NEC ND-3500A

Specification

• Interface: ATAPI Ultra DMA 33 mode 2
• Read speed:
  • CD-ROM/R: 48x Max.
  • DVD-ROM: 16x Max.
• Write speed:
  • CD-RW: 24x,
  • CD-R: 48x
  • DVD-RW/+RW: 4x
  • DVD-R/+R: 16x
  • DVD+R DL: 4x
• Supported formats:
  • DVD: DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD+R DL
  • CD: CD-DA, CD Extra, CD Text, CD-ROM, CD-ROM XA, CD-I, CD-I Ready, CD-Bridge, Photo-CD, Video CD
• Write formats:
  • DVD: Random Access Writing (DVD±RW),Sequential Writing (DVD±R/DVD±RW)
  • CD: DAO (disc at once), SAO (session at once), TAO (track at once) with zero gap, variable or fixed packet, multisession
• Access Time
  • CD-ROM: 120ms (Typical)
  • DVD-ROM: 140ms (Typical)
• Buffer: 2MBytes
• Dimensions: 148mm x 190mm x 42mm
• Weight 1.0 kg

The sample DVD recorder has been provided by the european representatives of NEC, its bundle contained only DVD+R DL Verbatim discs, nothing more. Its appearance slightly differs from ND-2510, which was tested in our lab before. The front panel of the new model lacks the volume control and the phone-in jack. The front panel retains: one-color busy light, emergency eject hole, Open/Eject button. The loading tray is lined with sound proofing material to reduce the noise and to protect the insides of the drive from dust. The rear panel of the drive contains an operational digital audio-out.

The drive uses the high resolution writing strategy, a further development of the Active Optimized Power Control technology from NEC — this technology controls the laser power in real time, in order to obtain the highest writing quality.

The label on the top panel provides basic information about the place and time this drive was manufactured.

And now let's have a look inside the drive, because it's interesting to know what chipset is used in one of the first recorders capable of burning DVD discs at 16X.

The drive is assembled based on the new D63635GM chipset from NEC, ND-2510A owners will sigh in disappointment – there is no way to upgrade to the faster model free of charge. The photo below displays the insides of the drive.

At a closer look, the drive mechanism is identical to the previous ND-25XXA models , but the optical pickup is of a new design.

The installation caused no problems. Users have to go through a standard procedure, like that of an ordinary CD-ROM drive. The drive requires no special drivers. You can do just with installing NeroBurning Rom. However you should choose a new version of the program, because older versions do not support this drive. I used Version 6.3.1.20 in the tests.

There appeared an interesting option in DVD recorder properties. Now you can select the Book Type parameter, this window activated only with an inserted DVD+/-R disc. But alas, in practice this option does not work at the moment.

Now let's use various utilities to get some information on the drive. You can roughly find out supported formats and disc types using Nero Infotool.

As you can see on the screenshot, the drive is initially RPC-2, according to www.rpc1.com, there is an opportunity to change the firmware and make it multi-zone (RPC-1), but at present it is in beta testing. And for now, in order to solve the multi-zone problem, you may use DVD Region free, which takes complete control over the regional protection.

The data about its Audio CD capacities we obtained from the popular EAC program (EAC Configuration Wizard results).

Test Results

As usual we'll start our tests with the most interesting part, recording a DVD+R DL disc at 4X. Unfortunately the shortage of such media still exists, and we managed to get only one disc. That's why we'll record it only at 4X, because this is a more interesting option than recording it at the standard 2.4X speed.

When Nero was started, it automatically detected that the drive was capable of working with DL discs and offered the corresponding features.

It was decided to record the DL disc in the DVD-Video mode, so that we could test its compatibility with several consumer DVD players.

As you can see, Nero informs its users about the burn progress for each disc layer separately.

The burn process was completed successfully, and the DVDinfopro tests of the recorded disc revealed several curious peculiarities.

Media code/Manufacturer ID                                    MKM     001
Media Product Revision Number                                         00h
Format Type                                                      UDF 1.02
Volume Name                                                         TNDSE
Application id                                                           
Implementation id                                              AHEAD Nero
Recording Date/Time (mm/dd/yyyy)                       8/26/2004 13:57:24
Format Capacity                                            7.85GB(8.42GB)
Book Type                                                         DVD-ROM
Media Type                                                          DVD+R
Media Id Code Speed                                         2.4x 3324KBps

For DL burning Nero automatically set Book type to DVD-ROM, so the recorded disc must be compatible with outdated DVD-ROM drives and consumer DVD players. The recorded disc was immediately tested in DVD players, which previously did not work with DL discs. Everything was fine, all consumer DVD players confidently played the disc, and there were no problems during its playback. The same with reading the DL disc in old DVD-ROM drives.

Let's try to find out the quality of the disc recorded by this drive. The record quality will be assessed by the Kprobe2 program, which supports DL discs, and the LiteOn 812S drive.

The record quality is just perfect, it's difficult to interpret the test results in a different way :). Both layers are recorded with minimum errors at the speed higher than the intended one for this disc. Toshiba 1712 (firmware version with the hacked reading speed) read this disc in the following way.

It's a pity we didn't manage to test the quality of recording DL disc in more detail, but the existing results demonstrate that this format is supported by the drive for a full due.

Now let's proceed to burning tests of DVD+R discs. Unfortunately, the cherished speed of 16Õ can be reached only with 8x DVD+R discs made by TY. With all the other manufacturers this speed is not reachable yet.

Media code/Manufacturer ID                     YUDEN000T02
Media Product Revision Number                         00h

And here is how the burn process at 16X looks in graphic form

As soon as the burn process was completed, I proceeded with testing the recorded discs in order to check how much the record quality suffered from this "acceleration".

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 8X write speed (TY 8x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 16X write speed (TY 8x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

The results are more than positive. Of course the number of PI errors at the 16X burning speed considerably increased to the end of the disc, but their quantity is on the permissible level.

The drive also allows burning high quality 4x discs at the 8x speed. The list of such discs includes most DVD+R discs from well-known manufacturers available on our market. We have carried out several tests with Philips discs

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 4X write speed (Philips 4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 8X write speed (Philips 4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

As you can see, our test results resemble those of 8x discs burned at 16x: the number of PI errors increases to the end of the disc, but on the whole the results are more than positive.

Now let's see how the drive coped with recording DVD+R discs from manufacturers of the "second echelon", which will be traditionally represented by discs from SKY and eproFormance.

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 2.4X write speed (SKY 4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+R 2.4X write speed (eproFormance 2.4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

The results are quite expectable. It's not recommended to use SKY discs in this drive, and the burn results for eproFormance discs are very good. So, with the rare but expectable exceptions, the drive copes well with recording discs of the DVD+R format.

The drive also demonstrated no problems with DVD+RW discs from various manufacturers.

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+RW 2.4X write speed (Digitex)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+RW 2.4X write speed (Philips)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD+RW 4X write speed (Philips)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

Despite a rather high level of PO errors in some discs, the quality of recording DVD+RW discs can be considered good in this drive.

Now let's proceed to DVD-R disc tests. Unfortunately, the challenging pinnacle of 16X write speed remained approachless in this case. The main reason for this is the stricter requirements to DVD-R disc quality when writing at the high speed. At present the drive is capable of writing only specially certified DVD-R discs at speeds higher than 8x, their appearance on the shelves should be expected only in two or three months. The only consolation is that the drive can write high quality 4X DVD-R discs at 8X, the list of such discs includes all well-known disc brands available on our market. Here is how the 8x burn process looks in graphics form

At first let's see how the record quality changes when 4x discs are burned at 8X by the example of DVD-R discs from Verbatim.

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-R 4X write speed (Verbatim 4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-R 8X write speed (Verbatim 4x)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

You can see a familiar picture: a little increase of PI errors to the end of the disc. You can also clearly see on the graph the 6õ->8x switching zone between write speeds. But, on the whole, the quality of 4x brand DVD-R discs written at 8X almost didn't suffer.

Now let's see the test results for various discs from manufacturers of the "second echelon" to get a more detailed picture of drive performance with DVD-R discs.

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-R 4X write speed (Princo)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-R 2õ write speed (Princo)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-R 4X write speed (Memorex)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

As you can see on the graphs, the main problems appeared in this drive with CMC discs trademarked Memorex. Peaks of PI/PO errors always appeared to the end of the disc, which may lead to the unstable DVD-Video playback on consumer electronics.

There were no problems with recording DVD-RW discs, the drive confidently burns most discs of that type.

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-RW 2õ write speed (TDK)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-RW 4X write speed (Mitsubishi)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

NEC ND-3500A, DVD-RW 2õ write speed (Digitex)
Nero CD/DVD Speed 3.1 results of reading in Toshiba 1712(speed hack)

The quality of recording discs of this type is rather good in this drive.

Working with DVD discs in the UDF format using InCD ver. 4.3.0.0

Recording a DVD disc in the UDF format, test packet of 530 Mb in 3000 files.

DVD Reading: Main Parameters

NERO DVD Speed Results

Read graphs of test DVDs

NEC ND-3500A, single layer DVD (stamped DVD-Data)

	NEC ND-3500A	Plextor PX-712A
Average speed	11.72x CAV	12.08x CAV
Random Seek	162 ms	124 ms
Full Seek	244 ms	218 ms
CPU usage (Max Speed)	1 %	1 %
SpinUp Time	3.95 sec	2.75 sec
SpinDown Time	2.39 sec	4.89 sec
Disc Recognition Time	11.87 sec	11.62 sec

NEC ND-3500A, 2-layer DVD (stamped DVD-Video)

	NEC ND-3500A	Plextor PX-712A
Average speed	3.43x CAV	9.22x CAV
Random Seek	204 ms	139 ms
Full Seek	273ms	231 ms
CPU usage (Max Speed)	1 %	2 %
SpinUp Time	1.46 sec	3.09 sec
SpinDown Time	1.20 sec	4.45 sec
Disc Recognition Time	16.74 sec	14.45 sec
Layer Change Time	85 ms	125 ms

Recordable DVD reading

DVD+R reading

NEC ND-3500A

DVD+R DL reading

NEC ND-3500A

DVD+RW reading

NEC ND-3500A

DVD-R reading

NEC ND-3500A

DVD-RW reading

NEC ND-3500A

As appears from the graphs, the speed limit for reading DVD+/-R media in this drive was lifted, which resulted in such ambiguous graphs. I'm not sure that it's a good idea, because, paradox as it may seem, the time of reading a complete DVD-/+R disc may on the contrary drop. It is because as soon as the drive encounters a reading problem at a high speed, it will start to reduce the speed and this fidgeting will result in the increase of reading time.

DVD Video copying with Smart Ripper

ÑD-R and CD-RW burning tests

Traditionally, we used two types of media - with cyanine and phthalocyanine coating. The overall number of disc trademarks was increased to four, 2 of each type, to provide more information on how the drive treats discs of different trademarks. Below is the ATIP data for the discs tested.

To be more illustrative, the burning results will be partially represented in the graphical form.

Recording on NEC ND-3500A (Imation 52x, phthalocyanine)

Practice proved that this screenshot is a typical picture demonstrated when burning most media with different coatings. The only exception is Mirex media, here we have the following picture.

Recording on NEC ND-3500A (Mirex 48x, phthalocyanine)

We have also tested the drive capacity to burn correctly cyanine discs at minimum speed, as this mode is often used by melomaniacs to ensure the maximum sound quality.

To complete the picture, I decided to add CD-RW burning results to this article.

Recording on NEC ND-3500A(Verbatim 10x ÑD-RW)

Recording on NEC ND-3500A(Verbatim 24x ÑD-RW)

Results of reading discs recorded on the Lite-On drive with the KProbe utility

Reading an Imation CD-R, recorded on NEC ND-3500A


Reading a Verbatim CD-R, recorded on NEC ND-3500A


Reading a Mirex CD-R, recorded on NEC ND-3500A


Reading a Verbatim Pastel CD-R, recorded on NEC ND-3500A


Reading a Verbatim 10x CD-RW, recorded on NEC ND-3500A


Reading a Verbatim 24x CD-RW, recorded on NEC ND-3500A

Time of CD-RW full formatting in the UDF format with InCD ver. 4.3.0.0

Writing a CD-RW disc in the UDF format, test packet of 530 Mb in 3000 files.

Checking the drive capacity to work with 80mm ÑD-RW, formatting and recording in the UDF format

Formatting and recording an 80mm ÑD-RW disc in the UDF format 4X write speed.

The drive successfully reads and records 80mm discs.

Overburn

In this test we used discs with the following ATIP data.

CD Reading: Main Parameters

CDWinBench 99 test results

NERO CD Speed Results

NEC ND-3500A

	NEC ND-3500A	Plextor PX-712A
Average speed	36.05 CAV	32.06 CAV
Random Seek	125 ms	93 ms
Full Seek	208 ms	217 ms
CPU Usage 8X	5 %	5 %
SpinUp Time	4.04	2.25
SpinDown Time	2.36	4.48
Disc Recognition Time	10.74 sec	10.35 sec
Accurate stream	Yes	Yes

CD-ROM Drive Analyzer

NEC ND-3500A

NEC ND-3500A

NEC ND-3500A

Extracting sound tracks from audio CDs (CDDAE 99, EAC)

Advanced DAE Quality (Nero CD-Speed)

NEC ND-3500A tests

You can read a detailed description of the tested parameters in the help file to Nero ÑD Speed. In case, for some reason, you don't want to download the utility, we have published an HTML-file of the help to the test utility here.

DAE Quality (EAC)

This test was worked out by the developer of EAC, it is called DAE Quality, its description can be found here. In short, this test measures the audio data extraction quality and the quality of processing C2 errors with a special test disc.

NEC ND-3500A tests

NEC ND-3500A
• Errors total Num : 2670217
• Errors (Loudness) Num : 120664 – Avg : -75.1 dB(A) – Max : -9.1 dB(A)
• Error Muting Num : 19844 – Avg : 20.2 Samples – Max : 3583 Samples
• Skips Num : 299 – Avg : 100.7 Samples – Max : 648 Samples
• Total Test Result : 50.5 points (of 100.0 maximum)
• C2 Accuracy : 94.5 %

Direct copying of information from 832 MB (92 min) CD-R to HDD

The drive copied successfully the contents of the 832MB disc without any errors.

NEC ND-3500A tests

• NEC ND-2510A – 7 minutes 24 seconds.
• Plextor PX-712A – 5 minutes 36 seconds.

Physical characteristics of the drive

Noise

On the whole, the general noise level is acceptable in various modes, which allows a comfy use of this drive at home without additional fine-tuning of its operational speed. If the noise level with CD-ROM discs is too loud for you, you can control the speed in the 32-24-20-16-10-8-4 range using external applications.

Thermal conditions

The drive gets rather hot when used a lot. Its usage in small PC cases with compact placement of devices without good cooling may lead to system overheating. So it's not recommended to place other devices close to this drive.

Vibration in case of unbalanced CDs

The drive fights well its vibrations. When working with an unbalanced CD, vibrations in the drive were on a permissible level.

Conclusion

To sum it all up, we can say that the new pinnacles of write speed are conquered without any special problems, DVD+R recording quality at 16X is perfect. The same can be said about the DVD+R DL recording quality at 4x. Unfortunately we haven't yet checked the DVD-R recording quality at 16x, because disc manufacturers are seriously lagging behind the manufacturers of optical drives for this format. On the whole, the new drive from NEC perfectly copes with recording various optical media. Of course, there are some exceptions, but we can most likely expect these problems to be solved in later firmware versions. We should note one disadvantage of this drive – the sample tested was not very reliable at reading low quality discs and the discs recorded on other drives. In other respects we have no complaints about the new drive and can confidently recommend it to all users.

Roman Shelepov(srl@ixbt.com)
September 2, 2004

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