Hi everyone, I would just like to thank everyone here (even the annoying lazy ones for asking the questions in the first place) for making this forum so good. From this forum, which was the first result of a Google search for 'gamecube backup', I have managed to find enough information and links to be able to convince me to put a quoob chip into my Gamecube and play backups on it using full sized Ridisc (manufactured by Ritek)G04s and a full size case mod. So far I haven't had one coaster backing up 13 games so my set-up is certainly working. The problem is that Ritek have replaced the G04 die with the (Gamecube backup scene) controversial G05 die, so are no longer manufacturing G04. What happens in the future when suppliers run out of G04 discs?! So if anyone on these forums has used ANY blank discs other than G04 based ones then I would love to hear about it, especially if your attempts were unsuccessful. I have my suspicions that the G04 on Gamecube religion thing is an old fact, turned into a rumour and that modern (not CMC based), high quality 8x discs can be written slowly and produce the same or better results. I would especially love to hear that someone out there is successfuly using G05 discs. Also I haven't yet read anyone mentioning the DVD writers themselves. Buying a cheap brand DVD writer drive (like Liteon, BenQ and TEAC) can almost be as bad as buying cheap blanks. I use a Philips 1640LS, which has some cool quality related features that constantly check the quality of the disc and written data and adjust the writing strategy accordingly. Other drives that also do similar things are top range Plextor, Toshiba and Pioneer drives. With my drive I burn Ridisc G04's at 4x, their maximum speed, and haven't had trouble yet. So again has anyone used any discs other than G04 based ones? If you have please speak up.
You won't need discs much longer, as the new Viper Extreme chip will (eventually) be able to load ISOs from your PC (external USB HD) withOUT spinning any discs. No discs=no DREs. Look here: BREAKING NEWS: Viper-GC Extreme Details Emerge! http://forums.maxconsole.net/showthread.php?t=11950 Qoob will probably follow suit. Just my 2 cents, mind you.
That looks and sounds pretty nice. BUT it's just speculation. On that thread there are mixed views as to whether it would be even possible to make a USB HD interface and so it's obvious that no one actually knows. The limitations are the Gamecube serial port, which might not provide enough bandwidth to improve on current streaming methods. If we can trust the moderator of that board, Zeus, who seems to be somehow getting the information that started the thread we should listen to this post of his on page 2: This makes 27MBit (the minimum for it to be as if the game was in the drive) streaming impossible. Anyway I (and in a perfect world anyone) should not succome to speculation especially after the initial source of speculation proved it to be speculation! Only time will tell, I can't wait to see the website. Now that was off topic!
Note, he's talking about the regular Viper chip. Not the Viper Extreme. The regular should be hooked up to a PC, not straight to a HDD. The Viper Extreme will be designed to function in a way that it can directly interface with the external HDD through the BBA slot, meaning it'll be at a full 27mbit, minus the TCP/IP overhead which will probably push it up closer to 30mbit, and have next to no loading lag in audio/video files.
Hell, I use a LITEON SOHW-1633S with Verbatim (Mitsubishi Chemicals) and it works great for Xbox, GC, and DVD back-ups. I even burn stuff at max speed (8x) with Nero and haven't had any problems. I think my cheap burner and media work just fine. Also, if you're so fond of Ritek G04 DVD-Rs why not just stockpile them instead of waiting for them to be discontinued? On a side note, it'd be a waste of money for anyone to "upgrade" to a Viper Extreme when the current chips work just fine.
silver95, where did you get that information from? How do you know Zeus was talking about the regular Viper chip? I must have read thousands of posts that said to use G04's and nothing else so I assumed they were the only discs that don't get DRE's. Is it the Verbatim Datalife discs you use? Where do you get them from?
I just use normal Verbatim 16x DVD-Rs that I buy in packs of 100 from Sam's Club. They work great for Xbox and DVD movie back-ups as well.
