Complete novice

[sm83]

use the verbatim cd-r's and create a CD-Image using CloneCD with these settings:

Set Read Speed to 1x
Select Read SubChannel Data from Data Tracks
Select Read SubChannel Data from Audio Tracks
Select Fast Error Skip
Set Read Retry to at least 5
Set Error correction to None
UnSelect Don't report bad sectors
UnSelect Intelligent Bad Sector Scanner

To burn image to cd:

Set Write Speed 1x
Select RAW DAO
Select Don't Repair SubChannel Data
UnSelect Simulate Writing (if available)
Select Burn Proof/Just Link (if available)
unSelect Perform Laser Power Calibration
unSelect Wait until Buffers are full
Select Always close last Session

Happy playing!