I haven't noticed any difference in the sound of black vs silver vs gold. It seems to me the software used to burn has a much greater impact than the disc, but that's just me. I haven't tried an exhaustive 2X test of the various brands. Mostly I prefer Mitsui for the reliability- I've never had one fail where I've had problems with Memorex. Years ago I though they were good but virtually none of my early Memorex discs are still playable.