ZisaLog: Beginner’s Guide to Building a Custom PC 
An optical drive is a PC component used to read and write disc-based media such as CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs.
When choosing this PC part, it is important to consider the intended use, supported disc types, read/write speeds, connection method, and whether it is compatible with the PC case.
This article explains the knowledge, features, performance, and compatibility of optical drives necessary for building a custom PC, as well as how to choose the right one.
However, an optical drive is not an essential part but an optional component, so it is not necessary to install one.
Recently, operating systems can be installed from USB drives, and most people watch videos online, so the opportunities to use CDs or DVDs have decreased. As a result, fewer people are installing optical drives in their PCs.
Along with this trend, PC cases with a 5.25-inch bay required for installing an optical drive are also becoming less common.
- An optical drive is used to read and write CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs
- There are three types: “read-only,” “writable,” and “rewritable” for both optical drives and discs
- A PC case compatible with a 5.25-inch bay is required
- However, only about 16% of cases have this, so options are very limited
- Be sure to check the number of SATA cables on the motherboard and power supply unit
- Honestly, an external optical drive is highly recommended!!!
Select PC parts and online stores to instantly generate an estimate, check compatibility, and calculate power requirements. You can save up to five different builds, making it easy to try out multiple configurations.
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Table of Contents
What is the Role of an Optical Drive?
An optical drive is a component that can mainly read and write optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs.
This allows for data storage, playback, and software installation.
Optical drives have various features such as intended use, supported disc types, read/write speeds, and some are read-only.
For example, if music CDs are played frequently, a drive with a fast read speed is convenient.
On the other hand, if used for data backup, write speed and supported disc types become important.
Recently, USB-connected External optical drive optical drives have become popular, making it possible to use them even on devices like laptops and tablets that do not have a built-in optical drive.
How to Choose an Optical Drive for a Custom PC [Performance]
This section explains how to choose an optical drive focusing on performance and features.
’]Let’s take a closer look at these points.
Supported Media Formats
The main media formats that optical drives can handle are CD, DVD, and Blu-ray.
| Disc Type | Capacity | Usage | Technology | Read Speed | Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CD (Compact Disc) | About 700MB | ・Music CDs ・Data storage ・Software distribution | Red laser (wavelength 780nm) | Up to 52x | ・Specialized for music storage ・Oldest optical disc ・Suitable for small data storage |
| DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) | 4.7GB single layer Up to 17GB double-sided dual layer | ・Movie distribution ・Data storage ・Games ・Software distribution | Red laser (wavelength 650nm) | Up to 24x | ・Larger capacity than CD ・Suitable for video and large data ・Widely used |
| Blu-ray Disc | 25GB single layer 50GB dual layer, Over 100GB possible | ・HD/4K video distribution ・Data backup ・Games | Violet-blue laser (wavelength 405nm) | Up to 16x | ・Large capacity and high quality ・Mainstream for HD/4K video ・Latest optical disc technology |
Most optical drives support multiple disc types, and many optical drives support both CDs and DVDs.
Also, optical drives that support Blu-ray usually also support CDs and DVDs.
In the past, there were optical drives that only supported Blu-ray, completely separate from CD/DVD, but nowadays, most drives support all formats together.
CD Drive
CD is the oldest optical disc format, mainly used for music storage and small data storage.
The capacity is about 700MB, and it uses a red laser (wavelength 780nm) to record data.
The maximum read speed is 52x, and because of its durability and good sound quality, it became popular for music CDs.
Even today, CDs are used for music storage and some data storage.
DVD Drive
DVDs have the same size as CDs but much larger capacity, with 4.7GB for single layer and up to 17GB for double-sided dual layer.
They use a red laser (wavelength 650nm) to record data, and the maximum read speed is 24x (1x for movie playback).
DVDs are suitable for distributing movies, data storage, games, and software, especially for video and large data storage.
They are widely used for distributing movies and software, and have become more popular than CDs for many uses.
Blu-ray Drive
Blu-ray Disc was developed as the successor to DVD, supporting high-quality video such as HD and 4K, as well as large data storage.
The capacity is 25GB for single layer, 50GB for dual layer, and over 100GB with the latest standards.
By using a violet-blue laser (wavelength 405nm), data can be recorded at a very high density, allowing for long-term storage of video data.
The maximum read speed is 16x, and Blu-ray is now the mainstream for high-definition video media, making it ideal for high-quality video applications.
Read/Write Compatibility
Optical drives and discs come in types that are read-only, write-once, or support both reading and writing.
The way they are used and their purposes differ depending on these features, so it is important to choose according to your needs.
| Disc Type | Read Only | Writable | Rewritable |
|---|---|---|---|
| CD | CD-ROM | CD-R | CD-RW |
| DVD | DVD-ROM | DVD-R | DVD-RW |
| Blu-ray | BD-ROM | BD-R | BD-RE |
Be sure to check the product specifications to see which types are supported.
If you make a mistake here, you may end up with a drive that can only read data when you wanted to write data.
Read-Only Drive
A read-only drive can only read data stored on a disc.
This type is mainly used for playing movies, music CDs, or installing software, that is, for reading or playing existing data.
For example, DVD-ROM and Blu-ray readers are read-only drives.
These cannot write data, so they cannot be used for creating or saving data.
Write-Only Drive
A write-only drive can write data to a disc only once, but does not have a read function, so it cannot check or play the data immediately after writing.
This type of drive is not common and is mostly used for specific business or special purposes.
Usually, if a drive supports writing, it also supports reading.
Write-once discs include CD-R, DVD-R, and BD-R (Blu-ray), and once data is written, it cannot be changed.
Read/Write Drive
A read/write drive can both write data to a disc and read the data that has been written.
This is the most versatile type and can be used for data backup, media creation, saving and playing data on discs.
DVD±RW drives and Blu-ray drives (BD-R/RE compatible) are typical examples of read/write drives.
Most optical drives installed in computers are of this type and support all formats: CD, DVD, and Blu-ray.
Rewritable Discs
Read/write drives can also use rewritable discs.
Rewritable discs (e.g., CD-RW, DVD-RW, BD-RE) allow data to be added or deleted, and can be reused many times.
This is very convenient for temporary backups or situations where data is frequently updated.
On the other hand, write-once discs cannot be changed after data is written, so they are suitable for archiving or permanent storage.
Read/Write Speed
The read and write speeds of optical drives vary depending on the type of disc and the performance of the drive.
These speeds greatly affect the efficiency of tasks such as data copying or backup, so they are important points to consider when choosing a drive.
Read Speed
Read speed indicates how fast data stored on a disc can be read by the optical drive.
The speed is usually shown as “x” (times), such as “16x” or “24x”; the higher the number, the faster the read speed.
For example, 1x is the standard playback speed: for CDs, 1x is 150KB/s; for DVDs, 1.385MB/s; and for Blu-ray, 4.5MB/s.
When playing music or videos, 1x speed is used, so it doesn’t matter much, but for copying or backing up data, higher speeds allow the process to finish faster.
However, note that this applies to reading data from a disc, such as copying or restoring backups.
Write Speed
Write speed indicates how fast data can be written to a disc.
This is also shown as “x” (times), and the efficiency of data storage changes depending on the write speed.
A higher write speed means large amounts of data can be saved to a disc in a shorter time.
CD-R/CD-RW: Write-once CD-R can be written at up to 52x, and rewritable CD-RW at up to 24x.
DVD-R/DVD-RW: Write-once DVD-R can be written at up to 16x, and rewritable DVD-RW at up to about 6x.
Although DVD-RW is a bit slower, the ability to rewrite is convenient.
For Blu-ray discs, write-once BD-R can be written at up to 16x, and rewritable BD-RE at up to 2x to 6x.
For writing large amounts of data, Blu-ray’s high-speed writing is very efficient.
How to Choose an Optical Drive for a Custom PC [Compatibility]
This section explains how to choose an optical drive focusing on compatibility.
If you choose a PC case that is not compatible, you will not be able to assemble your PC, so be sure to check in advance.
’]Let’s take a closer look at these points.
PC Case Must Have a 5.25-Inch Bay
To install an optical drive, the PC case must have a 5.25-inch bay.
When choosing a PC case, there are many points to check, such as design, motherboard size, CPU cooler, graphics card, and power supply unit size, but make sure to check if it includes a 5.25-inch bay.
However, because the demand for optical drives has decreased, PC cases that support a 5.25-inch bay are now rare.
As someone who manages the Custom PC Tool and has data on various parts, only about 16% of cases have a 5.25-inch bay.
Therefore, just by deciding to install an optical drive, the number of case options is greatly reduced, and the choices for design, which is a big part of custom PCs, also become limited.
As mentioned later, if you do not want to limit your PC case options because of an optical drive, External optical drive is recommended.
Number of SATA Connectors on the Motherboard
To use an optical drive, a data SATA cable must be connected to a SATA connector on the motherboard.
Motherboard SATA connectors are also used for SATA SSDs and HDDs, so make sure there are enough connectors for all your storage devices including the optical drive.
Number of SATA Power Cables on the Power Supply Unit
To use an optical drive, a SATA power cable must be connected to the power supply unit.
Just like with SATA connectors, if you have multiple storage devices, check in advance that the power supply unit has enough SATA power cables.
Additional Knowledge About Optical Drives
This section explains some knowledge about optical drives that is not as important as performance or compatibility, but still good to know.
Let’s take a closer look at these points.
External Optical Drives Are Recommended
If an optical drive is needed, an external optical drive is very convenient and recommended.
As mentioned earlier, because PC cases with a 5.25-inch bay are rare, the options for case design, which is a big part of custom PCs, are also limited.
Also, if you are a core user who builds custom PCs, you may want to build a second PC in the future or use a laptop as well.
In such cases, an external optical drive can be easily attached to any PC as needed, making it very convenient.
I originally had an internal drive, but after building a second PC and starting to use a laptop, I switched to External optical drive for easy swapping, and it was extremely convenient.
IDE Is an Old Standard—SATA Is Mainstream
When choosing an optical drive, it is important to choose one that uses the mainstream SATA standard.
All recent drives use SATA, but sometimes IDE drives are still listed on online shops, so be careful.
In the past, IDE was the mainstream standard, but recent motherboards do not support it, so it cannot be connected.
Also, SATA is better for data transfer speed and connection stability, so always choose a SATA optical drive.
Summary: Honestly, External Optical Drives Are Recommended!
This article explained about optical drives, including supported media, read/write compatibility, speed, performance, and compatibility with PC cases.
Here are the key points again:
- An optical drive is used to read and write CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs
- There are three types: “read-only,” “writable,” and “rewritable” for both optical drives and discs
- A PC case compatible with a 5.25-inch bay is required
- However, only about 16% of cases have this, so options are very limited
- Be sure to check the number of SATA cables on the motherboard and power supply unit
- Honestly, an external optical drive is highly recommended!!!
Nowadays, operating systems can be installed from USB drives, software can be downloaded from the internet, and music and videos are streamed, so the need for optical drives has decreased.
As a result, PC cases with a 5.25-inch bay are also becoming rare, making it harder to install an optical drive.
Also, if you build custom PCs, you may want to build a second one, and many custom PC users have multiple computers, so having one external optical drive is very convenient.
Select PC parts and online stores to instantly generate an estimate, check compatibility, and calculate power requirements. You can save up to five different builds, making it easy to try out multiple configurations.
≫ Tool：PC Parts Estimation & Compatibility Check Tool
