IDE CD-RW Drives Roundup (Part XI)

12x Models

Although many CD-RW manufacturers are phasing out production of 12X recorders these devices are quite popular thanks to a good price/functions ratio. It is interesting that there are a lot of users who prefer low-speed recorders at a moderate price. They are mostly the people who deal in recording of audio discs and who are sure that, for example, at 2X recording speed the quality of a sound is better than at 4x.

With this in mind we decided to carry out comparison tests of 12x CD-RW drives which haven't been examined before. Below are links to the drives where you can find out their functionality and accessories.

NEC NR-7700

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

MSI MS-8312

TDK VorteX 121032

Combo-drives, which combine DVD-ROM and CD-RW functions, are not of less interest. The most popular models on our market are solutions from Ricoh and Samsung. HP has also debuted in this sphere. The HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900 is a 12x recorder (12/10/32) and an 8x DVD-ROM drive. (Hence the speed formula: 12/10/32/8 or 12/10/32+8.) Its DVD functions will be considered separately.

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900

Test results

Apart from the CD-ROM Teac 540E, for the performance estimation in reading operations we chose the TEAC CD-W512EB.

CDWinBench 99 CD-ROM Transfer Rate

Almost all CD-RW drives perform equally. It is only the NEC and HP which go ahead, and the MSI which falls a bit behind.

The picture is the same, though the advantage of the HP 9900i has become lower.

CPU utilization in CD-ROM Transfer Rate tests:

Both leaders are again ahead. The golden mean is the TEAC CD-W512EB which outscores the CD-ROM TEAC.

CDWinBench 99 CD-ROM Access Time

The HP 9900i outdoes even the CD-ROM TEAC and is only a bit behind the leader TEAC CD-W512EB. The Memorex and MSI are the last to reach the finish. The NEC - a former leader - takes a middle place.

CDWinBench 99 CPU Utilization

In general, the modern 32x drives are loading equally the CPU.

As an intermediate resume I'd like to stress that in the CDWinbench 99 test the NEC and HP have shown an excellent efficiency. The W512EB has average results. The Memorex is, as a rule, in the end.

CD recording time

Recording of CD-R Sony CDQ-74N1 (cyanine, 16x rated speed)
12X recording speed

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	7.49
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	7.50
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	7.37
TDK VorteX	7.41
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	7.42
MSI MS-8312	7.54

The Memorex recorder is the fastest in writing the Sony's discs. It is followed by the TDK VorteX and HP 9900i. But the spread in time is not huge.

Recording of the CD-R Mirex (phthalocyanine, 12x rated speed),
12X

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	7.46
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	7.41
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	7.38
TDK VorteX	7.40
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	7.40
MSI MS-8312	7.58

The situation is similar: the Memorex thrives again.

Recording of the "noname" CD-R disc (cyanine, the rated record speed is unknown), 4X

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	20.35
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	20.21
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	20.09
TDK VorteX	20.19
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	20.21
MSI MS-8312	20.36

It is hard to explain why the NEC falls behind the Ricoh's group. Nevertheless, the NR-7700 and MS-8312 are the slowest in recording of the cyanine CD-R discs of low quality.

Time spent for full formatting of a CD-RW disc in UDF format

Philips CD-RW 4x

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	25.26
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	26.01
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	30.33
TDK VorteX	24.44
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	24.21
MSI MS-8312	26.10

Ricoh CD-RW 10x

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	13.17
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	12.16
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	17.40
TDK VorteX	12.25
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	12.58
MSI MS-8312	20.34

Unfortunately, at a high speed of CD-R recording the Memorex performs quite bad in formatting CD-RW discs. The ASUS unexpectedly comes forward in formatting 10x CD-RW Ricoh disc. Having shown good results in recording of the CD-RW (4x), the MSI falls far behind the rest in working with the high-speed CD-RW media. But you should take into account that the MS-8312 can rewrite discs only at 8x.

Recording of a CD-RW disc (UDF)

Philips CD-RW 4x

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	18.48
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	18.18
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	20.10
TDK VorteX	18.20
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	18.50
MSI MS-8312	18.20

CD-RW Ricoh 10x

CD-RW drive	Time (min.)
NEC NR-7700	8.44
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	7.58
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	10.25
TDK VorteX	8.12
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	8.06
MSI MS-8312	9.22

The TwelveMAXX has unexpectedly yielded to the 8x MSI... The ASUSTeK scores brilliant results in working with this disc.

BLER factor of recorded CD-R discs

CD-R disc, recording speed	Mirex, 12x	Sony, 12x	"noname", 4x
NEC NR-7700	4–7	11–15	400–480
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	4–8	12–15	400–470
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	5–9	45–67	700–900
TDK VorteX	3–6	10–14	380–450
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	2–5	11–16	520–610
MSI MS-8312	17–28	61–78	620–880

(for these tests we used a device described in the fifth part of our review)

Well, the TDK shows the excellent quality of recording of any type of media. The HP is very close to it as it recorded the phthalocyanine Mirex disc best of all. It is clear that the Memorex TwelveMAXX doesn't like cheap cyanine discs. The MSI's results are very close to those of the Acer CRW 1208A, but they look quite pale as compared with the others.

We are often asked on quality and performance of the NR-7700 and a CD-RW drive based on the Lite-On. That is why we decided to conduct detailed tests exactly on these drives (NEC and Memorex).

NEC NR-7700

Mirex, 12x

"noname", 4x

Sony CDQ-74N1, 12x

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

Mirex, 12x

"noname", 4x

Sony CDQ-74N1, 12x

The Memorex doesn't excel here. The quality of recording of the "noname" discs is awful. On the contrary, the NEC writes all types of discs quite good.

Nero CDSpeed

Graph of reading of the CD-R Sony CDQ-74N1 (12x writing speed)

NEC NR-7700

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

TDK VorteX

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i

MSI MS-8312

Graph of reading of the CD-R Mirex (12x writing speed)

NEC NR-7700

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

TDK VorteX

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i

MSI MS-8312

Graph of reading of the CD-R "noname" (4x writing speed)

NEC NR-7700

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

TDK VorteX

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i

MSI MS-8312

All drives read all types of media excellently, except the HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i whose graph is quite unstable. When we recorded a disc once more and tested it the figure was different:

It is obvious that these results are not satisfactory. That is why we carried out further tests with the first CD-R disc.

Test results of the recorded CD-R Sony CDQ-74N1 (12X)

	NEC NR-7700	ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	Memorex TwelveMAXX	TDK VorteX	HP 9900i	MSI MS-8312
Average	26.04x	24.74x	24.77x	24.76x	25.07x	24.81x
Random Seek	101 ms	102 ms	117 ms	95 ms	92 ms	81 ms
SpinUp Time	3.88 sec	2.60 sec	1.63 sec	2.59 sec	2.69 sec	4.41 sec
SpinDown Time	4.10 sec	3.91 sec	4.72 sec	3.34 sec	2.56 sec	1.25 sec
Disc Eject Time	1.96 sec	1.53 sec	1.47 sec	1.59 sec	2.07 sec	1.18 sec
Disc Load Time	9.68 sec	9.72 sec	2.95 sec	9.01 sec	10.90 sec	1.22 sec
Disc Recognition Time	0.04 sec	0.01 sec	9.24 sec	0.02 sec	0.01 sec	6.01 sec

Test results of the recorded CD-R Mirex (12X)

	NEC NR-7700	ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	Memorex TwelveMAXX	TDK VorteX	HP 9900i	MSI MS-8312
Average	24.87x	23.59x	23.62x	24.77x	24.71x	23.66x
Random Seek	99 ms	96 ms	125 ms	94 ms	92 ms	78 ms
SpinUp Time	3.83 sec	2.59 sec	1.70 sec	2.59 sec	3.61 sec	4.18 sec
SpinDown Time	4.05 sec	3.69 sec	1.70 sec	3.36 sec	2.66 sec	1.33 sec
Disc Eject Time	1.97 sec	1.53 sec	1.41 sec	1.58 sec	2.54 sec	1.18 sec
Disc Load Time	9.73 sec	9.93 sec	3.23 sec	9.02 sec	11.82 sec	1.22 sec
Disc Recognition Time	0.04 sec	0.01 sec	9.98 sec	0.01 sec	0.01 sec	6.15 sec

CDSpeed test results of the recorded "noname" CD-Rs

	NEC NR-7700	ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	Memorex TwelveMAXX	TDK VorteX	HP 9900i	MSI MS-8312
Average	26.02x	24.72x	24.28x	24.29x	14.57x	24.33x
Random Seek	102 ms	104 ms	117 ms	104 ms	96 ms	83 ms
SpinUp Time	3.40 sec	2.57 sec	1.61 sec	2.36 sec	3.48 sec	1.30 sec
SpinDown Time	4.09 sec	3.74 sec	4.72 sec	3.26 sec	2.63 sec	1.20 sec
Disc Eject Time	1.97 sec	1.53 sec	1.37 sec	1.59 sec	2.63 sec	1.07 sec
Disc Load Time	9.72 sec	9.81 sec	2.90 sec	9.13 sec	10.52 sec	1.22 sec
Disc Recognition Time	0.05 sec	0.01 sec	14.90 sec	0.04 sec	0.01 sec	6.22 sec

The NEC and HP turned out to be the speediest. They also have good access time results. The disc recognition time is exceptional of all discs based on the Ricoh pickup, while the MSI and Memorex are falling behind here.

CDSpeed test results of the CD-RW discs recorded in UDF

	CD-RW UDF (4x)	CD-RW UDF (10x)	CD-RW ISO (4x)
NEC NR-7700	18.35x	17.48x	22.12x
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	19.20x	19.19x	22.02x
Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032	17.16x	17.10x	20.02x
TDK VorteX	17.88x	17.70x	22.06x
HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i	18.41x	18.02x	22.16x
MSI MS-8312	14.08x	14.12x	18.94x

As you can see, it is only the MS-8312 which is much worse than the others.

CD-ROM Drive Analyzer

The HP 9900i and Memorex TwelveMAXX were tested with the earlier version of the CD Drive Analyzer (2.2.1) under the Windows 98 SE.

Graph of reading of the recorded CD-R Sony CDQ-74N1 (12X)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 98)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 2000)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 98)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 2000)

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032 (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 2000)

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 2000)

Graph of reading of the recorded CD-R Mirex (12X)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 98)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 2000)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 98)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 2000)

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032 (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 2000)

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 2000)

Graph of reading of the recorded "noname" CD-R (4X)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 98)

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 2000)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 98)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 2000)

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032 (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 2000)

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 2000)

The best graph at a high speed is shown by the MSI (Windows 98). All Ricoh based drives, except the NEC, demonstrate a saw when operating under the Win98.

Sound track extraction from audio CDs (CDDAE 99)

NEC NR-7700

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	14.2X	14.7X	20.0X
Total errors	3.22%	9.20%	0.00%

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	12.8X	10.3X	22.8X
Total errors	7.78%	5.64%	0.00%

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	8.3X	9.6X	11.5X
Total errors	0.03%	3.18%	0.00%

TDK VorteX

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	18.6x	20.2X	22.8X
Total errors	2.34%	5.02%	0.00%

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	16.9x	8.3X	22.2X
Total errors	1.84%	4.12%	0.00%

MSI MS-8312

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	10.2x	10.2X	14.4X
Total errors	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%

The MSI is obviously the best in correct data extraction. The TDK performs also good. First the HP's results looked promising as well, but a high percentage of errors at a moderate speed worsened the situation. The Memorex doesn't make many errors in grabbing, but we couldn't get more than 11.5X.

Sound track extraction from audio CDs (EAC 0.9 prebeta 11)

NEC NR-7700

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	15.8X	10.2X	15.1X

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	14.4X	10.4X	22.7X

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	6.4X	8.8X	10.9X

TDK VorteX

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	14.0X	10.6X	21.5X

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	17.0X	8.7X	22.2X

MSI MS-8312

	Piano Favorites	Acoustic Planet vol.2	Bloodhound Gang "Greatest Hits"
Average extraction speed	8.0X	8.1X	13.9X

The EAC results confirmed an excellent operation of the TDK, ASUS, NEC and HP drives in extracting audio data. The Memorex and MSI seem to be worse extractors.

Advanced DAE Test

CD-RW drive	NEC NR-7700	ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	Memorex TwelveMAXX	TDK VorteX	HP 9900i	MSI MS-8312
Offset	2620 bytes (655 samples)	268 bytes (67 samples)	2632 bytes (658 samples)	268 bytes (67 samples)	2712 bytes (678 samples)	2648 bytes (662 samples)
Sequential Read Test	Average Speed: 21.03X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0	Average Speed: 22.55X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0	Average Speed: 11.48X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0	Average Speed: 22.56X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0	Average Speed: 23.41X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0	Average Speed: 7.51X Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0
Harmonica Read Test	Average Access Time: 120 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0	Average Access Time: 154 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0	Average Access Time: 202 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0	Average Access Time: 143 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0	Average Access Time: 126 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0	Average Access Time: 405 ms Data Errors: 0 Sync Errors: 0 Total Data Errors: 0 Total Sync Errors: 0 Quality Score: 100.0
On The Fly Copying Simulation	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X OK Copying at 10 X OK Copying at 12 X OK Copying at 16 X too slow	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X OK Copying at 10 X too slow Copying at 12 X too slow Copying at 16 X too slow	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X OK Copying at 10 X OK Copying at 12 X too slow Copying at 16 X too slow	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X OK Copying at 10 X too slow Copying at 12 X too slow Copying at 16 X too slow	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X OK Copying at 10 X OK Copying at 12 X OK Copying at 16 X too slow	Copying at 1 X OK Copying at 2 X OK Copying at 4 X OK Copying at 6 X OK Copying at 8 X too slow Copying at 10 X too slow Copying at 12 X too slow Copying at 16 X too slow
CD Text	Drive is capable of reading CD Text information
Subchannel Data	Test 1 Track (01): 01 Relative position (01:05.00): 01:05.00 Absolute position (01:07.00): 01:07.00 Index (5): 5 Test 2 Track (17): 17 Relative position (01:33.00): 01:33.00 Absolute position (33:35.00): 33:35.00 Index (1): 1 Test 3 Track (36): 36 Relative position (00:00.00): 00:00.00 Absolute position (70:02.00): 70:02.00 Index (1): 1					Drive cannot read Subchannel Data directly
Leadin	Drive cannot read data from the Leadin					Drive can read max. 1 sectors (-00:00.01) from the Leadin
Leadout	Drive cannot read data from the Leadout					Drive can read max. 6750 sectors (01:30.00) from the Leadin

The detailed information on the tested parameters is given in the help file to the CDSpeed99 test program.

The best results are again achieved by the TDK, HP and ASUS. The NEC is just nudged out. Although the MSI is not able to read subchannel data, it excellently works with data in LeadIn and LeadOut. According to the Advanced DAE Test, all drives work decently with CD-Text information on an audio CD.

Overburn

CD-R	Philips Silver Premium 16x (TY)	Mirex 650 MBytes	Rostok 780 MBytes
NEC NR-7700	n/a	n/a	n/a
ASUSTeK CRW-1210R	77:06.01	77:24.55	93:52.48
Memorex TwelveMAXX	77:04.15	77:15.53	93:50.20
TDK VorteX	77:05.58	77:23.41	93:52.46
HP 9900i	77:05.38	77:23.16	n/a
MSI MS-8312	77:05.35	77:24.14	n/a

The best in overburning is the ASUS which is followed by the VorteX. The NEC is not able to fulfill overburning.

Reading of a damaged CD

NEC NR-7700 (Windows 98)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 98)

ASUSTeK CRW-1210R (Windows 2000)

Memorex TwelveMAXX 1032 (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 98)

TDK VorteX (Windows 2000)

HP cd-writer dvd combo 9900i (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 98)

MSI MS-8312 (Windows 2000)

The TDK is the best in this test: it lowered its speed in the damaged part and then raised it again. Unfortunately, we couldn't make a screenshot of how the NEC NR-7700 read a damaged disc under the Windows 2000 as the system hung when the drive discovered an error.

Conclusion and summary

12x models are now quite popular and they will continue to be such if it is not the race of the manufacturers. Unfortunately, they forget that not everybody needs a 20x or 24X model, and they don't want to have a wide line of drives (from entry-level to High-End) just because it is unprofitable.

But if you want exactly a 12x model and the bestseller TEAC CD-W512EB doesn't suit you for some reason, then take a Ricoh based drive. For example, the NEC (though in this case you must be an expert in hardware and ready for experiments with software). The ASUSTeK CRW 1210R is also a magnificent choice but it costs a fortune. TDK offers you a budget solution with an attractive price/quality ratio. Besides, its Retail package has everything you need for an immediate burning of discs. The Memorex is a compromise solution as far as quality, price and functions are concerned. But the MS-8312 belongs to the category of lovers of a particular trade mark. There is nothing that would attract you much, except maybe an operation with data in LeadIn and LeadOut.

The HP drive has proved that it has promising prospects. This model will be a good choice for those who don't want to take all possible 5.25" bays in their cases and who need to work with CD-R/RW and DVD media.

Test programs:

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