Power Calibration Error with Verbatim BD Discs

[dbminter]

Had a chance to test Verbatim DataLife Plus MKM DVD-R in the Asus.  Wrote a data DVD, so there's still the need to write a DVD Video DVD-R to play test someday.  Anyway, the disc burned and verified successfully so that test bodes well.

 

 

Should have a chance to test DVD-R for DVD Video pretty soon.

[moldeywaffle]

Thanks for the detailed logs. Seems like Asus is a quality product so far.

[dbminter]

Found two things with the drive, one I don't like and the other is liveable.

 

 

The first is I had to use the drive in vertical mode because of a priority of desk space.  With the drive in that position, you have to carefully position discs in the tray before closing it.  Otherwise, the discs will fall out and onto the floor.

 

 

The second is it doesn't support a particular BD-RE format command, but neither do my Pioneer drives.  I forget the command, but it is issued by an ImgBurn BD-RE format.  It performs some kind of verification on the disc so it doubles the time necessary for a format command.  It can be viewed as either a plus or a minus, depending.

 

 

So, you will get these in the log on either this Asus or the Pioneer drive:

 

I 15:10:21 Erasing Disc...
W 15:10:21 FormatDisc(FT: 0x31, FST: 0x02) Not Supported!
W 15:10:21 FormatDisc(FT: 0x31, FST: 0x03) Not Supported!
I 15:11:13 Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:00:51

[dbminter]

The Asus drive performed the full format of the genuine Verbatim BD-RE DL fine.  No write test performed to it, though.

[dbminter]

Had the chance to perform a write test with Verbatim MKM DataLife Plus DVD+R DL for DVD Video.

 

 

Burn and Verify completed successfully.

 

 

For reasons I can't explain easily right here, I won't be able to perform a playback test on this disc right away.  I don't know when I'll be able to, but I can perform a read test of the DVD Video contents to see if they process correctly.  That's not a sure fire test because there can be playback issues on how the media itself is burned that a PC read test won't catch.  But, it's better than nothing.

 

 

Disc contents read to an image file in ImgBurn successfully.  Video contents processed successfully.

[dbminter]

Had to chance to test RITEK 6x DVD-RW with the Asus.  My first failure, but I expected it.

 

 

I 11:02:36 Erasing Disc...
W 11:04:20 Potential 'WaitImmediateIO' Deferred Error - (99%, 0/2) - Unknown (Internal Target Failure) (ASC: 0x44, ASCQ: 0x4B)
E 11:04:20 Failed to Erase Disc! - Reason: Unknown (Internal Target Failure) (ASC: 0x44, ASCQ: 0x4B)
E 11:04:20 Operation Failed! - Duration: 00:01:43
 

 

Never got a failure to erase error on this media before, but I've only ever encountered ONE manufacturer whose drives will accept Media Type: DVD-RW (Disc ID: RITEKW06) and that's LiteOn.  Every other drive has always written successfully to the media but fails on Verify.  This drive wouldn't even complete an Erase on the media.
 

[dbminter]

Had a chance to test a 4x RiData Ritek CPPM DVD-RW.

 

 

Destination Media Type: DVD-RW (Disc ID: RITEKW04)

 

 

Image burn and verify successful.

[dbminter]

Discovered one down side to this drive.  Despite it being advertised as a USB 3.0 drive, it is actually only USB 2.0.

 

 

I 13:33:44 -> Drive 6 - Info: ASUS BW-12D1S-U E401 (D:) (USB 2.0)
 

 

The cable included does not have a blue tipped end on it, indicative of USB 3.0.  When plugged into a blue ended USB 3.0 port on the front of my PC, ImgBurn returns that it's only USB 2.0.  So, this drive is only USB 2.0, despite being advertised as USB 3.0.

[dbminter]

Actually, I didn't think about this until now, but it may be this drive IS a USB 3.0 and they just included a USB 2.0 cable to be cheap.      So, I'm going to get a USB 3.0 A To B cable and test and see if the drive really is USB 3.0.  If not, I can always use an extra USB 3.0 cable lying around.  I won't be able to get that cable until Thursday, probably.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

The usb socket on the back is blue though isn't it? Should be usb 3.0

[dbminter]

Yes, the socket is blue on the back.  So, it may just be the cable, as I postulated earlier.  The only other USB 3.0 cables I have to compare it against are my 2 WD USB 3.0 HDD's.  They have blue connectors at the end that connect to the PC, but their connectors that connect to the back of the HDD's are different shaped than the USB connection on the back of the Asus.  So, I'm guessing WD is using proprietary cables for their drives.  Another cheap ass move.  If you cable goes out, you have to replace the entire drive just to get a cable.  Planned obsolescence in motion. 

 

 

Anyway, I'm going to try replacing the cable and see if Asus did its own cheap ass maneuver. 

[ianymaty]

WD is not using their proprietary cable, it's just a standard USB 3.0 A to Micro B data cable that incorporate both data and power connections in one plug.

 

You can find them easy to buy. I get one 1,5 m long so I don't have to struggle to get to the back of the computer to plug the HDD with it's short cable provided.

[dbminter]

After I posted, I wondered if maybe it was a micro cable.  I checked out USB 3.0 cables on Amazon.com to see if they were the same shapes as USB 2.0 cables because of the different sized cables with the WD drives.

[dbminter]

Had a chance to test a DVD Video Verbatim MCC DataLife Plus DVD-R burned in the Asus with a playback test on the Playstation 3.

 

 

No playback problems encountered.  No skips, pixelation, hisses, or pops.  Although the disc wasn't written all the way to the outer edge, so that's something that might need further testing.

[dbminter]

Had a chance to test writing an image to a CD-R in the Asus.

 

 

Destination Media Type: CD-R (Disc ID: 97m24s01f, Taiyo Yuden Co.)

 

 

It was a small DVD Video job that I don't have time watch right now and it's not very important as it's only a temporary archive of a project I was working on.  So, I thought it would be a good test.

 

 

Image burn and verify successful.  CD-R read to an image file by ImgBurn in one of my Pioneer's.  Image file mounted to virtual drive successfully.  DVD Video processing successful, so it's a pretty good indication it's good for CD-R, especially a good TY media like I used.

[dbminter]

Asus are liars!    I put in a USB 3.0 cable on the drive and connected it to a USB 3.0 port.  Guess what ImgBurn returns?

 

 

I 17:17:03 -> Drive 4 - Info: ASUS BW-12D1S-U E401 (D:) (USB 2.0)
 

 

This drive IS a USB 2.0 drive, despite it being advertised as a USB 3.0!    Why else include only a USB 2.0 cable?  So, the blue colored port on the Asus drive is a lie.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

It could be a problem with ImgBurn or the OS misreporting that info.

 

Can you read or burn a disc where the transfer rate exceeds ~25MB/s? If so, it probably is USB 3.0.

[dbminter]

Is the "transfer rate" the same as the Read Rate during a Read of a DVD-R to an image file?

 

 

I 17:55:43 Average Read Rate: 14,555 KiB/s (10.8x) - Maximum Read Rate: 20,760 KiB/s (15.3x)

 

 

I can't do the math easily in my head, but does 20,760 KiB/s translate to roughly 20 MB/s?  Or 25?  If it does and if the transfer rate is the same as the Read Rate, then it says it's USB 3.0, I'm guessing?
 

 

If the transfer rate is not the same as the Read Rate, how do I determine the transfer rate from such a Read? 

[LIGHTNING UK!]

You'll have to use a BD disc to reach that transfer rate.

 

Burning or reading one at over 6x would probably do it.

[dbminter]

I've got several BD-RE's, nearly full, sitting around I can use to Read in.  I'll try that.

 

 

Actually, found an M-Disc BD-R more handy to read in.

 

 

I 18:35:43 Operation Started!
I 18:35:43 Source Device: [0:0:0] ASUS BW-12D1S-U E401 (D:) (USB)
I 18:35:43 Source Media Type: BD-R (Disc ID: MILLEN-MR1-000)
I 18:35:43 Source Media Supported Read Speeds: 12x
I 18:35:43 Source Media Sectors: 9,781,600
I 18:35:43 Source Media Size: 20,032,716,800 bytes
I 18:35:43 Read Speed (Data/Audio): 56x / 56x
I 18:35:44 Read Speed - Effective: 5x - 12x
I 18:45:23 Operation Successfully Completed! - Duration: 00:09:34
I 18:45:23 Average Read Rate: 34,082 KiB/s (7.8x) - Maximum Read Rate: 48,089 KiB/s (11.0x)

 

So, that Average Read Rate is more than 25 MB/s?  If so, that shows this drive is USB 3.0, doesn't it?  If it does, I owe Asus an apology. 

[LIGHTNING UK!]

Yes, that's definitely usb 3

[dbminter]

Then, here's my apology to Asus.  I'm sorry for the wrong accusation.