I could swear I saw CD-R’s that had an 800mb capacity- did I imagine this or does such a thing exist? I’ve looked on the web with no luck, and am wondering if maybe 700mb is the most you can get for a CD-R.
Anyone have information on higher capacity CD-Rs?
Thanks in advance,
Zette
Do a search for “overburning” and you’ll find articles on drives that can fit more content on standard disks, though at some potential risk to your equipment.
Yes they exist, I just ordered some from here. Been a week though, and I still don’t have a tracking #…
Methinks you’re misremembering the numbers on the labels. The most common CD-R’s you’ll find have a 700 megabyte data capacity, OR an 80-minute audio capacity. Perhaps your memory spliced the two numbers together?
I’ve burned SVCD’s that regularly have over 800MB dat files. Of course, the tracks are laid out and burned differently than data CD’s. But these are still you’re classic 700MB/80 min CD’s.
CD-Rs capable of holding up to 90 and even 99 minutes (about 850 megabytes) exist. However, there are a few problems.
80 minute (700 megabytes) discs can store this much data only by stretching the relevant specifications (IIRC the “Red Book” standard) to the point where the format no longer strictly complies. Older hardware can have problems reading/writing 80 minute media, but most modern readers/recorders can handle them.
Discs with more than 700 megabytes go even further and outright break this CD format standard, so there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to read the data back from such discs. Most CD burners are only capable of writing about 90 minutes, so you need one of the few models of hardware that can handle writing media this large. The CD writing software needs support also, obviously.
With one possible exception (don’t update the firmware unless you know what you’re doing) you can’t damage your equipment by experimenting with oversized media and overburning. About the only risk you’ll take is that your overburned discs may not be readable (aka “coasters”), meaning you’ve wasted the 90/99 minute discs and some effort.
Just to clarify some points about CD capacity:
The actual capacity of a 74/80minute disc is 740 and 800MB, respectively. However, in Mode 1, the standard writing method, a certain amount of this space is occupied by Error Correction data. This ensures that if the CD is cratched or you get a fingerprint on it, data will not be lost. This reduces capacity to 650 and 700MB, respectively.
Formats such as VCD, and SVCD have their own built-in error correction, and are thus burned in Mode 2, which does not use standard CD error correction. This allows them to use the full 740 or 800MB of a CD. The upcoming XCD standard allows you to burn any kind of data to a Mode 2 CD, letting you make full use of the capacity of a CD.
I hope this was informative…
Thanks ever so much for the info! I sure appreciate it 
Zette