(Dead) TDK 8x DVD±R/±RW drive (rebadged Plextor) for $129.94 AR & $30 coupon At Staples

[osiris3mc]

Sounds good snedman, thanks, im heading over to Staples right now, whadda think about 100pk TDK dvd+r for 120 BB (i put it on a separate thred)?

 

[DollarBill]

Did everyone that purchased one ( in person/ B&M) get a black one?? All sites I can locate states the AID+840 comes with a black bezel.

 

[osiris3mc]

Originally posted by: DollarBill
Did everyone that purchased one ( in person/ B&M) get a black one?? All sites I can locate states the AID+840 comes with a black bezel.

Yeah, I think that's all they have. I'm heading over to Staples right now, I'll let you guys know if they have any other colors (I really don't wanna black one, but what are you gonna do?).

 

[Salvador]

Yeah, I think that's all they have. I'm heading over to Staples right now, I'll let you guys know if they have any other colors (I really don't wanna black one, but what are you gonna do?).

Curious.. What colors are you guys wanting? Beige? Silver?

Sal

 

[snedman]

I know mine is black.

Snedman

When you are there Staples has the 10 pack of TDK + and - for $14.94 if you want to test them on the new burner.

 

[DollarBill]

I myself would perfer a biege/white bezel. Cant locate one anywhere - Newegg lists the black one but not in stock & doesn't offer a biege/white bezel. Also went to the TDK site looking for defferent bezil - no luck there either. Looks like its black or nothing at all for now.

 

[Salvador]

I myself would perfer a biege/white bezel. Cant locate one anywhere - Newegg lists the black one but not in stock & doesn't offer a biege/white bezel. Also went to the TDK site looking for defferent bezil - no luck there either. Looks like its black or nothing at all for now.

That's funny because it's usually the other way around.

Sal

 

[DollarBill]

Salvador

I know, I have one sitting in my shopping cart with the $50 off applied, but can't make up my mine. (don't want a black bezel sitting there with everything else biege/white. LOL

 

[snedman]

good bottle of white out works wonders lol

Snedman

 

[nealh]

snedman..why do say Plextor is using software to achieve 8x dvd burning speed...

I doubt there is a software that will make a dvd writer burn at 8x..

Can you provide a link that states this..I checked at cdrinfo.com and there is no indication that 8x dvd+r burning is done via a software trick....

 

[DollarBill]

I was surprised the Plextor site doesn't have a white/biege bezel available for the 708A - oh well (can't paint to well Snedman)

 

[soundforbjt]

Originally posted by: nealh
snedman..why do say Plextor is using software to achieve 8x dvd burning speed...

I doubt there is a software that will make a dvd writer burn at 8x..

Can you provide a link that states this..I checked at cdrinfo.com and there is no indication that 8x dvd+r burning is done via a software trick....

I believe he means a firmware trick, not software. The drive never reaches 8x until the very end of the burn.

 

[Sepen]

Originally posted by: soundforbjt

Originally posted by: nealh
snedman..why do say Plextor is using software to achieve 8x dvd burning speed...

I doubt there is a software that will make a dvd writer burn at 8x..

Can you provide a link that states this..I checked at cdrinfo.com and there is no indication that 8x dvd+r burning is done via a software trick....

I believe he means a firmware trick, not software. The drive never reaches 8x until the very end of the burn.

Hmm, on my burns it starts at 4x then moves to 6x and then quickly to 8x..less than a minute to achieve top speed.

 

[soundforbjt]

Originally posted by: cmsanto
Just ordered on line as well with a $30 off code.

Off topic, what is the best DVD ripping/copy software and how much should I pay for it? Or is the included software good enough for coping movies (simply for back-up purposes)?

Use DVDDecrypter to rip and DVDShrink to transcode, both excellent and both are free. Stay away from Roxio even to burn the dvd's. Use Nero or better yet RecordNow Max.

 

[snedman]

Speaking of DVD Dcrypter version 3.190 is out today for that. came out this morning.


He is correct in my description of not being a true 8X drive. What I should have said was that if it were a true 8X drive then it would burn any DVD media + or - at 8x. However, it seems to allow this only for +.

It also uses: PoweRec:

As almost all new Plextor drives, the PX-708A supports the PoweRec technology to ensure a quality back-up. PoweRec (Plextor Optimised Writing Error Reduction Control) monitors the quality of the disc while burning and will adjust the speed if necessary. Via the PlexTools Professional software PoweRec can be disabled to force the drive to write media at a selected speed instead of the speed the recorder would normally use when its quality checks (PoweRec) are enabled. A small benefit of this option is that when you disable PoweRec you can see at which speed your media would normally be written:

This software technology tells the drive if it can burn at 8X or not as it goes. So this software in turn can also limit the speed you can burn at. You can turn it off I guess. Which if the disc is capable of burning at 8X, even tho Plextor software says it can't, it lets it, if its capable of it. My apologies if I was not clear and mis construed my info. I read this on a CD Freak review. Greatest apologies if I didn;t explain that correctly on what I meant.

Snedman

 

[osiris3mc]

Just want to let everyone know I had a smooth transaction at Staples...145 AR (damn tax)...Also, to those who were interested, it is indeed black (). Oh well, sweet deal, and worth it.

 

[osiris3mc]

BTW, roxio software is worhtless, one can't rip a DVD with it!?!?!?!

 

[Biggie1]

I got mine with 30 off coupon no problem and rebate too. They sold me a $25 replacement plan that lets me trade in the drive for another drive for full value up to 2 years. Sounds good to me since the dual layer burners are around the corner and i won't have to worry about it becoming obsolete.

Oh and by the way, I read that Instant copy has the best transcoder, albeit VERY slow. How do you think dvd shrink compares to it?

 

[osiris3mc]

Originally posted by: Biggie1


Oh and by the way, I read that Instant copy has the best transcoder, albeit VERY slow. How do you think dvd shrink compares to it?

I'm using DVD shrink as we speak and it's very nice. I don't know much about instant copy, so let me know if anyone is using it...DVD shrink isn't the fastest thing in the world either.

 

[axmonkey]

It's showing up OOS online. Anyone using DVD X Copy with this drive?

 

[JameyF]

Originally posted by: Biggie1
I got mine with 30 off coupon no problem and rebate too. They sold me a $25 replacement plan that lets me trade in the drive for another drive for full value up to 2 years. Sounds good to me since the dual layer burners are around the corner and i won't have to worry about it becoming obsolete.

Oh and by the way, I read that Instant copy has the best transcoder, albeit VERY slow. How do you think dvd shrink compares to it?

I'll have to inquire about that. I wonder if you'll get back the amount vefore rebate, and be able to trade it in on a drive that you can get rebates on to end up getting more back than the $25 cost of the plan.

 

[Biggie1]

I got a separate receipt for replacement plan that shows the price I paid (159.99+tax). I'm assuming that's the credit you get back when you trade it in. The only thing I'm worried about is if you have to have the UPC symbol included when you return the product, cuz if not, then you actually get it back and then some when you get your rebate. $25 doesn't seem that bad either, cuz when these things fall, they fall hard. I'm still hurting from my DRU-500A that I paid $278 for from Dell when THAT was a good deal, and no you're lucky if you can get $90 for it, and that was like 6 months ago? $25 is far better than $200.

 

[Salvador]

BTW, roxio software is worhtless, one can't rip a DVD with it!?!?!?!

Well.. I didn't expect it to. I'd only use it to create data discs or if it had a utility so you could packet write with an RW.

BTW.. For ripping, I use DVDDecrypter which is free and then I use DVD2One to shrink the file to fit on a single layer disc. I usually burn with Nero, so I guess I don't really need any additional software anyway.

Sal

 

[Caveman2001]

As Sepen stated earlier here and at FW, this drive is indeed a Plextor. You can check there on how to update to the latest 1.04 Plextor firmware. I updated mine tonight to 1.04 as well.

I also burned 25 cd's tonight. I had a bunch of back up copies to make. Everything went very smooth. The drive is nice and fast. Can't wait to burn some dvd's.

 

[snedman]

Pinnacle Instant Copy - Fantastic compression and end quality, need to rip DVD to HD first before you can use Instant Copy usually referred to as IC7 or IC8.

DVD Shrink 2 & 3 Rip and Shrink straight from the DVD.However, alot of people will still use DVD Decrypter or Smart Ripper first. Some people have been getting errors trying to rip straight from the DVD.

Quality is excellent for DVD5 movies of course, and up to 70% compression level you don't notice a substantial quality loss in picture. I would have to say IMHO that Instant Copy at 70% is equivalnet to DVD Shrink at about 80% maybe even 85%. Time is def alot dif DVD Shrink 45min - 1 1/2 hours depending on if you use Deep Analysis or not. IC7 can take anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours.

Hands down in my opinion for DVD 9 movies IC7, DVD5 or smaller DVD9 DVD Shrink would be a great option also. Also the size of your TV screen is going to have a huge impression on picture quality as well. If I watch it on my Big screen I still notice the picture quality loss. However if I watch it on my 2 27 inch tv's I don't notice as much picture quality loss.

It all boils down to what you personally feel looks good when you are done. What my eye or your eye sees on a picture as quality loss may not be what another person would see. Either way IC7 is awesome IMHO.

Snedman