Fall 2004 DVDR Roundup: Dual Layer and 16X DVD+R
by Anand Shimpi & Virginia Lee on November 1, 2004 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Storage
LiteOn SOHW-1633S
Our roundup would not be complete without an offering from LiteOn. LiteOn has continuously proven itself as a solid (but generally not outstanding) OEM and retail manufacturer.| LiteOn SHOW-1633S 16X DVD-/+RW Drive | |
| Interface | PATA |
| CD Write Speed | 48X, 40X CAV 32X, 24X P-CAV 16X, 8X CLV |
| CD Rewrite Speed | 24X Z-CLV 16X, 10X, 4X CLV |
| CD Read Speed | 40X MAX CAV |
| DVD-R Write Speed | 8X, 6X Z-CLV 4X, 2X, 1X |
| DVD-RW Rewrite Speed | 4X, 2X, 1X CLV |
| DVD+R Write Speed | 16X CAV 12X, 8X P-CAV 6X, 4X, 2.4X |
| DVD+RW Rewrite Speed | 4X, 2.4X |
| DVD+DL Write Speed | 2.4X CLV |
| DVD Read Speed | 16X MAX CAV |
| Supported Modes | DAO / DAO-RAW 16 & 96 TAO SAO / RAW SAO, RAW SAO 16 & 96 Packet Write Multi-Session |
| Supported Formats | DVD±R/W (DAO, Incremental, muti-border, restricted overwriting) CD-R, CD-RW, CD-ROM, CD-DA, (variable packet, TAO, SAO, DAO, raw burning/overburn) |
| Access Time | CD: 160ms DVD: 160ms |
| Buffer | 2MB |
Once again, LiteOn went with a MediaTek based DSP, the MT1828E. Below, you can see a scan of the double-sided PCB. Using a PCB with components on both sides slightly increases the cost and complexity of the unit, but also decreases the size of the drive. This is why most MediaTek burners have a smaller form factor.
Click to enlarge.
On the front side of the mainboard, there is not a whole lot to see other than the Samsung 3.3V DRAM module. The reverse side of the main PCB can be seen below.
Click to enlarge.
Coupled with the analog controller, the MT1616E, the SHOW-1633S provides all the features of NEC and Pioneer, as well as additional features like error feedback. All MediaTek controllers provide feedback to the PC on the number of C1/C2/C3 (or PI/PO) errors produced during a burn. Software like K-Probe allows the PC to record and graph these errors in the same manner that Q-Tools reports errors. This is a great feature if you are a hardware reviewer, but not something that we would recommend as a factor in a purchase decision.
Although we are accustomed to high pitch whines while writing discs, the LiteOn 1633S was extremely noisy.
Feel free to download the performance graphs for the SOHW-1633S here.
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Maverick215 - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
1) where are the 8x disc quality tests, it seems you only did -r, 16x, and DL2) who cares about DL at $10 a disc I have to quote you, "read/write capabilities are not really useful in applications for the common end user."
3) who cares about 16x
a)it's not readily available
b) will likely be more expensive when it is
c) no realized speed improvement (your review states 11.9x max for 16x and 11.88 max for 8x media @ 12x (again we don't know the burn quality of this 8x@12 burn but you gave the result)
given these I'd have to say "read/write capabilities are not really useful in applications for the common end user." again.
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And to just take one drive here, the benq, you used a BETA firmware, it might be fair if you used a BETA of a upcoming release, but you used a BETA that is 3 public releases and atleast 5 weeks old. you consider NEC more mature, why not give Benq etc a chance to mature? At the very least you could say all burners were updated as of xyz date, at least we would have a reference point. And we could then understand that infact you started doing this comparison 5 weeks ago.
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That minor point aside. If you really care what is applicable to the "common end user" then why not more 8x media with the price of said media and then that media's burn quality tests(16x has a use here in comparing burn quality). 8x is what's most readily available, 8x@12x is comparable burn speed to 16x.
Sorry but this review just leaves me with an empty feeling. Perhaps I am alone in my opinion, but I can live with that.
Reflex - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
Nice to know I made the right choice a month and a half ago when I grabbed the 3500A. It wasn't anything more than me looking for a bargain for a Media Center PC, so I just lucked into the best drive it appears.BTW, where do you find the latest firmware for this stuff? And are there any good reccomendations on softare, seeing as OEM drives don't come with it usually...
AkumaX - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
don't really care about speed, but which burner has the best COMPATIBILITY and RELIABILITY in terms of burning? the 108D or the 3500A or something else?mkruer - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
So I take it DVD+R/RW won the format wars. BTW that would be a good article in itself. Why IS there a difference between the two formats (that’s -R vs +R)KristopherKubicki - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
Most of the drives we reviewed are the OEM versions - they pretty much all look identical (flat, beige/black, one button).Kristopher
PuravSanghani - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
OCedHrt: Errors have been fixed for your viewing pleasure :)Operandi - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
xsilver: If the drive is a re-badge then just say so in the artical, I don't think a picture is required.My point is simply that if your going get pics of the drives you should be taking pics of the portion people will be looking at. Other pics are fine but not geing bezel shoots dosn't make any sense to me.
OCedHrt - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
Hmm dunno how to edit. The CD-R write speed for the Pioneer between the graph and the table at the end is also different.OCedHrt - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
The description for the Ritek G05 read test doesn't match the graph at all. One of them is wrong.xsilver - Monday, November 1, 2004 - link
I think the circuit pcb thing is a good idea -- some drives a just rebadges of other drives? (asus?) so to tell you look that the pcb / insides