More CDR woes…
“The CD-R’s I burn don’t start immediately in my car or home stereo like mass-manufactured discs do – sometimes they take up to a minute to track correctly, or won’t track at all. What’s the problem here?”
This is just another symptom of a burned disc not being fully compatible with the machine trying to play it. As we’ve stated before any CDR burning difficulties can be attributed to one of five things: the media, the player, the recording software, the recording hardware, or pilot error. By far most of the problems we see are media related. The more intermittent or “strange” the problem seems to be the more likely it is media. At least this has been our experience, and we have a LOT of experience given how much of this stuff we sell. Try different media. We’ve done several Tech Tips in the past about different media so if you want to know a little more about that, feel free to search the inSync archives. You may have to try many different types of media before you find the ideal companion to your system.
If you can prove it isn’t the media then you should look at your burner and/or the software you are using. In general, CD players tend to do much better with discs that correspond more tightly to Red Book specifications and are written as disc at once sessions (as opposed to multi-session). The Red Book specifications are pretty deep and there’s no point in trying to learn all that minutiae unless you have a real interest in it, but you should be aware that not all software is created equal when it comes to making audio discs. If you are using some little utility program that came with your burner you should at least try something else to see if it makes a difference. We’re not suggesting that the lower cost programs can’t get the job done (many times they are just fine), but if you are having problems this is an area to consider. Sometimes these programs will write extraneous information to the disc that will confuse some players. Also know that your drivers or extensions are part of this software formula. Make sure you have the correct drivers for your CD burner. Borrow a burner from a friend and see if that makes any difference. Though you must keep in mind that even if it does make a difference it may only mean that the new burner is more compatible with the media you have. Remember that you are trying to make a system work. The “system” consists of burner, software, media, and playback machine.
Of course, the operator as part of this system can’t be ignored. It’s easy to say you need to double and triple check your settings, but even then things can be overlooked. Step away from the system for a while and come back later with a fresh outlook. Contact the dealer of manufacturer of the software you are using and make sure you have it set up correctly.