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 This message was also posted recently to the AV 
Media Matters list so apologies in advance to those who may have already seen it 
there.  I am still in need of information concerning the current status of 
the HHB CDR800 and its desirability for use in an audio archives setting--  
or rather, I'm looking for confirmation that the newer CDR830 is not in the same 
league with the CDR800.   --SG 
Greetings, 
We have been planning to buy an HHB CDR800 CD-R 
deck, and now that our funds are in place I have learned that the CDR800 has 
been discontinued and replaced by the CDR830. 
At the ARSC (Association for Recorded Sound 
Collections) conference two years ago, quite a few people were endorsing the 
CDR800 in favor of the HHB CDR850 which was the other pro unit available at the 
time.  My understanding of one major preference for the CDR800 was that its 
"stable platter mechanism" was regarded as a major plus for use by audio 
archives, as it theoretically (empirically?) reduced the error rate during disc 
burning.  The CDR850 used (uses) a conventional hub-based disc mounting 
system that was not considered as dependable. 
HHB now has abandoned the CDR800 apparently, so my 
question is--  is anyone familiar enough with the new CDR830 to comment on 
its appropriateness for use in an archival setting?  I have quickly 
compared the spec sheets and it appears that the CDR830 does not have balanced 
XLR analog and digital inputs that were present on the CDR800.  Are there 
other differences that I should be aware of? 
A recent price quote I received for the CDR830 is 
less than half of what the CDR800 listed for less than a year ago.  This 
price reduction *must* reflect some major changes so I'd welcome any help 
interpreting who this unit is primarily deisgned for.  At the moment, I'd 
be inclined to stick with finding a CDR800. 
Any thoughts? 
Steve Green / Archivist 
Western Folklife Center 
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