Sony CRX-1600L User Manual

4-654-827-11(1)

CD-R/RW Drive Unit

User’s Guide

CRX1600L

2001 Sony Corporation

Safety Regulations

WARNING–For U.S.A. customers

Any changes or modifications not expressly approved in this manual could void your authority to operate this equipment.

WARNING

To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not expose the unit to rain or moisture. To avoid electrical shock, do not open the cabinet. Refer servicing to qualified personnel only.

CAUTION

The laser beam in this CRX1600L is harmful to the eyes. Do not attempt to disassemble the cabinet. Refer servicing to qualified personnel only. The use of optical instruments with this product will increase eye hazard. The use of controls or adjustments or performance of procedures other than those specified herein may result in hazardous radiation.

This label is located on the drive unit’s internal chassis.

Dieses Etikett befindet sich auf dem inneren Chassis des Laufwerkes.

DANGER

INVISIBLE LASER RADIATION WHEN OPEN.

AVIOD DIRECT EXPOSIRE TO BEAM

VORSICHT

UNSICHTBARE LASERSTRAHLUNG. WENN ABDECKUNG

GEOFFNET

NICHT DEMSTRAHL AUSSETZEN.

This label is located on the top of the drive unit enclosure.

Dieses Etikett befindet sich am Boden des Laufwerksgehäuses.

DANGER INVISIBLE LASER RADIATION WHEN OPEN.

AVOID DIRECT EXPOSURE TO BEAM.

DANGER RADIATIONS INVISIBLES DU LASER EN CAS D'OUVERTURE.

EVITER TOUTE EXPOSITION DIRECTE AU FAISCEAU.

VORSICHT UNSICHTBARE LASERSTRAHLUNG, WENN ABDECKUNG GEÖ FFNET.

NICHT DEM STRAHL AUSSET ZEN.

ADVARSEL USYNLIG LASERSTRÅ LING VED Å BNING.

UNDGÅ UDS/ETTELSE FOR STRÅ LING.

ADVARSEL USYNLIG LASERSTRÅ LING NÅ R DEKSEL Å PNES. UNNGÅ EKSPONERING FOR STRÅ LEN.

VARNING OSYNLIG LASERSTRÅ LING NÅ R DENNA DEL AR Ö PPNAD. STRÅ LEN Ä R FARLIG.

VAROI NÄ KYMÄ TÖ N AVATTAESSA OLET ALTTINA LASERSÄ TEILYLLE. Ä LÄ KATSO SÄ TEESEN.

This CD-R/RW drive unit is classified as a CLASS 1 LASER PRODUCT. The CLASS 1 LASER PRODUCT label is located at the top of the enclosure.

Bei diesem CD-R/RW-Laufwerk handelt es sich um ein Laser-Produkt der Klasse 1. Das Etikett mit der Aufschrift LASER KLASSE 1 PRODUKT befindet sich auf der Oberseite des Gehäuses.

CLASS 1

LASER PRODUCT

LASER KLASSE 1

PRODUKT

FCC Compliance:

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

•Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

•Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

•Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.

•Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

If you have any questions about this product, you may call the Sony Customer Information Service Center at (800) 5883847 or visit the Sony web site http://www.sony.com/storagesupport.

	Declaration of Conformity
Trade Name:	SONY
Model No.:	CRX1600L
Responsible Party: Sony Electronics Inc.
Address:	680 Kinderkamack Road, Oradell, NJ 07649 USA
Telephone No.:	201-930-6972

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions:

(1)This device may not cause harmful interference, and

(2)This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.

The shielded interface cable recommended in this manual must be used with this equipment in order to comply with the limits for a digital device pursuant to Subpart B of Part 15 of FCC Rules.

iii

CAUTION: Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the manufacturer responsible for compliance could void the user’s warranty and authority to operate the equipment.

THE PARTY RESPONSIBLE FOR PRODUCT COMPLIANCE:

Sony Electronics Inc.

Value Added Products Division

3300 Zanker Road

San Jose, CA 95134 USA

(408) 432-1600

PLEASE RECORD RESPONSIBLY. BEFORE COPYING ANYTHING ONTO A CD-RW OR CD-R DISC, PLEASE BE SURE YOU ARE NOT VIOLATING COPYRIGHT LAWS. MOST SOFTWARE COMPANIES ALLOW YOU TO MAKE A BACK-UP OR ARCHIVE COPY OF SOFTWARE. CHECK YOUR SOFTWARE’S LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR SPECIFIC DETAILS.

IN NO EVENT SHALL SONY ELECTRONICS INC. NOR ANYONE INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OR CREATION OF THIS MANUAL BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, WHETHER BASED ON TORT, CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THIS MANUAL, OR OTHER INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN OR THE USE THEREOF.

Sony, the Sony logo and i.LINK are registered trademarks of Sony.

Apple, Mac, Macintosh and FireWire are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. registered in the U.S. and other countries.

MultiRead is a trademark of Hewlett-Packard Company.

Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

WARRANTY

A separate warranty card is enclosed with the documentation.

Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction ...................................................	1
The i.LINK Interface ......................................................	1
CD-R and CD-RW ..........................................................	3
How CD-R and CD-RW work ........................................	4
Performance ....................................................................	4
Buffer ..............................................................................	5
CD Formats Supported ...................................................	5
Recording Methods .........................................................	6
Applications ....................................................................	6
Media Compatibility .......................................................	7
Recommended Media .....................................................	7
Reliability .......................................................................	7
Chapter 2 Controls and Indicators ................................	8
Front Panel ......................................................................	8
Rear Panel .....................................................................	10
IEEE 1394 Cable and Connectors ................................	11
Chaining Multiple i.LINK devices ...............................	12
Restrictions of IEEE 1394 ............................................	13
i.LINK Signal Types .....................................................	14
General Use Suggestions ..............................................	14
Inserting CD Discs ........................................................	15
Chapter 3 Connecting to a Macintosh ........................	16
System Requirements ...................................................	16
Installation Instructions ................................................	17
Chapter 4 Connecting to a PC .....................................	20
System Requirements ...................................................	20
Installation Instructions ................................................	21
Chapter 5 Troubleshooting ..........................................	23
A few words about CD-ROMs .....................................	23
A few words about the i.LINK interface ......................	23
Appendix Contacting Technical Support ...................	26
Specifications ................................................................	27
Glossary .........................................................................	29
Index ...............................................................................	33

Chapter 1 Introduction

The Sony 1600L i.LINK® (also referred to as the CRX1600L) is a high performance external CD-RW Recorder/Player with the IEEE 1394 (also called i.LINK or FireWire® ) Interface. The 1600L i.LINK drive is capable of recording and playing rewritable CD-RW and write once CD-R media as well as being able to read mass produced stamped CDs. This drive is equipped with the i.LINK interface which can be easily connected to iBookTM, iMac® DV, G4 and Blue and White Macintosh G3 computers with built-in FireWire ports as well as PCs with built-in i.LINK ports or with the addition of iLINK cards. The

1600L i.LINK drive does not support the Apple® FireWire PCI card. Unlike most other interfaces for storage devices, the i.LINK bus is not only very fast, but extremely easy to connect and use without severe limitations as to the number of devices and the distances of the cabling between devices. And the i.LINK connector is “hot pluggable” meaning that it can be installed or removed while the computer is running. Please be careful never to disconnect the drive or other linked devices while data is being transferred.

The i.LINK Interface

G	3

Continued

Sony, along with other industry leaders, helped develop the IEEE 1394 standard. IEEE 1394 is an industry standard serial communications common interface protocol as published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Designed to provide a high level of connectivity and ease of use between audio-video components and personal computers and their peripheral devices, not only is IEEE 1394 exciting from a technical viewpoint, it is a relatively inexpensive technology which means many types of IEEE 1394 devices should be available in the near future at reasonable prices.

The Future of IEEE 1394

There are a great many devices either already existing or being developed with i.LINK technology:

•Computers and their peripheral devices – DVD-ROM, CD-RW, CD- R, CD-ROM, Magneto Optical, high capacity tape drives, AV hard disks, printers and scanners.

•Audio devices such as digital audio tape (DAT) decks, synthesizer units, and other MIDI devices such as keyboards.

•Digital Video products such as digital still cameras, digital camcorders, antennas, digital monitors and digital editing decks.

•Even digital analog converters that allow users to connect analog video devices to i.LINK ports. These converters can convert component YUV signals to the DV signal (digital video signal format which i.LINK uses). This means users may use the analog camcorders they already own with i.LINK technology.

Features and Benefits of IEEE 1394

IEEE 1394 has high volume, high speed capabilities. Currently able to provide up to 400 Megabits per second, IEEE1394 should be capable of greater speeds in the future. Compare i.LINK technology’s 400Mbps (Megabits per second) to USB’s 12Mbps, or even to SCSI’s fastest Ultra2 speed of 80 Megabytes per second. Additionally, real time transfer mode provides uninterrupted transmission of sound and picture. And because the signals are digital signals, there is virtually no degradation in picture and sound quality.

IEEE 1394 has advantages in connectivity both on the computer side as well as the audio video side.

On the computer side, i.LINK technology allows up to 63 devices to be linked together without many of the rules and limitations of competing technologies such as SCSI. There are no addresses to set on the devices, no terminator needed at the end of the bus. The SCSI maximum is 15 devices with only a single host. IEEE 1394 allows more than one computer system to be connected via i.LINK technology to the same devices which makes shared peripherals much easier to connect and use than the current means via networked computers. And since IEEE 1394 is multiplatform, it does not matter which Operating System different personal computers are using.

On the audio video side only one cable is required and the cable itself is bi-directional. No longer is there the need to connect the left audio out signal of one device to the left audio in signal of another device, right audio out to right audio in. The same is true for video cabling which can use up to three cables for component signals. For these audio video devices if you want to change recording or editing direction between devices, or change which two of multiple devices you want to work together, you have to dive into the spaghetti of cables and reconnect them the other way.

CD-R and CD-RW

CD-R is the term used to denote CD-Recordable media. CD-R discs are recorded permanently. Once information is written, it cannot be erased. Data can be added until the disc is full. CD-R media is good for creating archived information that need not be changed, or for distribution because the price of CD-R media has dropped rapidly in the last few years.

CD-RW is the term used to denote CD-ReWritable media. CD-RW discs can be written to many times. CD-RW media is rated for one thousand different writes to the media. CD-RW is a perfect medium for creating reliable backups that can be added to as necessary, and even rewritten as your backup scheme requires.

While CD-RW media is more expensive than CD-R media it has a lower cost per megabyte than other competing technologies, such as Magneto-Optical or even magnetic removable media drives.

Continued

CD-RW drives are very versatile for transporting information to both older and newer CD and DVD ROM drives. CD-RW media can be read by newer CD-ROM and DVD drives. These newer drives are known as Multi ReadTM (MR) drives. And even though CD-RW media cannot be read by older CD-ROM drives, the 1600L i.LINK drive can write to CD-R media which can be read by standard CD-ROM drives and CD players.

How CD-R and CD-RW work

CD-ROM drives (CD-R and CD-RW drives as well) read the one and zero bits by difference in reflectivity. Mass produced Compact Discs are created by stamping “pits” in the CD. These “pits” reflect differently than the “land” which is the area between “pits.”

CD-R drives work by using a laser beam to heat the recording layer, causing a chemical reaction in that spot so CD-ROM players will see this as a “pit” and the unburnt area as “land.”

CD-RW uses what is known as a “Phase Change” technology. In the CD-RW media is a substance which can be changed from an amorphous “mark” that very closely resembles the pits of a stamped CD, to a crystalline state which resembles “land.” The laser beam of the 1600L i.LINK drive changes the crystalline state to the amorphous state by use of a laser to quickly heat the spot on the disc, forming a mark. To change the amorphous state back to the crystalline state the laser beam uses a lower power setting to transition the mark back to the crystalline “land.”

Performance

The 1600L i.LINK drive is capable of writing CD-R media at 12× MAX speed and CD-RW media at 8× MAX speed. 12× speed means that the 1600L i.LINK drive can record a full 650 megabyte CD-R disc in about 5 minutes. At 8× speed the 1600L i.LINK can record a full 650 megabyte CD-RW or CD-R disc in about 9 minutes.

The 1600L i.LINK drive is a multi-function device since the drive is also capable of reading at 32× Maximum (4,800 kilobytes per second).

The speed at which a CD-ROM is written does not affect the speed at which that CD-ROM can be read. For example, a CD-ROM which was written at 2× can be read at 1× , 2× , 4× , 8× , 12× , 24× , 32× and so on.

Buffer

The 1600L i.LINK drive has a 4 megabyte data buffer, which protects against buffer underruns when writing to a disc. Buffer underrun is a condition where the drive’s buffer runs out of data while the CD-R or CD-RW media is still being written. The recording of a CD is a system intensive process, and the recorder needs a constant stream of data. A buffer underrun occurs when the data stream to the recorder is not fast enough to keep the recorder’s buffer full, causing the recording to abort.

CD Formats Supported

The 1600L i.LINK drive records these popular CD formats:

•CD-Digital Audio; the format used for audio CDs, playable on audio CD players.

•CD-ROM (Mode 1); the format used for most CD-ROM applications.

•CD-ROM XA (Mode 2 Form 1 and Mode 2 Form 2); CD-ROM Extended Architecture. This standard was created for smoother playback of multimedia content.

•CD-I* (Mode2 Form 1 and Mode 2 Form 2), CD-I Ready; CDInteractive is used for home entertainment systems.

*The 1600L i.LINK drive does not have the necessary audio circuitry and decoding functions for CD-I playback, but can read and record the format.

The 1600L i.LINK drive also supports these formats, but additional software is required to record these formats:

•CD Extra; Audio and data in multi-session format.

•CD TEXT; Audio CD with album name; song titles encoded. CD TEXT information is displayed on CD TEXT Compatible CD Players and CD-ROM drives.

•CD-Bridge; a format for a mixture of Kodak Photo CDs and Video CDs, playable on TV set top players and personal computers.

•Photo CD (single and multisession); Kodak Photo CD.

•Video CD; playable on TV set -top video CD Players and most DVD systems.

Continued

Recording Methods

The 1600L i.LINK drive has the capability to use several different recording methods. The descriptions of these methods in this manual are overviews of the subject. The methods are covered in greater detail in the software documentation.

•Disc at Once: this is a recording method in which the entire disc is written in a single pass. Data cannot be added at a later time.

•Session at Once: a complete session is written in a single pass (one at a time).

•Track at Once: a track can be copied to the disc incrementally (one at a time).

•Multi-session: several sessions can be written to a disc. Each session has at least one track.

•Variable and fixed packet recording: typically used by back-up software and Drive Letter Access software to add files and folders at a time, instead of tracks/sessions at a time.

Applications

CD-R and CD-RW discs are each ideal for slightly different applications. Both can be recorded with the 1600L CD-ReWritable recorder. CD-R discs can’t be erased, but are compatible with standard CD-ROM drives and CD players. CD-RW discs can be erased and rewritten, but have some inter-change limitations. Here are some typical applications for both discs:

	Data	Back-up	Archiving	CD	Personal
	Distribution			Prototyping	File Storage

CD-R	z		z	z

CD-RW		z		z	z

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