Is Using CD-R's Harmful To Classic Systems?

[norkusa]

Got a few classic CD-bassed systems that don't play much (CD-i, 3DO) mostly because I don't have many games for them. I was going download some games but was wondering if using cd-r's on these systems can damage them.

I don't know much on the subject but I remember reading something on DP from a big LaserActive collector saying it's bad to use them on that system. Wondering if the same applied to other cd-based systems.

I figure using crappy media wouldn't be good for the system, but would using top quality stuff like Verbatim and Taiyo Yuden make a difference? Or is using any kind of cd-r bad?

[Towlie2110]

Cd-r's will not damage the system. More likely the system will damage the cd-r, but it's a cheap cd-r who cares.

You can burn freely and play freely with no worries

[ProgrammingAce]

Depends on the system and how the drive firmware is designed.

The laser in a cd/dvd drive is only rated for a certan number of hours. It'll eventually burn out. Depending on the quality of the media, if the disc is hard to read, the drive firmware may up the voltage on the laser lense. That'll decrease the life of the laser in general.

So it really depends on how the system was designed. Personally, i wouldn't worry about it too much.

[norkusa]

Cd-r's will not damage the system. More likely the system will damage the cd-r, but it's a cheap cd-r who cares.

You can burn freely and play freely with no worries

Is that really true? I just got my PS2 modded and noticed that after a while, the system would have problems reading certain brands of dvd-r media. When I switched to the good stuff though, those problems went away.

The general belief in the PS2 mod community is that your PS2's laser will crap out after a while if you use cheap media to burn your games on (which is true from what I've read). I just wasn't sure if it applied to older systems like SegaCD and 3DO though.

[c0ldb33r]

The general belief in the PS2 mod community is that your PS2's laser will crap out after a while if you use cheap media to burn your games on (which is true from what I've read). I just wasn't sure if it applied to older systems like SegaCD and 3DO though.

With the PS2 - just stick a hard drive in it - with HDDLoader, you've got no worries about your laser

[CosmicMonkey]

Yeah, this has sort of bothered me. I have Space Fantasy Zone on a CD-R. I've only had a couple of quick goes because I was worried about caining the CD drive on the Duo-R.

[ProgrammingAce]

Depends on how the system was designed... like xbox, for example, doesn't have this problem (the xbox laser sucks for completely different reasons). The xbox will slow down the speed of the spinning motor if it has a hard time reading data.

As for the ps2, it definately turns up the voltage if it has a hard time reading a disc. The ps2 has no safty limit on the laser lense voltage, which basicly means if you put in a dirty disc (or a cheap burned disc) it can destroy the laser with high voltage off the single bad disc.

off hand, i'm not sure how those systems in particular handle poor data reads...

[scooby105]

burn the cd-rs at the lowest speed possible. 1x is the way to go, but if your drive can't burn that slow, burn at 4x.

[shadowkn55]

Depends on how the system was designed... like xbox, for example, doesn't have this problem (the xbox laser sucks for completely different reasons). The xbox will slow down the speed of the spinning motor if it has a hard time reading data.

As for the ps2, it definitely turns up the voltage if it has a hard time reading a disc. The ps2 has no safty limit on the laser lense voltage, which basicly means if you put in a dirty disc (or a cheap burned disc) it can destroy the laser with high voltage off the single bad disc.

off hand, i'm not sure how those systems in particular handle poor data reads...

Wnile the part about the ps2 the upping the voltage is true, the ps2 does have built in laser lens voltage protection. It is provided by the BA chip in versions up to 7. Version 1-4 have laser problems not related to voltage. Versions 9 and 10 had the BA chip removed for cost cutting reasons which is why the Romeo mod was introduced for V9/10 models that are modchipped. It prevents the laser coil voltage from going too high when reading poor quality media. The v12 slim ps2 was infamously known for bad laser problems. The comsoft v4 was created to fix this laser problem and shuts down the ps2 when the volts get too high. In v13 and above ps2s, Sony added laser protection circuitry to fix this problem. If you are looking to get a ps2, get a v5/7 (fat model) or a v13+ (slim). The v12 is fine if you get the laser fix.

v5 = SCPH 3000x-R
v7 = SCPH 3900x
v12 = SCPH 7000x (with modem)
v13 = SCPH 7000x (without modem)
v14+ = SCPH 75001

To sum it up, use high quality media if you care about your laser. It's easier to read and less prone to problems down the road. I stick with 8x for dvd-r and 16x for cd-r burning. Not a problem for me. I exclusively use Fujifilm media. The media code for cd-r is Taiyo Yuden and dvd-r is Prodisc for the people that like to buy unbranded media.

[ProgrammingAce]

@shadowkn55: Yes, everything you said is true, just far more detail then i was about to go into.

[Richter Belmount]

yeah watch if you have bad burns on pc engine.

[fishsandwich]

burn the cd-rs at the lowest speed possible. 1x is the way to go, but if your drive can't burn that slow, burn at 4x.

This is so, so true. BURN CDR's AT THE SLOWEST POSSIBLE SPEED.

I burned a bunch of games for my CD32 (early CD system) and just burned them at the normal (highest possible) speed.

The games took FOREVER to load if they would load at all. The CD drive just worked and clicked and spun away. Got me worried.

Then I burned a bunch of games at the SLOWEST possible speed and most of them loaded up MUCH quicker. Some of the games that hadn't been able to run started working.

It does make a differance... don't make those older CD drives work harder than they have to!

[vulcanjedi]

Hey

I keep an old CD burner in one of my machines just to burn games for my SegaCD. I have found that even if I slow my main burner down to 2x it still doesn't do as good of a job as my 6 year old creative does. So I would also recommend using as old of a CD burner as you can get.

vj

[c0ldb33r]

My DVD burner will only burn at 4x - is there any way to slow it down further?

I think I've got an old cd burner with a maximum 8x burn speed, I betcha that'll be able to slow down further I'll have to dig it out and install it in my PC.

[googlefest1]

i think it may depend on the media

my dvd burner options change with the media

most 8X media it will offer me 4X - 8X - if i change to slower i can get the 2x-4x options and then even slower media (like the samsung beall 1X ) 1X-2X

[rbudrick]

I've heard the Duo and other PCE/TG16 drives are famous for burning out when using CD-Rs.

-Rob

[itobandito]

What do you guys recommend for CDRs and DVDR's I have been usinig Verbatiums for both. I heard those are good, any insight on that?

[norkusa]

What do you guys recommend for CDRs and DVDR's I have been usinig Verbatiums for both. I heard those are good, any insight on that?

Taiyo Yuden is supposed to be the best from what I've read. Don't think any major retail stores carry them though, so you'd have to order them online. Verbatim is the next best and I think that they may actually use Taiyo Yuden's as their own but I'm not sure about that.

I used to think Sony dvd-r's were top of the line because they were so expensive and I used a bunch on my modded PS2 without any problems. Then I bought a 100 pack of them and now every game I've burned with them runs poorly and skips a lot during the cinematic scenes. So now I just stick to Verbatim and haven't had any problems with those yet.

[chaoticjelly]

Most classic systems which use CD's have common lasers.. so I wouldnt worry too much.. worse comes to worse, just order a new pickup..

[Ed Oscuro]

worse comes to worse, just order a new pickup..

Is that even feasible for something like a handheld CD-i system? I'm curious to know.