PlexWriter Premium 2 review (by HWP)

Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation, Type 3, 700MB, 52x as sold by Verbatim
PoweRec: ON
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
20x CLV writing speed selected, slowdowns as per writing graph below

43014 C1 errors, 15 C2 errors.

Below are Writing, C1/C2 and Beta/Jitter scans:

Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Plextor
PoweRec: ON
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
40x P-CAV writing speed selected, slowdowns as per writing graph below

5186 C1 errors.

Below are C1/C2 and Beta/Jitter scans:

Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Plextor
PoweRec: ON
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
20x CLV writing speed selected, slowdowns as per writing graph below

4625 C1 errors.

Below are C1/C2 and Beta/Jitter scans:

Sony, Type 6, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Sony
PoweRec: ON
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
40x P-CAV writing speed selected, slowdowns as per writing graph

11855 C1 errors.

Below are writing, C1/C2 and Beta/Jitter scans:

Sony, Type 6, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Sony
PoweRec: ON
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
20x CLV writing speed selected, slowdowns as per writing graph

5141 C1 errors.

Below are writing, C1/C2 and Beta/Jitter scans:

Performance in an external USB2/FW400 enclosure [UPDATE]
Welland ME340U2F, Prolific 3507 chipset with lastest FW dating from April 2006

Ok, you'll remember the transfer-rate tests, as shown here http://club.cdfreaks.com/showpost.ph...8&postcount=63 , that show reduced performance with Audio CDs when connected by USB2 or FW400.

Interestingly, when it comes to Audio media, they don't show what's true when doing DAE. While the "Read Transfer Rate Test" will show a 'capped' readback curve, performing actual DAE with Plextools "Digital Audio Extraction" does not show this behaviour.

I've just done a session of successful DAE with the Premium2 connected via FW400 at a full 52x. It seems that PTP 2.36 and PTPXL 3.12 have some issue with TRT on Audio-media in conjunction with Prolific-3507 controllers.

AMQR versus GigaRec, C1/C2/CU scans
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim
Burning speed 4x CLV
63min Audio compilation

Scans:
GigaRec 0.9x, 1016 C1 errors
AMQR (0.85x), 1195 C1 errors
GigaRec 0.8x, 1275 C1 errors
Plain burning at 2x speed for comparison, 1075 C1 errors

AMQR versus GigaRec, Beta/Jitter scans
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim
Burning speed 4x CLV
63min Audio compilation

Scans:
GigaRec 0.9x
AMQR (0.85x)
GigaRec 0.8x
Plain burning at 2x speed for comparison

PX-760; Premium; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: Premium, FW 1.07
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
1160 total C1 errors. Almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. However the Premium 2 beats the Premium and the PX-760 when it comes to who has the lowest jitter.

Scans 3 and 4 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the PX-760:
1324 total C1 errors. Again almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. The Premium 2 still beats the Premium (by a small margin) but the PX-760 comes third by a much wider margin.

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Last edited by hwp; 24-03-2007 at 12:37.

PX-760; Premium; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation, Type 3, 700MB, 52x as sold by Verbatim (AZO Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: Premium, FW 1.07
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
8971 total C1 errors. The Premium 2 produces slightly higher C1 errors. The Premium beats the Premium 2 and the PX-760 when it comes to who has the lowest jitter.

Scans 3 and 4 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the PX-760:
7808 total C1 errors. Almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. The Jitter difference between the Premium and the Premium 2 is seen much smaller and the Premium 2 is shown even slightly better. The PX-760 comes third by a wide margin.

PX-760; Premium; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Sony, Type 6, 700MB, 52x as sold by Sony (Phthalocyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: Premium, FW 1.07
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
4403 total C1 errors. Almost no difference between the drives, when it comes to C1 errors. The concentration of errors around the 55 minute position in the session done by the Premium 2 is likely a problem of the disc and not the drive. The PX-760 produces quite a bit higher Jitter, while the Premium beats the Premium 2 only by a very slight margin.

Scans 3 and 4 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the PX-760:
5492 total C1 errors. Reports slightly more errors than the Premium 2. Almost no difference between the drives, when it comes to C1 errors. Again the concentration of errors around the 55 minute position in the session done by the Premium 2 is likely a problem of the disc and not the drive. The PX-760 produces quite a bit higher Jitter (seen even more pronounced), while this time the Premium 2 beats the Premium by a very slight margin.

PX-708; PX-716; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each:
First session: PX-708, FW 1.12
Second session: PX-716, FW 1.10
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
1592 total C1 errors. Almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. However the Premium 2 beats the PX-708 and the PX-716 when it comes to who has the lowest jitter.

Premium 2 versus PX-716: Checking a burn done by the PX-716
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim
burned in PX-716, 48x speed, slowed to 32x @78minute mark, PoweRec ON

Scans 1 and 2: C1/C2/CU-scans in PX-760 and Premium 2
We notice that the Premium2 sees more C1 (3970 vs. 2330) and even some C2 (14) errors compared to the 760.

Scans 3 and 4: Beta/Jitter-scans in PX-760 and Premium 2
We notice that the Premium2 sees a bigger overal variance in Jitter.

Remembering the same test done with the PX-755 (http://club.cdfreaks.com/showpost.ph...6&postcount=69) and a LiteOn LH18a1p (http://club.cdfreaks.com/showpost.ph...&postcount=409) we see yet another DVD-writer produce a worse result than the Premium 2 (and at the same time 'not seeing' (albeit in this case a PX-760) the problem, even if the problem is at a lesser scale, giving more credit to my assumption that modern DVD-writers are worse CD-writers than older ones.

PX-760; Premium; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 4x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: Premium, FW 1.07
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
1164 total C1 errors. Almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. However both CD-Writers beat the PX-760 when it comes to who has the lowest jitter. The Premium 2 shows slightly better Jitter than the Premium.

Scans 3 and 4 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the PX-760:
1296 total C1 errors. Again almost no difference when it comes to C1 errors. However both CD-Writers beat the PX-760 when it comes to who has the lowest jitter. The Premium 2 shows slightly better Jitter than the Premium.

PX-760; LH18a1p; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: LH18a1p, FW GL0G
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
23923 total C1 errors. The LiteOn LH18a1p shows somewhat higher C1 (BLER) errors. The Premium 2 beats both DVD drives when it comes to lower Jitter. The PX-760 has an advantage over the LH18a1p.

Scan 3 done in the LH18a1p:
C1 (E31) result confirms the higher values as seen by the Premium 2. The Multisession relinking-points cause C2 errors (LiteOn drives don't seem to like relinking points. They also show spikes when scanning Plextor DVD burns.)

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Last edited by hwp; 07-04-2007 at 15:04.

PX-760; LH18a1p; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation, Type 3, 700MB, 52x as sold by Verbatim (AZO Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: LH18a1p, GL0G
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
310804 total C1 errors. The LH18a1p produces significantly higher error rates compared to the Plextor drives. Similarly the LH18a1p produces the highest Jitter rate.

Scan 3 done in the LH18a1p:
Multiple C2 spikes at the positions of the Multisession relinking points.

PX-760; LH18a1p; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Sony, Type 6, 700MB, 52x as sold by Sony (Phthalocyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Second session: LH18a1p, FW GL0G
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scans 1 and 2 are C1/C2/CU and BJ Scan done in the Premium 2:
591555 total C1 errors. 161 total C2 errors (limited to the Lh18a1p session). The C1 scan had to be done @8x speed instead of the usual 10-24x to make the seesion of the LH18a1p readable. The C1 errors top out at 600. Scanning @4x speed reduces the errors to a level of 100 max. and significantly less C2 errors. The concentration of errors around the 55 minute position in the session done by the Premium 2 is likely a problem of the disc and not the drive. Again the Premium 2 wins clearly over the DVD writers with lowest Jitter.

Scan 3 done in the LH18a1p:
The higher C1 error levels are partially (only E31) echoed. Multiple C2 spikes at the positions of the Multisession relinking points.

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Last edited by hwp; 07-04-2007 at 19:14.

GSA-H44N; LH18a1p; PX-760; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 52x, as sold by Verbatim (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 16min each.
First session: LG GSA-H44N, FW RB01
Second session: LH18a1p, FW GL0G
Third session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Fourth session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

C1/C2/CU and BJ Scans done in the Premium 2:
8688 total C1 errors. The LH18a1p is the only writer that produces a somewhat higher amount of BLER errors. As for Jitter, the Premium 2 wins, followed by the GSA-H44N and the PX-760 and the LH18a1p comes in last.

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Last edited by hwp; 30-04-2007 at 18:34.

GSA-H44N; LH18a1p; PX-760; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Mitsubishi Chemicals Corporation, Type 3, 700MB, 52x as sold by Verbatim (AZO Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 16min each.
First session: LG GSA-H44N, FW RB01
Second session: LH18a1p, FW GL0G
Third session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Fourth session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scan 1 is C1/C2/CU scan done at 10-24x speed in the Premium 2:
720938 total C1 errors. 662 C2 errors in the LH18a1p session.

Scan 2 is C1/C2/CU Scan done at 8x speed in the Premium 2:
64811 total C1 errors. The Plextor drives leading about equal, the LG following second and the LiteOn being last.

Scan 3 is BJ scan done in the Premium 2:
Premium 2 wins with lowest Jitter followed by PX-760, GSA-H44N and the LH18a1p being last.

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Last edited by hwp; 15-05-2007 at 11:19.

GSA-H44N; LH18a1p; PX-760; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Sony, Type 6, 700MB, 52x as sold by Sony (Phthalocyanine Dye)
Burning speed 16x CLV


Multisession burn with sessions of 16min each.
First session: LG GSA-H44N, FW RB01
Second session: LH18a1p, FW GL0G
Third session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Fourth session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

Scan 1 is C1/C2/CU scan done at 8x speed in the Premium 2:
693655 total C1 errors. C1 errors max out at 800; 754 C2 errors in the LH18a1p session.

Scan 2 is BJ scan done in the Premium 2:
H44N and Premium 2 are about the same, the PX-760 comes second and the LH18a1p last.

GSA-H44N; PX-760; Premium 2 compared on the same disc
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Plextor (Cyanine Dye)
Burning speed 4x CLV

Multisession burn with sessions of 22min each.
First session: GSA-H44N, FW RB01
Second session: PX-760, FW 1.06
Third session: Premium 2, FW 1.01

C1/C2/CU and BJ scans done in the Premium 2:
12637 total C1 errors. The GSA-H44N produces slightly higher BLER error. Jitter in the GSA-H44N session is significatly higher.

Apart from the comparisons in this thread (FE/TE-Tests and Multisessions burns on different dyes) between Premium and Premium 2, you'll find full test burns done with the Premium of the same media (even the same batch, in some cases) in the "Post your Plextor CD quality scans here" thread (http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=136562). Either search for all postings done by myself or start reading the thread from behind.

As for reading, DAE and protection handling i currently don't plan to go much further than i already have. However i'll of course post any interesting findings if there are any as a result of my use of the drive.

BTW: For questions or discussions about this review please use this thread: http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=193782

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Last edited by hwp; 28-05-2007 at 20:26.

Reading a badly pressed Data-CD

This is the Driver/Software-CD that came with my LiteOn LH18a1p drive.

Scan 1: Read Transferrate-Test in Premium 2 and PX-760
The Premium 2 starts with its maximum 22-52x reading curve but has to fall back to 8x and finally 4x to read the entire disc. The PX-760 does not start with its maximum 20-48x curve but with a slower 18-40x and has to finish with 4x speed.

Scan 2: Read Transfer-Rate-Test in LG GSA-H44N
The H44N is a lot more cautious and applies a conservative 4-10x CAV curve. Interestingly enough its able to maintain a relatively high speed above 8x in the whole problematic second half of the disc and thus has the highest speed in the problematic area!

Scan 3: Read Transfer-Rate-Test in Liteon LH-18a1p
The LH18, while having to slow down at the same spot like the PX-760 and continuing at a higher 8x speed in comparison cannot finish the read.

I would like to mention to all that i have received Premium 2 firmwares 1.00 and 1.01. Until now they were unavailable. Enjoy

High Speed Writing
Taiyo Yuden, Type 1, 700MB, 48x, as sold by Plextor
PoweRec: OFF
GigaRec: OFF
AMQR: OFF
52x CAV writing speed, no slowdowns

6706 total C1 errors, 6 C2 errors.

C1/C2, Beta/Jitter and readback scans: