In ancient days, writing speed was not a problem. The first burners wrote at 1x and the media obliged. As higher speeds became available, it gradually became clear that the best blanks for writing at 1x were not necessarily the best for "high speeds" such as 2x, 4x, even (wow! Ferraris!!) 6x. In fact, each formulation is optimized for a specific speed and maintains quality for a range of write speeds above and below that. Higher is not better - at least, not in the sense that it will write better at low speed than a blank made for lower speed.
As we have moved to ever-faster drives and media, we have lost the ability to write at low speed. That's seldom a problem; the usual reason one wants to write slowly is to write better, for example so that the disc will play in a reluctant reader. However, there are times when one does want to write at 1x. For example, if you need to capture audio in real time. (If you want to capture as data, then you can use packet writing.) That simply cannot be done with most available blanks. Fortunately, there is a solution. Standalone recorders are designed for real-time audio writing, so the media destined for them (and bearing the Digital Audio logo) will record at 1x. Of course, you need a drive which will write at that speed, and they are also becoming less common as max speeds rise. And, of course, you will have to pay the royaty premium for the "Digital Audio" blanks.
It is worth noting that the highest constant write speed on the market now (September 2002) is 16x. All faster drives begin at about 16x and offer higher speeds only as they approach the end of the disc. So a "40x" blank must write well at speeds from 16x to 40x, which imposes quite a demand on the formulation. In my own tests, I've found that such a blank gives poor results if written at 8x or below - but YMMV, Your Mileage May Vary, which is the bottom line for all the questions about speed of recording media. "Can I use 8x blanks in my 24x writer?" Yes, if they work well in your drive. "Can I use 32x blanks in my 12x writer?" Yes, if they work well in your drive. "These 16x blanks work well in my faster drive, but those don't - why?" Because they don't write well at the higher speed.
The situation with erasable media is a little more complicated, but there is a saving grace, a logo. Rather, it is a line on the logo of your drive - on the right side, reading bottom to top. A drive designed for high-speed erasable media will read "High Speed". The reason that this is so important is that the alloy used to record information is different for High Speed writing (4x and above) from that used for low speeds (4x and below). If you use the wrong kind of blank for your drive even at 4x, you may not write at all; you may write but it won't read back; or you may write but it fades away in a short time. You are welcome to try, but be aware that the odds are very much against you.
From the Philips licensing site:
News June 30, 2002
Orange book Part III CD-RW Volume 3, Ultra Speed tentative version 0.9, dated: June 2002.Released for distribution: tentative version of Part III CD-RW Volume 3, Ultra Speed. This book describing CD-RW discs with recording speeds in the range 8x up to 24x or 32x nominal CD speed.
Which, being interpreted, means that there will be a new class of erasable medium which cannot be written at a speed lower than 8x and which will demand yet another burn strategy from the drive. Note that where the original (Part I) media and High Speed (Part II) overlap only at 4x, High Speed and Ultra Speed (Part III) will overlap at several speeds, increasing confusion as well as efficiency.
E-mail me at cdrecording@mrichter.com
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