A previous thread about burn speed for CDs made me try burning a mix CD again. In previous tries, I ended up with a CD that skipped and had gaps. I’m running Windows 2000 and use Adaptec Create CD.
I burned the disc, then played it while driving somewhere and sure enough it skipped again. Not in every song, but often enough to make it very unpleasant to listen to. On a whim I tried it on my computer CD, then a boombox, and finally my stereo, and it works fine on all of them?!
My car CD player is probably to blame. It occasionally skips on other CDs that play well elsewhere, but it always skips on CDs that I’ve burned and on the one burned CD someone gave me.
Am I SOL, need to get a new car stereo? Could it be a need to realign or clean the laser unit? Or would slowing the burn rate make any difference? I suspect the car CD player isn’t picking up on the auto-correction bits, but I could be completely off.
What format are the files you are burning in (i.e.-are they already .wav, or are they mp3?) If the software is having to convert the files while burning, it could be a case of not being able to keep up. Try lowering the burn speed, and converting the files to wav before burning, and see if that helps.
Assumming the burned CD plays okay on other CD players …
Try a different brand of blank CDs. Stick with a name brand such as Maxell, TDK, Sony, etc. The generic brands don’t have enough contrast for some CD players. Also, be sure and get 80 minute CDs instead of 72 minute CDs or you won’t be able to get all your music onto the CD if it is a long one.
If the CD skips on all players you try it on, especially if it always skips in the same places try some or all of the following … Use a slower burn speed, Defrag your hard drive before making the CD, Make a CD image first and then burn your CD from the image.
(I’m trying this again, sorry if it is a double-post.)
It’s your car CD player. Not all older CD players handle burned media gracefully. Other than trying a different media CDR brand there is not much you can do. Burn rates and drefragging your PC will have nothing to do with it if the CD is playing correctly on other players. The CD is fine it’s your player that is getting the bellyache.
Grumble, I wish is wasn’t the CD player in the car because that’s where I listen to 90% of my music. I’m using Maxell 80 minute CD–Rs, maybe I’ll try a different brand. I’ve ripped the songs from my own CDs so everything is in .WAV format. My machine is quiet while I’m burning.
The car stereo is 5 years old, my home stereo is older but seems to have no problems with it. My last resort is to get a friend to burn a CD and try it.
I’m thinking about buying a new car someday soon, this is one more reason.
WHat Rufus Said
Make an image of the CD or burn it onto your hard drive first, and then burn it onto the CD, I used to have the same problem, and ever since I started doing this, no more skipping.
I mod a forum with 75,000 members & we deal with anything cdrom or dvd related. This comes up alot
& its almost always because you wrote them at too high a speed. Try writing at 1x or 2x & use
the best media you have & make sure the cd is clean before you play it.