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Review: Lite-On LH-2B1S |
We at CDFreaks would like to present a review of Lite-On’s first drive that supports the Blu-ray technology - the Lite-On LH-2B1S Blu-Ray Disc Triple Writer.
The Lite-On LH-2B1S supports 4x*/2x BD-R/BD-RE (single layer), 1x BD-R/BD-RE (dual layer), 12x DVD±R, 8x/6x DVD+RW/-RW, and 4x DVD+R DL/-R DL writing technology, allowing Double/Dual Layer discs of 8.5Gb to be written. * 4x BD-R (single layer) writing will be available in future firmware upgrade.
Company Information:
Let us take a look at some of the company information found at the Lite-On (Europe) Website:
Lite-On IT Corporation is part of the Taiwanese Lite-On Group, which consists of nine consolidated companies. Lite-On Group is a world leading company in digital convergence (3C: Computer, Communications, and Consumer electronics) employing 35,000 people worldwide. Lite-On Group has 45 factories, 29 branch offices, and 4 R&D centers worldwide and generated total revenue of 6 Billion USD in 2004.
The roots of Lite-On IT lie in Taipei, Taiwan, where Lite-On Electronics Inc. was founded in 1975. Back then the core business consisted of production of clock-display LEDs. Because LED (Light Emitting Diode) formed the mainstay of Lite-On in the early years, the English word "Light" inspired the corporate name.
In the twenty years that followed, Lite-On gradually expanded its business throughout the Asian Pacific region to become a respected Taiwanese manufacturer with various established subsidiaries that form Lite-On Group today.
Company Profile
Lite-On IT started of as a business unit within Lite-On Technology Corporation in 1995. By that time the market for Optical Disc Drives (ODD) was growing very fast, and to be able to play a significant role in this, Lite-On Technology decided to establish a dedicated business unit to produce high quality CD-ROM drives. A large manufacturing facility was established in China to meet all demands and Lite-On soon became Taiwan’s biggest CD-ROM drive manufacturer, and number three worldwide.
Due to the growing success in the ODD market, Lite-On IT transformed from a relatively small business unit to an independent subsidiary of Lite-On Group, producing over 1 million drives per month. In 1999, the foundation of Lite-On IT Corporation as the youngest member of the Lite-On Group was a fact. Besides headquarters in Taipei, branch offices were established in the United States (California) and Europe (The Netherlands).
In the years to follow, Lite-On IT continued its growth in the ODD business, by setting extensive distribution networks in Europe and the United States. With the introduction of more ODD products, like CD-RW, DVD-ROM, COMBO and DVD-RW drives, Lite-On IT increased it’s production from 1 million drives per month in 1999, to no less then 5 million drives per month in 2005. With this unique achievement Lite-On IT became the world’s second biggest ODD manufacturer.
Recognizing the convergence between computers and digital consumer electronics, Lite-On IT is now expanding its business making full use of its knowledge and core-technology in the ODD industry. In 2003 Lite-On introduced its first DVD recorder. With this product, the company made a successful entry in the consumer electronics market. Nowadays, Lite-On IT is not only aiming to provide high quality and high performance IT products, but also high-tech digital audio-video appliances. With more digital consumer products to follow in the future, Lite-On IT is resolute to become a worldwide supplier of digital solutions that promise to illuminate everyone’s life.
Historic Timeline Lite-On IT Corporation
1995 Founded as a business unit in Lite-On Technology Corporation
1997 Opening of production facility in China
1998 No. 1 CD-ROM Manufacturer in Taiwan & No.4 Worldwide
Opening of branch offices in USA and Europe
1999 Production capacity over 1 Million per Month
Spin-off from Lite-On Technology Corporation as
Lite-On IT Corporation
No. 3 CD-ROM Manufacturer Worldwide
2001 Lite-On IT becomes a public listed company
Production capacity over 2 Million per Month
2002 Production Capacity over 3 Million per Month
Slim type Combo starts production
Foundation of business unit “Digital Consumer"
2003 Production Base moves from SJP to GZP (Science Park)
Production capacity over 4 Million per Month
DVD-Rewriter starts production
Launch of first Lite-On DVD Recorder
2005 Production capacity over 5 Million pieces per Month
2006 Opening of regional office in Germany
Lite-On IT becomes No. 2 ODD Manufacturer Worldwide
Management Philosophy
Vision
Lite-On leads the way in 3C convergence, bringing computers, communications, and consumer electronics together to expand the reach and value of technology, to foster new opportunities, and to ensure continued business success.
Our vision is maintained by the core values of our management philosophy:
Quality
High quality standards are the core of every activity and lead to customer loyalty and satisfaction.
Integrity
Integrity fosters trust. We place great value on creating technologies that incorporate the human touch.
Innovation
We honor the spirit of innovation while striving to be creative and responsive to customer needs. This in turn helps strengthen our competitive advantage in the global marketplace.
For more information about the core values of Lite-On Group, please refer to the corporate website: http://www.liteon.com/
Drive Specifications:
What’s inside the box?
On this page, we will take a look at what the drive came shipped with, a look at the drive and its technology.
Front
Back
Left Side
Right Side
Top
Top Lid inside
Bottom
Below you will see the contents:
- The internal drive
- TDK BD-RE media
- CyberLink BD Solution Software disc
- PowerDVD
- PowerProducer
- Power2Go
- PowerBackup
- InstantBurn
- Cyberlink BD/HD Advisor
- User’s Manual for BD Drive
- Quick Installation Guide For Serial ATA Drives
- Mounting screws
- Serial ATA Cable
Now it's time to take a look at the drive itself:
The bezel is cleanly styled that includes a few logos, a triple LED feature (BD, DVD and CD), an emergency eject hole and an eject button. On the tray we can see a DVD Alliance DVD+R DL logo, a DVD Forum DVD-R/RW/R DL logo, the Blu-Ray logo and a CD-RW Ultra Speed logo.
Green LED for CD disc operation
Green LED for DVD disc operation
Blue LED for Blu-ray disc operation
Top
Label
On the top of the drive we found two stickers, and we can see that the drive was made in China, dated October 2006.
Bottom
Side
Rear
On the rear of the drive starting from the left we can see: some undocumented pins, a 15 pin Serial ATA DC power input and a 7 pin Serial ATA connector.
Also supplied with the drive, was the CyberLink BD Solution Software Disc. (We did not however use this software in this review.)
Now let’s take a look at the drive installation and features on the next page…
Test machine:
For this review we will be using a computer with the following configuration:
Hardware:
- Motherboard: Asus A8V Deluxe
- Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ (Toledo)
- RAM: 1 GB Corsair Kit PC3200 DDR
- GFX: MSI GeForce 6600 GT
- Sound: Onboard Realtek AC'97
- Hard disk: Maxtor 6V300F0 300 GB (S-ATA)
System set-up:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S was connected to the VIA SATA interface and identified itself as LITE-ON BD B LH-2B1S. Autorun was enabled for all devices.
And another screenshot from Nero InfoTool below:
From the screenshot from Nero InfoTool above, we can see the Lite-On LH2B1S does not support Mount Rainer. The drive came shipped with firmware version AL05. The drive should use a 2MB buffer size for CD/DVD burning and 8MB buffer size for Blu-ray burning. Furthermore, the drive is reported as AACS compliant.
Installed Software:
Windows XP Professional 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:
Features and techniques:
Book type (bitsetting):
The Lite-On LH-2B1S supports Bitsetting, and will as default write DVD+R/DVD+RW/DVD+R DL media with DVD-ROM BookType.
DVD+R media with DVD-ROM BookType
DVD+RW media with DVD-ROM BookType
DVD+R DL media with DVD-ROM BookType
Disc Quality Scanning:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S seems to be ready to perform disc quality scans on CD/DVD/BD media, but at the moment it lacks to report some measurement parameters. Hopefully these parameters can be implanted in future firmware/software updates. (Quality scans performed on the Lite-On LH-2B1S drive can NOT at the present time be compared to scans done with other Quality scanners).
Some of the scanning examples below were made with the Test length set to “Speed” under advanced option. (To save time, performing our scanning examples).
CD Scanning example
DVD+R scanning example. The PIF parameter reporting is at the time being not reported.
DVD-R scanning example. The PIF parameter reporting is at the time being not reported.
BD-R scanning example and as we can see the Jitter is currently only reported. (We stopped the scanning to save time and to just show you this scanning example).
BD-R scanning example and as we can see the Jitter is currently only reported. (We stopped the scanning to save time and to just show you this scanning example).
SMART-BURN:
(Smart Monitoring & Adapting Recording Technology for BURNing)
- SMART-BURN is the abbreviation of “Smart Monitoring & Adapting Recording Technology for BURNing", innovated CD-RW technology by LITE-ON IT, will be introduced to other products in the future.
- Users always want to successfully burn a disc with a higher speed in CD-RW drive. You may know, there are so many brands of CD-R / CD-RW media in the market with irregular quality & still being cost down in the price war.
- If your CD-R / CD-RW media quality is really poor enough or working environment is too hot to induce the Laser Power over margin, the CD-RW drive detected, the burning speed will be forced to decrease to get more reliable Laser working power to secure the life of CD-RW drive & burning quality strategy parameters plus the outstanding running Optimum Power Calibration (OPC) function to provide you the best burning quality.
- The buffer under run error is also no longer happened to your drive anymore, SMART-BURN also can allow drive to be suspended during writing, than continue to burn from last point when enough data get in the buffer.
- SMART-BURN features :
- Buffer Under Run Error Free
- Running Optimum Power Calibration
- Automatic Writing Strategy & Burning Parameters
- Automatically decrease burning speed when Laser power over margin due to poor media quality or high temperature
An Introduction to Blu-Ray:
Until recently, optical disc technologies such as DVD, DVD±R, DVD±RW, and DVD-RAM relied on a red laser to read and write data, the Blu-Ray format uses a blue-violet laser, which explains the name Blu-ray.
Blu-ray drives can also be made backwards compatible with CDs and DVDs through the use of a BD/DVD/CD compatible optical pickup unit.
A blue-violet laser (405nm) has a shorter wavelength than a red laser (650nm); this makes it possible to focus the laser with even greater accuracy. This will allow data to be packed more tightly, so it's possible to squeeze more data on the disc even though it's the same size as a CD/DVD. This together with the change of numerical aperture to 0.85 enables Blu-ray discs to hold 25GB/50GB.
Now let’s take a look at the track pitch and compare them with that of DVD:
As we can see in the above screenshots, the storage density of Blu-Ray is much higher than DVD. The Blu-Ray laser beam spot is also much narrower than that of DVD.
Blu-Ray Error specification:
|
Parameters |
Description |
Limits |
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RSER10k |
Random Symbol Error Rate – The number of random errors (without Burst Errors) within a 10 000 64K-Block |
Up to 2E-4 |
|
BC |
Burst Count – The number of Burst-Errors with an length of minimum 40 Bytes within a 64K-Block |
Up to 8 |
|
BL |
Burst Length – The total length of Burst-Error (>= 40 Bytes) within one 64K-Block |
Up to 600 Byte |
|
UNC |
Un-correctable errors - Numbers of Code Words within one 64K-Blocks that Long Distance Code (LDC) could not correct. |
0 |
|
Jitter LEq |
Length difference in the written marks after the Signal enhancement through the Limit Equalizer. |
Up to 6.5 % |
|
NPPa |
Push-Pull-Signal - The strength of the track control needed Push-Pull-Signals. |
0.21 to 0.45 |
|
NWS |
Wobble-Signal - The strength of the Wobble-signal in relation to the Push-Pull-Tracking-Signal. |
0.20 to 0.55 |
In the above table we present some of the specifications for reported errors on Blu-Ray media. At present we have no equipment or software available for measuring these errors.
Writing Technology:
In the following tests, we take a look at the disc writing technology used by the Lite-On LH-2B1S. For these tests we simply burned a disc with Nero CD-Speed’s “create data disc” function.
CD-Recordable:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity), to write at its maximum speed of 32X. This gives an average speed of 24.02x and writing time of 4 minutes and 15 seconds.
CD-ReWritable:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write CD-RW media at its maximum speed of 24x, with an average write speed of 18.63x and writing time of 5 minutes and 7 seconds.
12x DVD+R Writing speed:
The Lite-on LH-2B1S uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at the maximum supported speed of 12x. This gives an average write speed of 8.96x and a writing time of 7 minutes and 9 seconds.
12X DVD-R Writing speed:
The Lite-on LH-2B1S uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD-R at the maximum supported speed of 12x. This gives an average write speed of 8.95x and a writing time of 7 minutes and 20 seconds.
8X DVD+RW writing speed:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+RW at 8x. The average speed is 7.16x and total writing time is 8 minutes and 30 seconds.
6X DVD-RW writing speed:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses Z-CLV (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-RW at 6x. The average speed is 5.75x and total writing time is 10 minutes and 52 seconds.
4X DVD+R DL writing speed:
The Lite-ON LH-2B1S uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+R DL at 4x. The average speed is 3.85x and total writing time is 28 minutes and 21 seconds.
4X DVD-R DL writing speed:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-R DL at 4x. The average speed is 3.81x and total writing time is 29 minutes and 28 seconds.
2x BD-R (Single Layer) writing speed:
According to the specifications the Lite-On LH-2B1S should be able to write BD-R 25GB Single Layer media at 2x.
The Lite-ON LH-2B1S uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) to write BD-R at its maximum speed of 2x. This resulted in an average write speed of 1.94x and a total write time of 46 minutes and 36 seconds.
2x BD-RE (Single Layer) writing speed:
According to the specifications the Lite-On LH-2B1S should be able to write BD-RE 25GB Single Layer media at 2x.
The Lite-On LH-2B1S uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) to write BD-R at its maximum speed of 2x. This resulted in an average write speed of 1.95x and a total write time of 46 minutes and 16 seconds.
Let’s continue to the next page where we will examine the reading performance...
Reading Performance:
For these tests we will use Nero CD/DVD-Speed to read various CD, DVD and BD media. As already mentioned in the introduction, this drive supports:
- BD: 2x
- DVD: 12x
- CD: 32x
CD-ROM pressed discs:
For this test we used a pressed CD-ROM disc containing Creative Blaster Audigy install CD that is close to 74 minutes long. Below you will see the produced result:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads CD-ROM discs at 34.52x speed.
CD-Recordable Discs:
For this test we made a copy of the original Creative Blaster Audigy install CD. The disc we used was a Verbatim 48X certified CD-R disc manufactured by Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation.
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads CD-R discs at 35.21x speed.
CD-Rewritable discs:
Again, we made a copy of the original Creative Blaster Audigy install CD; this time we used a Verbatim Ultra Speed (32X) CD-RW disc made by Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation.
The Lite-ON LH-2B1S reads CD-RW discs at 35.26x speed.
99 minutes CD-R:
The used 99 minutes CD-R disc, is slightly larger then 99 minutes, to be exact it's 99:10 minutes long (99:10:00).
The Lite-On LH-2B1S had no problem reading the 99 min CD-R discs at 37.22x speeds.
Audio – Digital Audio Extraction:
We used Nero CD/DVD-Speed to measure the transfer rate. The audio disc we used is about 78 minutes long (77:43:45).
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reached 36.22x reading Audio-CD.
Advanced audio – EAC test:
For this test we used EAC (Exact Audio Copy) to test the drive’s audio extraction performance..
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According to EAC the Lite-On drive support Caching, which is considered negative - while ripping audio. |
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Below is the results produced by EAC:
Burst mode
Secure mode
The drive performed very well in burst mode and rather slow in secure mode.
Advanced audio – DAE quality test:
Before we move on to testing DVD read speeds, we will take a last audio test, and this time we used the 'Advanced DAE Quality Test" feature in CD-Speed. For this test we used a CD-R DA media from Fuji.
The extracting quality is excellent and the drive should support everything except reading Leadout.
DVD reading performance:
Again, we will use Nero CD-Speed to measure the reading performance, this time for various types of DVD discs.
DVD – DVD-Video:
For our DVD reading performance tests we are going to start with a Single and Double Layered DVD video discs. While only 1X speed is required to watch DVD movies, it’s useful to be able to read the discs at higher speeds if you’re going to extract (rip) the content of the disc to your hard drive.
DVD-Video Single Layer
DVD-Video Double Layer (OTP)
DVD-Video Double Layer (PTP)
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads pressed DVD-VIDEO SL at 12x, DVD-VIDEO (OTP) at 8x and DVD-VIDEO (PTP) at 8x.
DVD – DVD+R/RW:
For this test we used a Verbatim 16x DVD+R and a Verbatim 8x DVD+RW with 4.38GB of data. Below are the results:
DVD+R
DVD+RW
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads DVD+R and DVD+RW at 12.5x speed.
DVD – DVD-R/RW:
For this test we used a Verbatim 16X DVD-R disc and a Verbatim 6X DVD-RW disc filled with 4.38GB of data. Our test results are found below:
DVD-R
DVD-RW
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads DVD-R and DVD-RW at 12.5x speed.
DVD – DVD±R DL:
For this test we used a Verbatim 2.4x DVD+R DL disc and a Verbatim 4X DVD-R DL disc filled with 7.96GB of data. Our test results are found below:
DVD+R DL
DVD-R DL
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads DVD+R DL and DVD-R DL at 8x speed.
Blu-ray Reading performance:
BD – BD-R SL:
For this test we used a Verbatim BD-R media filled with 22.56GB of data. (Thanks to Verbatim Germany for sending us this media.) Our test results are found below:
BD-R SL
The Lite-On LH-2B1S reads BD-R Single Layer 25GB at 2x without any issue.
BD – BD-RE SL:
For this test we used a Verbatim BD-RE media filled with 22.56GB of data. (Thanks to Verbatim Germany for sending us this media.) Our test results are found below:
BD-RE SL
The Lite-on LH-2B1S reads BD-RE Single Layer 25GB at 2x without any issue.
Now it’s time to head on to a more interesting part: Writing CD-R and CD-RW discs…
The specifications of the Lite-On LH-2B1S state that the drive is able to write CD-R discs at 32x and CD-RW at 24x. Let us find out how the drive really performs in speed and quality.
Write Quality:
We will test CD-R discs from different CD-R manufacturers. To really measure the write speed, we used the 'create data CD" function in Nero CD-Speed. The discs were written at the maximum speed that the drive supports. For the quality test, we used KProbe 2 which is a tool developed by a Lite-On employee. It runs under Windows and works with drives made by Lite-On. Also note that different drives and different reading speeds may affect the results obtained when scanning the discs. We used a Lite-On SOHR-5238S drive with firmware 4S09 and scanned the discs at 48X speed.
A written CD-R disc will always have some C1 errors; C1 errors are easily corrected by the drive's error correction capabilities. The next level of errors is C2, while C2 errors could also be corrected by most drive's error correction capabilities; they are not wanted on a good quality disc. A good disc should not contain any C2 errors, and preferably have an average C1 error amount of below 2.0 for the best discs, or at least below 10.0 averages for good quality discs. After C2 errors, there are only un-correctable errors that will make a disc unusable.
Below are the obtained results:
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Brand: |
BenQ - Thanks to Daxon |
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Manufacturer: |
Daxon Inc. |
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Code: |
97m22s67f |
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Disc Type: |
CD-R |
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Recording Layer: |
Dye Type 7: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine) |
|
Capacity: |
79:59.74 (703MB) |
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Certified Speed: |
52x |
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Write Speed: |
32x |
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Write Time: |
4m:15s |
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C1 Average/Sec: |
0.56 |
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C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
BenQ media with average C1 errors of 0.56 - it goes into the group “best quality discs” category.
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Brand: |
Miflop Extreme Printable - Thanks to Miflop Media |
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Manufacturer: |
Taiyo Yuden |
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Code: |
97m24s01f |
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Disc Type: |
CD-R |
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Recording Layer: |
Dye Type 1: Long Strategy (Cyanine, AZO) |
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Capacity: |
79:59.72 (703MB) |
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Certified Speed: |
48x |
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Write Speed: |
32x |
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Write Time: |
4m:19s |
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C1 Average/Sec: |
0.21 |
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C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
Media made by Taiyo Yuden have always had a good reputation and with the average C1 errors of 0.21 it goes into the group “best quality discs” category.
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Brand: |
RICOH – Thanks to RICOH Europe (D) |
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Manufacturer: |
Moser Baer India Limited |
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Code: |
97m17s06f |
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Disc Type: |
CD-R |
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Recording Layer: |
Dye Type 6: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine) |
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Capacity: |
79:59.74 (703MB) |
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Certified Speed: |
1x-52x |
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Write Speed: |
32x |
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Write Time: |
4m:25s |
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C1 Average/Sec: |
1.56 |
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C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
RICOH media – manufactured by Moser Baer India Limited and with its average of 1.56 it goes in the “best quality” category.
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Brand: |
Ultron – Thanks to Ultron AG (D) |
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Manufacturer: |
SONY Corporation |
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Code: |
97m24s16f |
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Disc Type: |
CD-R |
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Recording Layer: |
Dye Type 6: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine) |
|
Capacity: |
79:59.73 (703MB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
52x |
|
Write Speed: |
16x |
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Write Time: |
5m:58s |
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C1 Average/Sec: |
0.61 |
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C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
Ultron media and with the average C1 errors of 0.61 it goes into the group “best quality discs” category. This media was burned at 16x.
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Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim (D) |
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Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation |
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Code: |
97m34s23f |
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Disc Type: |
CD-R |
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Recording Layer: |
Dye Type 3: Long Strategy (Cyanine, AZO) |
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Capacity: |
79:59.73 (703MB) |
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Certified Speed: |
52x |
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Write Speed: |
32x |
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Write Time: |
4m:15s |
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C1 Average/Sec: |
0.33 |
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C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
Verbatim – a well-known brand showed us a C1 average of 0.33 - it goes into the category “Best Discs”.
Writing Quality with CD-RW discs:
We will also test CD-RW discs from different CD-RW manufacturers. Settings and testing procedures is the same as used earlier in this review, so you may want to go back and read them if you are unsure. All discs used for these tests have been written to before, but none have been written to more than 5 times.
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim (D) |
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Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation |
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Code: |
97m34s24f |
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Disc Type: |
Ultra Speed CD-RW 24x |
|
Recording Layer: |
Phase Change |
|
Capacity: |
79:59.74 (703MB) |
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Certified Speed: |
24x |
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Write Speed: |
24x |
|
Write Time: |
5m:07s |
|
C1 Average/Sec: |
19.38 |
|
C2 Average/Sec: |
0.0 |
The CD-RW result is good.
Summary:
The CD-R writing quality is excellent, and the CD-RW quality is good.
So let us head on to next page and read about DVD-Writing performance…
The specifications of this drive tell us that it should write DVD±R at 12x and DVD+RW/-RW at 8x/6x. In this part, we will measure the write time for various types of DVD+R/RW and DVD-R/RW discs. We will also focus on write quality and media compatibility.
DVD+R media compatibility and write quality:
In these tests we will be using a Lite-On SHW-165P6S with firmware MS0P along with KProbe to measure the disc quality. We will also be using the Optiarc AD-7173A with firmware 1-01 along with CD-Speed for our read-back tests.
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Brand: |
Maxell |
|
Manufacturer: |
Maxell |
|
Code: |
MAXELL003 |
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Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:11s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.35 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.09 |
The result is good.
|
Brand: |
Miflop Extreme – Thanks to Miflop |
|
Manufacturer: |
Taiyo Yuden Company Limited |
|
Code: |
YUDEN 000 T03 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:11s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
4.93 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.20 |
Miflop extreme media with Taiyo Yuden media code, the result is good.
|
Brand: |
Philips |
|
Manufacturer: |
InfoMedia |
|
Code: |
INFOMER30 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:16s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
4.14 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.07 |
Philips DVD+R media, made by InfoMedia and the result is good.
|
Brand: |
Pleomax – Thanks to Pleomax (NL) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Opto Disc |
|
Code: |
OPTODISC R16 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:11s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
3.28 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.04 |
The result is very good.
|
Brand: |
TDK |
|
Manufacturer: |
TDK Corporation |
|
Code: |
TDK003 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:09s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.59 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.03 |
The result is very good.
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim (Germany) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation |
|
Code: |
MCC 004 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:09s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.70 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.02 |
The result is very good.
DVD+ReWritable media:
DVD+RW at 8x:
|
Brand: |
Ricoh – Thanks to Ricoh Europe |
|
Manufacturer: |
RICOH Company Limited |
|
Code: |
RICOH JPNW21 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+RW |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
8x |
|
Write Speed: |
8x |
|
Write Time: |
8m:30s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
7.81 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.07 |
The result is good for this DVD+RW media.
Summary:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S produced very good quality results with the tested DVD+R/RW media.
On the next page you will find the DVD-R/RW writing results…
DVD-R media compatibility and write quality:
In these tests we will be using a Lite-On SHW-165P6S with firmware MS0P along with KProbe to measure the disc quality. We will also be using the Optiarc AD-7173A with firmware 1-01 along with CD-Speed for our read-back tests.
|
Brand: |
Maxell |
|
Manufacturer: |
Maxell |
|
Code: |
MXLRG04 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:20s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.33 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.02 |
The result is excellent.
|
Brand: |
Miflop Extreme – Thanks to Miflop |
|
Manufacturer: |
Taiyo Yuden Company Limited |
|
Code: |
TYG03 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:27s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
1.01 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.01 |
Miflop extreme media, with Taiyo Yuden media code and the result is excellent.
|
Brand: |
Pleomax – Thanks to Pleomax (NL) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Opto Disc |
|
Code: |
OPTODISCR016 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:22s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.93 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.01 |
The result is excellent.
|
Brand: |
Sony – Thanks to Sony (Germany) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Sony Corporation |
|
Code: |
SONY16D1 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:24s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
3.63 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.07 |
The result is good.
|
Brand: |
TDK |
|
Manufacturer: |
TDK |
|
Code: |
TTH02 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:23s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
1.95 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.06 |
The result is good.
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim (Germany) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation |
|
Code: |
MCC 03R G20 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
16x |
|
Write Speed: |
12x |
|
Write Time: |
7m:22s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
0.36 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.04 |
The result is excellent.
DVD-ReWritable media:
DVD-RW at 6x:
|
Brand: |
Verbatim - Thanks to Verbatim |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Kagaku Media |
|
Code: |
MKM 01RW 6X01 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-RW |
|
Capacity: |
4483MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
6x |
|
Write Speed: |
6x |
|
Write Time: |
10m:52s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
4.31 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.01 |
The result is excellent.
Summary:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S produced very good/excellent quality results with the tested DVD-R/RW media.
Head on to the next page for the DVD+R DL and DVD-R DL writing performance…
DVD+R/-R Double/Dual Layer writing performance:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S supports the DVD+R DL/-R DL standard for writing Double Layer/Dual Layer discs with a size around 8.5 GB at a writing speed of 4x.
DVD+R DL at 4x:
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim (D) |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Kagaku Media |
|
Code: |
MKM 003 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD+R DL |
|
Capacity: |
8103MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
8x |
|
Write Speed: |
4x |
|
Write Time: |
28m:21s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
1.92 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.04 |
The result is very good.
DVD-R DL at 4x:
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Kagaku Media |
|
Code: |
MKM 01RD30 |
|
Disc Type: |
DVD-R DL |
|
Capacity: |
8103MB |
|
Certified Speed: |
4x |
|
Write Speed: |
4x |
|
Write Time: |
29m:28s |
|
PI-8 errors Average/Sec: |
4.12 |
|
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec: |
0.07 |
The result is good.
Head on to next page and read about the most interesting part: Blu-ray features and performance...
Blu-ray Features:
The Lite-On LH-2B1S supports writing and reading the Blu-ray Discs (BD-R/BD-RE SL/DL) at a maximum 2x speed. 4x BD-R (single layer) writing speed will be available in future firmware upgrade.
A Blu-ray Disc (BD) is a next generation optical disc format jointly developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), a group of many leading consumer electronics, personal computer and media manufacturers. The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of High Definition (HD) video, as well as high capacity of data storage.
|
Parameters |
Blu-ray |
DVD |
|
Storage capacity |
25GB (single-layer) |
4.7GB (single-layer) |
|
Laser wavelength |
405nm (blue laser) |
650nm (red laser) |
|
Numerical aperture (NA) |
0.85 |
0.60 |
|
Disc diameter |
120mm |
120mm |
|
Protection layer |
0.1mm |
0.6mm |
|
Track pitch |
0.32µm |
0.74µm |
|
Data transfer rate (data) |
36.0Mbps (1x) 54.0Mbps (1.5x) |
11.08Mbps (1x) 10.08Mbps (<1x) |
|
Video resolution (max) Video bit rate (max) |
1920×1080 (1080p) |
720×480/720×576 (480i/576i) |
|
Video codecs |
MPEG-2 |
MPEG-2 |
|
Audio codecs |
Linear PCM |
Linear PCM |
|
Interactivity |
BD-J |
DVD-Video |
More information on Blu-ray can be found from our own article: Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD
Blu-ray (BD-R) Disc Writing Speed and Quality:
To demonstrate burning data on a Blu-ray (BD-R) disc, we use Nero CD/DVD speed with the create disc feature. The ScanDisc test is performed in the Lite-On LH-2B1S drive to check if there is any issue with the burned disc. Below are the results:
As we can see, the media is made by the TDK Corporation and the MID is: TDKBLDRBA
The Lite-On LH-2B1S used 46 minutes and 36 seconds to writing this TDK BD-R media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-On LH-2B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
TDK – Thanks to Firefly Communication/TDK |
|
Manufacturer: |
TDK Corporation |
|
Code: |
TDKBLDRBA |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-R |
|
Capacity: |
23098MB (22.56GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:36s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this TDK Blu-ray media.
As we can see, the media is made by Mitsubishi Kagaku Media and the MID is: VERBATIMa
The Plextor PX-B900A used 46 minutes and 43 seconds to writing this Verbatim BD-R media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-ON LH-2B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim Germany |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation |
|
Code: |
VERBATIMa |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-R |
|
Capacity: |
23098MB (22.56GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:43s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this TDK Blu-ray media.
On the next page - Blu-ray (BD-RE) writing performance...
Blu-ray (BD-RE) Disc Writing Speed and Quality:
Again, we use Nero CD/DVD speed with the create disc feature. The ScanDisc test is performed in the Lite-On LH-2B1S drive to check if there is any issue with the burned disc. Below are the BD-RE results:
As we can see, the media is made by Philips and the MID is: PHILIPW02
The Plextor PX-B900A used 46 minutes and 25 seconds to writing this Philips BD-RE media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-On LH-1B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
Philips |
|
Manufacturer: |
Philips |
|
Code: |
PHILIPW02 |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-RE |
|
Capacity: |
23866MB (23.31 GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:25s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this Philips Blu-ray media.
As we can see, the media is made by Sony and the MID is: SONYES1
The Lite-On LH-1B1S used 46 minutes and 31 seconds to writing this Sony BD-RE media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-On LH-2B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
Sony |
|
Manufacturer: |
Sony Recording Media Co. |
|
Code: |
SONYES1 |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-RE |
|
Capacity: |
23866MB (23.31 GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:31s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this Sony Blu-ray media.
As we can see, the media is made by TDK and the MID is: TDKBLDWBA
The Lite-On LH-2B1S used 46 minutes and 16 seconds to writing this TDK BD-RE media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-On LH-2B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
TDK – Thanks to Firefly Communication/TDK |
|
Manufacturer: |
TDK Corp. |
|
Code: |
TDKBLDWBA |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-RE |
|
Capacity: |
23866MB (23.31 GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:16s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this TDK Blu-ray media.
As we can see, the media is made by Mitsubishi Kagaku Media and the MID is: VERBATIM0
The Lite-On LH-2B1S used 46 minutes and 19 seconds to writing this Verbatim BD-RE media at 2x CLV.
The ScanDisc test
As we can see, the Lite-On LH-2B1S had no problems in reading back our test disc.
|
Brand: |
Verbatim – Thanks to Verbatim Germany |
|
Manufacturer: |
Mitsubishi Kagaku Media |
|
Code: |
VERBATIM0 |
|
Disc Type: |
BD-RE |
|
Capacity: |
23866MB (23.31 GB) |
|
Certified Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Speed: |
2x |
|
Write Time: |
46m:19s |
No problem with writing and reading onto this Verbatim Blu-ray media.
Next you can read the conclusion from our tests…
Positive:
- Supports BD-R/RE (Single layer) read and write at 2x/2x
- Supports BD-R/RE (Double layer) reading and writing
- 4x BD-R writing will be supported in future firmware
- Supports DVD±R DL writing at 4x
- Supports DVD±R/CD-R/RW writing at 12x/32x/24x
- Overall very good write quality on DVD and CD media
- Bitsetting support for DVD+R/RW/+R DL media (booktype DVD-ROM)
- Disc quality scanning is partly supported
- Reads DVD±R/RW/±R DL at 12.5x/12.5x/8x
- Reads CD-R/-RW/CD-DA/CD-ROM at *35x/*34x/36x/*34x
- Reads 99 Minutes CD-Rs
- Virtually silent operation
- Serial-ATA interface
- Serial-ATA cable included
- TDK BD-RE Blu-ray Media included
- Very good retail package and Software solution
- Separate Blue/Green/Green operation LED for BD/DVD/CD
* based on a 74 minutes CD media
Negative:
- Does not support Mt. Rainier
Conclusion:
Let us summarize the most important positive and 
negative points below:
The main positive points: Belonging to the first generation of Blu-ray writers, the device seems to operate very well and also the write quality on the supported media types is very good.
The Lite-On LH-2B1S should be one of the first Blu-Ray drives that are equipped with a Serial-ATA interface.
The 12x writing speed on DVD±R media is also a feature that is most welcome.
The bitsetting support for DVD+R/RW/+R DL media (BookType DVD-ROM) is also a welcome inclusion and ensures good compatibility with i.e. standalone DVD players.
Another interesting point is that the drive will be upgradeable to support 4x BD-R writing in future firmware.
As a last point, we would like to mention the separate Blue/Green/Green operation LED for BD/DVD/CD media integrated on the Bezel is a very nice feature.
The main negative points: There is almost nothing negative to say about this drive, but if we should mention a point it would be the lack of writing the Mt. Rainer format.
To sum it all up, this is what we would say: "The Lite-On LH-2B1S is overall a very good choice of a CD/DVD/Blu-ray drive".
By using our price grabber feature cdfreaks.pricegrabber we did not find any offers, but at NewEgg.com the drive is listed at 599 USD and at geizhals the drive is listed at 712 EUR (November 2006).
Based on our results and experiences with the Lite-On LH-2B1S we would like to give it our SAFE BUY award.
You may discuss/comment this article below or in this forum thread.
Thanks to:
 |
Firefly Communications – United Kingdom for providing the TDK Blu-ray media used in this review. |
 |
Miflop Media – Spain for providing the media used in this review.
|
 |
Daxon Technology Inc – Taiwan for providing the BenQ media used in this article. |
 |
Pleomax Europe – The Netherlands for providing the media used in this review. |
 |
Ricoh Europe – Germany for providing the media used in this review. |
 |
Sony - Germany for providing the media used in this review.
|
 |
Ultron AG – Germany for providing the media used in this review. |
 |
Verbatim - Germany and United Kingdom for providing the media used in this review. |
