DVD drive recommendations

[dougjnn]

I keep hearing over in the hot deals forum that the Pioneer 16x drives are real noisy. Also one guy said he had the Pioneer 10x and it was pretty noisy too.

Any recommendations on a reasonably quiet DVD drive in DVD and CD mode? It doesn't seem to me that absolute high end DVD reading speed is all that important. After all, most DVD info is only read at 1x speed anyway. There isn't a whole lot of program loading from DVD's going on right now - or anytime soon, I would say.

So what should I get? (I also have a TDK/Plexton 12x10x32 burner.)

 

[Tonec]

I've had nothing but good experiences with the Toshiba drives. As for noise, any drive above 8x will create an annoying vacuum noise when starting up and reading cds. After a few seconds, it quiets down to tolerable levels when playing a dvd

 

[cbwolf]

I'v had no problems with my Pioneer 16x DVD drive..although i do have 3 120mm fans going, which is probably why i cant notice the drive

 

[Fumiup]

Annoying vacuum noise?

My Afreey 10x/32x is no louder than my CDRW and I have the Iomega(Plextor)12x10x32. In DVD mode it makes no noise at all. My CPU usage is only 2% with this drive. Plus it has fast access times.

The Afreey's are good if you want to watch DVD's from different regions. A simple jumper makes the drive region free.

If your into performance check out here

DVD Speed Results

 

[dcdomain]

Toshiba 12x... great drive and quieter than my TDK Velocd 12x/10x/32x...

 

[neecho]

my pioneer 10x is ok, but 16 is probably noisy.

 

[phillyTIM]

I love my PIONEER 16x 105s slot-load DVD drive! It sounds like a really cool jet firing up...not a distraction at all! It just reminds me of the power of it!

 

[Davegod75]

10x slot loading pioneer is working great for me

 

[Shanteli]

I also have a Pioneer 16x 105s....sounds like a jet, but I still love it!

 

[dougjnn]

I've pretty much decided that for me the Toshiba 12x40x tray is the way to go. A bit quieter and better as a CloneCD source.

Now I've gotta go searching for a great price. Well, I've got a couple of week to look for primo bargains, while I wait for DDR mobos to come out.

 

[dcdomain]

I got my Toshiba for around $80 w/ free shipping and the $20 off coupon at Buy.com. I'm pretty sure they'll have these promotions again, but don't know if they will have it at the same time. If you can get it for under a $100 I'd consider it a good price...

AccessMicro has the Pioneer 16x drive for $87. Just letting you know in case you can't find a good deal on the Toshiba drive.

 

[yellowperil]

Buy.com has the Toshiba 12x for $85 and the 16x for $95. Anyone know if the 16x is noisy?

 

[Sengar]

I have the 16x Toshiba and find it to be very quiet. I'm very happy with it overall.

 

[mikee]

my toshiba 12x is pretty quiet and they're also great readers.

 

[pillage2001]

Toshiba 12x is the way to go! Quiet and fast!

 

[crash2much]

Love my Pioneer 10x. Never had any noise problem.

 

[Pluto]

I had a Pioneer 6x slot load, great drive.
I bought a Pioneer 16x slot load and gave my 6x to my father. The 16x rocks. I wouldn't call it loud personally.
Very nice drive.

 

[Pluto]

I had a Pioneer 6x slot load, great drive.
I bought a Pioneer 16x slot load and gave my 6x to my father. The 16x rocks. I wouldn't call it loud personally.
Very nice drive.

 

[Mem]

I`m still using 6x slot load Pioneer,anyway go with the 10x version this is probably the best for speed & quietness overall.

 

[rmd2001]

Toshiba makes good DVD's. I have one and it's very good(DAE actually is not that great ~9X).

 

[han888]

vote for PIONEER 16x 105s slot-load DVD here, i got one and love it

 

[mastertech01]

I can only say Ive had my best luck durability wise with Pioneer... I have at least 3 dead Toshiba drives from bad read head slider assemblies...if they corrected that problem then Toshiba might be nice.

 

[Mattster]

I currently have a Toshiba 12x DVD drive, and am very pleased with the upgrade. I was previously using a Creative Labs 5x DVD drive. It was an extremely quiet drive, but I did notice that when I got the Toshiba, the seek times, access times are somewhat quicker.

My .02 goes to the Toshiba 12x!

 

[Supergax]

Even though this topic is beaten to death, it's really a toss up. Note that it is the SLOT loading Pioneer that is slightly noisy, I have the 16x slot loading. It's fine for dvd's but kinda loud for cd-roms. My friend has the tray loading 16x pioneer and it isn't any louder than most cd-rom drives.

 

[airfoil]

Get the 16x slot loading drive.