Good CD-R media

[nwrigley]

The "best" dvd media is always being discussed in this forum, but I don't hear much about cd-r media. I was wondering what the good brands/codes to buy are right now. I'm interested in using these to burn audo cds.

[Treebeard]

I like fuji brand, never had any problems with them so far.

[ROF]

TDK, Maxell, and Memorex CDs are great for audio compilation.

[RacerXRed]

Lately all I've been using is Verbatim, TDK, and Sony.

[Denvers Dawgs]

Fuji, Verbatim, memorex. It is almost impossible to get crappy cd-r media, i think. Even the cheapest crap brands. I haven't heard from any of my college buddies having problems with the cheap medai they buy

[lordsmurf]

There is really nothing different about CD from DVD. Just less options, less manufacturers.

MCC, MXL, TY, KODAK, PVC = good
PRODISC, MITSUI, MAM = okay
CMC, RITEK, PRINCO = bad

KODAK, PVC and MITSUI are not even made anymore.

Coasters on CD-R are far less than DVD media. But they still happen. You're more looking at fail rates that break at 90-80-70 %'s instead of the steep curve seen in DVD of 95-80-50 %'s

Becase of the wider space, it's harder to screw up CD-R media, though some still manage.

RITEK is often heralded as the worst CD-R ever made.

It all comes back to dye and QC. Your cyanine-based Taiwanese/Chinese crap leaves much to be desired. Your AZO discs from Japan/Taiwan tend to yield much higher quality results.

If you want good media, buy Maxell CD-R made in Japan. Or Verbatim CD-R with have MCC codes.

Most CD-R out there these days is CMC, which works relatively okay, but it's still sort of crappy overall. Bad sectors in random places is the problem.

You can also get problems in dyes if the metallic foil is not done correctly. It's a shame CD-R does not have a plastic upper like DVD does.

[Denvers Dawgs]

It is almost impossible to get crappy cd-r media, i think. Even the cheapest crap brands. I haven't heard from any of my college buddies having problems with the cheap medai they buy

I take this statement back now....haha

[Bodysurf]

The "best" dvd media is always being discussed in this forum, but I don't hear much about cd-r media. I was wondering what the good brands/codes to buy are right now. I'm interested in using these to burn audo cds.

I would get Verbatim DataLife Plus CDRs or Taiyo-Yuden CDRs. Those have consistently been the best for me in 2005.

Watch out for standard Verbatim CDRs -- sometimes they outsource their media and use stuff like CMC or ProDisc.

But, as others have said, you don't have to be as picky with CDR media as you do DVD media. Just like you don't have to be as picky with DVD media as you do DL DVD media.

[Gen-An]

It all comes back to dye and QC. Your cyanine-based Taiwanese/Chinese crap leaves much to be desired. Your AZO discs from Japan/Taiwan tend to yield much higher quality results.

Cyanine? TY is about the only manufacturer left that still uses cyanine dye to my knowledge; it seems like everyone else uses pthalocyanine except for MKM who obviously uses Azo.

[piano632]

My 3 favorites for audio use (though most any brand will work OK, I find that the ones with phthalocyanine dye like Mitsui and Ricoh tend to be more playable on old CD players).

Mitsui (Gold or Silver)
Ricoh Platinum
Taiyo Yuden

Apparently genuine Mitsui discs are still being made somewhere (Japan?) maybe not by MAM-A though. Ricoh discs are tough to find these days.

Mobile Fidelity's Gold CD-R identifies as Mitsui.
http://www.elusivedisc.com/prodinfo.asp?number=MOBCDR25

HHB's Pro Silver & Gold CD-R identifies as Mitsui or Ricoh.
http://www.tapes.com/product_info.php?cPath=108_109&products_id=1383&osCsid=87254f64c6...45d63839a932db

Maxell CD-Pro CD-R identifies as TY.
http://www.cybergiftcenter.com/applications/search/itemdetails.asp?oid=21&sku=CM-62347...=623475/648425

Mitsui is one of the few companies that still make 650mb discs. It should be noted however, that gold CD-R's need to be burned at slow speeds and they cost about $2 each, but it is said they will last up to 300 years (in case you plan to be alive that long).

[Gen-An]

MAM-A/MAM-E discs have a Mitsui ATIP but MAM is hardly Mitsui. Mitsui stopped CD-R manufacturing a few years back.

[lordsmurf]

pthalocyanine

Which is cyanine-based.

[Edmund Blackadder]

RITEK is often heralded as the worst CD-R ever made.

I'm sorry, but I strongly disagree. I've been using Ritek CD-R's since 1999, mostly rebranded as either TDK or Memorex, both cyanine and phthalocyanine and there was not a single Ritek CD-R since 1999 that went bad on its own. They still all play and scan great. I still have some TDK cyanine 16x Riteks left and they burn and scan just as good as TY CD-R's. Even KProbe gives those Riteks the A+ database rating. Of course there were some that got scratched, etc., but that's just wear and tear. Those Riteks that were stored properly are in perfect shape.

On the other hand I wasn't so lucky with many phthalocyanine ProDiscs and early (year 1999 batch) cyanine CMC's. Those early CMC's were flaking like crazy, but at least you could see the destruction, so if you were fast enough, there was a chance to rescue them. As for ProDisc, those simply started having audio data corrupted towards the outer edge of the discs, while maintaining a perfect appearance. Now, that is alarming. I'd say at least 40% of my ProDiscs from a few years back developed that desease. They were also bought at different times and labeled under different brands, so it's not just one batch.

Nowadays, I mostly buy either Maxell golden (TY's) from Sam's Club, Sony (Sony) or TDK (Ritek or CMC). It's interesting that TDK's sold in Europe (at least in Ukraine) still often have TDK media code and at times you still see new cyanine TDK's from there. Perhaps they are being made at the TDK's Luxembourg factury for Europe, I don't really know. I like Verbatim's AZO CD-R's too, but they are increasingly difficult to find in retail in the US, especially in spindles.

Quality issues aside, readability-wise, you have a better chance of playback on marginal devices (such as some early DVD players) of cyanine or AZO CD-R's. I remember taking some CD-R's to check on one of the late 90's Sony DVD player, which was known to have never been able to play CD-R's. Only CD-RW's or pressed CD's would play OK. Well, that's true for all the phthalocyanine CD-R's I tried on that player. However, once I put a cyanine CD-R in it, it recognized it and played it in its entirety without a hitch. Burning speed was not an issue, because I almost never burn CD's at higher than 12x and actually prefer 4x (or even 1x and 2x on my old HP 7200E burner) for the most critical recordings. So it seems obvious, at least to myself, that cyanine has a better readability. Even my Pioneer DV-535 DVD player, while not having any difficulties reading quality phthalocyanine CD-R's, oftentimes makes funny chocking sounds (laser lens unsuccessfully trying to focus for a moment) when it's getting ready to play the first track, though it plays OK after it "chokes" for a millisecond. It has never made those sounds with a darker dye cyanine or AZO CD-R's.

Another example is my few years old Sony D-EJ815 fine and reliable Discman. The only things it never really liked were the phthalocyanine CD-R's . It would often mistrack on them and start doing weird noises until the buffer empties and nothing is left to play until the tracking was restored (on the stable surface, mind you). Again, those phthalocyanines were of different brands, burned on different burners, with mostly the same result. However, cyanine or AZO CD-R's never gave any trouble to that Discman.

All these experiences lead me to believe that darker dye CD-R's have a much better readability, especially in older or pickier devices.

[lordsmurf]

All these experiences lead me to believe that darker dye CD-R's have a much better readability, especially in older or pickier devices.

That is true ... but the "color" aspect is a coincidence. It was just how the dye was made. The color had nothing to do with it, it just happened to be darker and more saturated in color.

It's sort of like the "made in Japan" rule. It's other reasons that a disc is good, the geography really has no bearing on discs. It just so happens to be a place where QC is better.

[hech54]

I bought a 25 pack of Philips CD-R's....WOW what CRAP. I'll stick to my Sony 700mb's and my TDK 800mb's.

So is there a reliable program that tells you(me) the manufacturer of CD-R's?

[ROF]

I've never since the beginning of CD burning have a end result disc not play in any device designed to play burnt CDs. I'd say the good media is the one that offers what you want(printable, lightscribe, T@2, silver, white, gold) at a price you can afford.

[garryheather]

No problems with Ritek CD-R's here, either.

The best CD-R's I've ever discovered were type 8... wait for it... PRINCO !!

OK, their DVD's are variable, but their CD's played back in everything, including my ageing Sony 535 DVD player that hates anything CD-R. Unfortunately you can't get them in the UK any more due to a licensing argument with Philips about the use of the CD standards, but if anyone knows different please let me know as I really want more of these little babies (they were shipped under the Adonics brand more recently, but they've gone the same way).

[piano632]

So is there a reliable program that tells you(me) the manufacturer of CD-R's?

Feurio! tells you manufacturer and dye type when you go to "Burn project" (my favorite burning program, but definitely not for beginners).

http://www.feurio.com/English/index.shtml

[Bodysurf]

MAM-A/MAM-E discs have a Mitsui ATIP but MAM is hardly Mitsui. Mitsui stopped CD-R manufacturing a few years back.

Which is fine with me because Mitsui SILVER CDRs totally suck. I've had dozens of them go bad on me with the reflective layer actually developing holes and flaking off.

Mitsui GOLDs were some of the best CDRs I have ever used, but the SILVER ones I wouldn't use for anything important if you gave them to me for free.

[lenti_75]

I've never since the beginning of CD burning have a end result disc not play in any device designed to play burnt CDs. I'd say the good media is the one that offers what you want(printable, lightscribe, T@2, silver, white, gold) at a price you can afford.

I guess you got good discs then....

NERO cd-dvd speed tells you the code of the media

the best is tayio yuden code.
sony is good also

tdk is good, but not those with cmc code, those are the worst discs you could find. probably 25 out of 50 were bad for me.

[SCDVD]

You will hear all sorts of falderall from the hackers and old wives but here's the rub on CDR dyes. There are three.

Cyanine - Developed by Taiyo Yuden, it was the first dye used on CDR Media. It is blue in color. It is slightly more sensitive to damage from bright light such as sunlight than the next dye:

Phthalocyanine, which was developed by Mitsui with the objective of improving dye stability when exposed to strong light.

The third dye is AZO, which was developed by Verbatim (Mitsubishi). Unlike cyanine and phthalocyanine which are organic dyes, AZO is a metal chelate.

But there is more to it than that. The media manufacturers add stabilizers and quenchers (metal dithiochelates, benzenaminium salts, etc.) to stabalize the dye and improve recording characteristics etc.

All three types of dye work well. Each company's formulation is their own special snake oil. The most important thing is to buy a recognizable brand name media. You can buy good or bad media made with any of these dye types. Buy the quality brand, not the dye type.

[hech54]

So is there a reliable program that tells you(me) the manufacturer of CD-R's?

Feurio! tells you manufacturer and dye type when you go to "Burn project" (my favorite burning program, but definitely not for beginners).

http://www.feurio.com/English/index.shtml

Thank You....I'll give it a shot. I've got some OLD CD-R's here that were completely bulletproof and have been trying to find out who made them. They were the "house brand" of a local retailer and were completely naked.

[Super Warrior]

The "best" dvd media is always being discussed in this forum, but I don't hear much about cd-r media. I was wondering what the good brands/codes to buy are right now. I'm interested in using these to burn audo cds.

Memorex CD-R media was always good stuff. My current CD-R discs are by Ritek though,they are nice quality.

Speaking of Ritek,they are a nice quality DVD-R brand too

[hech54]

Well I downloaded Nero CD-DVD Speed and these are the best CD-R's Ive ever used:
Nero CD-DVD Speed: Disc Info
Basic Information
Disc type: : CD-R
Manufacturer: : Multi Media Masters & Machinary
MID : 97m28s26f
Write speeds: : 4 X - 8 X - 16 X - 24 X
Capacity: : 74:30.00
: 654 MB
Extended Information
Usage : General
Disc Status : Closed
Raw Data
ATIP
0000 - E0 00 80 00 61 1C 1A 00 4A 1E 00 00 00 00 00 00 - ....a...J.......
0010 - 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 - ........

WTF?!?....I've never heard of them.

[taboo]

I have tried several.
My favorite MITSUI.

They sound "juicy"