From Mark Kolmar Sent Thu, Jan 28th 1999, 00:38
CD technical trivia; delete now if uninterested. On Tue, 26 Jan 1999, `Pietro wrote: > of 77 minutes and 58 seconds. Isn't there a limited time span of 74 > minutes on a (normal) cd? The manufacturing cost would be higher and/or the pressing plant couldn't offer the same guarantees if you want to press a disc longer than 74 minutes. The percentage of rejects goes up, because it is more difficult to keep the outer edges of the discs uniform enough. However, as with everything else related to CDs, they are getting better at it. The absolute limit is about 80 minutes. Normal CD-Rs can hold a few seconds more than 74 minutes. Ones which hold more are available at a significant premium and they are not a common sight. My understanding is conductor Herbert von Karajan was asked how much music a CD should hold. He thought a performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 should fit on a single CD. (He might have had a particular performance in mind. If so, probably one in which they did not do the repeat in the 4th movement I think it is.) One for the FAQ if it isn't in there already. And if there is a FAQ at all...? (Yeah, I know, check the FAQ for the answer... :-) --Mark __ Burning Rome : SENSELESS CD on Mindfield Records MindCD03 Cathartium 14 > Distributed by Dutch East India Trading, Com Four, and Carrot Top < < http://www.xnet.com/~mkolmar/BurningRome > < MP3 & RealAudio tracks >