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CD Recorder Died - Best Replacement Option?

As the title says, my venerable Sony CDR-W33 cd recorder just died. For a number of reasons, I still need, from time to time, to make very high quality copies of cd's that I own. Most often, I do this when traveling, and also in relation to my car, which has no even remotely easy, affordable or acceptable way to add an iPod, or alternative. So I'm stuck with it's cd changer.

And so, I need to replace the existing unit with another one. The only currently available model that isn't $800-1000.00 and intended for pro usage, is this Tascam:

TASCAM CD-RW900MKII | Sweetwater.com

Does anyone have any experience with this unit? My old Sony made flawless copies,and that is what I'm after. The CDR-w33's do pop up on Amazon from time to time, as well as some other brands and models of older units, but many of them were from produced 2000-2005, and they are clearly getting up there in years, and continued reliability could be questionable.

Any suggestions, expertise, or recommendations are appreciated. Thanks.

JC
nightfall

Showing 3 responses by zd542

zd542
5,339 posts
 
You can always use a computer and there's plenty of good software for free that will make copies just as good as your Sony. You won't even have to buy CD-R's for music. Just regular ones will be fine.

If you really need a stand alone CD burner like you have, the Tascam looks pretty good. Another option is an Alesis Masterlink 9600. Sometimes you can get a really good deal on one from Ebay. I've had one that I bought over 10 years ago when it was current and it still works perfect.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"02-09-15: Czarivey
Zd542, PC CDRW/DVDRW drives are substantially inferior to dedicated CD recorders. Therefore there are much more errors during PC CD burning vs. recording using professional CD recorder."

Why would that be? They both burn the same way. My Alesis burns CD's just as well as any other burner I've seen. It seems like the quality of the blank CD's are the most important variable for errors. And if you are using software quality and setup is critical. Most people have burn speed way too fast. You'll definitely get more errors if that's the case.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
The Alesis has a computer CD burner in it.
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