1. Retail Package - Installation
PIONEER
DVR-S706
DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 1
The
Pioneer DVR-S706 is an external 8x DVD dual format optical disc drive compatible
with all current
formats such as DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW and CDs. The external case has a
fancy and stylish design and comes with connection interfaces for IEEE1394
firewire and USB2.0 ports. The drive can sit vertically or horizontally on
your desk.
- Features
The
DVR-S706 features 8x DVD±R
writing, 4x DVD±RW rewriting, 24x CD-R writing, 24x CD-RW rewriting,
40x CD-ROM reading, 32x CD-RW reading and
12x DVD-ROM reading and 2x DVD-RAM
reading. Buffer underrun protection is also supported.
Advanced technological features:
- Precision Recording Technology: Adapts drive to media characteristics
for writing performance and quality.
- Smart Laser Driver: Controls laser pulse for accurate writing
at high speeds.
- Quiet Drive Technology: Mechanism for quite operation, achieving
75% lower operation noise compared with previous drives.
- Specifications
Host/Interface |
USB 2.0 / USBB1.1 / USB1.0, IEEE1394
|
Usable Discs
|
Write
Supported Discs:
4.7GB DVD-R for General, Version 2.0
4x-speed DVD-R Revision 1.0 for Video, for Data
6x-speed DVD-R Revision 2.0 for Video, for Data
8x-speed DVD-R Revision 3.0 for Video, for Data
4.7GB DVD-RW Version 1.1
2x-speed DVD-RW Revision 1.0 for Video, for Data
4.7GB DVD-RW Version 1.2
2x-speed DVD-RW Revision 1.0 for Video, for Data
4x-speed DVD-RW Revision 2.0 for Video, for Data
DVD+R Version 1.2
DVD+RW Version 1.2
CD-R, CD-RW
Read Supported
Discs:
DVD-R (for Video, for Data)
DVD-RW (for Video, for Data)
DVD+R Version 1.2
DVD+RW Version 1.2
DVD-RAM Version 2.0/Version 2.1
DVD-ROM Single Layer, Dual Layer
Audio CD, CD-TEXT, Photo-CD, CD-EXTRA, Video CD, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW |
Write
speed |
DVD-R: 8x-speed
(Zone CLV), 6x-speed, 4x-speed, 2x-speed, 1x-speed
DVD-RW: 4x-speed,
2x-speed, 1x-speed
DVD+R: 8x-speed
(Zone CLV), 6x-speed, 4x-speed , 2.4x-speed
DVD+RW: 4x-speed,
2.4x-speed
CD-R: 24x-speed
(Zone CLV), 16x-speed , 8x-speed, 4x-speed
US-RW: 24x-speed
(Zone CLV), 16x-speed
HS-RW: 10x-speed,
4x-speed |
Read speed |
DVD-R: Max.8x-speed
DVD-RW: Max.8x-speed
DVD+R: Max.8x-speed
DVD+RW: Max.8x-speed
DVD-RAM: 2x-speed
(CLV)
DVD-ROM
(Single Layer):
Quiet mode: Max.5x-speed
Performance mode: Max.12x-speed
DVD-ROM (Dual Layer):
Quiet mode: Max.5x-speed
Performance mode: Max.8x-speed
DVD-Video (Dual layer):
Quiet mode: Max.5x-speed
Performance mode: Max.8x-speed
CD-ROM: Max.40x-speed
Video CD: Max.9.3x-speed
Audio CD (Data extraction):
Quiet mode: Max.9.3x-speed
Performance mode: Max.40x-speed
CD-R: Max.40x-speed
CD-RW: Max.32x-speed
|
Buffer memory |
2 MB with Buffer Underrun Protection |
Weight |
2.1kg |
Dimensions
(WxDxH) |
167mm x 272.8mm
x 56.2mm |
The drive uses a 2MB buffer memory store and supports RAW-DAO96 writing
(CD). The drive does not support writing of DVD-RAM, DVD+R DL and Mount Rainier
formats as well as DVD+R DL and CD+G reading features. The drive uses the RPC
II region control, allowing a user to change the drive's region at most 5 times.
There is "patched" firmware that
can disable RPC1 protection, but is not recommended for amateur users. Use
it at your own risk.
For our tests, we
changed the region code to 2 (Europe) (hence the reason
4
changes
left
in
the
screenshot
above). Using DVDInfoPro
software we can also check the drive's features:
The screenshot above was taken after the tests were completed, and after Pioneer
had released the new firmware, hence this is the reason why the Firmware Revision
is shown as 1.16.
- Retail package
The
retail package includes an AC adaptor (AC100V), one USB cable (1m), two
IEEE1394 cables, one 6pin - 6pin, 1.5m and one 6pin - 4pin,
1.5m. Also included are two stands for vertical mounting.
The drive's front panel's color is black and the case is silver.
On the tray loader on the
left side we can see the 8X8 DVD writing logo, in the middle the DVD-R/RW
logo and on the right side the RW DVD+ReWritable logo, UltraSpeed
Rewritable
logo and the DVD Multi Player logo (the drive supports reading of DVD-RAM
media).
Below from left to right we can also see the power/operation led (lights
dark blue when on), the Pioneer logo and the eject button. The
emergency eject hole
is located below the 8x8 DVD writing logo.
On
the rear panel you can see two firewire and one USB 2.0 connectors, the
power button and the power connection.
- Installation
The device was connected to our test PC using a firewire connection
and was identified as "Pioneer DVD-RW DVR-107D" under
WinXP, which is the same id as the DVR-107D
internal drive from Pioneer. All tests were done with firmware revision 1.15.
By the time we finished all tests, Pioneer had released a new firmware revision
(v1.16)
that supported more media types for 8X DVD-R writing:
- CMC 8X (CMC MAG. AE1)
- TDK8X New Dye Version (TTH01)
- MBI 8X (MBI 03RG30)
- Gigastorage 8X (GSC003)
The following pages include test
results for the Pioneer DVR-S706 drive compared with the internal Pioneer
DVR-107D drive to check performance differences between the external firewire
and the internal atapi drive.
- Testing software
In order to perform our tests we used:
- Nero CD-DVD Speed
v3.00
- CDVD Benchmark v1.21
- ExactAudioCopy v0.9
beta5
- Nero Info Tool v2.21
- KProbe
v2.1.0 (Reader: LiteOn LDW-811S firmware vHS0Q, Reading speed 8X CAV)
- PlexTools v2.13 (Reader:
Plextor PX-712A firmware v1.01, Reading speed 8X CLV for CD-R)
- DVDInfoPro v2.54
- Nero Burning Rom v6.3.1.10
2. Data CD Reading Tests
PIONEER DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW recorder - Page 2
Data
CD Reading Tests
- Pressed CD results
(Click for CDSpeed
results)
The Pioneer DVR-S706 supports up to 40X reading speed. Below are the
transfer rate graphs:
The drive has an acceptable transfer rate and the seek
times are good except for the full seek time which is a little high.
- CD-R results (Click for
CDSpeed results)
We made a copy of the previous pressed CD in order to test the drive's
behavior with CD-R media. As with the previous test, the Pioneer and its twin,
the DVR-107D, exhibit very similar results.
The resulting seek times are close to those with pressed
CD.
- ReWritable Media (Click for
CDSpeed results)
For the reading test
we used 24x Ultra Speed rewritable media from Mitsubishi Chemicals.
No differences here also between the external and the internal
drive.
3. CD Error Correction Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder - Page 3
Error Correction Tests
In the following tests we check the drive's behavior when reading
scratched / defective audio discs. The test discs used were the ABEX series
from ALMEDIO.
- ABEX TCD-721R
Errors
total
|
Num:
1251308
|
Errors
(Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num: 55396 |
Avg:
- 73.0 dB(A) |
Max:
-14.7 dB(A) |
Error
Muting Samples
|
Num: 3952 |
Avg:
1.0 Samples |
Max:
40 Samples |
Skips
Samples
|
Num: 0 |
Avg:
0.0 Samples |
Max:
0 Samples |
Total
Test Result |
76.5
points (out
of 100.0 maximum) |
The performance with this disc is satisfactory. The total error
count is a little on the high side, and the maximum
loudness error level is also high at -14.7 dB(A). There were
no skipped samples and the total score is quite acceptable.
- ABEX TCD-726
Errors total
|
Num:
1374
|
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num: 71 |
Avg:-69.6 dB(A) |
Max:-50.4 dB(A) |
Error Muting Samples
|
Num: 14 |
Avg:1.1 Samples |
Max:
2 Samples |
Skips Samples
|
Num: 0 |
Avg:
0 Samples |
Max:
0 Samples |
Total Test Result
|
88.7
points (out of 100.0 maximum) |
The Abex TCD-726 test disc is a usually a simpler test for error correction.
The DVR-S706 drive did not perform as well as could be expected. The total
error
count isn`t high and there are only a few muted samples.
Nonetheless, the better drives usually manage no errors with this disc and
a perfect score or close to. The total score 88.7 out of 100 is acceptable.
- CD-Check Audio Test Disc
The CD-Check Test Disc is a very useful tool for evaluating the Sound Reproduction
/ Error correction capabilities of a CD player. The disc offers a signal combination
with disc error patterns to rate the drive's abilities to read music and reproduce
it completely. Five tracks on the disc contain a sequence of progressively
more difficult tests. These tracks are referred to as Check Level-1 through
Check Level-5.
The
tracks are being reproduced through a software multimedia player (i.e.
Windows Media Player). Each level is considered as passed, if the tone
is smooth, continuous without interruptions, skipping or looping. The higher
the Check Level passed, the more reliable the sound reproduction
of the tested drive.
Error Level
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
BTC DRW 1108IM
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
0/5
|
The drive performed very well here. It managed to playback five out of five
attempts for four of the five levels.
The attempt can be considered much better than average as most drives manage
to play up to the third only.
- Summary
Test Disc
|
Reading Speed
|
Score
|
ABEX TCD-721R
|
Max
|
76.5
|
ABEX TCD-726
|
88.7
|
Average Score
|
82.6
|
The final average score for the drive is good.
4. DVD reading tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder - Page 4
DVD reading tests
- Single Layer DVD-ROM (Click
for CDSpeed results)
The transfer rates and seek times are more or less the same.
Full stroke seek time is a little higher compared with other DVD recorders..
- Dual Layer PTP DVD-ROM (Click for
CDSpeed results)
The two layers of a PTP DVD-ROM disc are read sequentially with the
drive starting the read process from the inner tracks on the disc, which is
the beginning
of each layer
and progressing outwards towards to the outer tracks for each layer.
The DVD dual layer speed results reach a high level. The seek times still are good.
- Dual Layer OTP DVD-ROM
The
first layer of an OTP dual layer DVD-ROM is read exactly the same way as the
first layer of the PTP disc we tested previously. The difference here is the
reading strategy
of the disc's second layer. The beginning of the second layer is located
in the outer part of the disc, so the drive starts reading from the outer tracks
inwards towards the inner tracks of the disc.
As can been seen from the following screenshot, the OTP dual layer DVD
test disc had the same speed as the PTP. The seek times are at about the
same
levels.
- DVD Ripping Tests
We measured the DVD-Video ripping speed of the Pioneer drive using the
latest version of DVD Decrypter. The DVD Video title is the "Matrix" pressed
DVD-Video.
Here DVR-S706 drive was slower than DVR-107D. The reported
3041 kb/s is an average transfer rate.
This happens because of the different firmware between two drives.
- DVD Recordable / Rewritable reading Tests
The chart below shows the Nero CDSpeed average reading speed results with
the following media:
- DVD RAM reading test
CD
Speed reports CLV read mode with DVD-RAM media. The disc we used for this test
is a Panasonic DVD-RAM 4.7GB Single Sided Type 2 rewritable media. Disc
was read at 2x speed and full seek time was increased.
5. DVD Error Correction Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder - Page 5
DVD Error Correction
Tests
In the following
tests we examined the DVD reading capabilities of DVR-S706 drive
with scratched / defective DVD media. For the tests we used CDVD
Benchmark and Nero CDSpeed. The testing media
referred, come
from
ALMEDIO.
- Single Layer media
ABEX TDR-821
This is a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM with a 4.7GB capacity, and its
surface has an artificial scratch of dimensions varying from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.
The following transfer rate picture comes from the CDVD Benchmark v1.21
transfer rate test.
The drive read the contents of the 821 test disc without any read
errors.
ABEX TDR-825
This is also a single sided, single layer DVD-ROM of 4.7GB capacity. The
data structure of the disc is exactly the same of the TDR-821, with
the difference that there are no scratches on the surface but defective areas
ranging in dimensions from 0.5 to 1.1 mm.
There are also fingerprints with
height
between
65 and
75 micrometers.
Here too, the drive managed to read the defective areas on
the disc without problems.
- Dual Layer media
ABEX TDR-841
This is an 8.5GB dual layer, single sided DVD-ROM disc with artificial scratches
of dimensions ranging from 0.4 to 3.0mm, on both layers.
The drive continues without problems.
ABEX TDR-845
This disc is a single sided, dual layer DVD-ROM disc with capacity of 8.5GB.
The only difference between the TDR-845 and the TDR-841 is that the first includes
both defective areas and fingerprints.
The dimensions of the defective areas
range from 0.5 to 1.1 mm and the fingerprints have height from 65
to 75 microns (micrometers).
Test finished successfully without reporting any read errors.
ABEX TDV-541
The
TDV-541 is a single sided, dual layer DVD-VIDEO disc, with a capacity of 8.5GB.The
disc is based on the TDV-540 series which is designed for inspection
and adjustment of DVD-VIDEO players.
The disc checks the layer switch operation
from layer 0 to layer 1 and also includes testing pictures and signals for
DVD sound files. The current TDV-541 also checks the error correcting
capabilities
of the drive and includes scratches sized from 0.4 to 3.0 mm.
The reading
speed of the drive increased smoothly in the first layer, but the layer switch
produced a sharp drop in speed from 8.45x tojust above 6x, but finished the
test successfully, without read errors.
ABEX TDV-545
The
TDV-545 disc is based on the TDV-540 series. It is a single sided, dual layer
Video/S-2 disc with a capacity of 8.5GB. The TDV-545 includes artificial
black dots on the disc's surface, sized from 0.4 to 1.0 mm. It also has 65
- 75 micrometer high fingerprints.
No errors or speed fluctuations were reported.
This disc was not a problem for the DVR-S706 drive.
6. DAE Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 6
DAE Tests
- Pressed and CDR AudioCD
DVR-S706 uses 40x CAV reading strategy for CD-DA. Below you can see the
results from the CDSpeed transfer rate test with a pressed audio CD:
According
to Nero CDSpeed, the average reading speed was 31.04x, while at the end of
the reading process it reached a maximum speed of 41.28x. The seek times are
also good, although the full seek time is a little high.
When using a pressed
AudioCD and its CD-R copy, with EAC, we logged the following results:
The DVR-107D was slightly faster than the DVR-S706 with these test discs.
As EAC reports,
the drive caches DAE, supports accurate stream but can`t report C2 error information.
- Advanced DAE Quality
The Pioneer DVR-S706 received a score of 100 (perfect) in the Nero CD Speed
Advanced DAE test. CDSpeed showed that the average reading speed is 26.61X,
and
that
the drive supports reading CD Text but doesn`t support Leadin / Leadout data,
CD
read subchannel data and best, on the fly copying occurs at 4x speed.
- Reading 90/ 99mins AudioCDs
Pioneer DVR-S706 managed to read a full 90min audio CD without
problems.
Pioneer DVR-S706 managed to read a full 99min audio CD without
problems.
7. Protected AudioCD Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 7
Protected AudioCDs
For the test procedure we used three audio discs with different
audio copy protection schemes. The ripping process for all protected
Audio discs was performed with Exact Audio Copy v0.9beta5.
The tested protected Audio discs were:
- Sony's Key2Audio from "Celine Dion - New Day Has Come"
- Cactus Data Shield 200 from "Natalie Imbruglia - White Lilies Island"
- Cactus Data Shield 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a (Aiko Katsukino - The Love
Letter)
The Cactus Data Shield 200, contains artificial errors that are not easy to
bypassed from the reader, while the Key2Audio contains a second session, causing
problems to readers when trying to read the Table Of Contents (TOC).
The tested tasks are:
- Recognition of the inserted disc (Yes/No)
- Ripping all wavs (with EAC's Burst Mode) to the hard disk with copy&compare function.
- Listening to the produced wavs for any click/skips.
The Pioneer DVR-S706 recognized up to the 12th Audio track of CDS200 disc,
and with the "Retrieve Native TOC" option removed the 13th Data track.
The test results are shown at the following table:
|
Key2Audio |
CDS200 |
Pioneer DVR-S706 |
Drive recognizes
the disc but cannot play or rip the contents |
Ripping process completed, Read&Test
CRC comparison not the same for all tracks |
While the Pioneer will rip CDS200 protected audio
discs, it can`t do the same with Key2Audio where it recognized the disc
but couldn`t
play
or rip the tracks.
- Cactus Data Shield 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a (Aiko Katsukino - The Love Letter)
This
is a "special" CDS200 build, since it doesn't contain any artificial
errors during the ripping process. Most problems occur when trying to write
the ripped wav files, since the produced CD-R disc contains C2 and CU errors!
This "problem" is rumoured to be connected to specific
chipset weaknesses...
We ripped the disc contents with EAC and burned the produced wav with the latest Nero version as AudioCD+CD-Text. The burned media was checked for C1/C2 errors with PlexTools/KProbe software using Plextor PX-712A (firmware v1.01) and LiteOn LDW-811S (firmware vHS0Q).
|
CDS 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a |
Pioneer DVR-S706 |
Reading performed without any errors
as well as writing process |
- C1C2 Error rate from PleXWriter PX-712A (8X CLV reading speed)
- BETA/Jitter Error rate from PleXWriter PX-712A
The C1/C2 error graphs indicate that the drive managed to produce
a 100% error free disc.
Lets try to extract all wav files with the Plextor PX-712A and PlexTool DAE Error Correction 5th Level enabled:
No errors were reported after extracting all files. The drive's error
correction mechanism corrected
the errors.
8. Game Protection Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder - Page
8
Protected Disc
Tests
- Reading Tests
To create an image of various protected titles onto a hard
disk we used Alcohol v.1.9.2.1705 software and the appropriate settings depending
on the protection type of the inserted discs. Below, the capabilities
of the Pioneer drive are summarized according to CloneCD
software. As can be seen the drive supports writing of CD+G under RAW DAO:
The game titles we used for each protection scheme are given in the
table below:
Game Title
|
Protection Scheme
|
PSX "NBA Jam Extreme"
|
Lybcrypt
|
Serious Sam The Second Encounter v1.07
|
SafeDisc v.2.60.052
|
VRally II
|
SecuROM v.2
|
PSX Pressed Media
SafeDisc v.2
SecuROM v.2
The DVR-S706 managed to rip the contents of all test discs successfully
without major differences compared to the DVR-107D, except with SecuROM
where it was slower.
- Writing Tests
The DVR-S706 supports the DAO-RAW writing mode.
For checking the drive's EFM correction status, we used 3 different game titles
with different SafeDisc 2 versions having the latest software patches installed.
After making the images of the various titles onto the hard disk, we burned
them (maximum speed) with Alcohol 120% v1.9.2.1705. Two different discs were
created for each
title; one with the "Bypass EFM error" enabled and one more with
the
function disabled.
- Fifa 2004 - Safe Disc v3.1
- The Sims Superstar - Safe Disc v2.9
- The Sims Unleashed - Safe Disc v2.8
- Serious Sam Second Encounter v1.07 - Safe Disc v2.60.052
- Max Payne - Safe Disc v2.51.020
The table below shows the results of the attempted backups and whether
they worked (game installed / played normally), or not.
Drive |
Fifa 2004
SD v3.1 |
Sims Superstar SD v2.9 |
Sims Unleashed SD v2.8 |
Serious Sam-Second Encounter
SD v2.51.051 |
Max Payne
SD v2.51.020 |
EFM OFF |
EFM ON |
EFM OFF |
EFM ON |
EFM OFF |
EFM ON |
EFM OFF |
EFM ON |
EFM OFF |
EFM ON |
Toshiba
SD-M1502
|
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Creative CD5233E |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Pioneer
DVR-S706
|
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
The drive didn`t managed to make working backups of all the
game titles we tried. SafeDisc v2.8 and v2.6 discs wre backed up, but
the burned CD was usable only on the same drive. Only with SafeDisc v2.51
was the
burned
CD
operational with other drives.
9. CD Recording Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 9
CD Recording Tests
- CD-R Writing Tests
The Pioneer DVR-S706 drive supports 4x, 8x, 16x, 24x, writing speeds.
Below you can see the CDSpeed writing simulation graph with Taiyo Yuden
48x CD-R
media. The
simulation test under Nero CD Speed confirmed the manufacturer's specifications
of 24x Z-CLV recording. The average speed was 22.42x.
- Recording Times
We created an 80min data compilation with Nero Burning
Rom and recorded it on a 700MB disc. The DVR-S706 needed 4:26 to
conclude the burning procedure which was the faster time between the two
drives.
In the following graph you can see the recording times with
various media brands.
- CD-RW Writing Tests
The drive supports 24x Z-CLV maximum rewriting speed
with Ultra Speed rewritable media. Below
you can see the results from the CDSpeed writing simulation test with blank
24x US-RW media from Mitsubishi Chemicals.
The
test once again confirmed the drive's specifications for 24x rewriting. The average
speed at the end of the test was 22.31x.
We also used Nero Burning Rom software to burn a 24x US-RW data media from
Mitsubishi Chemicals. The data compilation we burned onto the disc had
a size of 651 MB.
The duration of the recording process was 4:01 minutes.
- Other features
Overburning |
80min, No overburning |
CD text reading/writing |
Yes |
- CD-RW Mount Rainier Tests
We used Philips Mount Rainier Validation Suite v2.2 to test the drive's compliance
with the Mount Rainier format. None of the three scripts loaded in the Validation
Suite (mandatory command set, Light R'n'R and Heavy R'n'R) worked, since the
drive doesn't support Mount Rainier format.
10. Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 10
Writing Quality Tests - 3T Jitter Tests
With Nero audio compilation we burned various media and tested for jitter.
The recording speed
was
the maximum
allowable in all cases. The following graphs indicate the 3T Pit & Land
Jitter results.
- 3T Pit results
According to results from jitter measurements, the Pioneer
drive performed well with some of the media brands we used. MAM
and That`s proved to be very good combinations with the Pioneer recorder
but Taiyo Yuden returned high jitter results.
The average 3T Jitter values for all manufacturers discs are illustrated in
the following graph.
- 3T Land results
The land jitter values were almost at the same levels as the 3T pit jitter
where MAM media produced the best results.
Recording Speed |
Average 3T Pit Jitter (ns) |
Average 3T Land Jitter (ns) |
> 35ns |
Max 3T jitter values (ns) |
CMC 48x |
31,54 |
34 |
No |
33 Pit, 35 Land |
That`s 48x |
29,80 |
32,93 |
No |
32 Pit, 38 Land |
Traxdata 52x |
32,78 |
32,63 |
No |
36 Pit, 35 Land |
Mam 52x |
28,59 |
27,32 |
No |
32 Pit, 30 Land |
Taiyo Yuden 48x |
34,34 |
36 |
Yes |
43 Pit, 41 Land |
The drive performed poorly only with Taiyo Yuden media while MAM media had
the best values.
On the following page we check the C1 and C2 error rates for the
same discs.
11. Writing Quality Tests - C1 / C2 / CU Error Measurements
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder - Page 11
Writing Quality
Tests - C1 / C2 / CU Error Measurements
The C1 / C2 / CU error rate was measured from the recorded discs burned during
the previous writing tests (jitter). The software used is PlexTools Professional
v2.11 and
the reader is the Plexwritter Premium drive.
MEDIA |
C1 |
C2 |
CU |
Taiyo Yuden |
Avg/Sec |
0.4 |
0 |
0 |
Max/Sec |
19 |
0 |
0 |
Total |
2077 |
0 |
0 |
CMC |
Avg/Sec |
1.5 |
0 |
0 |
Max/Sec |
37 |
51 |
0 |
Total |
7361 |
92 |
0 |
That`s |
Avg/Sec |
0.7 |
0.1 |
0 |
Max/Sec |
23 |
35 |
0 |
Total |
3435 |
690 |
0 |
Traxdata |
Avg/Sec |
4.5 |
3.4 |
0 |
Max/Sec |
45 |
304 |
0 |
Total |
21536 |
16227 |
0 |
Mam |
Avg/Sec |
4.4 |
1.3 |
0 |
Max/Sec |
54 |
125 |
0 |
Total |
20973 |
6449 |
0 |
-
That`s 48x recorded at 24x
- Summary
According to our measurements CD writing quality is generally good.
- Appendix
Media Label
|
ID Code
|
Manufacturer Name
|
Lead Out Time
|
MMore 80min 52X
|
97m17s 6f
|
Moser Baer India
|
79m59s74f
|
Intenso 80min 52X
|
97m32s19f
|
Prodisc
|
79m59s71f
|
CMC Magnetics 80min 48X
|
97m26s66f
|
CMC Magnetics
|
79m59s71f
|
Mam SGUltra 80min 52X
|
97m27s58f
|
Mitsui Chemicals
|
79m59s74f
|
BenQ 80min 48X
|
97m22s67f
|
Daxon Technology
|
79m59s74f
|
TY 80min 48X
|
97m24s 1f
|
Taiyo Yuden
|
79m59s72f
|
TraxData 80min 52X
|
97m15s17f
|
Ritek
|
79m59s70f
|
12. DVD Recording Tests
PIONEER DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW recorder - Page 12
DVD Recording Tests
- Writing Performance
The Pioneer DVR-S706 supports DVD-R/RW and DVD+R/RW writing. The maximum
supported speed for DVD+R and DVD-R is 8x Z-CLV and 4x CLV
for
DVD+/-RW media.
An
8x DVD+R disc from CMC was used to check the 8x writing strategy
of the drive. The software used was Nero CDSpeed, with its "create disc" function.
The
drive start writing at 6x and end at 8.36x with an average speed
at 7.64x.
Simulation with 8x DVD-R was almost the same as with 8x DVD+R
media.
- Burning Tests
The best recording times are illustrated in the following table. The values
were taken after burning 4315MB of data on various DVD±R, DVD±RW
media, using the maximum allowed writing speed for each disc.
There is not much between the two drives as their
values are very close, except with DVD+RW where the DVR-S706 was 1:18min faster.
The table below presents the writing speeds, media name and media code for
the various
discs used.
Media
|
Code
|
Speed |
MMore 4x DVD+R
|
MBIPG101
|
4x |
Mitsubishi Chemicals 4x DVD+R
|
MCC 002
|
4x |
Plextor 8x DVD+R
|
YUDEN000 T02
|
8x |
CMC 8x DVD+R
|
CMC MAG E01
|
8x |
Traxdata 8x DVD+R
|
RITEK R03
|
8x |
Traxdata 8x DVD-R
|
RITEKG05
|
8x |
MMore 4x DVD-R
|
MBI 01RG20
|
4x |
CMC 8x DVD-R
|
CMCMAG.AE1
|
8x |
BenQ 4x DVD-R
|
SONY04D1
|
4x |
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8x DVD-R
|
MCC 02RG20
|
8x |
Traxdata 4x DVD+RW
|
RICOHJPN W11
|
4x |
Traxdata 4x DVD-RW
|
RITEKW04
|
4x |
- DVD Overburning Tests
In order to test the drive's DVD overburning capabilities, we used two media
types, one from CMC Mangetics 8X DVD-R and one from Traxdata 8X
DVD+R. As you can see, the drive refused to start the test with both media
types,
- DVD+MRW Tests
The Pioneer drive doesn't support the Mount Rainier format.
13. PI/PO quality results for DVD+R/RW
PIONEER DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW recorder - Page 13
PI/PO
quality results for DVD+R/RW
In the following screenshots you can see the PI/PIF scans for the DVD+R/RW
media we burned with the Pioneer DVR-S706. The software we
used for all measurements is the KProbe v2.1.0, and the reader is the LiteOn
LDW-811S
with "HS0Q
patched" firmware, being able to read DVD±R/RW media up to 8X CAV.
All scans have been performed at 8X with PI/PIF Sum8. Note that LiteOn drives
cannot report PO but PIF errors, despite what KProbe reports. In addition,
all discs have been scanned with PX-712A v1.01 using PlexTools v2.14 for comparison
levels.
Comparing the KProbe/PlexTools scans we can see major differences in the reported
PI/PIF error rates. The main explanation is that we have two different readers,
with different pickup/chipset combinations, scanning at different reading speeds
(8X CAV for KProbe, 2X CLV for PlexTools). It's interesting to see the disc
scanned at low & high speed, since when error rate increases at a specific
disc area, it should appear in both scans...else it would be, perhaps, a reading
glitch of the tested reader.
Note: PI/PIF errors only give us a quick look at the error
rate of the burned media. Those scans should be taken not as the absolute criteria
of the burning quality but as an indication level.
-
Mitsubishi Chemicals 4x DVD+R
The drive showed good writing quality, combined with good performance and
compatibility with all the DVD+ media we used.
- Appendix
Media
|
Code
|
MMore 4x DVD+R
|
MBIPG101
|
Mitsubishi Chemicals 4x DVD+R
|
MCC 002
|
Plextor 8x DVD+R
|
YUDEN000 T02
|
CMC 8x DVD+R
|
CMC MAG E01
|
Traxdata 8x DVD+R
|
RITEK R03
|
Traxdata 4x DVD+RW
|
RICOHJPN W11
|
14. PI/PO quality results for DVD-R/RW
PIONEER DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW recorder - Page 14
PI/PO
quality results for DVD-R/RW
In the following screenshots you can see the PI/PIF scans for the DVD+R/RW
media we burned with the Pioneer DVR-S706. The software we used for all measurements
is the KProbe v2.1.0, and the reader is the LiteOn LDW-811S with "HS0Q
patched" firmware, being able to read DVD±R/RW media up to 8X CAV.
All scans have been performed at 8X with PI/PIF Sum8. Note that LiteOn drives
cannot report PO but PIF errors, despite what KProbe reports. In addition,
all discs have been scanned with PX-712A v1.01 using PlexTools v2.14 for comparison
levels.
Comparing the KProbe/PlexTools scans we can see major differences in the reported
PI/PIF error rates. The main explanation is that we have two different readers,
with different pickup/chipset combinations, scanning at different reading speeds
(8X CAV for KProbe, 2X CLV for PlexTools). It's interesting to see the disc
scanned at low & high speed, since when error rate increases at a specific
disc area, it should appear in both scans...else it would be, perhaps, a reading
glitch of the tested reader.
Note: PI/PIF errors only give us a quick look at the error
rate of the burned media. Those scans should be taken not as the absolute criteria
of the burning quality but as an indication level.
-
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8x DVD-R
The drive reported good writing quality with the majority of the media
except for Mitsubishi Kagaku 8X DVD-R media.
- Appendix
Media
|
Code
|
Traxdata 8x DVD-R
|
RITEKG05
|
MMore 4x DVD-R
|
MBI 01RG20
|
CMC 8x DVD-R
|
CMCMAG.AE1
|
BenQ 4x DVD-R
|
SONY04D1
|
Mitsubishi Kagaku 8x DVD-R
|
MCC 02RG20
|
Traxdata 4x DVD-RW
|
RITEKW04
|
15. BitSetting Tests
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 15
Booktype BitSetting
The Pioneer drive doesn't support Booktype Bitsetting since Pioneer believes
that such ID changes are illegal, according to DVD-Forum specs.
16. Noise Reduction
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 16
QuietDrive Utility
?Honeycomb chassis? reduces the drives? resonance.
When a disc?s
rotation gets faster, the ?sweeping-wind? noise levels become much more audible.To
dampen this noise level, the DVR-A07XL has employed a Honeycomb chassis design
in order to lessen the noise vibration made by the upper shell hard. Additional
noise-absorbing pads are placed on the internal
side of the shell.
?Quiet Firmware? further reduces the drives noise.
When the disc?s rotation gets faster, noise levels become much more audible.
To dampen this noise level, the DVR-A07XL has adopted a switch-able firmware
version
which is used in conjunction with the ?Quiet Drive Utility?.
There are 3 modes available in the ?Quiet Drive Utility?
-
Quiet Mode
- Performance Mode
- Standard Mode
Fanless Desing
With continued development and refinement, DVD writers can achieve recordings
at ultra-high speed without the need for an additional cooling fan to reduce
any internally generated heat.
According to Pioneer the combination of those three features reduse the noise
levels up to 75% ( compared to DVR-107D).
17. Conclusion
PIONEER
DVR-S706 DVD±R/RW
recorder -
Page 17
Conclusion
The Pioneer DVR-S706 is an external, stylishly designed multiformat
DVD writer. Created to offer connection flexibility between different
computers, it is a good buy for users who need to transport a burner between
different
computers and different operating systems, such as Windows Operating Systems,
Mac Operating Systems, Linux, etc
Pioneer, is a well known company for its drivers and firmware support,
and warranty
coverage.
The Pioneer drive performed nicely reading CDs,
having good seek times. The error correction test
results
are also good,
reaching
higher
than
an average
performance.
DVD reading was acceptable with both recordable and pressed
media. Seek times were also good along with error
correction capabilities. Only full seek times were a bit high. The drive
managed to playback
all
of our
test
discs
without
reporting
any errors or problems.
The Pioneer managed to make compatible working backups only with SafeDisc
2.51. With SafeDisc v2.8 & v2.6 the burned CD
was usable only on the same drive.
The DVR-S706 behaved nicely
with the CDS200 protection scheme while with Key2Audio protection, the
drive recognizes the disc
but cannot play or rip the contents. The drive can play our 90min
& 99min AudioCDs.
The Pioneer burns quality CDs, as was the case with four of
the five various media we used, where we had low jitter values. High C2 errors
occurred with Traxdata and MAM media, but it seems not to be a problem as
both of the media were
usable
(this was double checked with CDSpeed and OS). Also, overburning for 90min
(800MB) and 99min (880MB) is not supported.
DVD burning showed compatibility with various manufacturer's media we used
except for Mitsubishi Kagaku where there were read problems at specific
points, changing the speed. General conclusions, it had good writing times
and acceptable PI/PIF levels.
Booktype Bitsetting for +R/RW format and Mount Rainier for
CD/DVD is not supported by the drive.
The drive is priced at around $260, which is not a high price for an
external DVD writer offering high compatibility with the majority of
the media.
- The Good
- Supports both USB2.0/Firewire interface connection
- Good compatibility with DVD±R/RW
- Good DVD writing quality for DVD±R media
- Supports reading of DVD-RAM media
- Very good CD/DVD error correction
- Good DAE ripping speeds (up to 40X)
- Supports CDS200 protected Audio discs
- Frequent firmware updates from Pioneer
- Noise reduction
- The Bad
- Doesn't support Booktype Bitsetting for +R/RW format
- Doesn't support Key2Audio Audio protected disc
- Doesn't accurately backup SafeDisc2 v2.6x+ protected discs
- Doesn't support CD/DVD overburning
- Cannot be used to measure writing quality of CD/DVD burned media
- Doesn't support Mount Rainier for CD/DVD formats
- Like to be fixed
- Low DVD ripping speed
- C2 errors with various CD-R media