Sony DRU-810A CD write speed slower than listed

my sont dru-801a is supposed to burn CDs at 48x, but the maximum speed listed in Nero does not go beyond 32x. I have used sony media rated at 48x and tried other media as well - any reason why this is?

 

have you tried a different program just to check if possibly Nero is to blame for this? (ie, winamp, Windows Media Player, any other free CD burning software..)

also, you can verify the 'rated' speed of your burner by running a program like Everest http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4181

look under Storage>optical drives, let us know what you find

 

Sorry that should read DRU-810A not 801...

 

Thanks - I tried everest but t does not list the drive speed - Nero infotool also lists the speed at 32x. Kaula - I have read in a PC mag that the newer burners are optimized to burn at their higher speeds and that burning at a low speed on a high speed burner actually increases the risk of an error - not sure if thats true but I would like to see the option in there at least when the drive is supposed to work at 48x

 

also I noticed that after installing everest, my MSI corecenter shows a wrong reading for the cpu fan and keeps the alarm on. it shows a cpu fan speed around 200RPM, while everest shows the right speed of around 3500RPM (the bios also shows the right speed). Does this somehow interfere with the MSI application? after uninstalling it the MSI app shows the right speed.

 

Things that limit the speed of your burner:

1. Media. Slower rated media often times will not burn at the speeds you want it to.
2. Firmware. Older firmware for a device will cause the speed to not correctly calculate for some apps. I had to upgrade my DL DVD-RW right out of the box for speed issues.
3. Application. Check for upgrades.

 

Make sure you arent using a CD RW...the burner is only rated for 32x on RWs.

 

thanks guys - i am using cdr and not cdrw so thats not the problem. and i did search around on the internet and post on the customer support website and didnt get a worthwhile answer. the support site just redirected me to another site which i have not been able to get through and even wrote two paragraphs explaining why I had to contact the local support and not the global support when they could have just answered my question in a couple of lines

im also using nero 6.6 and the latest available firmware so this is weird...

 

Have you tried a different brand of media?

You might be surprised.

 

If you have Nero, then you should have CD/DVDSpeed, which you can use to verify and test your drives speed.

It's located in the Nero ToolKit.

Having said all that, it's more than likely that media is to blame, so check that first.

 

I have tried different media and the 32x limit seems to be the media problem. However, the drive still maxes out at 40x and not the advertised 48x on the box.

I got this off the manual - this really pisses me off that manufacturers can put a rating on the box and get away with this crap.

"The default CD-R and CD-ROM read/write speed of this drive is 40x speed. With a single touch, you can activate the turbo boost function to raise the read/write speed to 48x

- On rare occasions, some discs may not be able to tolerate 48x speed, causing them to break. We recommend that you do not use deeply scratched, brittle, or other discs that may break at 48x speed.

- The turbo boost function does not guarantee a 48x write speed. Depending on the condition of the disc you are using, the speed may be automatically lowered.

- The turbo boost function does not increase read/write speeds with CD-RW discs

1. Insert a disc into the drive
2. Press and hold the eject button for 5 seconds. The busy indicator blinks twice and the read/write speed switches to 48x speed. When you open the disc tray, the read/write speed reverts to the default 40x"

never seen this before!!!

 

Typical Sony BS. They did that with a CD Writer I had.

 

Sony don't even make their own drives anymore.

Most are re-badged LiteOn's that Sony write their own firmware for.

 

Yeah but I havent heard of LiteOn using the Turbo thing. Wonder if its the firmware that controls it.

 

More than likely.

I've never heard of this turbo either till now.

I had a quick look, and apparently this model uses a BenQ mechanism with a Phillips chipset.

One site marketed it as giving the users the ability to boost speed at the press of a button.

"Turbo Boost™ variable drive speed"

Only Sony (and maybe Micro$$oft or Apple) could market that.