Subject: REVIEW: NEC MultiSpin 38 (CDR-38) CD-ROM drive
From: [email-masked] (Geoff Seeley)
Date: 20 Feb 1994 23:28:11 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.reviews

PRODUCT NAME

	NEC MultiSpin 38 (CDR-38) CD-ROM drive

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

	A portable SCSI-1 and SCSI-2 compatible CD-ROM drive.

AUTHOR/COMPANY INFORMATION

	Name:		NEC Technologies, Inc.
	Address:	1255 Michael Drive,
	        	Wood Dale, IL  60191-1094
			USA

	Telephone:	(800) NEC-INFO	(Information Services)
	          	(800) 366-0476	(FastFacts automated support/info)
	          	(508) 264-8000	(Technical Support)
	FAX:		(508) 635-4666	(Technical Support)

LIST PRICE

	List:  approximately $399 (US).
	I paid $369.99 Canadian for mine.

SPECIAL HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

	HARDWARE

		SCSI host adapter with a female DB-25 connector.

	SOFTWARE
	
		CD-ROM driver software. (Not included.)

COPY PROTECTION

	None.

MACHINE USED FOR TESTING

	Amiga 3000, 25Mhz
	2 Meg Chip RAM, 10 Meg Fast RAM
	Kickstart 40.55, Workbench 40.25 (Developer)
	WD33C93A-PL 00-08 SCSI Controller Chip

	AmiCDROM filesystem software, versions 1.7 and 1.8.

INSTALLATION

	TURN OFF THE COMPUTER.
	Remove two shipping screws with a screwdriver or a coin.
	Plug the SCSI 25/50 cable (supplied) into the drive and the computer.
	Plug 120V 60Hz AC adapter (supplied) into the drive.
	Configure the DIP switches for your system setup.

REVIEW

	After quickly unpacking the CDR-38 and connecting it to my machine,
I configured the DIP switch settings for my setup.  This is relatively easy
as the switches are located on the bottom of the unit and are fully labeled
as to their function.

	The switches allow you to set the SCSI ID of the unit, termination
of the SCSI bus, normal or double speed mode, and choice of command set
to use (SCSI-1 or SCSI-2).

	When I first attempted to boot up the machine, it froze solid when
the Amiga was polling the CD-ROM drive to see if it was a boot device.  I
tried a few different combinations of the DIP switch settings but that
didn't help the situation.  Next, I tried swapping the supplied 25/50 SCSI
cable with an old one I had been using.  It worked!  I suspect the NEC SCSI
cable has a bad wire in it someplace, as further testing with the cable gave
one or two successful boots.  Using the old cable has produced no problems
whatsoever.  (I have since had the cable replaced and everything works as it
should.)

	Inserting a disc into the drive is an easy task as the CDR-38 has a
flip top lid and does not require the use of a CD caddy.  Having used a
caddy type drive in the past, I can safely say that the CDR-38 design is by
far the less frustrating of the two.  Even though the CDR-38's flip top has
a small smoked plastic window on it, I found it hard to know when the disc
had stopped spinning before attempting to change it.  The window is useful
only if you are able to look directly down on the top of the unit with
sufficient lighting.  I suspect that proper driver software that can
"unmount" the disc would eliminate this problem by stopping the motor.

	After testing some regular CD-ROMs in the drive, I next tried out
some regular audio CDs.  I connected the drive's audio output up to my
stereo system using a cable with a mini phono (1/8 inch) jack and two RCA
type jacks for output.  To control the playback functions, I used F. J.
Reichert's "JukeBox" program (version 1.2530) which had no problems
controlling the CDR-38.  The CDR-38 also provides a volume control for the
audio output from the drive which is a welcome feature.  The audio output
from the drive sounds crisp and clear, at least to my ears.

	The busy light on the top of the drive glows green when the drive is
accessing a CD-ROM in double speed mode (300K/sec) and red when using normal
speed mode (150K/sec).  You can also force the drive to use normal speed
mode via the DIP switches, but I cannot see a reason why somebody would want
to do this.

	The CDR-38 also has a battery jack along the left side of the case
for an optional battery pack sold by NEC.  The manual claims that the
battery pack will power the CDR-38 for 45 minutes before needing to be
plugged into the wall.  This option would be good for laptop users needing
CD-ROM access while on the road.

	I was unable to test the PhotoCD support of the CDR-38; however, the
drive does claim to support both single and multi-session PhotoCD discs.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

	User Data Capacity	680M bytes/disc

	Total Number of Blocks	333K blocks/disc

	Data transfer rate	300K bytes/sec (MultiSpin mode)
	                  	150K bytes/sec (Normal mode)

	Memory Buffer     	64K bytes

	Command Set       	SCSI-1 or SCSI-2 switchable

	Photo CD Compatibility	Multisession/Single session

	Access Time       	400 msec

	Dimensions       	14.2 x 4.9 x 22.8 cm

	Weight            	1.0kg

DOCUMENTATION

	The drive comes with a rather small, 17-page manual that is just
large enough to cover all the information you need.  Included are sections
on connecting the drive to your machine, caring for the drive, and trouble
shooting sections for both Macintosh and PC users.  (Sorry, no Amiga section)

	The manual gets the job done, but it assumes the user has some
knowledge of SCSI (IDs, termination).  A glossary or introductory section
could have helped this.

LIKES AND DISLIKES ('+' means like, '-' means dislike)

	+ Caddyless design.
	+ Volume control for headphones jack.
	+ Two-color LED busy indicator.
	+ SCSI 1 and SCSI 2 switchable operation.
	- No stereo RCA jacks.
	- No SCSI pass-through port.
	- Hard to tell if the disc is still spinning when opening the lid.
	- Power and Busy lights on top of case only.

COMPARISON TO OTHER SIMILAR PRODUCTS

	Before I purchased the CDR-38, I used an Apple CD-150 external SCSI
drive on my A3000.  Compared to the Apple drive, the NEC is smaller, faster,
and easier to load due to the caddyless design.

	Triple speed drives seem to be the most predominant these days.
However, this drive is plenty fast enough for me, even with the relatively
slow average seek time of the drive.

BUGS

	Other than the bad SCSI cable mentioned above, this drive has worked
perfectly from day one.

VENDOR SUPPORT

	I have not had to contact NEC support for anything yet.  However, the
manual lists toll-free support numbers as well as a BBS number for
downloading the latest software drivers for PC users.

WARRANTY

	2 years, parts and labor (from the date of the purchase).
	Warranty applies to the first consumer purchaser only.

CONCLUSIONS

	Overall, I'd give this drive a rating of 8.5 out of 10.  Had I not
had the bad cable initially, I would have given it 9.5.

	I'm very happy with this drive and I'm now starting to see the great
potential of CD-ROMs and the technology that will follow.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

	Copyright 1994 Geoff Seeley.  All rights reserved.

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