[jasonc]

Would like to make back-ups of about a third of my cd collection, what brands do people on this board prefer and also what do you think should be avoided?  I've read the black cd-r's do well.. thanks.

[bubba966]

I've had the best luck with TDK Certified Plus blanks (800+ w/no bad ones).

I've had the worst luck with Memorex blanks (80% bad).

I've not tried any black CD-R's yet, so I can't comment on them.

[JoshK]

I too have found good luck with TDK and bad luck with memorex.

[Rob Babcock]

You may want to check w/ Tyson; I believe he told me that Mitsui is the choice of the Library of Congress and it the best CD-R you can buy.  I plan to get a couple packs to try them out, and their website is very impressive.

I've used a lot of Memorex discs, like literally hundreds, and I'm finally starting to see how fragile they are.  I've had very good luck with Maxell and TDK, however.  Still I'll likely switch over to using all Mitsui if they are as good as I hear.

[mgalusha]

Oddly enough I have had zero problems with the black Memorex blanks. Quite the opposite in fact, using the Memorex black with a Yamaha CRW-F1 I get outstanding copies of my CD's.

I have had poor experiences with the older Memorex blanks. To the point ot having the coating peel off.   The TDK are very good and I've had no problems with the Imation as well.

[mgalusha]

A friend sent me a few of the Mitsui blanks to try, haven't gotten around to it yet. Maybe this weekend I can make copies from the same image on the Memorex black and the Mitsui. He included some other black CDR's with no printing on them, no idea of the brand. Perhaps a three way comparison.

I think the DAM is gathering this weekend, perhaps I can gather several opinions on which sounds the best, if there is a difference.

Mike

[jasonc]

Thanks,

Looking forward to what you thing about the Mitsui blanks.

Also, where can I purchase the TDK Certified Plus?

I ordered a spool of the Memorex blacks earlier this week.

[bubba966]

Also, where can I purchase the TDK Certified Plus?

I used to get them from Costco. Though I've still got a decent supply from a year or two ago when I stocked up.

TDK also makes black blanks. See here http://www.tdk.com/recmedia/cdr/specialty/index.html#

[Jay S]

Are your TDKs made in Japan or Taiwan?  All of the CD-Rs I've come across in Hong Kong (TDK, Memorex, Sony, etc) are all made in Taiwan.  I have heard that the Japan made CD-Rs are better.  I haven't seen Mitsui here.  

I'm planning on trying to make a few copies using the CD-RW drive of my IBM laptop.  Its not a Yamaha F1 drive but I do wonder if quality will be better than the original.  I've got a spool of Maxell CD-Rs which we've used so far for data.

[dogberry]

I've been using Memorex for a few years now and I've never had a bad one.  I like silver media over blue/green.  I've only just started using black media (also Memorex), but I'm not sure I really any difference.

[bubba966]

Are your TDKs made in Japan or Taiwan?  All of the CD-Rs I've come across in Hong Kong (TDK, Memorex, Sony, etc) are all made in Taiwan.  I have heard that the Japan made CD-Rs are better.  I haven't seen Mitsui here.

The TDK Certified Plus blanks are Japanese, but the regular TDK blanks are from Taiwan.

[Tyson]

I've used most of the commonly available ones (CDR's), and I like the black memorex ones the best.  This is in stark contrast to the "regular" silver memorex discs, which just suck, IMO - I've had more bad copies on regular silver memorex than on anything else I've used.  The black ones are very robust - not a single bad copy yet.

[ehider]

IMHO Mitsui are the best by far! I did a true double blind listening test on the following CD-R's and found that the Mitsui was sonically superior in every way;

Tested against; Memorex, TDK, Sony, Phillips, and Maxell audio Cd-R's.

It is my understanding that the majority of the differences between these discs is in the "goo" inside these blanks, which changes "states" as it is burned by the laser. Only Mitsui and Phillips had discs available that coule be placed in direct sunlight for 100 days and still maintain their data integrity. Mitsui has many unique patents on their particular "goo" and they are preferred by many industry insiders as the CD-R of choice.

I was quite surprised that these discs all sounded slightly different, but they all did have their own unique "goo". The Mitsui actually look slightly pale in color as compared to the other CD-R's. Interestingly, the second best sounding CD-R was the Phillips, which also was pale in color as compared to the other discs.

The above comparisons were made on CD-R for audio discs. It is my understanding that Mitsui's gold (for computer burners) is the "best of the best" in that venue, but I have not heard a comparison to verify that particular claim for computer based burners. It is ture though that the library of congress uses gold Mitsui exclusevely for their archiving.

Here are some other things I learned when I researched how to make great sounding CD-R's:

Always burn at the native speed of the burner. Slower speeds do not really work as well as the native speed.

Some burners allow you to make copies of copies and sometimes the second copy (of the first copy) actually will sound even better!

If you are using a computer, Plextor seems to be most consistent brand
that will always give you good sonic results, i.e Plextor seems to be the "sure thing" in computer based burners.

If you are using a computer, "re-rip" your data (to remove the inherent jitter) prior to re-assembling and sending it directly to the computer's burner. (Apparently there is software that will do this, but I cannot tell you any more than that.)

[jqp]

Where are you getting your Mitsui CDRs?

[randog]

I've gone on a rampage and started copying my whole collection to the TDK silvers I got at Costco. I was really bummed (and stoopid) to realize that my Yamaha burner with AMQR or whatever it is gives me CD's that blip on occasion both at home and in the car. I'm presently sitting in 'L' of my collection trying to decide where to go from here.

Awhile back I was considering buying a bulk pack of 500 that Mitsui is selling off for a great price (like $399?)... they are the old gold 12X. Then I got a quote from CDW for current bulk of 500 gold for $425 but they wanted over $40 for shipping which is where these places tend to make up some difference. In the end it just seemed like too much money so I gave up... and here I sit stuck in 'L'.

Randog

[Hantra]

I must disagree with the Mitsui thing.  They do not sound better in my opinion than the TDK CP's.  These are the TDK with the deep blue dyes.  The other TDK's suck.  

What I have found, since the real TDK's are hard to find now, is the Verbatim Vinyl CD-R's.  Not much more than a regular CD-R, and they have the deep blue dye that the TDK's used to use.  Plus, they have a cool vinyl looking plastic coating on top.  This not only looks cool, but it protects the data MUCH better.  Plus, for all you freaks out there, it probably has more moving mass, and blahblah.  Like putting a ringmat on a CD. . .

Anyhow, try them out. .  My buddy Scott turned me on to them. .


B

[Tyson]

I saw the vinyl looking CD's the other day at best buy, I wondered how they sounded and copied, next time I'm in, I'll pick some up - thanks for the tip!

[dogberry]

Tyson: you and I have had directly opposite experiences with the silver Memorex discs.  I've probably burned over a hundred of them and never had a bad copy.

What software are you using?  On my Mac I'm using Toast, and on my PC I'm using Nero.  What are you burning?  I either burn MP3s or if I rip something for myself, I burn WAVs.

[Tyson]

I use Nero on a fairly new Yamaha CDR burner.  Copy at 4x and do "disc at once".  The memorex's I've uese (white label on top) have been terrible for ticks and skips in my copies.

[dogberry]

Interesting.  Out of probably six different batches, I've never had one error like that.  Puzzling.