1. Retail Package - Installation
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder - Page 1
The
ASUS CRW-5232AS is an internal atapi CD-RW drive.
Shorter than your common internal CD-RW drive and equipped with the latest
innovative technologies, the CRW-5232AS promises
lots of performance and quality in CD recording.
- Features
The ASUS CRW-5232AS drive features 52x maximum write, 32x US-RW maximum rewrite
and 52x read capabilities. It also offers innovative technology such as:
Optimal
Writing Speed Adjustment Technology based on the recording media requirements.
Buffer
Underrun Errors Prevention Technology
Noise
reduction technology achievement with the combination of AFFM & DDSS II technologies:
1. Airflow Field Modification (AFFM): Eliminates
the uneven airflow inside ASUS drive resulting in quieter and more stable
operation.
2. Double Dynamic Suspension System (DDSS II): Anti-vibration
system developed by ASUS.
- Specifications
|
|
Interface |
IDE - ATAPI |
Speeds |
Writes: 52x,
48x, 40x, 32x, 24x, 16x, 8x, 4x
Rewrites: 32x, 24x, 16x, 12x, 10x, 8x, 4x
Reads: 52x maximum
|
Application
Discs
|
12 cm or 8 cm diameter,
1.2 mm thick
CD-Audio, CD-ROM, CD-ROM/XA, CD-I, Mixed
Mode, CD-ROM, Photo CD, CD-Extra, Video CD, CD-Text, DVCD,
CD-G, Karaoke CD, I-trax, Bootable CD
|
Recording
Formats
|
Disc-At-Once, Track-At-Once, Session-At-Once,
Packet Write
|
Data Buffer
Size |
2 MB |
Dimension
|
149(w)x41.5(h)x171.2(d) mm |
Weight
|
830g |
|
|
The drive
supports RAW DAO 96, CD-R/RW read/write with buffer underrun protection and
C2 read error correction function. It also supports CD Text and CD+G read features.
- Retail package
The
package, apart from the drive, includes one IDE cable, one audio cable, one
ejector pin with instruction slip, one quick installation guide, screws and
the user
manual . There are also Nero Burning Software including the Live Firmware Update
Tool
and
Cyberlink 3 in 1 with Cyberlink PowerDirector and ASUS DVD MediaShow.
Removing the screws and opening the drive's cover voids the drive's warranty.
For reference reasons we post the following pictures.
The main controller chip is from Mediatec.
- Installation
The test computer is clocked at 1.6 GHz P4, configured with
256Mb RAM and runs Windows XP Professional SP1 operating system. The drive
was connected to our test
PC
and was identified as "ASUS CRW-5232AS". All reading tests
were done with firmware v1.01.
The
following pages include test results for the ASUS drive in comparison with
two other devices, the Aopen CRW5232 and Plextor Premium.
2. Transfer Rate Reading Tests
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder - Page 2
Transfer Rate Reading Tests
- CD Format
The ASUS CRW 5232AS supports up to 52X reading speed. Below are the transfer
rate graphs, along with the comparison with the other two drives:
As we can see from our tests, the drive has good transfer rates
and seek times. Only the full seeks are a little high and with US-RW media,
the ASUS drive had the slowest speeds.
- Appendix
Nero CD-DVD Speed Graphs
3. CD Error Correction Tests
ASUS
CRW-5232AS Recorder - Page 3
CD Error Correction Tests
In the following tests we check the drive's behavior when it comes to reading
scratched / defected discs. The test discs we use are the ABEX series
from ALMEDIO.
- ABEX TCD-721R
Errors total
|
Num: 891119
|
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num: 48849
|
Avg: -71.5 dB(A)
|
Max: -10.8 dB(A)
|
Error Muting Samples
|
Num: 2640
|
Avg: 1.0 Samples
|
Max: 8 Samples
|
Skips Samples
|
Num: 25
|
Avg: 136.2 Samples
|
Max:742 Samples
|
Total Test Result
|
60.8 points (out of 100.0 maximum)
|
C2 Accuracy |
98.0 % (out
of 100.0% maximum) |
The ASUS drive has poor performance with the ABEX TCD-721R. The total error
count is quite low at 891119 as is the loudness error count, however the loudness
level is very high. From the graph we can see that the error levels generated
from the 24th minute to the end of the test disc are at a very high level,
hovering somewhere around -40db. Consequently, we have high number of skipped
samples but C2 accuracy received a good score of 98 %. The total
test
result score
of 60.8
% is
relatively
low.
- ABEX TCD-726
Errors total
|
Num: 52
|
Errors (Loudness) dB(A)
|
Num: 19
|
Avg: -73.8dB(A)
|
Max: -20.0dB(A)
|
Error Muting Samples
|
Num: 0
|
Avg: 0.0 Samples
|
Max: 0 Samples
|
Skips Samples
|
Num: 0
|
Avg: 0.0 Samples
|
Max: 0 Samples
|
Total Test Result
|
92.8 points (out of 100.0
maximum)
|
C2 Accuracy |
64.9 % (out
of 100.0% maximum) |
The Abex TCD-726 test disc is usually a simpler case for error correction.
The CRW-5232AS drive performed better here. The total error count is
low while there aren` t any muted or skipped samples. The total score of 92.8
out of
100
is
good and the C2 accuracy score 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
difficult tests. These tracks are referred as Check Level-1 through Check Level-5.
The
files are reproduced (played) through a software multimedia player (i.e.
Windows Media Player). Each level is considered as passed, if the tone coming
out
from the speakers is smooth, continuous without interruptions, skipping or
looping. The higher the Check Level passed, the more reliable the sound reproduction
of the tested device.
Error Level
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
ASUS CRW 5232AS
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
5/5
|
0/5
|
The drive passed four of the five Check Levels of the
test. The performance reveals good sound reproduction and error correction.
The
fifth
level
includes an error size of 1.500mm, and here, the drive produced many audible
clicks.
- Conclusion
Test Disc
|
Reading Speed
|
Score
|
ABEX TCD-721R
|
Max
|
60.8
|
ABEX TCD-726
|
92.8
|
Average Score
|
76.8
|
The performance of the ASUS CRW 5232AS was average with a final average
score
of 76.8 out of 100.
4. Protected Disc Tests
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder -
Page 4
Protected Disc
Tests
- Reading Tests
To create an image of the various protected titles to the hard disk,
we used the latest version of Alcohol 120% software and the appropriate settings,
according to
the protection type of the inserted discs. Below you can see the duration of
each
process
as well as the transfer rate in each case, which should prove interesting
for all users.
Game Title |
Protection Scheme |
PSX "NBA Jam Extreme" |
Lybcrypt |
Serious Sam The Second Encounter |
SafeDisc v.2.50.051 |
VRally II |
SecuROM v.2 |
The ASUS drive is slower with protected disc reading as it
passes slow over the read errors, except with PSX protection which reached
high performance compared
with the other drives.
- Writing Tests
The ASUS CRW 5232AS 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 v3.1x
- The Sims Superstar - Safe Disc v2.9x
- The Sims Unleashed - Safe Disc v2.8x
- Serious Sam Second Encounter - Safe Disc v2.51.021
- 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 v1.07
SD v2.60.052
|
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
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Creative CD5233E
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
ASUS
CRW5232AS
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
The drive's full Safedisc2 backup capabilities reached only up to v2.9 but
without being compatible on all drive readers. The ASUS drive will produce
partially working backups with the newest v2.9 builds but cannot support
v3.1
builds.
5. DAE Tests
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder -
Page 5
DAE Tests
- Pressed and CDR AudioCD
The ASUS CRW 5232AS supports up to 52X CAV DAE speed. When using a pressed
AudioCD and its CD-R copy, with EAC, we logged the following results:
As EAC reports,
the drive caches DAE, supports accurate stream and can report C2 error information.
- Advanced DAE Quality
The ASUS CRW 5232AS received a score of 100 (perfect) in the Nero CD Speed
Advanced DAE test. CDSpeed showed that the average reading speed is 37.24X
and
that
the drive supports reading of
SubChannel
data, Leadin data and CD
Text. Leadout isn`t supported.
- Reading 90/ 99mins AudioCDs
6. Protected AudioCD Tests
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder -
Page 6
Protected AudioCDs
For this test procedure we used three audio discs with different
audio copy protections. The ripping process performed for all protected Audio
discs was performed with Exact Audio Copy v0.9 beta 5.
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
bypass with the reader, while the Key2Audio contains a second session,
causing problems on readers when they try 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 ASUS drive recognized up to the 12th Audio track of the CDS200 disc,
and with the "Retrieve Native TOC" option removed, the 13th Data
track.
The test results are shown in the following table:
|
Key2Audio |
CDS200 |
ASUS CRW-5232AS |
Ripping process completed, EAC reports timing
problems, Read&Test CRC comparison successful for all tracks |
Ripping process completed, EAC reports timing problems, Read&Test CRC comparison not the same for all tracks |
The ASUS CRW 5232AS will
rip both Key2Audio and CDS200 protected audio discs. Both discs were recognized
and
their contents were
ripped
at the maximum speed. However, the drive may not rip 100% accurately,
CD200 discs since EAC reported timing problems and at the same time, Read&Test
CRC check comparison was not the same for all tracks. Timing problems
were noticed with Key2Audio discs but with no CRC errors.
- 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 then trying to write
the ripped wav files, since the produced CD-R disc contains C2 and CU errors!
This "problem" is rumored to be connected with 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).
|
CDS 200.0.4 - 3.0 build 16a |
ASUS CRW-5232AS |
Reading and writing performed without
any errors |
- 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 manage 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.
7. CD Recording Tests
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder -
Page 7
CD Recording Tests
The ASUS CRW 5232AS supports 52X CD-R and 32X US-RW recording speeds.
The drive
supports 4X, 8X, 16X, 24X, 32X, 40X, 48X and 52X writing speeds.
Below
are
the recording speeds as detected by Nero Burning Rom.
According
to Nero CDSpeed, the drive reached the maximum 52X speed. The test started
at 23.67X and finished at 53.38X having an average speed of 40.42X.
Click on the image below to see the whole graph.
For the burning tests we created an 80min data compilation through Nero Burning
Rom, recording the data on a 700MB disc.
Below is a chart showing recording times with TraxData
52X media at various speeds compared with the other two drives.
The ASUS CRW 5232AS finished the
task in 3:16 minutes, a little surprising for a drive with
a
maximum
52X
writing
speed.
The
writing performance varies according to the inserted media, as our tests
showed. Below is a chart demonstrating
all recording times with various media.
The fastest recording time came with MMore 80min 52X media which took
161secs (2:41mins).
- Other features
Overburning writing
|
|
CD text reading/writing
|
Yes
|
The ASUS supports the 16X, 24X and 32X P-CAV rewriting speeds, with Ultra
Speed
Rewritable
Media
(US-RW).
Below you can see the Nero CD-DVD Speed writing simulation test with blank
32X US-RW media from Verbatim.
The drive starts the writing task at 20.23X and reaches the maximum 32X
at the 25:00 min address mark on the disc. According to CDSpeed, the average
writing speed is 29.61X.
We also used Nero Burning Rom in order to burn a data disc with 32X US-RW
media from Verbatim. The data compilation we burned had a size of 651 MB and
the duration of the recording process was 2:57 minutes.
- CD-RW Mount Rainier Tests
The ASUS CRW 5232AS dosen`t support the CD-RW Mount Rainier write feature.
8. 3T Jitter Tests - Page 1
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder -
Page 8
3T Jitter Tests
- Page 1
In the following page you can
see the 3T
Pit & Land Jitter graphs using TraxData 52X media burned at all supported
speeds.
- 3T Pit results
Generally the drive did not perform satisfactorily, where at no point did
any of the discs produce a reading below the 35ns Red Book limit.. The highest
average 3T Pit jitter seen in the graph below, reached 44,56nsec, which is
way above the
Red
Book limit
(35nsec).
The best results came at 24X writing speed.
- 3T Land results
The average 3T Land results were also high. The maximum average 3T Land Jitter
reached 53,67nsec and the best result were again at 24X writing speed.
9. 3T Jitter Tests - Page 2
ASUS CRW-5232AS Recorder - Page 9
3T Jitter Tests
- Page 2
In the following page you can
see the 3T
Pit & Land Jitter graphs using various media burned at 52X CAV writing
speed.
- 3T Pit results
Again the drive didn't perform satisfactorily and again no media went below
the 35ns limit. The best results came with BenQ 48X CD-R media.
- 3T Land results
The average 3T Land results were also high. The best results came with MMore
52X (average 30,67nsec) and Traxdata 52X (average 34,78nsec).
Recording Speed
|
Average 3T Pit Jitter (ns)
|
Average 3T Land Jitter (ns)
|
> 35ns
|
Max 3T jitter values (ns)
|
MMore 52x
|
43,89 |
30,67 |
Yes |
46 Pit, 41 Land
|
BenQ 48x
|
40,89 |
39,44 |
Yes |
42 Pit, 42 Land
|
Traxdata 52x
|
41,56 |
34,78 |
Yes |
44 Pit, 38 Land
|
Mam 52x
|
41,78 |
36,44 |
Yes |
48 Pit, 42 Land
|
Fujifilm 48x
|
41,11 |
39,89 |
Yes |
42 Pit, 42 Land
|
In the following page we check the C1 and C2 error rates of the same discs,
to come up with more specific conclusions.
10. C1/C2 Error Measurements
ASUS CRW-5232AS
Recorder- Page 10
C1 / C2 Error Measurements
We measured the C1 / C2 error rate on the recorded discs we burned at the
various supported writing speeds and various media. The software we used is
PleXTools Professional v2.14, and particularly the built-in Q-Check utility.
The reader
was the Plextor
PX-712A (firmware v1.01)
BenQ 80min 48X CD-R recorded at 52X
Fujifilm 80min 48X recorded at 48X
Mam 80min 52X recorded at 52X
MMore 80min 52X recorded at 52X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 52X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 48X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 40X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 32X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 24X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 16X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 8X
TraxData 80min 52X recorded at 4X
- Summary
The ASUS CRW 5232AS needs to improve its writing quality with CD-R media as
we noticed high C1, C2 and CU errors.
- Appendix
Media Label |
ID Code |
Manufacturer Name |
Lead Out TIme |
MMore 80min 52X |
97m17s 06f |
Moser Baer India |
79m59s74f |
Mam 52X |
97m27s58f |
Mitsui Chemicals |
79m59s74f |
BenQ 80min 48X |
97m22s67f |
Daxon Technology |
79m59s74f |
Fujifilm 48X |
97m24s 01f |
Taiyo Yuden |
79m59s72f |
TraxData 80min 52X |
97m15s17f |
Ritek |
79m59s70f |
11. Conclusion
ASUS CRW-5232AS
Recorder -
Conclusion
Conclusion
The ASUS CRW 5232AS is a CD rewritable drive aimed at users wanting
a burner with full CD operations and high performance cou;led with the
latest technological achievements on compuct discs.
The drive offers high speed transfer rates with CD-Rs but seems to be slow
when reading rewritable media compared with drives in the same category.
The drive offers
good error correction with scratched / defective discs. With game backups,
it produces working copies readable with all drives for safedisc
protection scheme up to version
2.8 and only
partial compatibility with version 2.9 build.
The ASUS CRW 5232AS uses 52X CAV DAE speed and offers features such as cached
DAE, accurate stream and C2 error information. It received a score of 100
(perfect)
in the Nero CD Speed Advanced DAE test with an average reading
speed of 37.24X.
The drive supports Key2Audio/CDS200 protected Audio
discs but gave us timing problems and Read&Test
CRC difference with CDS200 protection. It supports 99min
reading Audio CDs but has reading problems with 90min Audio CDs.
The ASUS drive supports 4X, 8X, 16X, 24X, 32X, 40X, 48X and 52X speeds and
has average writing performance, with high jitter at all speeds with
TraxData
52X media as well as with various other media we tried. It also gave us high
C1,C2 and CU errors, especially with BenQ and TraxData recorded at 52X & 8X.
The ASUS CRW 5232AS is priced at around $25.
- The Good
- Low price.
- 32X US-RW support.
- Compatible for backup of SafeDisc2 v2.8x protected discs.
- Good CD error correction.
- Can overburn up to 99mins.
- Supports Key2Audio/CDS200 protected Audio
discs.
- The Bad
- CD-R writing needs much improvement, drive produces high C1,C2 & CU
error rates as well as jitter.
- Doesn't accurately backup SafeDisc2 v2.9x+ protected discs.
- Dosen`t rip 100% accurately CD200 protected Audio
discs.
- Retail package doesn't include any CDR-RW media.
- Like to be fixed
- High C1/C2/CU errors with various media.
- High jitter.