Lite-On SHM-165H6S Super AllWrite DVD Burner Review

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Test machine:

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

Hardware:

System set-up:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S was connected as Secondary Master and identified itself as LITE-ON DVDRW SHM-165H6S. DMA (Direct Memory Access) and autorun is enabled for all devices.

Software:

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

• Nero Burning ROM version 6.6.1.4
• Nero CD/DVD Speed V4.50
• Nero Info Tool v3.07
• Slysoft CloneCD v5.2.8.1
• Exact Audio Copy v0.95 prebeta 5
• K-Probe v2.4.2
• SureThing CD/DVD Labeler SE LightScribe Edition 4.3.0192

Features and techniques:

BookType (Bitsetting):

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports bitsetting for DVD+R/W and DVD+R DL. This feature can be controlled/changed with the bitsetting option in Nero CD-DVD Speed or in Nero Burning Rom 6 as well as with various other applications. See below:

Another quick test is to start Nero CD-Speed, change the option under 'User Interface" to show 'Book Type' and then look at the disc information:

This should say DVD-ROM.

Also, using Nero CD-DVD Speed you can click the Disc info button and you will see something like this:

DVD+R DL with book type DVD-ROM

DVD+R with book type DVD-ROM

 

Now let's take a closer look at the write technology used by the Lite-On SHM-165H6S:

CD-Recordable:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write at its maximum speed of 48X giving this burn an average speed of 37.12x.

Two other drives are shown for comparison:

The Pioneer DVR-110D uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write at its maximum speed of 40X giving this burn an average speed of 30.05x.

The Samsung TS-E552U uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write at its maximum speed of 40x giving this burn an average speed of 34.39x.

The following table shows some comparative stats: 

What we see from the table is evidence that the Lite-On SHM-165H6S is very fast when it comes to writing CD-R.

CD-Rewritable:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses Z-CLV (Zone Constant Linear Velocity) to write this CD-RW media at 24x giving this burn an average speed of 22.56x.

Two other drives are shown for comparison:

The NU DHW-164 uses P-CAV (Partial-Constant Angular Velocity) to write CD-RW media at its maximum speed of 24X giving this burn an average speed of 23.16x.

 

The LaCie d2 DVD±RW Double Layer uses CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) to write CD-RW media at its maximum speed of 16X giving this burn an average speed of 16.00x.

The following table shows some comparative stats:

Our Verbatim certified 32x CD-RW media is only supported at 24x with the tested firmware as noted previously, this excludes us from showing write speed comparisons against the comparative drives at 32x.

16X DVD+R/-R Writing speed:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at the maximum supported speed of 16x giving this burn an average write speed of 11.89x and a writing time of 6 minutes 09 seconds.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD-R at its maximum speed of 16x giving this burn an average write speed of 11.93x and a writing time of 6 minutes and 11 seconds.

Below are some write graphs from some other drives for comparison:

The NEC 3540A uses CAV (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x giving this burn an average writing speed of 11.81x and a writing time of 5 minutes and 58 seconds.

The Philips DVDR16LS uses CAV, (Constant Angular Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x. The average speed is 11.33x and total writing time is 6 minutes and 8 seconds. The average speed is lower and the writing time is higher than it could have been due to the Walking OPC generation 2 using some time to constantly adjust the writing quality, we could see this as constant dips in the speed curve.

The LG GSA-5160D uses Z-CLV, (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+R at 16x. The average speed is 11.60x and total writing time is 6 minutes and 12 seconds. Below, we made a comparison table:

*1 - Actual writing speed was max 14x due to USB-Bridge limitations.
*2 '“ Actual writing speed was max 13x due to USB-Bridge limitations.

From the table above, we can see that the Lite-On SHM-165H6S is a relatively fast drive when writing DVD±R but does not break the 6 minute mark.

8X DVD+R DL writing speed:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports 8x writing speed on DVD+R DL media.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses Z-CLV, (Zone Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+R DL at 8x. The average speed is 6.86x and total writing time is 17:24 minutes.

4X DVD-R DL writing speed:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports 4x writing speed on DVD-R DL media.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses CLV, (Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-R DL at 4x. The average speed is 4.02x and total writing time is 28:01 minutes.

8X DVD+RW writing speed:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses Z-CLV, (Zone-Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD+RW at 8x. The average speed is 7.24x and total writing time is 8:22 minutes.

6X DVD-RW writing speed:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S uses Z-CLV, (Zone Constant Linear Velocity) to write DVD-RW at 6x. The average speed is 5.82x and total writing time is 10:38 minutes.

Included software:

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

Nero 6.6 OEM Suite:

 

Cyberlink PowerDVD:

Now that we have finished examining the drive and its writing strategies, it's time to head on to next page, where we do the reading performance tests…

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Reading performance:

For these tests we will use Nero CD-DVD Speed to read various types of CD and DVD media. As already mentioned in the introduction, this drive supports:

• DVD-ROM : 16x
• CD-ROM : 48x 

Pressed discs:

For this test we used a pressed CD-ROM disc containing Nero Ultra Edition OEM install CD that is close to 77 minutes long. Below you will see the produced result:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reached 47.95x on this pressed CD. Let's compare the result in the table below:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S performance was above average when reading a pressed CD-ROM.

CD-Recordable Discs:

For this test we made a copy of the original Nero Ultra Edition OEM install CD. The disc we used was a RiDATA 48X certified CD-R disc manufactured by RiTEK. 

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S out-performed the comparative drives on the CD-R read test.

* Some drives including the NU HDW-164 will simply execute the seek command without actually moving the pickup.

CD-Rewritable discs:

Again, we made a copy of the original Nero Ultra Edition OEM install CD. The disc we used was a Maxell 4x-12x certified CD-RW disc manufactured by Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation. 

As we can see, the Lite-On SHM-165H6S is locked at around 32x when reading a CD-RW. Now let's compare it to some other drives below.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S performance can be considered average when reading a CD-RW disc.

* Some drives including the NU HDW-164 will simply execute the seek command without actually moving the pickup.

Audio '“ Digital Audio Extraction:

We used Nero CD-DVD Speed to measure the transfer rate. The audio disc we used is a bit smaller than the disc used for the other tests, to be more precise, it is 74 minutes long (74:00:00).

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S is capable of exceeding 48x when reading CD-DA. Let's compare the result with some other drives:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S performance is above average on the
Audio-CD.

* Some drives including the NU HDW-164 will simply execute
the seek command without actually moving the pickup.

As a last test we used Exact Audio Copy (EAC) to extract
the audio to our hard drive. According to EAC, the Lite-On SHM-165H6S drive
supports caching, which is considered a negative while ripping digital audio, it
also shows support for C2 error reporting.

Below is the result produced by EAC:

Burst
mode

Secure
mode

The drives performance in burst mode is very good but
results show it is extremely slow when in secure mode.

Advanced audio '“ DAE quality test:

Before we move on to testing DVD read speeds, we will make
a last digital audio test. This time we used the 'Advanced DAE Quality Test'
feature in CD-DVD Speed. For this test we used a CD-R DA media from
Memorex.

The digital audio extracting quality is excellent and the
drive is reported to support all advanced features.

DVD
reading performance:

For DVD reading performance we will again use Nero CD-DVD
Speed to measure the reading performance for various types of DVD discs. The
drive should read pressed single layer DVD-discs at 16X.

DVD '“ DVD-Video:

For our DVD reading performance tests we are going to start
with a single layer and double layer DVD video discs. While only 1X speed is
required to watch DVD movies it is 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

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reads DVD-Video Single Layer at a
full 16x but is locked at 8x when reading Double/Dual Layer pressed
discs.

Now let's test a pressed DVD-ROM disc. For this test we
used SONY's ATV Off Road Fury 2 Playstation 2 game disc.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S will reach 16x when reading a
pressed DVD-ROM.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S performs to specification on the
DVD-Video Single Layer Double/Dual Layer tests.

DVD '“
DVD+R(W):

For this test we used a Memorex 16X DVD+R and a RiDATA 4X
DVD+RW with 4.38Gb of data. Below are the results:

DVD+R

 
DVD+RW

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reads DVD+R media at a full 16x and
ramps up to 12x when reading DVD+RW media.

Now let's see how it will perform on DVD-R/RW.

DVD '“
DVD-R/RW:

For this test we used a Maxell 16X DVD-R disc and a RiDATA
4X DVD-RW disc filled with 4.38Gb of data. Our test results are found
below:

DVD-R

 
DVD-RW

There are only minor differences on DVD-R/RW when compared
to reading the DVD+R/RW discs.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reads DVD-R at a full 16x and is
capable of hitting 12x on DVD-RW.

DVD-RAM

For this test we used a Maxell 5x DVD-RAM disc and below we
see the result:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reads DVD-RAM media at 5x and reads
our test disc without problem.

Overall thoughts:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S is a very good reader. It is read
locked to slower speeds on some media types, but during our tests it proved
itself as a very reliable and capable reader.

But now it's
time to head on to a more interesting part: Writing CD-R and CD-RW
discs…

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The specifications of the Lite-On SHM-165H6S state that the drive is able to write CD-R discs at 48x and CD-RW at 32x. Let's find out how the drive really performs in speed and quality.

Writing Data CD-R discs:

For our data writing tests, we simply set up a new compilation of 776Mb using Nero Burning ROM software. The writing method used is DAO (Disc At Once) and the disc is set up as a non-multisession disc with 'finalize disc' enabled. The screenshot below shows how long it takes to write a disc at the highest speed (48x) using Nero Burning ROM.

The drive took 2 minutes and 35 seconds to write the disc at 48x. Below we see how this compares to some other drives:

• Pioneer DVR-110D used 3 minutes and 34 seconds at 40x
• NU DHW-164 used 3 minutes and 12 seconds at 40x
• Philips DVDR16LS used 3 minutes and 26 seconds at 40x
• Samsung TS-E552U used 2 minutes and 52 seconds at 40x
• LG GSA-4163B used 3 minutes and 15 seconds at 40x
• Philips DVDR1640P used 3 minutes and 17 seconds at 40x
• NU DDW-082 used 3 minutes and 2 seconds at 40x
• Samsung TS-H552B used exactly 3 minutes at 40x         
• Plextor PX-708A used 2 minutes and 58 seconds at 40x

Write Quality:

We will test CD-R discs from seven different manufacturers. To measure the write speed, we used the 'Create Data Disc' function in Nero CD-DVD Speed. The discs were written at the maximum speed that the firmware 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 LTR-52246S drive with firmware 6S0F and scanned the discs at MAX 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:

 

Brand:	RiDATA
Manufacturer:	RiTEK Corporation
Code:	97m15s17f
Disc Type:	CD-R (A-)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 7: Short Strategy (Phthlocyanine)
Capacity:	79:59.70 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	48x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:36s
C1 Average/Sec:	8.84
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

This is not looking so good. Perhaps the firmware needs some work here.

Brand:	FujiFilm
Manufacturer:	Taiyo Yuden Company Limited
Code:	97m24s01f
Disc Type:	CD-R (A+)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 1: Long Strategy (Cyanine, AZO)
Capacity:	79:59.72 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	48x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:44s
C1 Average/Sec:	0.65
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

Taiyo Yuden media, this has been written better by other drives but is still a very good burn.

Brand:	SONY
Manufacturer:	SONY Corporation
Code:	97m24s16f
Disc Type:	CD-R (B-)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 6: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine)
Capacity:	79:59.74 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	1x-48x
Write Speed:	32x (P-CAV)
Write Time:	3m:10s
C1 Average/Sec:	7.06
C2 Average/Sec:	1.64

Lite-On may have good reason to slow the burn to 32x but there is still no excuse for C2 errors. Other drives burn this media well.

 

Brand:	FujiFilm
Manufacturer:	Prodisc Technology Inc.
Code:	97m32s19f
Disc Type:	CD-R (C-)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 9: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine)
Capacity:	79:59.72 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	48x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:35s
C1 Average/Sec:	1.39
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

Finally! A very nice result with this Prodisc media. A good media choice for this drive.

 

Brand:	esa
Manufacturer:	CMC Magnetics
Code:	97m26s66f
Disc Type:	CD-R (A+)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 6: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine)
Capacity:	79:59.71 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	52x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:41s
C1 Average/Sec:	2.33
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

An OK burn with this inexpensive store brand CMC media. There seems to be a pattern developing of rising C1 errors at the edge of the discs.

Brand:	Office Max
Manufacturer:	Moser Baer India Limited
Code:	97m17s06f
Disc Type:	CD-R (B-)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 6: Short Strategy (Phthalocyanine)
Capacity:	79:59.74 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	52x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:43s
C1 Average/Sec:	1.29
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

This Moser Baer made CD-R produces an excellent result making it a very good choice of media for this drive.

Brand:	Verbatim LightScribe
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation
Code:	97m34s23f
Disc Type:	CD-R (A+)
Recording Layer:	Dye Type 3: Long Strategy (Cyanine, AZO)
Capacity:	79:59.73 (702.80 MB)
Certified Speed:	52x
Write Speed:	48x
Write Time:	2m:35s
C1 Average/Sec:	1.39
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

We have seen better burns on Mitsubishi manufactured media but this is not a bad result.

Writing Quality with Re-Writable discs:

Due to requests from our readers, we will add a two write quality tests with CD-RW media. The settings and testing procedures are the same as we used on CD-R tests, 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 and were 'full erased' before writing.

CD-ReWritable media:

Brand:	Maxell
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation
Code:	97m34s23f
Disc Type:	High Speed CD-RW 4-12x
Recording Layer:	Phase Change
Capacity:	79:59:74
Certified Speed:	4x-12x
Write Speed:	10x (CLV)
Write Time:	8m:29s
C1 Average/Sec:	1.44
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

This 4x-12x rated media was supported by the drive at 10x. This shows a nice result for CD-RW!

 

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim US for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation
Code:	97m34s25f
Disc Type:	Ultra Speed CD-RW 32x
Recording Layer:	Phase Change
Capacity:	74:43:04 (650MB)
Certified Speed:	32x
Write Speed:	16x (CLV)
Write Time:	5m:25s
C1 Average/Sec:	178.00
C2 Average/Sec:	0.0

Our drive showed only 16x support for this 32x certified media. I'm at a loss here, it doesn't even attempt to burn well. Multiple discs showed the same type of result.

Summary:
The CD-R writing quality is suspect, it isn't all bad but certainly not what we expect from a company whose heritage is built on it's CD-RW drives.
The two selected CD-RWs are both Mitsubishi Chemical produced media. Writing quality is quite good on the 4x-12x but horrendous on the 32x. If you choose your media wisely this drive can produce good results, otherwise…

So let's head on to the next page and read about DVD-Writing performance…

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The specifications of the drive tell us that it should write DVD±R at 16x and DVD+RW/-RW at 8x/6x. In this part, we will measure the write time for various types of DVD±R/RW discs. We will also focus on write quality and media compatibility.

DVD-Writing performance:

In this test we will measure the time for writing to DVD±R discs. We used the 'Create Data Disc' function in Nero CD-DVD Speed.

DVD+R

DVD-R

Look below for the results.

The drive produces 16x burns just slightly over the 6 minute mark.

Write quality:

You should first notice that this is not a scientific and professional way to test the discs. But according to our testing done in recent months, we would conclude that there is a clear link between the quality reported when scanning the disc and the playability of the disc in different devices. Also notice that different drives report different amounts of errors. K-Probe was designed to work with Lite-On DVD-Writers, so we recommend using a DVD-Writer from Lite-On. In this test we use a Lite-On SOHW-1653S DVD-Writer, as already said; remember that scans done with a Lite-On DVD-ROM or Lite-On combo drive can't be compared with the results obtained with a Lite-On DVD-Writer. Also remember that different PI/PO ECC sum settings along with different reading speeds in K-Probe will affect the result, we use these settings;  PI (Parity Inner) set to summarize 8 ECC blocks, PIF (Parity Inner Failures) set to summarize 1 ECC block, reading speed: 4X CLV (Constant Linear Velocity). Setting the PI sum to 8 and the PIF sum to 1 will give a result that we may compare to the standards for DVD+R/RW and DVD-R/RW.

But what is a good scan? That is a discussion that we don't think will end soon, as different drives report different amount of errors, some players are more picky about media than others, and so on. But as a comparison we present you with a scan from two pressed DVD discs:

This scan shows the results from a pressed DVD-Video disc (GoldenEye).

 

This scan shows the result from a pressed DVD-Video disk (The Green Mile). Notice the error jump when shifting to the second layer (the error level actually drops from the end of the first layer to the beginning of the second layer).

If you read below, you will see that both the pressed DVD-discs are well within the standards.

Download the ECMA 267 Standard for DVD-ROM, the ECMA 337 Standard for DVD+R/RW and the ECMA 338 Standard for DVD-R/RW at http://www.ecma-international.org if you want to look at the standards for yourself. Here is some data from the ECMA standards (same for DVD-ROM, DVD-R/RW and DVD+R/RW):

Random errors:

A row of an ECC Block that has at least 1 byte in error constitutes a PI error. In any 8
consecutive ECC Blocks the total number of PI errors before correction shall not exceed 280.

Here we see that a PI error is defined as a row in an ECC block having 1 byte or more containing errors and that the sum of PI errors in 8 ECC blocks after each other should not exceed 280 PI errors.

But what is a row and what is an ECC block? Again we refer to the ECMA standards. We do not copy and paste everything, but if you're interested, look in the ECMA standards. A row is 182 bytes long where the last 10 bytes contain PI (Parity Inner) information. An ECC block is 208 rows long where the last 16 rows contain the PO (Parity Outer) information. This gives us a maximum possible PI error amount of 208 errors per block and for 8 blocks after each other this sum is of course 8 times higher, giving a maximum possible amount of 1664 PI-8 errors. In practical use, a disc with 1664 PI-8 errors is unreadable.

According to our tests the specified max PI-8 sum of 280 for good discs seems to be a good guideline, as some readers have problems reading discs when the PI-8 errors is over 300 and most players starts to have problems when the PI-8 error level reaches 600 or more.

But what are the PIF errors that K-Probe reports? They are Parity Inner Failures, meaning errors left after PI correction. Only the ECMA 337 standard describes the Parity Inner Failures. So how is a Parity Inner Failure defined? Here is what the ECMA 337 states:

'If a row of an ECC Block as defined in 13.3 contains more than 5 erroneous bytes, the row is said to be 'PI-uncorrectable"."

In theory, an ECC block may in the worst case have 208 PIF since every ECC block is 208 rows long. But the ECMA 337 standard goes further and specifies the max amount of accepted PI Failures (uncorrectable errors) allowed on a good disc:

'In any ECC Block the number of PI-uncorrectable rows should not exceed 4."  

This means that when the PIF sum is set to 1, the maximum error value should not exceed 4. The theoretical maximum value for PIF is 208 errors.

But what makes a disc unreadable? A POF (Parity Outer Failure) error will make the disc unreadable, but K-Probe does not display the POF's.

Notice that there are other aspects such as disc reflectivity, jitter, tracking errors and so on that also will affect the readability of a DVD disc '“ but for this we do not have measuring equipment available.

Also, another note is that we have scanned the discs at 4X CLV speed, by lowering the speed to 2X(DVD-R/RW)/2.4X(DVD+R/RW) or 1X the amount of reported errors may drop on some discs. We scanned at 4X CLV due to lower speeds taking too much time.

To see if there is a connection between the reported amount of errors and readability of the discs we also include the reading curve from the LG GSA-4166B DVD-Writer. The reason why we have changed the reader is that some companies disliked that we used a modified firmware to obtain 16x reading speed. So to please them, we are now using a drive that reads DVD+R/-R media at 16x as default. A small speed reduction near the end is still accepted on good discs, but serious reading problems or reading failures is a bad sign.

Easier explanation on how to read the test results.

Maybe this became too technical, and you are wondering what to look for in KProbe reports?

Use this as a guideline for good discs:

• PI (Parity Inner): No larger areas on the disc should exceed 280 PI-8 errors, do not worry too much about high single spikes that exceed 280.
• PIF (Parity Inner Failures): No larger areas on the disc should exceed 4 PIF-1 errors, do not worry too much about high single spikes that exceed 4.

And as always, lower is better

And look at the reading curve, if it looks clean with no dips it should be good, a small slowdown near the end is accepted.

DVD+R media compatibility and write quality:

In these tests we will be using a Lite-On SOHW-1693S drive with firmware KS0B along with KProbe to measure the disc quality. We will also be using the LG GSA-4166B with firmware 1.02 along with CD-DVD Speed for the DVD+R read-back tests and the BenQ DW1655 with firmware BCDB for the DVD+RW read-back tests.

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation
Code:	MCC 004
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:17s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	1.12
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.03

Very good support for this media! This produces a smooth, even burn over the entire disc resulting in a perfect transfer curve.

Brand:	Maxell '“ Thanks to Maxell America for sending this to us.
Manufacturer:	Maxell
Code:	MAXELL 003
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	7m:12s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	0.41
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.08

Very good support for this media as well. This disc shows a glitch but the transfer curve breezes right through it.

Brand:	Memorex '“ Thanks to Memorex for sending this to us.
Manufacturer:	CMC Magnetics Corporation
Code:	CMC MAG M01
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:01s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	1.03
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.12

Excellent support here too. The transfer curve is perfect.

Brand:	Memorex '“ Thanks to Memorex for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Ricoh Company Limited
Code:	RICOHJPN R03
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:01s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	0.87
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.01

Wow, Four for Four! Excellent support for this RICOHJPN R03 MID. The transfer curve again is perfect.

Brand:	Memorex '“ Thanks to Memorex for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Prodisc
Code:	PRODISC R04
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:03s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	2.68
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.35

We have seen better results from this media before but it still produces a perfect transfer curve.

Brand:	Sony
Manufacturer:	Taiyo Yuden Company Limited
Code:	YUDEN 000 T02
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	8m:17s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	2.35
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.00

This Sony branded Taiyo Yuden made media shows a bit erratic on the PIE chart but produced an excellent burn that results in a perfect transfer curve.

Brand:	Sony
Manufacturer:	Sony Corporation
Code:	SONY D11
Disc Type:	DVD+R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	8m:35s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	2.35
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.04

This Sony MID shows a very pleasing result that produces a perfect transfer curve.

 

DVD+ReWritable media:

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation
Code:	MKM A03
Disc Type:	DVD+RW
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x (Z-CLV)
Write Time:	8m:22s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	42.21
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.05

This is an 'OK" result which gives a perfect read back curve.

Nice result for DVD+RW media allowing for a perfect transfer curve.

To sum it up: Overall, on the selected review media the write quality shows very good to excellent write quality on DVD+R media and OK results on DVD+RW media with few exceptions.

Let's find out what this drive can do with DVD-R/RW media.

On the next page you will find the DVD-R/RW writing results...

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DVD-R media compatibility and write quality:

In these tests, again we will be using the Lite-On SOHW-1693S drive with firmware KS0B along with KProbe to measure the disc quality. We will also again be using the LG GSA-4166B with firmware 1.02 along with CD-DVD Speed for the DVD-R read-back tests and the BenQ DW1655 with firmware BCDB for the DVD-RW read-back tests.

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation
Code:	MCC 03RG20
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:03s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	1.86
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.00

This is an excellent quality burn on this media!

Brand:	Memorex '“ Thanks to Memorex for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	CMC Magnetics
Code:	CMC MAG AM3
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:09s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	3.28
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.03

This shows a good, clean burn all the way to the outer edge. Nice!

Brand:	Maxell - Thanks to Maxell of America for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Maxell
Code:	MXL RG04
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	16x
Write Speed:	16x
Write Time:	6m:02s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	2.62
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.05

This is another fine result! Transfer curve is perfect.

Brand:	FujiFilm
Manufacturer:	Taiyo Yuden
Code:	TYG02
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	8m:09s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	1.12
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.00

Another well written disc, this time at 8x.

Brand:	Memorex '“ Thanks to Memorex for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	CMC Magnetics Corporation
Code:	CMC MAG AE1
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	8m:09s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	9.70
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.09

A burn well within spec but the transfer curve shows a problem at the end.

Brand:	RiDATA
Manufacturer:	RiTEK Corporation
Code:	RITEK G05
Disc Type:	DVD-R
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	8m:11s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	7.62
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.04

Again, we see reading problems at the edge that the error scan indicates shouldn't exist.

DVD-ReWritable media:

Brand:	Verbatim - Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation
Code:	MKM 01RW6X01
Disc Type:	DVD-RW
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	6x
Write Speed:	6x
Write Time:	10m:38s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	213.30
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	11.49

KProbe is showing relatively high error amounts on this '“RW MID but the BenQ DW1655 slices it like butter.

Brand:	Maxell - Thanks to Maxell America for sending us this media.
Manufacturer:	TDK Corporation
Code:	TDK502sakuM3
Disc Type:	DVD-RW
Capacity:	4483MB
Certified Speed:	2x
Write Speed:	2x
Write Time:	29m:55s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	1.50
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.27

This is a much improved result over the 6x media above. Very nice!

To sum it up: Overall, on the selected review media the write quality is very good to excellent with some minor exceptions on DVD-R. The tested DVD-RW media showed both good and not so good results.

Head on to the next page and read about DVD+R DL compatibility and write quality...

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DVD+R/-R DL writing speed and compatibility:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports DVD+R Double Layer at 8x and DVD-R Dual Layer at 4x for writing discs with a size of around 8.5 GB.

First up is Maxell DVD+R Double Layer 2.4x

This Maxell media is manufactured by Mitsubishi Kagaku Media and is supported at 4x write speed. Thanks to Maxell America for sending us this media.

Brand:	Maxell '“ Thanks to Maxell America for providing the samples.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Kagaku Media
Code:	MKM 001
Disc Type:	DVD+R DL
Capacity:	8145MB
Certified Speed:	2.4x
Write Speed:	4x
Write Time:	27m:09s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	6.50
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.60

This is not the best burn we have seen on this media. The transfer curve shows a drop at the layer break.

This Verbatim media is made by Mitsubishi Kagaku Media and is supported at 8x write speed. Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim USA for providing the samples.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Kagaku Media
Code:	MKM 003
Disc Type:	DVD+R DL
Capacity:	8136MB
Certified Speed:	8x
Write Speed:	8x
Write Time:	17m:24s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	23.63
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.76

The drive showed no problem burning with its 8x Z-CLV strategy but the KProbe scan shows considerable errors. The BenQ DW1655 failed to read back the disc as did a Plextor PX-712A. The LG GSA-4166B and the Lite-On SHM-165H6S itself did read this disc without a problem.

Let's compare the Lite-On SHM-165H6S results with some other DL capable drives.

*1 Verbatim DVD+R DL
*2 Traxdata DVD+R DL
*3 Ricoh DVD+R DL
*4 DataWrite DVD+R DL
*5 Memorex DVD+R DL
*6 Maxell DVD+R DL

 

DVD-R DL

As mentioned earlier, the Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports the DVD-R DL standard at 4x.

Let's find the manufacturer and media information too, for this we will use CD-DVD Speed:

This Verbatim media is manufactured by Mitsubishi Kagaku Media and is supported at 4x write speed. Thanks to Verbatim USA for sending us this media.

Brand:	Verbatim '“ Thanks to Verbatim USA for providing the samples.
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Kagaku Media
Code:	MKM 01RD30
Disc Type:	DVD-R DL
Capacity:	8145MB
Certified Speed:	4x
Write Speed:	4x
Write Time:	28m:01s
PI-8 errors Average/Sec:	13.44
PI-1 failures (PIF) Avg/Sec:	0.10

This is a very acceptable result. The transfer curve shows no problems on read back.

 

Standalone DVD-Player compatibility

For this test we ripped an iso image of a DVD-Video and burned the image using Nero Burning ROM 6.6.1.4.
We have 3 standalone Players available to test the DVD+R DL media (BookType: DVD-ROM) and DVD-R DL media (BookType: DVD-R).
We then did a playback on the listed players below.

Compatibility results: 

Summary: DL burning with the tested HS07 firmware shows need for improvements on future firmware updates.

Now that we have seen the default writing quality of the drive let's look at some advanced writing technology on the next page…

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SmartBurn v3.1.16 with OverSpeed and HyperTuning:

A standard warning after enabling HT/OS that the disc quality cannot be guaranteed using this feature.

A Taiyo Yuden YUDEN000 T02 8x DVD+R disc shown with HyperTune/OverSpeed off. Supported write speed at 8x.

A Taiyo Yuden YUDEN000 T02 8x DVD+R disc shown with HyperTune/OverSpeed on. Supported write speed at 12x.

 Summary: There is continuing development of firmware and the SmartBurn utility to improve the performance and quality produced by HyperTune/OverSpeed. This is a function that will appeal to the more advanced/adventurous users and is a welcome step in the right direction to the enthusiast community. You can follow these ongoing developments in the Lite-On forums at our site.

Before we round off this review, let's run the drive through some advanced tests on next page…

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To round off this review, we will run some advanced tests on the LITE-ON SHM-165H6S. These tests are: 'Sheep Test" and some special disc tests.

The 'Sheep Test":

 For this test, we will use the Sheep tests made by Alexander Noé. Why is it called sheep test? That's because the logo of the first 1 to 1 copy program called CloneCD is a sheep. When looking at supported writers, you will notice that the feature list has sheep to indicate if a feature is supported or not. In this case we are interested in the writer's ability to backup/write weak sectors. Also called: 'Correct EFM encoding of regular bit-patterns".

• No sheep: Can't backup any Safedisc 2 versions without the help of software tricks
• 1 Sheep: Can backup Safedisc 2 up to version 2.4x without software tricks
• 2 Sheep: Can backup Safedisc 2, including version 2.5x
• 3 Sheep: Can write all possible weak sectors, few if any writers could do this.

One of our forum moderators Womble, has written a guide concerning the 'Sheep Test" that can be found here.

In the screenshot below taken from CloneCD, we see the Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports everything.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S supports DAO-RAW recording mode, which basically means, it can write uncorrected data and sub-channel data.

As we can see from the table the Lite-On SHM-165H6S is a 'Two Sheep Burner'. It also succeeded in writing the Safedisc V2.90 test but failed the Sheep3 test.

DVD-RAM:

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S is a Super AllWrite drive, meaning is also supports the DVD-RAM format.

Let's look at the recording side of the disc, and as you can see it has differences from the other DVD+R/W/R9 DL and DVD-R/W discs.

 

You can see a very fascinating pattern of darker spots. These tick marks are "address information" ("Pre-mastered Pit Header Field") which are embedded onto the disc. This is header information in front of data sector area, and is the same format as HDD and MO.

A DVD-RAM's disc can be formatted in the following formats:

• FAT32
• UDF 1.02
• UDF 1.50
• UDF 2.00
• UDF 2.01
• UDF 2.50

By formatting a DVD-RAM disc with FAT32 it will act like a removable hard drive and all writing will be done in the 'background processes". Meaning you do not have to wait for it to finish '“ you can start or work with other applications while the DVD-RAM is working without noticing any 'hangs" or CPU slowdowns.

Let's take a look at the media we are going to use in these tests:

Maxell branded DVD-RAM media certified at 2-5x

On to the interesting part, writing and reading DVD-RAM media.

Maxell DVD-RAM 5x without verification

Maxell DVD-RAM 5x with verification

For those who are not familiar with DVD-RAM would probably think that something went wrong during the write process with the verifications turned on -  since the 5x media was written at 1.96x. But not to worry - that is pretty normal for DVD-RAM discs, the reason for the 'low" speed is '“ the drive constantly reads back the data after writing it to verify that it's written correctly. We can also call it a 'bullet proof" writing/verify technique '“ with no data loss/errors.

Another advantage with DVD-RAM is that the discs can be formatted/erased/written over 100,000 times before it will/can cause/report any errors. Let's try to read back the disc that we wrote.

Maxell DVD-RAM 5x

As we see from the picture above, the 5x media was read back at 5x using the P-CAV technique.

We will now run a disc quality scan on our burned media using the Lite-On SHM-165H6S and CD-Speed version 4.50. We should mention that this should not be necessary under normal use of DVD-RAM media, as the drive will automatically check the disc for errors as it writes. The test results are inconclusive and we make no claims to the veracity or accuracy of the test. It is included for illustration purposes only.

Overburning:

To test the overburning capabilities of the LITE-ON SHM-165H6S, we used the over-burning test in Nero CD-DVD Speed.

The Lite-On SHM-165H6S reports an over-burning capacity of 83:14:21 a plus factor of 3:14:25.

To test if the Lite-On SHM-165H6S is actually capable of overburning, we attempted to write an 80 minute CD-R to the reported overburn capacity.

The  Lite-On SHM-165H6S was successful in creating and reading the overburned CD-R.

 

Now that we have examined some of the advanced features, let's take a look at another one. The LightScribe feature/Technique…..

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LightScribe:

On January 4, 2004, HP announced an innovative new technology to address the problem of labelling CD's and DVD's. LightScribe technology allows consumers to create silk-screen quality labels on their CDs or DVDs by burning text and graphics directly onto a disc, eliminating the need for adhesive labels.

But, before we continue - Let us first take a look at some information found at the LightScribe site:

CREATE SILKSCREEN-QUALITY LABELS FOR ALL YOUR CDS AND DVDS, RIGHT FROM YOUR COMPUTER.

Until now there hasn't been much choice when it comes to creating labels for your CDs and DVDs. Messy markers or sticky adhesive labels were pretty much the only affordable option. But imagine creating professional-looking labels using the same laser that burns your data-right inside your CD/DVD drive! Well, now it's easy with LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling technology.

LABEL-MAKING REDEFINED.

LightScribe technology is an integrated system that combines the CD or DVD drive of your LightScribe-enabled computer with specially coated discs and enhanced disc-burning software to produce precise, laser-etched labels. You can design and produce labels to express your creativity and personality-the sky's the limit!

With LightScribe, the disc is the label. This amazing technology is the no-hassle way to create elegant labels for all your CDs and DVDs. Simply burn your music mix, digital-video/photo archives, or business application. Then flip the disc and burn your own unique label.

LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling technology is now available in PCs, external USB optical DVD writers, labeling software, and a variety of brand name discs. Remember, the LightScribe logo indicates a LightScribe-enabled product, so be sure to look for it at your favorite retail locations. Also check out the Looking for LightScribe page for a list of companies that make LightScribe-enabled products

A RADICAL REVOLUTION IN DISC LABELING.

Once you've burned your first LightScribe label and experienced the amazing result, you'll never want to use a permanent marker or sticky label again. LightScribe makes it easy. It truly is a revolution in disc labeling.

JUST HOW DOES IT WORK?

How can you burn a label onto your disc right from your computer? Suppose you have just created a music CD of your favorite songs. Now you want to make a label that contains the song titles, artists' names, and some personal information and design elements to make it special.

Burn your tracks onto the data side of the disc. Flip the disc over to the label side and put it back in the drive. Burn your label by opening your favorite LightScribe-enabled label-making software and going to the CD template work area. Now you do all of your creative design work-imported pictures, copy, and artwork. When you are satisfied with what you have done, click "print." It really is that simple! No ink, no messy markers, no clumpy adhesive labels, just an amazingly beautiful label right before your eyes.

LIKE TO KNOW MORE?

Your LightScribe-enabled CD/DVD disc drive contains a special laser that pumps light energy into a thin dye coating on the label side of the disc. The light from the laser causes a chemical change in the dye coating that shows up as a visible point on the disc. With laser precision, LightScribe delivers closely controlled light energy to multiple points on the disc as it spins in the drive. The result is a high-resolution reproduction of the artwork, text, or photos you composed in the software application. Seeing is believing!

The LightScribe Media:

The surface of the LightScribe media is Gold-brown also referred to as sepia colored.

If we take a closer look at the inner ring of the LightScribe media we can see a bar code indexing system, which the drive's laser uses to recognize the LightScribe surface but also for the indexing (for later re-burns).

In this review we will use one LightScribe CD-R and one LightScribe DVD+R.

 

 

Designing and burning with SureThing Labeler:

For our LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling we used SureThing CD/DVD Labeler LightScribe SE PLUS Edition.

We used an included Sure Thing background and some custom text. After we were satisfied with the setup we pressed 'Print Label' (LightScribe).

In the print option dialog we also find a Diagnostics button and we clicked it to see what info it provided.

We closed the LightScribe Diagnostics windows and selected 'Best quality' and 'OK' to print the label in the Print Dialog window.

The program gave us a notice 'Please ensure that you have a LightScribe disc inserted in the drive with the label side down". (As you can see you can choose '“ Don't show me this message in the future." We went on with 'OK' to print the label.

SureThing showed us an estimated remaining time of 21 minutes and 33 seconds for best quality on the CD-R media.

And an estimated remaining time of 26 minutes and 07 seconds for best quality on the DVD+R media.

For brevity I will show you the LightScribe CD-R disc in Best quality.

LightScribe CD-R

The procedure for LightScribe with DVD+R is the same as for CD-R so I will just show the result here.

LightScribe DVD+R

Done with 'Best Quality'. The coatings appear to have improved on the DVD+R discs as the clarity is much closer to the CD-R media. In the past the DVD media produced a fuzziness or bluriness that wasn't present in the CD media. You can still see the CD media is clearer though. The Lite-On SHM-165H6S performed the LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling with no problem.

This concludes our Lite-On SHM-165H6S review, lets head on to the last page to read our conclusion…

Positive:

• Very good to excellent writing quality on most tested media
• Supports DVD±R 16x writing around 6:00 on most tested media
• Supports CD-R/RW writing at 48x/32x
• Supports DVD+RW/DVD-RW writing at 8x/6x
• Supports reading DVD±RW at 12x
• Support LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling
• Can write some DVD+R DL media at higher than certified speed
• Support for HyperTune/Overspeed
• Supports Bitsetting for DVD+R/+RW/+R DL
• 'Two sheep" writer
• Supports DAO-RAW writing
• Supports DVD-RAM at 5x
• Full featured software bundle
• Support for disc PI/PIF error scanning
• Good community support and 3^rd party utilities that work with the drive

Negative:

• Verbatim 32x certified CD-RW media supported at 16x only
• Questionable writing quality on some tested CD-R/W media
• Reads CD-RW media at only 32x
• Questionable writing quality on 8x DVD+R DL media
• Green LED for both reading and writing
• Limited Overburn length for 80 minute CD-R

Conclusion:

Let's summarize the most important positive and negative points below:

The main positive points:

Lite-Ons offering with the SHM-165H6S performs with good to excellent write quality on just about every media type tested with a few exceptions. The drives support for DVD-RAM and LightScribe Direct to Disc Labeling technology truly makes this drive a 'Super AllWrite Drive'.

Bitsetting on DVD+R/W/+R DL is supported and ensures good compatibility with set top DVD players.

Lite-On has included a software bundle with this drive that will have nearly every 'DVD' need covered for a beginning user as well as some of the more sophisticated needs of the more advanced user.

The main negative points:

There are few negatives to mention. The Lite-On SHM-165H6S produced 8x DVD+R DL burns that other drives had problems reading. There could be write quality improvements made for some tested media. There is also a reported DVD-R Leadin bug that allegedly makes DVD-R video discs unreadable in some standalone players, however we did not encounter this issue with the tested drive and firmware but there are many reports and evidence supporting the claims.

To sum it all up, this is what we would say: 'In their recent series drives, Lite-On has made considerable progress in compatibility and write quality. The Lite-On SHM-165H6S is a good choice if you are looking for a drive that supports all available DVD/RAM/CD media available at this time also providing LightScribe Disc Labeling capability. As with any drive, media choice and the variability of individual batches is an important consideration when making any drive choice. With this as a given we do not hesitate recommending this drive for your burning needs."

By using our price grabber feature cdfreaks.pricegrabber we find the drive listed from $45.90 (May, 2006).

 

You may comment on this review below or in this forum thread .

 

Thanks to:

For providing the Verbatim media used in this review. Verbatim provides high quality media all over the world and strives to be the standard for DVD hardware reviewing.

 For providing the Memorex media used in this review. Memorex is one of the largest providers of all types of media for larger parts of the world.

 For providing the Maxell media used in this review. Maxell is one of the world's leading producers of optical and magnetic memory media.

Advanced Media/Ritek-USA for providing some of the RiDATA media used in this review. RiDATA is an official Ritek brand and thus you are guaranteed to get quality Ritek manufactured discs when buying RiData media.