detail information

Test machine:

For this review we will be using a computer with the following configuration:

Hardware:

• Motherboard: ABIT NF7 with Nvidia nForce2 nForce MCP chipset.
• Processor: AMD Athlon XP 2100+ (TBRED-A) 266 MHz FSB.
• RAM: 512 MB Samsung PC2700 DDR
• GFX: ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
• Sound: Nvidia nForce Audio
• Hard disk: 2 Western Digital 80GB SE on a RAID 0 stripe.

System set-up:

The Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2 is connected as Secondary Slave and identifies itself as Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2. DMA (Direct Memory Access) and autorun was enabled for all devices.

Software:

Windows XP Professional is installed on the computer along with Service Pack 1. We will be using the following software in this review:

•   Ahead Nero Burning ROM version 6.6.0.8
• Ahead Nero CD/DVD Speed v3.75
• Ahead Nero Info Tool v3.00
•  DVD-Identifier 3.6.2
•  Exact Audio Copy v0.95 pre-beta 3
•  K-Probe v2.4.2

Now it's time to take a closer look at the writing technology used by the Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2:

CD-Recordable:

The Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2 uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity), to write at its maximum rated speed of 48X it even exceeded 48x to finish this disc at close to 50x. This gave an average speed of 37.52x. For comparison, the results from two other drives are found below.

The Samsung TS-E552U uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write at its rated speed of 40x. This gives an average speed of 34.39x.Two drives for comparison are found below.

The LG GSA-5160D uses Z-CLV, (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity), to write at its maximum speed of 40X. The drive wrote the last zone at 40.41X and this gives an average speed of 31.70x.

  For comparison we have made the following table:

As we can see from the table, the Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2 came in as the fastest CD-R writer.

CD-Rewritable:

Unfortunately, our Ultra Speed Verbatim 32X CD-RW discs could only be written at 16X with the Memorex DVD16+/-DL4RWlD2. The Memorex drive used CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) writing technology to write these ultra speed CD-RW discs at 16x**. The average speed is 16.03x.

**Maximum specification for this drive is actually 24x, however it could only burn our Verbatim 32x CD-RW at 16x.

Below are some other drives for comparison:

The LG GSA-5160D uses Z-CLV, (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity), to write at its rated speed of 24x, this gives an average speed of 23.31x.

The LaCie d2 DVD±RW Double Layer uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) writing technology to write at 16X for CD-RW discs, the average speed is 16x. For a better overview we present the following comparison table:

The Memorex drive is one of the slowest CD-RW burners in this list because it did not support writing to our 32x Verbatim CD-RW at full 24x speed.

16X DVD+R / 16x DVD-R Writing Speed:

The Memorex DVD+/-DL4RWlD2 uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x. The average speed is 11.97x and total writing time is 5 minutes and 53 seconds.

The Memorex DVD+/-DL4RWlD2 uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD-R at 16x. The average speed is 12.00x and total writing time is 6 minutes and 09 seconds. Below are the results from some other drives for comparison:

The LG GSA-5160D uses Z-CLV, (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x. The average speed is 11.60x and total writing time is 6 minutes and 12 seconds.

The LG GSA-4163B uses P-CAV, (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD-R at 16x. The average speed is 12.90x and total writing time is 5 minutes and 20 seconds.

The Samsung TS-H552B uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x. The average speed is 12.03x and total writing time is 5 minutes and 58 seconds. Below, we made a comparison table:

*Actual writing speed was 12X in these areas for the Pioneer A08.

** Actual writing speed was max 14x due to USB-Bridge limitations.

From the table above, we can see that the Memorex DVD+/-DL4RWlD2 performed average on DVD+R at 16x.

Features and techniques:

Book type (bitsetting):

According to our information, the Memorex DVD+/-DL4RWlD2 should support bitsetting. We found that the drive burns DVD+R DL discs with a DVD-ROM book type by default. DVD+R discs are burned with a DVD+R book type by default. Fortunately, Memorex allows you to choose what book type you would like to use on a DVD+R disc through the use of CD-DVD Speeds' bitsetting utility. We recommend using the DVD-ROM booktype on all of your DVD+R and DVD+R DL discs because it will increase the discs' compatibility with standalone DVD players. Memorex gets a big plus for supporting this feature. You can download CD-DVD Speed at http://www.cdspeed2000.com/

We found it very easy to change the booktype with this tool.

We tested this functionality by burning a DVD+R disc afterwards. We found that the drive was able to write the DVD-ROM book type without any problems.

Quality Scans:

The Memorex DVD+/-DL4RWlD2 drive is based on the Lite-On SOHW-1673S, therefore it can be used to scan your discs for burn quality. This feature is useful because it allows you to determine what media works best with your drive and also give you an impression of the quality or state of the burned disc. We used Kprobe 2.4.2 to do a BLER test of a RITEKW04 DVD-RW disc.

This type of testing is also supported in Nero CD-DVD Speed by launching the Disc Quality Test from the "Extra" drop-down menu.

 Included software:

Now it's time to look at the included software and to comment if needed. Note that we may not use the included software in our performance testing for this review.

Nero OEM suite:

With Ahead Software's Nero Memorex Suite, creating DVDs and CDs is a snap. This suite includes:

• Nero Express 6                       
• Nero Vision Express 2
• Nero Showtime
• Nero Cover-Designer
• PhotoShow Elite
• Nero InCD
• Nero BackITup
• Nero Recode 2
• Nero Tool Kit

This is one of our preferred writing program suites, and thus Memorex gets a plus in our book for including it. We can also see that Nero has created a custom Memorex splash screen for the Nero software installation.

Now that we have finished examining the drive and its writing strategies, it's time to head on to next page, which is reading performance test…