Is translucent media bad?
(2002/12/09) A popular perception is that translucent CD-R media — discs that are, to some extent, see-through — are lower in quality than discs you can’t see through. The argument is that the discs reflect less light, and as a result are less likely to work in some players. The argument is without merit. So long as the disc reflects at least 70% of the beam when it strikes a “land”, it meets the CD-R specification. All CD-R media, except for discs treated with an opaque top coating (usually to provide an absorbent surface for ink-jet printers), are to some extent translucent. Take your favorite brand of un-coated disc, write on the top with a black marker, and hold it up to a bright light source. The writing will be visible through the disc, even on widely recommended high-end brands. Suppose the translucent media had an opaque label added to the top.
(2002/12/09) A popular perception is that translucent CD-R media — discs that are, to some extent, see-through — are lower in quality than discs you can’t see through. The argument is that the discs reflect less light, and as a result are less likely to work in some players. The argument is without merit. So long as the disc reflects at least 70% of the beam when it strikes a “land”, it meets the CD-R specification. All CD-R media, except for discs treated with an opaque top coating (usually to provide an absorbent surface for ink-jet printers), are to some extent translucent. Take your favorite brand of un-coated disc, write on the top with a black marker, and hold it up to a bright light source. The writing will be visible through the disc, even on widely recommended high-end brands. Suppose the translucent media had an opaque label added to the top.
A popular perception is that translucent CD-R media — discs that are, to some extent, see-through — are lower in quality than discs you can’t see through. The argument is that the discs reflect less light, and as a result are less likely to work in some players. The argument is without merit. The laser used to read CDs is in a wavelength outside the human visual range. So long as the disc reflects light in the infra-red spectrum, CD readers will not have any problems. All CD-R media, except for discs treated with an opaque top coating (usually to provide an absorbent surface for ink-jet printers), are to some extent translucent. Take your favorite brand of un-coated disc, write on the top with a black marker, and hold it up to a bright light source. The writing will be visible through the disc, even on highly recommended high-end brands. There is much more to media quality than its ability to reflect the visible light spectrum. It can be argued, of course, that there is a correlation
