Best DVD Burner

After considerable discussion on the DVD forums, a consensus of sorts
has emerged. Of the major brand DL DVD burners, there are 4 units that
people favor in this order:

NEC 3540
Pioneer DVR-109
LiteOn SOHW-1693S
LG GSA-4163B

The first criterion is that the hardware is substantially sound, which
is the case for the units mentioned above. Features such as bitsetting
are favored. After that, technical support is an important criterion,
in particular the ability to get firmware revisions easily. It would
appear that NEC is well ahead on that one.

What are your comments?


--

Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html

"The possession of arms is the distinction
between a free man and a slave."
-- Andrew Fletcher, Discourse on Government (1695)

go with the Plextor PX-716A or the PX-716AL, these will blow away all the
others but it is a bit more expensive. Just look up reviews.

On Sat, 02 Jul 2005 19:51:14 GMT, "Jamie"
wrote:

go with the Plextor PX-716A or the PX-716AL, these will blow away all the
others but it is a bit more expensive.

Why pay 2.5 times as much ($110 vs $44 NEC ND-3520) as other units of
comparable quality?

And what about tech support and especially the ease in obtaining
firmware updates?

On the other hand here's a quote from a user on the Directron site:

"As for quality and long term use, I've gone through more than a dozen
burners over the years and only Plextor has stood the test of time and
daily abuse. All other brands that I've used have seldom lasted more
than a year while the Plextor drives and burners keep on going."

Is he talking about DVD burners?

Just look up reviews.

http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Revi...11810&PageId=8

PlextorPX-716A

The Good

*16X recording speed for both DVD+R and DVD-R media
* Supports most DVD+R DL media at 4X
* Will support 6X DVD±R DL with firmware upgrade
* Supports overburning with CD-R/RW media
* Supports overburning with DVD+R media
* Good DVD-R and DVD+R DL writing quality
* High CD reading speed
* Very fast ripping DVD-Video DL movies
* Fast ripping for protected game discs, especially with Safedisk
protection
* Good CD error correction
* Can be used to measure (scan) DVD±R/RW media with a variety of
tests (PI/PIF/Jitter)
* Can read/rip protected Audio discs (CDS200, Key2Audio)
* Supports bitsetting for DVD+R and DVD+R DL formats

- The Bad

* Cannot backup copy protected games with versions newer than 2.8
of SafeDisc protection
* Doesn't support reading of DVD-RAM media
* Reading performance with 90/99min test media
* Many errors when backup CDS200 protected disc

- Like To be fixed

* Burning quality with specific DVD media
* Lower price to compete with upcoming Pioneer DVR-109, NEC
ND-3520A
* Poor DVD±RW writing quality
* Poor CD recording quality
* Bitsetting option for DVD+RW media to be added
* Low DVD error correction with several test discs
* Autostrategy/Intelligent recording

---

http://www.cdfreaks.com/article/170/10

Plextor PX-716A DVD Recorder

Positive:

* Good overall package: lots of software (although most of them
are demo versions). Comes with an extra black front bezel and 80-wire
IDE cable.
* Two year warranty with on-site collect & return service (for
Europe, the Middle-East and Africa).
* UDMA mode 4 support and 8MB buffer
* Supports high write (16x DVD±R, 4x DVD+R DL), re-write (8x
DVD+RW) and read speeds.
* Supports bitsetting for DVD+R and DVD+R DL media.
* Supports many technologies such as BURN-Proof, PoweRec, VariRec,
GigaRec, SecuRec and Q-Check.
* Supports AutoStrategy technology; drive can learn to improve
write quality.
* "Two Sheep" recorder and support for full SubChannel Data
reading.
* Overburning (99 minute CD-R media) fully supported.
* Future firmware upgrades will add 6x DVD+R DL and 6x DVD-R DL
support!

Negative:

* PoweRec too sensitive; with PoweRec enabled 16x writing is not
possible.
* Media support should be improved; the PX-716A doesn't support
'overspeeding' for a lot of media and 16x media support is poor. Also,
8x DVD+RW media is not supported yet.
* Mount Rainier not supported.
* High price

Conclusion:

Main Positive:

One of the most interesting things about the Plextor PX-716A is
definitely the AutoStrategy technology. Developed in cooperation with
Taiyo Yuden (a high quality media manufacturer) this technology can
improve the write quality of discs that are not supported by the
drive's currently installed firmware. During our review we have found
that this does indeed work but you need to write at least three discs
before the drive perfects the write strategy.

Of course, the AutoStrategy function isn't the only positive thing
about the drive. As we've come to expect from Plextor drives they are
truly feature packed. They support a lot of technologies of which some
are only found in Plextor drives. Together with Plextor's PlexTools
software you have total control over your Plextor drive and can
perform virtually any task (including burning discs, quality checks,
speed tests, digital audio extraction, etc.).

Another positive thing is that Plextor will release firmware upgrades
this year that will improved the drive's DVD+R DL recording speeds
from 4x to 6x while DVD-R DL recording will also become possible.
DVD-R DL discs will first be supported at 2x while later this year
another firmware release will upgrade this recording speed to 6x as
well. For more information on this you can read this news item.

Main Negative:

The thing we dislike about the Plextor PX-716A drive the most is its
too sensitive PoweRec technology. The PoweRec technology is part of
the drive's "Intelligent Recording" system (used together with
"AutoStrategy" and three dimensional laser control) but with this
technology enabled we failed to reach 16x write speeds with every
media we've tried. Once PoweRec is switched off, 16x writing is
possible and the PI/PO scans don't show a problem when writing at this
speed.

We also feel that the Plextor PX-716A could use some better media
support. Some discs it wrote showed problems and even though the
drive's AutoStrategy function might improve this, we don't think that
anyone wants to waste at least two more discs to learn the drive how
to write the media. Another thing that was disappointing was that the
PX-716A couldn't "overspeed" (write media at higher speeds than
certified for) a wide variety of media. Most media we tried could only
be written at their certified speeds and it was difficult to find 16x
media that the Plextor PX-716A could actually write at 16x.

Last but not least we feel that the price of the Plextor PX-716A is
too high. The lowest price for the PX-716A is US $126 while you can
buy a BenQ DW1620 for just under US $60 (checked via PriceGrabber on
January 2nd 2005). The Plextor drive is thus twice as expensive as the
BenQ.

Final Thoughts:

What can we say about the Plextor PX-716A? Well, if we had to describe
the Plextor PX-716A in one word it would be "promising". The drive has
some very interesting technologies on board and it definitely has
potential. It was just too bad that the drive showed poor all round
media support and failed to impress us with its write quality. And
then there's the price of the drive. It's twice as expensive as the
popular BenQ DW1620.

Of course, the Plextor PX-716A's performance can be improved a lot via
firmware upgrades and our tests with the beta firmware on the previous
page already showed that Plextor is working on this. Let's just hope
that Plextor releases new firmware versions soon that address our
negative points...

If you want to read more user experiences with the Plextor PX-716A be
sure to visit our Plextor Forum. Here you will also find the latest
news, general information and tests. If you want to comments on this
review you can react below or post a reply in this forum thread.
Additional test can also be requested there.

--

Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html

"The possession of arms is the distinction
between a free man and a slave."
-- Andrew Fletcher, Discourse on Government (1695)

i have the 716A and i have never had a problem

On Sat, 02 Jul 2005 17:40:53 GMT, (Bob) wrote:

After considerable discussion on the DVD forums, a consensus of sorts
has emerged. Of the major brand DL DVD burners, there are 4 units that
people favor in this order:

NEC 3540
Pioneer DVR-109
LiteOn SOHW-1693S
LG GSA-4163B

The first criterion is that the hardware is substantially sound, which
is the case for the units mentioned above. Features such as bitsetting
are favored. After that, technical support is an important criterion,
in particular the ability to get firmware revisions easily. It would
appear that NEC is well ahead on that one.

What are your comments?

Disqualify one of them, buy an NEC 3540, then play
eenie-meenie-miny-moe to pick a 2nd burner out of the two
remaining. Some discs read better on one drive than
another, and if/when one fails, of course it will be noticed
WHILE you're trying to use it, which of course is a problem-
a problem lessened greatly if you had a 2nd drive in the
box.

On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 01:40:33 GMT, kony wrote:

Disqualify one of them, buy an NEC 3540, then play
eenie-meenie-miny-moe to pick a 2nd burner out of the two
remaining. Some discs read better on one drive than
another, and if/when one fails, of course it will be noticed
WHILE you're trying to use it, which of course is a problem-
a problem lessened greatly if you had a 2nd drive in the
box.

You used the phrase "some discs read better". Did you mean "some discs
write better"?

I am not concerned that the unit will read discs. I am concerned that
the unit will write discs that can be read by a standalone.

One comment from a customer at newegg:

"Just received four of these drives [3540] from NewEgg (on time as
usual). They're so new that no firmware update is available yet.
Subsequently, my Ritek 8X DVD+Rs burn only at 8X, whereas my "older"
ND-3520s burn them at 12X with the latest firmware. Perhaps one is on
the horizon or the ND-3540A soon."

At newegg:

NEC ND-3540A 16x Dual Layer DVD Writer for a low $51.99 shipped free.

NEC ND-3520A 16x Dual Layer DVD Writer $42.99, free shipping.

Directron has the 3520 for $44 but I have to pay 8.25% tax which puts
the cost up to $47.63. However, if there's something wrong with it,
RMA is simpler than mail order.

Decisions, decisions...


--

Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html

"The possession of arms is the distinction
between a free man and a slave."
-- Andrew Fletcher, Discourse on Government (1695)

On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 01:40:33 GMT, kony wrote:
Disqualify one of them, buy an NEC 3540, then play
eenie-meenie-miny-moe to pick a 2nd burner out of the two
remaining. Some discs read better on one drive than
another, and if/when one fails, of course it will be noticed
WHILE you're trying to use it, which of course is a problem-
a problem lessened greatly if you had a 2nd drive in the
box.

From a review:

"This burner can burn dvds at 16x, under 6 minutes. When using
modified firmware, it can also rip pressed dual layer DVDs (e.g.
hollywood produced dvds, as opposed to dvd+/-r dual layer) at 12x
which is a great improvement from the 3520, which only goes up to 7x
for this type of media. Can also burn dvd-r dl, something that the
3520 cannot do. However, the quality has not been up to par, at least
not the drive I have; others may have better experiences. I've tested
this drive using CD-Speed on TYG02, MXLRG03, MAXELL 002, FUJIFILM03.
So far, it has not provided burns as clean as the ones done on my BENQ
1620 or LG 4163 or NEC 3500. Of course, if you don't care about such
tests, then I'm happy to say that all the movies burned so far seem to
play okay in my standalone dvd player (which is some cheap generic
brand). I'll have to do further testing, but so far, seems like I've
got a pretty substandard one. But, again, there have been people who
are very happy with this drive. So read up on it before making a
decision."


--

Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html

"The possession of arms is the distinction
between a free man and a slave."
-- Andrew Fletcher, Discourse on Government (1695)

Bob wrote:
On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 01:40:33 GMT, kony wrote:

Disqualify one of them, buy an NEC 3540, then play
eenie-meenie-miny-moe to pick a 2nd burner out of the two
remaining. Some discs read better on one drive than
another, and if/when one fails, of course it will be noticed
WHILE you're trying to use it, which of course is a problem-
a problem lessened greatly if you had a 2nd drive in the
box.


From a review:

"This burner can burn dvds at 16x, under 6 minutes. When using
modified firmware, it can also rip pressed dual layer DVDs (e.g.
hollywood produced dvds, as opposed to dvd+/-r dual layer) at 12x
which is a great improvement from the 3520, which only goes up to 7x
for this type of media.

Can also burn dvd-r dl, something that the
3520 cannot do.

There's a firmware patch (v3.04) for the ND-3520A that enables that format.

However, the quality has not been up to par, at least
not the drive I have; others may have better experiences. I've tested
this drive using CD-Speed on TYG02, MXLRG03, MAXELL 002, FUJIFILM03.
So far, it has not provided burns as clean as the ones done on my BENQ
1620 or LG 4163 or NEC 3500. Of course, if you don't care about such
tests, then I'm happy to say that all the movies burned so far seem to
play okay in my standalone dvd player (which is some cheap generic
brand). I'll have to do further testing, but so far, seems like I've
got a pretty substandard one. But, again, there have been people who
are very happy with this drive. So read up on it before making a
decision."

On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 16:45:37 GMT, Grinder
wrote:

Can also burn dvd-r dl, something that the
3520 cannot do.

As mentioned at the outset, I am not that much interested in DL
because the cost is prohibitive. But it's good to see a company stay
close to the bleeding edge.

There's a firmware patch (v3.04) for the ND-3520A that enables that format.

The wider support for the NEC is a strong plus in its favor. This
reminds me when I went shopping for a NAT router and settled on the
Linksys BEFSR-41, which turned out to be the most widely supported
router of all time.

Man is a herd animal, for good reason. In numbers there is strength.


--

Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html

"The possession of arms is the distinction
between a free man and a slave."
-- Andrew Fletcher, Discourse on Government (1695)

On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 12:30:24 GMT, (Bob) wrote:

On Sun, 03 Jul 2005 01:40:33 GMT, kony wrote:

Disqualify one of them, buy an NEC 3540, then play
eenie-meenie-miny-moe to pick a 2nd burner out of the two
remaining. Some discs read better on one drive than
another, and if/when one fails, of course it will be noticed
WHILE you're trying to use it, which of course is a problem-
a problem lessened greatly if you had a 2nd drive in the
box.

You used the phrase "some discs read better". Did you mean "some discs
write better"?

No, but that too.

Once a disc becomes difficult to read, for whatever reason,
one reader may be able to read it when another can't, but
not always one drive better than the other.


I am not concerned that the unit will read discs. I am concerned that
the unit will write discs that can be read by a standalone.

What about when those discs age some, or aren't written
"perfectly"? IMO, reading and writing are of roughly equal
importance.


One comment from a customer at newegg:

"Just received four of these drives [3540] from NewEgg (on time as
usual). They're so new that no firmware update is available yet.
Subsequently, my Ritek 8X DVD+Rs burn only at 8X, whereas my "older"
ND-3520s burn them at 12X with the latest firmware. Perhaps one is on
the horizon or the ND-3540A soon."

I suppose you'd have to take into account when that review
was written, what firmware that person was using, and which
specific media too.

Also, if reading ability by standalones is most important
(as you mentioned above) you might consider NOT writing
cheap discs at the fastest possible speeds.

However, just like any other technology, there IS something
to be said for buying mature products that have had more
time for mature firmwares/bios/drivers/etc as-applicable.
Goes for burners as well as motherboards, anything subject
to firmware updates- else they'd not have released newer
firmwares at all.




At newegg:

NEC ND-3540A 16x Dual Layer DVD Writer for a low $51.99 shipped free.

NEC ND-3520A 16x Dual Layer DVD Writer $42.99, free shipping.

Directron has the 3520 for $44 but I have to pay 8.25% tax which puts
the cost up to $47.63. However, if there's something wrong with it,
RMA is simpler than mail order.

Decisions, decisions...

Personally I never buy with the idea that (something may be
wrong with it), but even so, try to avoid unknown companys
or those poorly rated on Resellerratings.com

Since you do want to support Directron, buy it there... or
don't... or just wait a while longer and the average drive
pricing will have dropped by that $4.64 difference or even
more... but then there may be another newer model and it's
the same situation as with 3520 vs 3540, with the newest
drive having fewer firmwares released at that point.

Frankly, it's not worth the time to worry about it, just buy
the drive at directron and be done.