I started a thread on this in 2011 Smithsonian Folkways Records selling CD-Rs There was a big boom in blues CDs after the success of the Robert Johnson set, when those runs ran out the little companies switched to CDrs. It caught me off guard. Although just recently I chance-ordered a couple Irish trad CDs from Gael linn and got actual CDs. But Amazon, that's just a dirty game. Even if the real ones exist they will still make CDrs in-house.
If you want to find out the reliable source for which Contemporary Christian CDs are CD-R on Demand now if you order new, go to Mardel.com.
I am glad that I snatched a pressed CD of Exile's Mixed Emotions Curb CD mastering several years ago at Walmart as most retailers can only order the CD-R and could only order the CD-R from the start.
Too bad that the pressed CD of the Curb CD mastering of Exile's Mixed Emotions is a rare disc that only a few Walmart stores ended up getting.
Ebay is sometimes pre-filling this to be CD-R in the product features. I listed a string quartet box recently and there is no way for me to change it in their pre-filled description that it is a CD-R so I had to make it explicitly clear in the description that they were factory pressed CDs. I think in this instance I *might* see it making sense as the label was pressing CD-Rs as the set went out of print.
Years ago I wanted to buy Front Page Review's only album "Mystic Soldiers" on CD. Amazon had the most recent CD from a company called Iris Music, but when I contacted the manufacturer/seller to confirm that it was not a CD-R, they replied that they didn't want my business. Some years later, Amazon added the notation that the "item is manufactured on demand" (i.e., a CD-R), but now that has been removed. Good luck getting confirmation, many sellers (1) don't bother to reply, (2) don't know what a CD-R is, or (3) don't know how to spot a CD-R (if you can even get past the corporate boilerplate excuse "we cannot check because our inventory is stored at a different location"). Anyway, I ended up buying the 1997 Big Beat pressed CD, which was fine with me.
FYI, If you are looking for something with resale value so far I've found these burn-on-demand have none.
No sale in those cases. My collection is essentially complete, if there is such a thing, with a few exceptions. I have more music than I could realistically absorb in my lifetime anyway. I will focus on other interests in my life besides collecting/buying more music that I really do not need anyway.
My Cameo-Parkway box has real CD's. They are the black plastic ones but they are not CD-R's. Remember that the Nero software can correctly id a CD or a CD-R. I've posted the link a couple times in other threads but can't re-post it were I am right now. It only takes a minute to check what you have and it's been correct on a couple disc's that I wasn't sure about. This CD/CD-R issue is going to be a problem for awhile so you might as well be able to check and not worry. If I get A CD-R it is going to be returned.
Also many burning programs will tell you as well (just put the disc in & see what it says it is). Or Nero's Discspeed (used mostly for testing "quality of burned DVDs" but it can identify CDR media IIRC).
Goddammit! I just bought a "CD" from a band called Dead Man's Whiskey, direct from their website in the UK. It came packaged in what looks like a professionally designed digipack but the disc is a *#%@ing CD-R. Cost me friggin' $25 too. What rip (pun intended). I love the music (hard rock southern style) but this really sucks. I would never had bought this had I known it was a burned disc, I could have done that myself. Sigh.
I also have this factory pressed disc from Wal Mart. I noticed that Discogs does not differentiate between the pressed CD and the CD-R: Exile (7) - Mixed Emotions
I guess it really depends. It still keeps the bar code number in place, but it probably keeps people from seeing the track listings, however it also keeps potential buyers from thinking you are selling them a CD-R instead of a CD. I used to copy Discogs descriptions of the CDs in my listings to give more detail, but Ebay blocked that last year.
Jesus Christ. This shiit never ends. I bought this rare "CD" off discogs here: Taz Taylor Band - Welcome To America! Just got it in the mail and it is a goddam CD-R!!!!! Am waiting to hear back from the seller but should they not respond or offer me a refund, what are my options as far as complaining on Discogs? I've only ever bought about 5 things there and never had a problem b4. Or am I wrong here and unknown to me that page above plainly states this is a friggin' CD-R?? Because I don't see that and I would NOT have ordered it had I know it was a CD-R..