HHB CDR-830 BurnIT
A 2U rack CD recorder that made the case for skipping DAT entirely - as long as you didn't need balanced analog I/O.
Overview
The CDR-830 showed up at $569. HHB positioned the BurnIT as a studio-grade standalone CD recorder for people who were tired of bouncing through a computer just to get a reference disc. EQ (February 2002, p.106) opened its review with a blunt question: why would anyone buy a DAT recorder when the BurnIT series and similar machines existed? The reviewer's answer was that the CDR-830 is light on analog I/O but otherwise a very capable standalone recorder at a price that's hard to argue with.
That "light on analog I/O" caveat comes first. The back panel is simple: coaxial and optical digital I/O, plus 24-bit analog I/O on RCA connections. No balanced XLR analog, no AES/EBU. If those matter, EQ (February 2002, p.106) pointed buyers toward the CDR-850 at $995. The same review noted the CDR-830 actually carries features the 850 doesn't, including CD-text, adjustable digital input volume, and a left/right balance parameter. That's an odd spot for a cheaper sibling to be in, and it's worth knowing if a used example turns up.
The conversion chain is where HHB spent the money. HHB's own advertising billed the BurnIT as using precision 24-bit A-D converters, 24-bit Delta-Sigma D-A converters, and an advanced laser assembly, and the company liked to say there were "no short cuts, no gimmicks" in the sound-quality department. Marketing copy is not a verdict, but the independent press largely backed it up. Studio Sound (September 2001, p.63) described the 24-bit Delta-Sigma D/A as having a beautiful, warm, balanced sound, clear in the highs with excellent stereo separation. Mix (November 2001, p.75) said much the same: sonically the 830 excels, with that same warm, balanced character and strong stereo separation.
The built-in sample rate converter is a quiet workhorse. It accepts signals from 32–48 kHz and parlays them into CD-ready 44.1 kHz, which means a 24-bit/48 kHz session can come in over S/PDIF coax and land on disc without a separate converter box. EQ (February 2002, p.106) did exactly that from a Pro Tools session and reported everything worked fine. For a small studio in the early 2000s, that was the entire pitch in one feature.
Day-to-day operation is as simple as any two-track recorder. Load a CD-R or CD-RW, pick analog, optical, or coaxial input, hit record, and set level if needed. EQ (February 2002, p.106) burned discs on HHB, Imation, Maxell, Fujifilm, and even Office Depot media - all worked - and the resulting CD-Rs played in several stereos including the reviewer's car, while CD-RWs read fine in computers. Early standalone CD recorders were notoriously picky about blanks, so a machine that accepts store-brand discs is a plus.
The auto-record modes are where the CDR-830 gets fussy. There are three. Sync-1 records one track and stops, Sync-All records all tracks from the source and stops, and Sync-Final records everything then finalizes the disc. On paper that's exactly what you want for archiving a DAT or a live set. In practice, EQ (February 2002, p.106) found the unit gets finicky trying to auto-record from some digital sources or read DAT start IDs. The Sync-All and Sync-Final modes tended to read certain silences as the end of the source, stopping mid-session rather than waiting for the next track as the manual says they should. The reviewer's workaround was Manual record plus the threshold-based auto track numbering, which the same review says works extremely well.
The rest of the feature set is generous for the price. A Monitor button lets you hear the source and set levels without being in Record. Fade ins and outs run from 1-12 seconds at the press of a button on the remote. CD-text entry for disc, artist, and track info is straightforward, and while CD-text support among players was still growing at the time, EQ (February 2002, p.106) noted it's a genuinely useful cataloging tool for discs and alternate takes. There's also a full-featured remote, multiple CD-RW erase modes, track skip ID recording, track index search, and random and repeat playback. The Finalize function, which fixes a CD-R for playback elsewhere, takes about two minutes, or roughly four in Sync-Finalize mode, for reasons the review confesses it can't explain.
It's also a good CD player. EQ (February 2002, p.106) pointed out that with all the recording features, the CDR-830 also gives you a high-end player supporting CD-text, track playlists and shuffle, skip IDs, and index marks. Since most work ends up on CD anyway, the machine removes a step from the usual DAT-to-computer-to-burn cycle. The same review was careful to say it doesn't replace a good software/burner combo for a final master, but for mixes, session backups, and quick one-offs it takes up a couple of rack spaces well.
The CDR-830 is a 2U rack unit with 24-bit converters, a sample rate converter, CD-text, and a remote. It's the cheaper, less-connected sibling in a line that also includes the CDR-850 and the CDR-850 PLUS. Anyone chasing one should know the analog I/O is unbalanced RCA only, that the sync modes are the known weak point, and that standalone CD recorders of this era live or die on media and laser condition. The CDR-830's forgiving appetite for blanks helps there.
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