Which would be the faster write?

[dbminter]

I have a 202 MB image file of Macrium Reflect's recovery environment media.  I've already determined that writing this file to an 8x DVD+RW is faster than writing to a 24x CD-RW.  But, which would be faster?  Writing this image file to an 8x DVD+RW or a 2x BD-RE? 

[LIGHTNING UK!]

There wouldn't be much in it but I think the DVD+RW would win.

[dbminter]

I decided to try it out and see what the concrete results would be. 

 

 

To put the entire spectrum into perspective, I tested the image on each of a Memorex/MCC 24x CD-RW, a Ritek/Ricoh 8x DVD+RW, and a Memorex/Ritek 2x BD-RE in my Pioneer Blu-Ray burner.  Results are below:

 

24x CD-RW

Total Write Duration: 00:01:39

Total Verify Duration: 00:01:53


8x DVD+RW

Total Write Duration: 00:00:48
Total Verify Duration: 00:00:39
 

 

2x BD-RE

Total Write Duration: 00:00:40
Total Verify Duration: 00:00:21

 

 

Now, for the sake of total fairness, this drive did graduated writes on the CD-RW and the DVD+RW.  The 24x CD-RW went up to 14x, stayed at 14x for a while, then went to 22x and stayed there until the end.  The 8x DVD+RW only ever wrote at 6x because the image size was smaller than the size necessary for a write time where the graduated write would go from 6x to 8x.  With that taken care of, the 2x BD-RE was slightly faster than the "8x" aka 6x DVD+RW.  The write was 8 seconds slower and, surprisingly, the verify was a significant 18 seconds faster.

[dbminter]

I decided to redo this test to make it a little more "fair."  I used a CD image file size that was larger so the write times for CD-RW and DVD+RW would reach their graduated maximum speeds.

 

 

Drive Info: PIONEER BD-RW   BDR-209M 1.10-ID60 (SATA)

 

 

Image Size: 663,814,144 bytes


24x Memorex/MCC CD-RW

 

Source Media Type: CD-RW (Disc ID: 97m34s24f, Mitsubishi Chemical Corp.)

 

Media Supported Write Speeds: 10x, 16x, 24x
Write Speed Successfully Set! - Effective: 4,234 KB/s (24x)
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:03:48
Average Write Rate: 3,193 KiB/s (18.5x) - Maximum Write Rate: 3,637 KiB/s (21.1x)

 

Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 24x
Read Speed - Effective: 24x
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:04:17
Average Verify Rate: 2,532 KiB/s (14.7x) - Maximum Verify Rate: 3,664 KiB/s (21.3x)

 

8x Ridata/Ricoh/Ritek DVD+RW

 

Destination Media Type: DVD+RW (Disc ID: RICOHJPN-W21-01)
Destination Media Supported Write Speeds: 3.3x, 6x, 8x

Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:01:51
Average Write Rate: 7,283 KiB/s (5.4x) - Maximum Write Rate: 10,903 KiB/s (8.1x)
 

Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 12x
Read Speed - Effective: 5x - 12x
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:01:30
Average Verify Rate: 7,366 KiB/s (5.4x) - Maximum Verify Rate: 9,070 KiB/s (6.7x)

 

2x Memorex/Ritek BD-RE

 

Destination Media Type: BD-RE (Disc ID: RITEK-BW1-001)
Destination Media Supported Write Speeds: 2x
Write Speed Successfully Set! - Effective: 8,990 KB/s (2x)
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:01:29
Average Write Rate: 8,529 KiB/s (1.9x) - Maximum Write Rate: 8,817 KiB/s (2.0x)

Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 10x
Read Speed - Effective: 4.1x - 10x
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:00:43
Average Verify Rate: 15,434 KiB/s (3.5x) - Maximum Verify Rate: 19,512 KiB/s (4.4x)


The results were relatively still the same.    The write on BD-RE was 22 seconds faster.

 

 

Now, for the sake of fairness, the DVD+RW didn't really write at 8x for very long.  Only a few seconds.  So, I'm going to rerun the DVD+RW and BD-RE tests with a 4 GB ISO, nearer the maximum of a DVD and see.

[dbminter]

Drive Info: PIONEER BD-RW   BDR-209M 1.10-ID60 (SATA)

 

 

Image Size: 4,591,452,160 bytes

 

 

8x Ridata/Ricoh/Ritek DVD+RW

 

Destination Media Type: DVD+RW (Disc ID: RICOHJPN-W21-01)
Destination Media Supported Write Speeds: 3.3x, 6x, 8x
Write Speed Successfully Set! - Effective: 11,080 KB/s (8x)
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:07:50
Average Write Rate: 9,964 KiB/s (7.4x) - Maximum Write Rate: 10,935 KiB/s (8.1x)

 

Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 12x
Read Speed - Effective: 5x - 12x

Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:06:28
Average Verify Rate: 11,616 KiB/s (8.6x) - Maximum Verify Rate: 16,765 KiB/s (12.4x)
 

2x Memorex/Ritek BD-RE

 

Destination Media Type: BD-RE (Disc ID: RITEK-BW1-001)
Destination Media Supported Write Speeds: 2x
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:08:51
Average Write Rate: 8,672 KiB/s (2.0x) - Maximum Write Rate: 8,826 KiB/s (2.0x)

Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 10x
Read Speed - Effective: 4.1x - 10x
Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:03:36
Average Verify Rate: 20,952 KiB/s (4.8x) - Maximum Verify Rate: 25,283 KiB/s (5.8x)
 

 

 

Interesting.  For larger image sizes, the DVD+RW was 1 minute and 1 second faster than the BD-RE.  So, LUK, you were right.  For LARGER image sizes, that is. 

 

 

Equally interesting, the Verify took almost twice as long on the DVD+RW versus the BD-RE.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

When I made my initial comment, it's was purely based on the 1x transfer rate speeds of each media type.

 

8x DVD is faster than 2x BD

 

That wasn't taking into account the drive not always burning at that exact speed (i.e. burning at 6x and then jumping to 8x).

 

I also didn't consider the verify stage as that involved thinking about too many unknowns! (the read speed)

[dbminter]

You know?  I never even bothered to think that's it's most fair to compare 1x to 1x.    I do wonder, though, why BD-RE verified at a much faster read rate than the DVD+RW did.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

That's all down to the speeds a drive reads that media type at. Most bd probably read at at least 4x and that's just shy of 16x DVD speed - which of course a drive would only reach at the end of a single layer disc (if that).

[dbminter]

Yeah, I've only gotten about 14x at the tail end of a Verify on a DVD-5.