Three (related) questions for the price of one today.
- "I've recently started burning my own audio CDs and have heard several people say that they get the best sound quality from burning at 2x speed, that there is a slight deterioration at 4x and 6x. Assuming the disk is written successfully, wouldn't the digital data be identical regardless of the speed at which it is burned, thereby audibly indistinguishable?"
Common sense tells you it would, but experience has proven otherwise. Discs can be burned with many errors (of varying types) and still qualify as a "successful" burn. Sound quality can be effected, but the most apparent difference between burn speeds relates to disc reliability across many different playback machines. Our experience has shown that 2x is often the most effective overall burn speed. This has been covered in more detail in past issues of inSync (don't forget to check those TTOTD archives).
- "I have also heard people say that gold-colored CDs sound different from silver-colored by the same manufacturer, thus the difference in price. I understand that there might be differences in durability and longevity, but again, data is data, is it not? How can one new, high grade, error-free disk possibly sound different from another?"
Error Free? They all have errors, and that can have a lot to do with it. Gold and silver do not even have the same reflectivity so the way in which they are read can be different from the start. Sound quality differences based on CD dye formulation tend to be pretty subjective so watch out for people making big, definitive claims here. Blank CDR discs aren't really blank technically. They do have a formatting to them that can also affect performance in various machines. There are many other subtle variables as well. I wish we could just say CD is CD so go make yours and you'll be okay, but there is more to it than that (again covered in past issues of TTOTD). We always suggest you find out what media is recommended by the manufacturer of your burner and then experiment from there. But beware that what works best on your burner may not work well on another burner.
- "How can I tell if my CDs are in compliance with "red book" standards?"
If it plays on many CD players it's probably in basic compliance. A sure way to be positive is to send a CD to a pressing plant to have it duplicated. They will usually tell you if the disc has problems. Some plants are savvy enough to work around minor problems so if you really want to know how good your data was just ask them to tell you. I'm not aware of any way to reliably and completely "test" discs for red-book compliance at home. If anyone is, please let us know.
