Strange problem with a CD-R - is this a disc issue or a recorder issue?

Hi all. I thought it best to start a new thread on this as I have come across a problem with a new Tascam CD recorder which concerns me.

I recently bought a new Tascam CD-RW900 MkII CD recorder to replace my original slot-loading version as I'd had some errors when recording on it. Yesterday I went to finalise a Fujifilm CD-R. It should have had 20 tracks on it. I stuck it in the CD-RW900 MkII which started reading the TOC for about 20 seconds, then flashed up 'No Disc', tried to read the TOC, then flashed up 'No Disc', tried to read the TOC etc. So it was stuck in a loop and wouldn't read the CD-R.

I stuck it in my old Tascam CD-RW900SL, and it read the CD-R with no problem. However, it reported that the disc had just 1 single track, of 80 minutes 27 secs duration (maybe this is why the new CD recorder didn't like it). Plugged the headphones in and pressed play and all the recordings are on the CD-R but they aren't split into the original tracks.

It seems that the CD-R has somehow lost its track markers, and in the process gone over 80 minutes. Is this a problem with the CD-Rs or the recorder? I really hope it's not the latter as it's new.

Thanks,
Nick

 

The player indicating "no disc" probably takes only music cdrs. Is the disc in question a music cdr? I'm guessing not.

 

Yes it is. It's a Fujifilm CD-R PRO for Audio. The disc was made using the CD-RW900 MkII, the very recorder which later on couldn't read it for finalisation. Something weird happened to the CD-R as the older slot-loading recorder I stuck it in indicated one long track. The Tascam recorders take both music and data CD-Rs.

Thanks,
Nick

 

Not sure what the problem is, then. I'd only be guessing. I hope you figure it out and that it's not serious.

 

Wonder if laser is dirty, or disc is not within tolerances in some way.

 

Thanks so far with the suggestions guys.

I'd be very surprised if the laser was dirty as this is a brand new recorder.

I'll see if I can finalise the dodgy disc on the old Tascam recorder. At least if I can the disc won't be a coaster.

Regards,
Nick

 

Sometimes, some discs will work great, other discs not work. And yes, Nick, I'd finalize your disc on the old machine and see if you can salvage it. If this is a pattern, I'd contact your dealer and/or Tascam as your machine should be under warranty being a new unit.

 

Do you know what speed your machine records at? Many new blanks are made for fast recorders, and you can run into problems burning them at slower speeds than they were designed for. It sounds like the TOC did not get recorded, even though the rest of the material did. It could also have been recorded at the wrong location on the disc.

 

Thanks again guys.

OK, I have used the search function on the old Tascam machine and went to the last 20 seconds of the disc. The audio plays up to around 79 mins 55 seconds where the sound fades out to 79 mins 57 seconds, after which the counter stops but the play icon stays.

I tried to finalise it and the TOC countdown gets as far as 57 secs or so when it rapidly counts right down to zero, comes up with 'OPC Error' and spits out the disc. I have to turn the machine off then on to reset it. My guess is that the laser doesn't like going past the 80 minute mark so spits the disc out. Unfortunately my iMac does not recognise unfinalised discs so I can't do anything further with it.

AFAIK the Tascam records at 1x speed. The blurb on the back says "CD-Recordable / for audio recordings only. Usage in CD-R writers bearing the (CD-Recordable for consumer logo). Real Recording time 79 min. 57 sec. This value can slightly vary, depending on the recorder manufacturer. High Speed Rotation Stabiliser: Reduces rotation vibration and achieves professional sound quality. "(bold mine) Just a thought: could the rotation stabiliser be a factor here? I've never seen anything like this mentioned on other CD-Rs I have used in the past.

This is how I often use the CD recorder: I am an FM DXer (that is, I search for unusual stations when conditions are right) and I like to record interesting catches for posterity on CD-Rs. I have always waited until the CD-Rs are full before going on to the next one, to maximise efficiency. Whenever the discs are full I always press stop before ejecting them. There have been a couple of occasions using these Fujifilm discs where the new Tascam has spat one out with 'REC ERROR' and I'm fairly sure that the dodgy disc was one of these. However, this losing track marker problem has never occurred before.

I tend to name the tracks on the discs so I can see what's playing on the display. I also often do this and finalise them on another day, but, as said before this has never been a problem. Maybe from now on to save the possibility of this happening again I need to finalise the discs as soon as they are (nearly) full, but during a big opening I will skip the naming process as this could waste precious time. When the discs are finalised I often convert unidentified catches to MP3 using Audacity and upload them online for others to hear, in the hope that I can get an ID on the mystery station.

This may be an unusual use of a CD recorder but with the stereo system and computer being at opposite ends of the house, I find it a good compromise. The CD recorder is easy to use and I also use it to make high quality recordings from other sources. Plus, it's nice having archives on hard copy.

Sorry for the long post, but I hope this explains things more clearly.

Thanks and regards,
Nick

 

I feel your pain and why I never bought a CD-R recorder, came close once, but decided against it. Is there a way that the recorder can "sense" the silence (of some pre-chosen duration) and put track markers there automatically? It may put in some inadvertent ones, but that would be better than none. Sorry for your trouble.

I read off the Tascam site where on some of their models you can set a low level mark ( down to -72 db) and if the audio reaches it, it adds a track marker automatically.

 

My old CD-RW 750 had this option. And your own example likely does too.

 

Try another brand of audio CD-R 's

 

You can set the machine not to automatically track mark, or to at different db levels.