Audio CD burning failures [Solved!]

Legacy Netrunner 14.x
1

I am trying to burn a couple of audio CDs. Initially K3b complained about permissions, so after some research I ran it as root and set it up there. Which got me a bit further. But now it fails with a variety of excuses and suggestions, buffer overuns, try TAO, try a lower speed (already had it at 16X), and writer does not like medium.
I tried installing Brasero, and it worked the first time! But never again. I saved a bunch of logs from both. I have attached as many as the system will allow.
I’ve looked online and other people have had similar problems years ago, but I can’t see a solution that is going to apply here.

The essential differences between the K3b logs seem to be these:

K3b log 2
Starting to write CD/DVD at speed 16.0 in real SAO mode for single session.
Last chance to quit, starting real write in 2 seconds.
1 seconds.
0 seconds. Operation starts.
Waiting for reader process to fill input buffer … input buffer ready.
Performing OPC…
Sending CUE sheet…
Writing pregap for track 1 at -150
Starting new track at sector: 0
Track 01: 0 of 67 MB written.
Errno: 5 (Input/output error), write_g1 scsi sendcmd: no error
CDB: 2A 00 00 00 01 29 00 00 1B 00
status: 0x2 (CHECK CONDITION)
Sense Bytes: 71 00 03 00 00 00 00 0A 00 00 00 00 0C 00 00 00
Sense Key: 0x3 Medium Error, deferred error, Segment 0
Sense Code: 0x0C Qual 0x00 (write error) Fru 0x0
Sense flags: Blk 0 (not valid)
cmd finished after 0.000s timeout 200s
/usr/bin/wodim: A write error occured.
/usr/bin/wodim: Please properly read the error message above.
write track data: error after 698544 bytes
Writing time: 44.642s
Average write speed 123.5x.
Fixating…
Fixating time: 0.001s
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo had 202 puts and 12 gets.
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo was 0 times empty and 3 times full, min fill was 97%.
BURN-Free was never needed.

K3b log 3
Starting to write CD/DVD at speed 48.0 in real TAO mode for single session.
Last chance to quit, starting real write in 2 seconds.
1 seconds.
0 seconds. Operation starts.
Waiting for reader process to fill input buffer … input buffer ready.
Performing OPC…
Starting new track at sector: 0
Track 01: 0 of 67 MB written.
Track 01: 1 of 67 MB written (fifo 100%) [buf 87%] 2.9x.
Track 01: 2 of 67 MB written (fifo 100%) [buf 100%] 2.0x.
Track 01: 3 of 67 MB written (fifo 100%) [buf 100%] 17.0x.
Track 01: 4 of 67 MB written (fifo 100%) [buf 100%] 16.5x.
Track 01: 5 of 67 MB written (fifo 100%) [buf 100%] 17.0x.
Errno: 5 (Input/output error), write_g1 scsi sendcmd: no error
CDB: 2A 00 00 00 09 99 00 00 1B 00
status: 0x2 (CHECK CONDITION)
Sense Bytes: 71 00 03 00 00 00 00 0A 00 00 00 00 0C 00 00 00
Sense Key: 0x3 Medium Error, deferred error, Segment 0
Sense Code: 0x0C Qual 0x00 (write error) Fru 0x0
Sense flags: Blk 0 (not valid)
cmd finished after 5.223s timeout 40s
/usr/bin/wodim: A write error occured.
/usr/bin/wodim: Please properly read the error message above.
write track data: error after 5778864 bytes
Writing time: 41.761s
Average write speed 154.9x.
Min drive buffer fill was 100%
Fixating…
Errno: 5 (Input/output error), close track/session scsi sendcmd: no error
CDB: 5B 00 02 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
status: 0x2 (CHECK CONDITION)
Sense Bytes: 70 00 03 00 00 00 00 0A 00 00 00 00 72 01 00 00
Sense Key: 0x3 Medium Error, Segment 0
Sense Code: 0x72 Qual 0x01 (session fixation error writing lead-in) Fru 0x0
Sense flags: Blk 0 (not valid)
cmd finished after 9.207s timeout 480s
=== last message repeated 2 times. ===
/usr/bin/wodim: Cannot fixate disk.
Fixating time: 9.210s
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo had 282 puts and 92 gets.
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo was 0 times empty and 74 times full, min fill was 94%.
BURN-Free was never needed.

K3b log 9
Starting to write CD/DVD at speed 48.0 in real SAO mode for single session.
Last chance to quit, starting real write in 2 seconds.
1 seconds.
0 seconds. Operation starts.
Waiting for reader process to fill input buffer … input buffer ready.
Performing OPC…
Errno: 5 (Input/output error), send opc scsi sendcmd: no error
CDB: 54 01 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
status: 0x2 (CHECK CONDITION)
Sense Bytes: 70 00 03 00 00 00 00 0A 00 00 00 00 73 03 00 00
Sense Key: 0x3 Medium Error, Segment 0
Sense Code: 0x73 Qual 0x03 (power calibration area error) Fru 0x0
Sense flags: Blk 0 (not valid)
cmd finished after 19.969s timeout 200s
/usr/bin/wodim: OPC failed.
Writing time: 19.990s
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo had 191 puts and 0 gets.
/usr/bin/wodim: fifo was 0 times empty and 0 times full, min fill was 100%.
BURN-Free was never needed.

2

To me it seems like either the media or burner does not support the writing speed.
Lower it down to 8x or even lower and see if this helps.
The way you describe it that it once worked with Brasero seems to me to be an indicator that the media does not fully support high writing speeds and you got lucky with just one media.

3

And a few days ago I managed, after many attempts, to get 2 audio CDs out of K3b and about 4 coasters. I am beginning to suspect the CDs, they are Kodak branded which I assumed would be reasonable quality, but the logs show them to be made by someone else in India. In the past, on the same PC but with Netrunner 13 I have had no problem writing MP3s to the same batch of CDs, though a couple have proved faulty in use. I’ll try with a different brand. The lowest speed K3b offers me is 16X.

4

When you say your cds a made by some company in India, it wouldn’t be Moser bauer would it?
The reason I ask is that I had a similar issue with TDK cds made by Moser Bauer and after 4 coasters, realised the problem was that the cds wouldn’t let me set a write speed. As soon as I changed the speed to auto, they burned perfectly.

5

Indeed they are Moser Bauer, but for me it makes no difference using auto or any speed. Success is both rare and random. I get all kinds of messages, such as “cannot fixate”, and the logs show “Errno: 5 (Input/output error), write_g1 scsi sendcmd: no error”, “Errno: 5 (Input/output error), close track/session scsi sendcmd: no error”. What they seem to have in common is “Sense Key: 0x3 Medium Error, deferred error, Segment 0 Sense Code: 0x0C Qual 0x00 (write error) Fru 0x0”, which in my technical ignorance seems to point to a problem with the medium, ie the CD itself. One of the many fail messages actually said that the burner didn’t like the medium.

I’ll post again when I try a new ctock of CDs, but not TDK, thanks speartip, or Kodak. And I’ll read the small, very small, print on the label.

6

OK. I thought it was worth a try.
If you want a recommendation for Audio CDs which have given me a 100% success rate you might want to try these:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Maxell-CD-R-XL-II-Digital-Audio/dp/B000Q7G88K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422265244&sr=8-1&keywords=maxell+audio+cds

7

It was the media. I bought a pack of Verbatim CD-Rs and burned two audio CDs with no problem.