ASUS DRW-2014L1T DVD±/RW DRIVE with LightScribe Review

Testing Methodology


Here is the system used for writing reviews such as this. The ASUS DRW-2014L1T DVD Writer is going to get some tough competition from our good old Benq DD DW1650 DVD Writer. The ASUS Drive is mounted under the BENQ Drive.....if it performs well, it moves up a spot since it will be the drive I use more often in my daily burning tasks.

The Benq Drive is connected via an IDE connector and the ASUS Drive via SATA port # 3 on our motherboard. The ASUS Drive is a few millimetres shorter than the BENQ drive due to its SATA connections that require less space than the IDE connections.

Test Platform:

• Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 @ 3.0GHz running 1.3500V (Stock)
• CPU Cooling: Noctua NH-U12F with Noctua NF-S12-1200 Fan
• Memory: 2GB Crucial Ballistix Tracer PC2-8500 DDR2 @ 1066MHz (5-5-5-15))
• Motherboard: Asus P5N32-E SLI (680i)
• Disk Drive: ASUS DRW-2014L1T DVD Writer
• Disk Drive: Benq DD DW1650 DVD Writer
• Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATA II
• OS: Windows Vista Ultimate x32
• Graphics Cards: BFG Tech 8800GTS 640Mb OC (550/1300/800MHz Stock OC)
• Drivers: Nvidia 169.25
• Monitor: Acer AL2216W (1680X1050)


Why you should AWAYS update software

The test program we are using today is the latest version of NERO CD-DVD Speed 4.7.7.15. The reason why we tell everyone to always update your software is because of the following. We installed Nero from the CD that is included in the package but the NERO CD-DVD Speed version on the CD is 4.7.6.0c. Of course being all excited about our new ASUS DRW-2014L1T DVD Writer, we blindly started running our tests, only to notice that we came up with quite a few error messages. We all know that means updating time right?

We updated the program to version 4.7.7.4 by clicking on the auto update button in the program. Thinking everything was fine now, we ran a new batch of tests, only to find out there were even more errors/drive failures. After doing some research, we could not find the issue, nor a solution for it. We happened to find ANOTHER updated version of the NERO CD-DVD Speed, namely the version we finally used: NERO CD-DVD Speed 4.7.7.15. After spinning all of our different CD's and DVD's in all our tests TWICE, we realized that we finally had the right version with correct results.

The Competition


The opponent of the day! This good old Benq DD DW1650 DVD Writer has been a hard worker now for almost two years now.

Media Types Used

Maxell CD-R
Memorex CD-R
Memorex DVD+R (LightScribe)
Memorex DVD-R, Sony DVD+R
Sony DVD+RW(1.4Gb).

There is however a few more things to know before we go on. Ever heard of terms as CAV, CLV, P-CAV, ZCLV or OPC? These are names for the different types of drives and/or methods of writing, mainly concerning the speeds that they use. Let us explain:

Devices that always spin at the same rate are called CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) drives.

Devices that maintain a fixed linear velocity are called CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) drives.

Devices that switch from CAV to CLV when the maximum speed is reached are called P-CAV (Partial Constant Angular Velocity) drives.

Devices that are CLV, but use different speeds on different parts ("zones") of the disc, are called ZCLV.

As you will see, some of the graphs will have a number of dips in them and this is where the Active OPC (Active Optimized Power Control) kicks in. Active OPC monitors writing power and reflection of the media in use with this Asus drive. It calculates the optimum laser power and adjusts it in real-time. Theoretically this should result in better quality burning.

For people that want to know more about these technologies please feel free to visit DVD Recordable :: DVD writing reviews news and advice .