Test machine:

For this review we will be using a computer with the following configuration:

Hardware:

• Motherboard:  Abit KN8 SLI(NF-CK804)
• Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4400+   Toledo
• Memory: 2GB, 4X 512mb
• Video: NVIDIA GeForce 6800 XT
• Sound: Realtek AC97 Audio (on-board)
• Hard disks: 250GB Seagate X2

System set-up:

The DRX-830U arrived with original firmware SS20; we decided to flash the firmware to the recently released version of SS22.

The flash went flawlessly following the procedures outlined out the Sony Support website.  Below you will see 2 screenshots of the flash process.

Important Note:  When flashing the firmware the drive was recognized as a DRU-830A and from the flash forward this drive now continues be recognized as a DRU-830A, however, for the purpose of this review we will continue to refer to it as the DRX-830U

Now continuing with the System set-up:

The Sony DRX-830U was connected via USB2 Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller with Autorun On.

Software:

Windows XP Professional is installed on the computer along with Service Pack 2 for Windows XP. We will be using the following software in this review:

• Nero Burning ROM 7 Ultra Edition Enhanced
• Nero CD/DVD Speed
• Nero InfoTool 4.1.0.4
• K-Probe v2.5.2

Installation and supported features:

We installed the drive without any problems and here is a screenshot from Nero InfoTool:

From the screenshot above, we notice the installed firmware version is SS22 with a 2 MB buffer size.

Included Software:

Now it’s time to look at the included software. Notice that we may not use the included software in our performance testing part of the review.

Sony® Software Disc Rev. 7.10W Installation CD:

The Software Disc includes:

• Nero StartSmart serves as the command center to quickly start all the software of the Nero suite;
• Nero Burning ROM 7 SE and Nero Express^® 7 CD/DVD mastering software for data, audio and CD/DVD writing and copying;
• Nero VisionExpress 4 VCD/SVCD and DVD authoring software for advanced video capturing, authoring, full video editing and photo slideshow creation. Users can crop, clean up, add special effects to photos and then add transitions and a soundtrack, as well as cut, edit, dub, and turn videos into Hollywood-style masterpieces;
• Nero InCD^® 5 packet writing software for formatting rewritable discs so they can be used like large floppy disks with drag-and-drop capability;
• Nero ShowTime^TM DVD-Video playing software for viewing DVD movies and personal video projects, along with MPEG-4 compatibility;
• Nero PhotoSnap/PhotoSnapViewer captures digital photos right from a digital camera or scanner and provides basic image editing as well as a viewer utility;
• Nero MediaHome streaming media server allows sharing of media files over a home network;
• Nero Recode DVD-Video converter makes backup copies of unprotected DVDs, ideal for making copies of home movie DVDs to share with friends and family. Can also compile multiple DVD discs into a single DVD;
• Nero BackItUp backup software for complete PC backup, with an easy-to-use wizard interface for multiple backup modes, automatically scheduled backups, and backups spanning several CDs or DVDs;
• Nero MediaPlayer / Wave Editor management/jukebox software and audio editing software for audio file creation with various filters and effects;
• Nero Cover Designer disc label creation software for creating individual CD/DVD covers and labels; and
• Nero Toolkit drive tool software for critical media and drive analysis used by drive manufacturers worldwide.
• User’s Guide
• User Support Web Page (links to Sony global user support web sites and Nero AG website)

Turbo Boost Function:

The default CD-R and CD-ROM read/write speed of the Sony DRX-830U is 40x speed. With a single touch, you can activate the Turbo Boost function, to raise the read/write speed to 48x speed:

• Insert a CD-R/CD-ROM disc into the drive
• Press and hold the Eject button for five seconds.
  The busy indicator blinks twice and the read/write speed switches to 48x. (The Turbo Boost function is active.)

Note: When you open the disc tray, the Turbo Boost function will be deactivated.

Disc Writing Technology:

Now it’s time to take a closer look at the write technology used by the Sony DRX-830U:

CD-Recordable:

The Sony DRX-830U uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity), to write at its maximum speed of 48X (Turbo Boost function activated). This gives an average speed of 37.18x.

 For comparison we have made the following table: 

As we can see from the table, the Sony DRX-830U will more than hold it’s own when it comes to writing CD-R’s.   

CD-Rewritable: 

The Sony DRX-830U uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write CD-RW media at its maximum speed of 32x, with an average write speed of 28.17x.

For a better overview we present the following comparison table:

As we can see from the table, the Sony DRX-830U is among the fastest drives on writing CD-RW’s.

18X DVD+R Writing speed:

The Sony DRX-830U uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at the maximum supported speed of 18x. This gives an average write speed of 13.42x and a writing time of 5 minutes 23 seconds.

18X DVD-R Writing speed:

The Sony DRX-830U uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD-R at the maximum supported speed of 18x. This gives an average write speed of 13.48x and a writing time of 5 minutes 16 seconds.

Below, we made a comparison table:

From the table above, we can see that the Sony DRX-830U is about average in writing DVD+R and DVD-R media.

8X DVD+RW writing speed: 

The Sony DRX-830U uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+RW at 8x. The average speed is 7.01x and total writing time is 9:06 minutes.

6X DVD-RW writing speed: 

The Sony DRX-830U uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-RW at 6x. The average speed is 5.66x and total writing time is 10:45 minutes.

8X DVD+R DL writing speed:  

The Sony DRX-830U supports 8x writing speed on DVD+R DL media.

The Sony DRX-830U uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+R DL at 8x. The average speed is 6.39x and total writing time is 18:56 minutes.

8X DVD-R DL writing speed:  

The Sony DRX-830U supports 8x writing speed on DVD-R DL media.

The Sony DRX-830U uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-R DL at 8x. The average speed is 6.41x and total writing time is 18:57 minutes.

12x DVD-RAM writing speed:  

According to the specifications the Sony DRX-830U should be able to write DVD-RAM media at 12x.
For this test we used Nero CD-DVD Speed to create a test disc. To test the drives maximum write speed, we enable “Streaming.”

The Sony DRX-830U uses P-CLV (Partial-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-RAM at its maximum speed of 12x. This resulted in an average write speed of 10.11x and a total write time of 5 minutes and 41 seconds.

Book type (bitsetting):

The Sony DRX-830U supports bit-setting, and is capable of writing DVD+R, DVD+RW and DVD+R DL media with DVD-ROM book type.

This feature can be changed with the i.e. the Book Type settings in Nero Burning ROM under the Choose Recorder option:

Disc Quality Scanning:

The Sony DRX-830U can perform Disc Quality Scanning using Nero CD-DVD Speed.

Scanned at 8x

Let’s take a look at the reading performance…