Hello everyone.

As many of you are probably well aware, the Toshiba SD-R**** series of drives present in our notebooks are very sensitive to the CD-R media used. One media brand may burn at full speed (start slow but accelerate to maximum speed by the end, like it should), while another may burn slow all the way through (constant ~8x). I have decided to start a compatibility list on my SAGER-dedicated info page (http://sager.mikhailmarkin.com) to aid others in finding fast-burning media. Here is the link:

Toshiba SD-R2512: 24X+ CD-R Media Compatibility List [ Last Updated: July 24, 2004 ]

As this list currently contains only media that I have personally used, please contribute your observations by Private Messaging me or sending me an e-mail. Please state the name of the brand (+ product name if needed), the rated speed of the media, the capacity of the media and wether or not it burnt full-speed or not.

Thanks and enjoy!

Mikhail

Tested Imation 48x rated media, max burn was 8x then 12x then 16x near the end.. It was constant for various periods (checked using Alcohol 120%), and would then dip down and back up to the next speed for a while... In contrast my 48 Liteon burner starts at around 20x, and moves up to 40x by the end in a line...

Yeah, thats how our drives do it - in stages. On some media you could even see the "steps" on the written side.

Thats an interesting result with the Imation media, though. Do you have the 24x R2512, or an older Toshiba model? Just want to make sure before adding the results to the list.

Mikhail

I just got my 5680 like a month ago... How can I tell what drive I got specifically? Memorex Black 48x rated CDs WILL NOT WORK at all. They won't recognize, or burn... Not sure why :/ My drive is supposedly a 24xCDRW/DVD drive..

Under XP, right click My Computer, Select 'Manage', Select 'Device Manager' on the left pane of the new window and click the plus beside 'DVD/CD0ROM drives' on the right pane. That should show a list of devices you have (physical or virtual); you drive will be among those.

Mikhail

Hmm, looks like I have the Toshiba DVD-ROM SD-R2412... a model lower than what you say you use. Odd because this thing is like brand new :/ Also I find 50% of my CD burns FAIL at some point resulting in a coaster. The only error reported is a "Fixation Error" From nero, or an unspecified error from WinXP's built in burning. So far alcohol 120% hasn't failed..but then again I've only done 2 CDs with it. Will report back when I have more time.

Hmm. The Nero thing is odd. Have you tried simulating the burns? I never physically burn unless I have to - simulating is pretty much exactly the same as burning, except the laser doesnt touch the disk. Let us know if you do some more testing.

Mikhail

No, I had to burn things thats why I wasn't simulating :P It appears to just happen at times regardless of what/how I am burning. I will be getting some Fujifilm like they recommend soon and seeing if thats any better. Hopefully it is!

I also have the SD-R2412 model and I bought mine in December. Is this the correct model? And is the combatibility the same?

I suspect they are very similar, if not identical. As far as I know, my compatibility list should still apply.

I'm about to order a 100pack of Taiyo Yudens, which I believe are the best CDRs you can get. When the cd burner on my desktop started it's slow death cycle, it burned these fine right up until the end while lesser brands invariably became coasters. I will be very upset if the cdrw in the 5690 chokes on them.

BTW does anyone know if the black memorex cdrs work nicely with this drive? [edit] i see they do not. they didnt work on my desktop either.

Added an entry for RiDATA 700MB OEM spindle CDs (100 pcs). Look high quality and burn well! Plus, theyre pretty darn cheap.

Are these the one with the @ Label?

No. The CD stack is covered with a red plastic wrapping with RiDATA, its logo (looks like an & symbol) and slogan ('always right....') printed all over in white. The CDs themselves have no printing (just a grip-like surface like FujiFilm CDs) and just have some IDs and the RiDATA symbol on the inside ring.