I'm looking to buy a Pioneer DVD±RW DVR-107D and I want some feedback on it. How does it perform? What are it's pros and cons? If you have one do you recommend it? What firmware is the best? What media works best with it? What software gives the best results for all aspects of use? I'm not just looking for DVD copy but reliable data storage device as well, for burning data DVDs which I do frequently. Your feedback and info on this is appreciated greatly, Thanks.
good choice 1 have 2 myself no problems apart from gettin prazzi to notice the drive other than that it was fitted straight out of the box with no firmware updates media to use ritek g04 works great.
Mine arrives this week as an upgrade to the equally superb (but slower) A05. Competition was between a Lite-On 12X writer, NEC dual-layer writer and the Pioneer A07. DL discs aren't so compatible with standalone players as standard -R's, so the NEC was out of the question. I still think I might have gone for the Lite-On, but brand loyalty got the better of me
That's a pretty good brand to be loyal to. My first burner wos a Pioneer 104 that got replaced with a Sony DRU-500 when lightning took out the PC. When I buy a dual layer burner later this year it will be another Pioneer.
How much do you expect to pay for it? Is speed very important? What do you plan to use your new drive for, mostly? I have never noticed any significant difference between simple 'burns' of DVD back-ups made by ANY brand. On 2 occasions I picked the drive based on 'how cool' the front would look in my computer...
I don't know why, but given he choice between an NEC and a Pioneer writer, I would imagine the Pioneer to produce higher quality recordings. Probably based more on advertising / propaganda than fact
What is prazzi? Never heard of that. And I can tell you from my experience that all DVD drives aren't the same. I do have an optorite and it's junk. After only a couple months or so of use it needs sent back to the factory. Mechanical failure. Along the way to the failure it burnt great and slowly started to degrade giving coasters. I know optorite has a not-so-good reputation and I think it is well deserved. As for my use I burn more data DVDs than movies, so I just want reliable burning and a good reputable mfgr. I will never buy another optorite the same as memorex will never get my money again either. I found this drive for $82, $100 after 2 day shipping, and I've read some reviews and they all seem good as well. I just wanted some input from users who have experience with this drive on a daily basis, not just from a reviewer that may spend a few hours with it and never again after that. It seems Pioneer has a great reputation and I almost haven't been able to find anything bad to say about their products. I'm going to place my order and enjoy what seems to be a better choice than the one I made before. Thnaks
Nephilim, I agree...for the most part. I was one of the people who bought into the concept of the LaserDisc a number of years ago. Pioneer was the leading company behind the format. Unfortunately LaserDiscs suffered from horrible problems with 'Laser Rot'. Often within a month or two, the discs started to show 'snow' and within 1 year they would be completely unwatchable. In the beginning, when the problem became noticed by a fairly small number of people (I was one of them), Laserdisc manufacturers were willing to replace the discs. I recall on one occasion receiving a shipment of more than 30 replacements at one time. Later on, when the problem became impossible to manage and MOST LaserDiscs started to deteriorate, they gave up on us. Pioneer never really fessed up to the problem and as a company led me to believe they were not responsible. The problem was with the discs, not the players. I do have quite a few discs that have the Pioneer label slapped all over them. I still have a demo disc whereby Pioneer shows how great the system is... I have forgiven them but I cannot forget the whole story. Even though their responsibility may have been limited in the Laserdisc debacle, it is very difficult for me to not associate their name with it.
mux, you probably won't do much better than a Pioneer 107D, especially in it's price range. I've had a TDK, a Lite-On and now a Pioneer DVR-A07U. The Pioneer is definately the better of the three. It doesn't do bit setting, but the one I have burns -R a whole lot better than +R any way. I still have the Lite-On and I use it mainly for Kprobe scans. +Rs on mine have much higher error rates in Kprobe than -Rs even though they all play O.K. This is with any +R. I have tried Verbatim 8X (MCC003) and Ritek 8X (R03) with essentially the same results. I use the hacked firmware and can burn most any +R or -R at up to 8X. I generally use Ritek G04 or Prodisc S03 and burn them at 6X and get good Kprobe scans and they all play fine. I have only had this one Pioneer and I don't know if other people have the same experiences or not. I definately don't regret buying it.
forkndave, and others with the info What is the hacked firmware you are using? Where can I get it at? You also mentioned some good media to use in this drive, do you have anymore recommendations? Or does someone have a list posted somewhere of good media to use with this drive? I'd like to stick with what works rather than getting coasters. I have quite a few of the ritek g03, they worked well on my junk drive so I'll use them up. They are 1x I believe but I imagine that this drive may do them atleast at 2x.
Http://www.rpc1.org is where you can get the hacked firmware. They just came out with a new one, 1.16. You will be able to write 4X media at up to 8X and probably those G03s at 4X. If you want to go straight to the Pioneer 107D page, go to http://forum.rpc1.org/dl_firmware.php?download_id=1754 . Scroll down the page and click on the firmware you want to download. 1.16 is the newest. You might want to do a little reading if you haven't done this before. There's a read me in the zipped file that explains how pretty well. You may have to register with them to download although I'm not sure. I've used mainly Ritek G04 and Prodisc S03 printables and have had good luck with them. You can get the Prodisc dirt cheap right now at http://www.supermediastore.com. I think the Riteks are slightly better judging from Kprobe scans, but both play well in everything I've tried them in. I usually burn at 6X since I have noticed, using Kprobe, that there is a big error jump when it shifts from 6X to 8X at about 800MB. They have all played O.K., though. Good luck.
