I'm almost done...recommendations for CD-RW & DVD drives. (1 Viewer)

[Ted Lee]

okay, i'm pretty close. i've ordered my mb bundle, the case is sitting on my floor and i'm getting a western digital hd.

regarding drives...

i'm probably going to go with a yamaha or plextor burner, but i thought i'd ask for other opinions. the only thing i'm wondering about is mt. rainier compatibility - looks like it may be a good idea to have it now...even though microsoft won't support it till their next os release.

also, i was kind of surprised at how cheap dvd drives are these days (60 bucks or so at fry's)...anything special i should be aware of?

also, what do you guys think of dvd burners. i suppose that could easily replace a cd-rw and allow me that extra capability, but i don't think i'll be doing much video editing. at least not yet...so i'm thinking cost vs. current benefit value.

as usual, i appreciate any and all comments.

thx!

 

[Chad Ellinger]

For DVD drives, I'd recommend Pioneer. $44 shipped at NewEgg.
For CD burners, Plextors are excellent. Check out Lite-On drives, which are much cheaper than Plextors but offer similar specs/performance.
I would hold off on a DVD burner for now. The standards battle (DVD-R/RW vs. DVD+R/RW) is still going on, so I would wait until a clear standard emerges.
BTW, NewEgg is definitely the place to go for your peripherals. Outstanding service and prices.

 

[Steve_Ch]

I use Lite-on DVD, they are pretty good, the best price I've for Lite-on is over at Dell (a few bucks cheaper than newegg.com for a $38 drive). With all the constant promotions, it may be slightly cheaper or slightly more expensive now.

 

[Ted Lee]

cool...thx for the tips. looks like i'll check out the pioneer and/or lite-on brand a little closer. i never really thought about them.

good point on the dvd format war...i'll hold off.

 

[Ed L]

Ted:
Have you considered a combo. CDRW/DVD drive for your HTPC? I recently built one and after a search found a Samsung combo drive that has worked great for either need. I didnt have multiple drive ports on the front of my existing case so the combo. drive really helped out. With no shipping charges I got the drive for under $80. Good luck

Ed -

 

[Steve_Ch]

My brother considered getting a CDRW-DVD for quite a while, but eventually decided against it. From time to time, he copies CDs and having a DVD plus a CDRW is just much more convinient. Price wise, it works out about the same, the 2 pieces solution of course means you give up an open bay.

 

[Travis Hedger]

Can't go wrong with a Lite-On CD Burner.

 

[Ted Lee]

hey ed (fellow sacto native )
i did think about doing the combo move, but decided it against it mainly because i do a lot of my owm mix cd's. so i'll definitely need at least two drives.
the antec case (1080 performance plus) has plenty of slots, so i don't think that'll be an issue???

 

[Masood Ali]

Lite-On for DVD-ROMs and CD-RWs. They're often rebadged under other names too.

 

[Max Leung]

I also highly recommend the Toshiba 16x DVD-ROMs. It plays nice with other drives on the same IDE cable, so it'll be a natural match for a Liteon burner.
I LOVE my Toshiba DVD-ROM. I was adventurous and found a region-free hack for it, but I dunno if such a thing is available for the Liteon DVDs. It is also capable of veru quickly reading every single disc I threw at it, including the new heavily copy-protected videogame CDs.

 

[Steve_Ch]

I am under the impression that Lite-on DVDs are region free. I have 2 Toshiba's they are the older variety, works great and region free.