reccomend a dvd-rw/cd-rw drive setup

[QuickStop]

i currently have:

48x cd drive
40x cd-rw drive

i am buying a 8x plextor dvd-rw drive that burns cd at 40x

what do you recomend i get rid of, or should i buy another different drive?

also...im not sure how this works cause ive never dealt with it, but are there audio cables that connect to disk drives? and if so, which drive should i connect them to, or can i connect them to both?


EDIT: I definately didnt spell recommend right



Edited By QuickStop on 1077603844

[HedCold]

the audio cable goes from the cd drive to the sound card. you should see it when you look at the back of the cd drive, its to the left of the ide cable. most audio cards have spaces for 2 or 3, so it shouldn't be a problem to connect the 2 drives. they're most likely both connected now, so it'll be just a matter of reconnecting it to the new drive you put in. just open up the computer and you'll see what i mean, its nothing to worry about

you might as well just keep the old cd drives around as extras just in case something happens, you probably won't get much for either if you try to sell them, unless you rip off some kids at your school or something

[QuickStop]

but i mean....should i take out the cd-rw drive or the cd drive?

and with the audio cables...i think i was thinking of my shitty old compaq. it only had one spot for audio.

[HedCold]

get a controller card and keep all 3?

or keep the cdr in incase you're worried about burning out the laser on your dvdr

[QuickStop]

i only gots 2 cd drive slots...its a dell. if i had 3 theyd be staying

[QuickStop]

im definately not throwing anything out. im building my next pc, and i plan on using a lot from this one like the disc drives, the 9800 pro im buying soon and so on and so forth.

[Goatweed]

swap the CDROM for the Plextor, keep it in a box or whatever. This way you can use the Plextor to watch a DVD while you burn a CD-R in the other drive, or at least be able to burn should either of the drives break down.

If you're getting the 708A drive, you're gonna love it - but it doesn't come with an audio cable, only an IDE ribbon. Just use the audio cable that on your CDROM now, and plug it into the same spot on the Plextor. Don't bother with the IDE ribbon either, use Dell's. Also make sure to set the Plextor's jumper settings to Cable Select (I'm assuming the 2 drives you have now both came with the Dell, and as such they set their cd drives as cable select). The manual that comes with the Plextor will show you how, it's real easy.

The Plextor comes with Roxio software to burn DVD's but a lot of people don't like it (including me). If you can, get your hands on a copy of Nero 6, and dont bother installing the Roxio shit. If you're running XP you won't need to install drivers, Windows should see the drive and install it fine (this might work on other OS's, but I'm not sure).

By the way, instead of going crazy looking for and spending lots of $$ on 8x media, get Memorex DVD+R 4x - this drive will burn those DVD's at 8x. If you're going to burn DVD's to watch on your TV, go here and look for your player. It will show you what types of media your standalone player can use (if you don't already know). DVD+R is considered better because it's more compatible with more players, but from a data point of view (for your PC files, MP3's, etc.) either + or - will do (note that Memorex 4x DVD-R will NOT do 8x, only the +R will).

Sorry if I rambled, I just bought this drive last week and I learned all of this real fas so I thought I'd throw it out while it was all fresh in my mind. I need a cigarette now.

[Goatweed]

it's also a good idea to download the newest firmware and flash the drive.

[Keyser Soze]

great info goat!

[Goatweed]

I do what I can.

[PeterDragon]

it's also a good idea to download the newest firmware and flash the drive.

flash it right away, so if you f' it up, you can return it as defective.

Nero 6 is prolly easiest/best for dvd burns.

Ulead DVD Workshop is great for authoring DVD's
(you can put 2 or 3 svcd's on one DVD, and add chapters easily.)

[LZMF1]

get a dual format dvd burner (screen.width/2)){this.width = (this.width/2)}" onclick="javascript:if(this.width > (screen.width/2)){this.width = (this.width/2)} else {this.width = (this.width*2)}" border="0" alt='Posted image: Click to resize'>
this is the one i got

i use prassi primodvd, nero 6, and dvd x copy platinum.



Edited By LZMF1 on 1077654508

[QuickStop]

thx d00dz. oh quick question.. what does "flash the drive" mean?

[HedCold]

theres software inbedded in the drive thats always there. like the bios on the motherboard. flashing it would update that

[QuickStop]

oh alrighty.

[Kid Afrika]

Firmware is not software, it's firmware.

[QuickStop]

thanks for the help, kid