Hi i was just wondering whether if Audio CDRs are actually any different to standard CDRs? Do they have better compatibility with CD Players? Most of all, ARE THEY REALLY WORTH THE EXTRA MONEY?

From my understanding, theses discs cost more because a 'fee' is paid from their sales to the record industry - sort of like a royalty fee.

But audio-wise I haven't heard any differences. TDK apparently make some 'CD-R for audio' that are AUD $18 per disc. Bawhawhawhawhaw!! I asked one of their reps to give me one to test and report back - and he laughed too. I suspect it's a scam - but people very often believe something has to be better because it's more expensive - the way it's always been.

But also notice that CD-R74s which are audio CD spec are disappearing from the shelves, to be replaced by these 'rip-off' discs, or otherwise you have to use CD-R80s which aren't audio CD spec due to their 80min groove being too thin for audio - and thus suffer from below-par 'play reliability'. I think this has been a very intentional move by the record industry/CD-R industry etc.

But in a nutshell, strictly speaking, all CD-R74s are better for audio than CD-R80s - I have a few posts around about this, but you can start with this one here.

I've just made a stockpile of CD-R74s over time to hopefully last me til DVD-A is the everyday thing - ahh - 24/96 - quality!

Oh also, another difference from memory (tho it's been a while since I used one - CD-R 'for audio' discs have a thing called SCMS (Serial Copy Management System) built-into them which prevents standalone CD Recorders from making digital copies of a copied disc. A dated technology IMO as there are now audio-specific protections out there (Cactus Data Shield etc) - but it still hangs around ... I stand corrected if CD-R 'for audio' discs no longer use it - that would be one good thing! (But they're still a waste of time and $$$)


PS. I am an Aussie - and I understand!

No x 3 = No, No, No !!!

answer: I couldn't suggest them. A friend has one of those CD making decks and some of the disks he's made for me were done using audio CD media -- and they DO NOT PLAY on the CD ROM of a computer, only on audio equipment. Which might not be an imposition for some people but if you like listening to music through your computer speakers (or in my case, while at work so the computer is the only player available) you could be in for a sad surprise. Stick to data media, it's cheaper and more versatile.

these audio cdr's are for use in stand alone burners...not pc burners

and yes the official lenght of a cd is 74 min.......some old players only like 74 not 80 min and so on

There is NO difference between audio-cdr and 'normal' cdr, (besides a small flag in the ATIP information stating it is a audio-cdr). Those cdr's are more expensive because of the included fee for your local copyright organisation.

I heard that if you like to burn slowly 2x-4x it's better to use(even on computers) the audio discs because most home recorders are slow and the cdr-music discs are prepared for this..Is there ANY truth to this? Some say the high speed discs 40x-48x etc. may not burn well at 4x. Is this fact or opinion?
Thanks, Joelmon

It is an opinion. The only glimpse of fact we have is the jitter measurments of CDRinfo : a bit worse at 1x than at any other speed, on high speed certified media+high speed burners http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Arti...Tests&Series=0

SCMS is not included in audio CDRs, but in consumer standalone audio CD burners (and in SB live cards !).

That's wrong, in a CD player accepting 80 minutes CDs (a good part of official CDs are more than 74 minutes), a good 80 minutes one is better than a bad 74 minutes one.

Look at the table of max reported speeds : http://www.cdrlabs.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=6005 , both 74 and 80 minutes CD fail. You can easily find cases where a 80 min CD performs better than a 74 one.

Last, 80 minutes CDR are ok with the standards. It is the older CD players that are no more. Here is a quote from Roxio, february 2001.

@ Nebuchadnezzar

Thanks for your suggestions, and i also read your 2nd post that you have linked to. I will try using 74min TDKs which are the original Made In Japan high quality ones although they are for data. I have tried to gold off using them, since they were the last ones to be made in Japan (which have a higher quality than Taiwan OEM produced and relabeled ones)

Problem is, as with many other people is CAR CD PLAYERS!! To be honest, they pi$$ me off. I have tried numerous times to compile a mix cd for the Honda CRV that we have on the stock cd player. Most of the times i have to burn my compilations multiple times to see which actually work in the car. Some compilations will not allow you to skip tracks, some tracks may not play, or some will play halfway, then skip to th next track if it hasnt already spitted out the cd. I even considered buying AUDIO cdrs at one stage, but then thought even if it do stuff up several standard data discs, the cost would still not be clse to an audio cdr.

I always burn my compilations using Nero at 8x, and i test the result in my pc and i always find no problems!

Does the write method of nero have anything to do with it? What should i use? DAO, TAO etc??

x 4 or are we up to 5, 6 or more.

Yes - but that's obvious based on the variables you present in your example - other factors like brand, burn-speed/errors, as well as player, are of course factors in this - but do an audio CD-R test with a good brand, well-burnt (lower-speed) CD-R74 and CD-R80, and take both and play them in 20 different CD players (hi-fi, car, CD-ROM, portable etc), and then look at the results - I will take an educated guess and say that the CD-R74 will be compatible with at least 18/20, whereas the CD-R80 will be noticeably less than that. Try it. I have had so many practical experiences of this, that this is why I make my statement - it's not from any report - it's from years of making music and putting it on CDs, as well as speaking with many people about their own audio CD burning practices and experiences.
Yes standards have been revised due to newer technology, and I have always stated that recent players, particularly CD-ROMs and DVD-Players, can handle audio burnt on 80min CD-Rs problem-free - but since this standard is not applicable 'across the board' in all audio situations (even Roxio mention this with their recommendation to 'To be safe, stick with 74-minute blanks unless you really need those six extra minutes'), it's really not a good 'standard' then, is it? That is why I say what I do, as there is no 100% acknowledgement that CD-R80s are 100% compatible with audio players. Too many CD-R80s fail in too many audio situations, so I do not regard them as 'up-to-audio-standard', and I will not recommend them til they work for audio on-par with 74s. OK - they're termed 'audio spec', but in practice (where it all matters), they're not.

I guess experimenting is the way to the solution! In my case, crap 80-min cds written at high speed (40sp) do play fine in my 2_year_old car cdplayer...