Picking out a CDR machine

Posted by Nigel Pond [SysOp] [IP: 206.241.18.3] on September 09, 1999 at 08:49:00
Using Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 5.0; MSN 2.5; Windows 95):

In Reply to: Picking out a CDR machine posted by Dave Tomarchio on September 08, 1999 at 17:59:28:

Dave

I am posting the text of the e-mail reply you sent me (hope you don't mind, if you do I'll ask Alan to delete this message), with my answers to your questions:

Will the CD-RW give me better sound quality than the CDR?

Not in my experience. Do not get caught up in the debate that rages in analogue circles about what effect on sound the type of medium and/or recorder has. In the digital world so long as those 1's and 0's get there along with the timing clock, you'll get a perfect copy of the original.

...So, would that would require me to physically install a card in my PC or just to install software?...

If you have a sound card with digital ins and outs then you will only need to install the CD-R(W) drive itself and a SCSI card, if your PC does not have one (most CD-R(W) drives are SCSI drives I think)

...I presume that CDRW's are just audio - right? Because if it's just audio, I won't ever be using my DVD player, but my dedicated CD Players instead. If it records video also - wow! That changes my whole perspective...

Yes, CD-R and CD-RW (at least in the context we are talking about) are for audio CD recording only. When used as a recordable PC data storage medium, like CD-ROM they can contain any digital data. I only mentioned the DVD player problem because many people use their DVD players as CD players too, so if you were going to be swapping your discs with others you need to be aware of this.

...But do the Pro machines produce notably better sounding copies? If not, why pay all the extra bucks? Just for the ability to copy over CDR's?...

Not necessarily, it depends how many discs you want to make (and then it's a question of the cost of consumer grade vs cost of data grade blanks over time) and if you need the extra features of pro machines. And don't foget that most new consumer machines are CD-R and CD-RW too. CD-RW is not just a pro format.

....So, for example: I use disc A and make a copy of it called disc B. Are you saying that I can't make another copy of disc A, or are you saying that I can make another copy of disc A, but not any copies of disc B?

The latter - you can make as many copies of disc A as you like (first generation copies), but SCMS will prevent you from making any copies of disc B (second generation copies).

...Did you compare with other models or read up on any comparative reviews?

Of course!! I checked out many models in person. There weren't many CD-RW decks available when I bought mine, but I checked out most of the consumer ones. They did not have the input flexibility I was looking for - the pro model is built more ruggedly and integrates much more easily into my system.

...Does this one [Marantz CDR-630] produce CDR's that are noticeably of lesser sound quality than yours?

I doubt it. It had the feature package I was looking for and I got it for a price I was happy with.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No problem!!

Follow Ups:

• Picking out a CDR machine - rabident 14:21:15 09/28/99 (0)

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