Wagner]

My old SCSI CDROM drive finally died. Would like to replace it with a new
IDE CD-R/RW drive. Which model is currently the most dependable at burning
CD-R and CD-RW disks?

Difficult to say. They are all pretty mature.

Generally you have to take into account that CD-R/RW is not a
reliable medium. Drop it, scratch it or expose it to sunlight
for some hours and you might have real trouble reading it.
So in the strict sense no drive is dependable, because the media
are not.

Also CD-RW gets worse with additional overwrites.

Arno

 

[Bob]

Something made by Plextor is the only way to go, IMHO. I'm on my 3rd
one and the other two are still going strong after they've each burned
over a thousand discs.

http://tinyurl.com/2pm4d

The OEM 52x CD-RW can be had for $51...can't touch that for
price/quality as far as I'm concerned.

Bob

:My old SCSI CDROM drive finally died. Would like to replace it with a new
:IDE CD-R/RW drive. Which model is currently the most dependable at burning
:CD-R and CD-RW disks?
:
:

 

[Eric Gisin]

Anything but Plextor. Made by baby eating lizard people. You can't beat the
stuff at Walmart.

 

[The Man Who Never Was]

try www.cdrlabs.com for a start...

 

[J. Clarke]

Difficult to say. They are all pretty mature.

Generally you have to take into account that CD-R/RW is not a
reliable medium. Drop it,

What do you believe that dropping a CD-R does?

scratch it

On the data surface--on the read surface it has to be a pretty deep scratch
before it renders the CD-R unrepairable.

or expose it to sunlight
for some hours and you might have real trouble reading it.

If you get it hot enough to warp or separate the reflective layer perhaps.

 

[chrisv]

Something made by Plextor is the only way to go, IMHO.

I like Lite-On.

I've been told that Lite-On makes the Plextor drives (but that's not
why I buy them). Can anyone confirm?

 

[Shailesh Humbad]

I have a Sony CRX-300E DVD/CDRW that is reliable. It can be bought for
less than $60. It has the nice feature of being shorter in length
than an normal CD-ROM drive, so it is easier to plug in cables.

 

[S.Heenan]

I like Lite-On.

I've been told that Lite-On makes the Plextor drives (but that's not
why I buy them). Can anyone confirm?

Plextor makes Plextor drives. Lite-On is a good value for the money.
Internals are not up to the spec of Pioneer or Plextor, but they work well.
Lite-On rebadges for all manner of companies. Hint: if you see "Smart-Burn",
it's a Lite-On.

 

[John Turco]

My old SCSI CDROM drive finally died. Would like to replace it with a new
IDE CD-R/RW drive. Which model is currently the most dependable at burning
CD-R and CD-RW disks?

Hello,

Spend a little extra, and get a DVD writer. Most of the current models
will "burn" CD-R and CD-RW media, also.

My quite-affordable Panasonic SW-9571 (OEM, IDE) even handles DVD-RAM,
which is a major bonus, in my estimation. DVD-RAM behaves almost exactly
as a hard disk does, making it far more user-friendly than other optical
formats.

Good luck!


Cordially,
John Turco <[email protected]>

 

[Knack]

Hello,

Spend a little extra, and get a DVD writer. Most of the current models
will "burn" CD-R and CD-RW media, also.

My quite-affordable Panasonic SW-9571 (OEM, IDE) even handles DVD-RAM,
which is a major bonus, in my estimation. DVD-RAM behaves almost exactly
as a hard disk does, making it far more user-friendly than other optical
formats.

Well, since I don't copy DVD disks or copy various movie clips, I don't have
a need for that feature, and its presence would only make the peripheral
that much more unreliable because of the added complexity.

This rationale is similar to that of a good manufacturing engineer who must
maximize the uptime of his production line. So he selects automation
components with only as many features as will be used for production.

 

[Knack]

I like Lite-On.

I've been told that Lite-On makes the Plextor drives (but that's not
why I buy them). Can anyone confirm?

Hmmm... in fact, currently Cnet still rates the Lite-On LTR-52327S as the
highest rating (8.3) among all CDR-RW drives that they reviewed. It gets
their Editor's Choice award. Their review of this model is dated June 9,
2003. However, this is not to say that the LTR-52327S is a reliable
peripheral; only that it's a good value with respect to price, performace,
documentation and customer support.

 

[Rod Speed]

Well, since I don't copy DVD disks or copy various movie clips, I don't have
a need for that feature, and its presence would only make the peripheral
that much more unreliable because of the added complexity.

This rationale is similar to that of a good manufacturing engineer who must
maximize the uptime of his production line. So he selects automation
components with only as many features as will be used for production.

Thats a VERY superficial way of choosing PC components.

 

[Arno Wagner]

Knack wrote:

[...]
Well, since I don't copy DVD disks or copy various movie clips, I don't have
a need for that feature, and its presence would only make the peripheral
that much more unreliable because of the added complexity.

This rationale is similar to that of a good manufacturing engineer who must
maximize the uptime of his production line. So he selects automation
components with only as many features as will be used for production.

Also knowen as "Simple is Beautiful" or more famous as the
"KISS-Principle" (Keep It Simple, Stupid) in many other engineering
disciplines and in CompSci. A very sound and applicable principle in
this case, since the manufacturer can only spend so much money and
time on implementation and testing. The more features, the less
individual attention they will get.

Arno

 

[Knack]

Thats a VERY superficial way of choosing PC components.

When it comes to buying anything, why spend more to get more than you need
while sacrificing simplicity and reliability for an unused complex feature?

For example, if you don't need an independent rear for your SUV, then why
pay extra for it and have to maintain the extra ball joints and velocity
joints? When those things fail, the entire vehicle doesn't function.

 

[Rod Speed]

When it comes to buying anything, why spend more to get more than you need

Sure, but thats nothing like your previous line.

while sacrificing simplicity and reliability
for an unused complex feature?

You dont do that.

For example, if you don't need an independent rear for your SUV,
then why pay extra for it and have to maintain the extra ball joints and
velocity joints? When those things fail, the entire vehicle doesn't function.

Separate issue entirely to the situation with PC components where
say having a NIC and USB included with a motherboard when you
dont plan to use either has no effect what so ever on reliability or price.

 

[Knack]

need

Sure, but thats nothing like your previous line.


You dont do that.
function.

Separate issue entirely to the situation with PC components where
say having a NIC and USB included with a motherboard when you
dont plan to use either has no effect what so ever on reliability or price.

Well, DVD recorders certainly do cost more than than CD-R/RW drives, because
a lot more goes into them. I really don't need that extra stuff. Why you
think a more complex mechatronic computer peripheral is no less reliable
than a simpler peripheral is beyond me. Enough said on this. Let's move on.

 

[J. Clarke]

When it comes to buying anything, why spend more to get more than you need
while sacrificing simplicity and reliability for an unused complex
feature?

For example, if you don't need an independent rear for your SUV, then why
pay extra for it and have to maintain the extra ball joints and velocity
joints? When those things fail, the entire vehicle doesn't function.

What leads you to think that the ability to write several DVD formats as
well as CD is a "complex feature"? Your IRS analogy is flawed because it
assumes that more parts are needed in the DVD writer when in fact it
doesn't use more parts, it uses _different_ parts.

 

[J. Clarke]

Well, DVD recorders certainly do cost more than than CD-R/RW drives,
because a lot more goes into them.

Nope, they cost more because they are newer on the market and the sales
volume is lower than for CD-R/RW drives, hence less economies of scale in
the manufacture and higher cost.

I really don't need that extra stuff.
Why you think a more complex mechatronic computer peripheral is no less
reliable than a simpler peripheral is beyond me.

Because most of the increased complexity is software.

Enough said on this.
Let's move on.

No.

 

[Rod Speed]

Well, DVD recorders certainly do cost more than than CD-R/RW drives,

Yes, but thats got nothing to do with that superficial silly
stuff above which implied that you shouldnt go for the
system with more capability even if the price was the same.

because a lot more goes into them.

Thats not the reason for the price difference.

I really don't need that extra stuff.

Separate issue entirely.

Why you think a more complex mechatronic computer peripheral
is no less reliable than a simpler peripheral is beyond me.

Your problem.

Enough said on this.
Nope.

Let's move on.

No thanks.