Erasing Rewritable Discs Before Recording

Previously recorded files on CD-RW, DVD-RW, or DVD+RW discs must be erased before recording new files. CD-R, DVD-R, and DVD+R discs cannot be erased.

To erase a rewritable disc in Sonic DigitalMedia Plus:

1Open the DigitalMedia Plus program by clicking Start, All Programs, Sonic, and then DigitalMedia Home.

2Click Tools and then Erase Disc.

3Insert the rewritable disc you want to erase.

4Click the Quick Erase or Full Erase option, and then click the Erase Disc icon.

Working with Audio CDs

Sonic DigitalMedia Plus enables you to create audio CDs that play in your car or home CD player, and on PCs. You can create two main types of music CDs:

•Uncompressed — Typical CD format like you would purchase on a commercial CD. This type of CD holds 10 to 20 songs depending on their length.

Uncompressed files can be burned on CD-Rs (which play in most home and car stereos, DVD players, and computers) or CD-RWs (which play only in some stereos, DVD players, and PCs).

The procedure for creating this type of CD is described in “Creating audio CDs” on page 70.

•Compressed — Files are burned to a disc using a compressed file format (.mp3, .wma, or .m4a). The smaller file format enables you to fit approximately ten times as many songs onto the disc (depending on length and format).

Compressed files can be burned to CD-Rs, CD-RWs, DVDs, DVD-RWs, or DVD+RWs (select models only). Compressed files can only be played on PCs, CD players, or DVD players that support the file format you use to create the disc (.mp3 is most commonly supported). For file format compatibility, check the documentation for the device where you intend to play the disc. You may hear a slight loss of sound quality using compressed audio files.

The procedure for creating this type of CD is described in “Creating jukebox discs” on page 70.

For more compatibility information, see “Disc Features and Compatibility Table” on page 77.

68Getting Started Guide