Conclusions

Our tests revealed almost equal parcels of both positive and negative results.

Above all else, the CD-S500/A is noticeable by its extreme noisiness. Moreover, the performance with rewritten CD-RWs (both reating and transfer rates) is below average.  The maximum digital audio extraction rate of 12.2x is good when compared to other CD-ROM drives, but is not even in the same class as today’s CD burners, which go as high as 25x.  

On the other hand, performance in the area of once-written CDs turned out to be fantastic: with blue and green CD-Rs, 50x rates were achieved easily.  Its transfer rates of approximately 90 ms are also excellent.  The transfer rates we saw with original CDs are also impressive, despite the presence of a strange behavior.  Finally, the log in times of 10 seconds are absolutely great

In the areas of error correction and handbook, the drive is in line with the norm. The capacity to regulate the rotation rate manually should also be noted, but a software solution for this would be much appreciated.

High Speed at the expense of high noise

The ASUS CD-S500/A is definitely a good selection.  However, it is necessary to use the rate down-shift feature, as otherwise it is just too noisy.  But retailing at some $50, it offers a nice price/performance ratio.

Evaluation