DynaTek Automation Systems Inc.: DynaTek CDM400

Jon Hill

The Dynatek CDM400 ($2,499 list, $2,299 street) combines top-quality components, but the whole proved less than the sum of its parts. The fine 4X-read/4X-write drive mechanism (from Yamaha) is up to any task a CD-ROM professional or heavy-duty corporate user could throw at it, but this bundle is hampered by the software. At the time of our testing, DynaTek included DiscMaster recording software--essentially a relabeled version of Elektroson's GEAR MM. Although the software is easy to use and versatile enough for simple tasks, it was unable to complete major portions of our rigorous testing script successfully. The company plans to bundle Incat's Easy-CD Pro as an option in lieu of the DiscMaster software. In the meantime, it's difficult to recommend the CDM400 as configured.

The CDM400 bundle begins with an external Yamaha CDR100 CD recorder, a capable midrange workhorse with a 512K buffer. The basic package comes with a SCSI terminator but does not include a SCSI controller card or cable.

Although the DiscMaster software (née GEAR MM) was the source of most of the CDM400's problems, it does contain several valuable features. The software begins by opening three separate windows: Windows' own File Manager, the contents of the current working image, and a scrollable Status window that contains information on the current image and logged results of every action undertaken in the current session.

DiscMaster's Estimate process doesn't simply predict whether a prospective image will lead to a successful burn--it loads the status window with sector-by-sector reports on your source's transfer ability. Unlike several of its competitors, DiscMaster does not currently set aside an area on the hard disk for use as a supplemental buffer. We were unable to back up a set of directories containing roughly 15,000 files at 1X recording speed from the virtual image, even though the same Yamaha CDR100 drive was able to complete our On-the-Fly Recording test at a speed of 4X when combined with Incat's Easy-CD Pro. Worse, when we tried to create a Photo CD multisession disk from a virtual image, the software caused a GPF whenever we tried to append more than 15 files to the first session.

If you have enough free disk space (roughly 680MB), you can create a physical image file on your hard disk and burn the CD from the physical image. When used in this fashion, DiscMaster worked fairly well. The drive successfully created the 15,000-file CD at its rated speed of 4X.

DiscMaster can use externally created physical ISO images, and it can create an image file from a previously recorded CD, so we were able to copy audio tracks and complete audio CDs and CD-ROMs without incident. The package does support several advanced formats, including CD-Interactive and interleaved CD-ROM XA, though we consistently ran into a software error when we tried to create Enhanced CD (CD Plus) disks.

All in all, working with the Dynatek CDM400 was a frustrating experience. The 4X Yamaha CDR100 mechanism is certainly alluring, but until the software component in the current bundle is either revised or changed you're probably better off elsewhere.

DynaTek CDM400. List price: $2,499. DynaTek Automation Systems Inc., Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada; 800-267-6007 (U.S.), 800-461-7078 (Canada); fax, 902-832-3110.

Suitability to Task

                    Power     Ease

Initial startup     Good      Fair
Backup              Fair      Fair
Disk duplication    Fair      Fair
Format flexibility  Poor      Fair

Copyright (c) 1996 Ziff-Davis Publishing Company