Plextor or HP SCSI CDRW??

[AfterBurn]

Hi,

Im going to buy a new CDRW and its going to be SCSI, as my CDR is about the last non scsi part in my system. Im thinking to get either the Plextor or HP. Im leaning towards Plextor, but if anyone of you guys can post me your experiences with either one (or perhaps another brand?), please do.

edit:
Im looking for a 12x4x32x variant (not interested in CDRW as i dont use em) and the normal CD already is a Plextor UltraPlex SCSI drive.
/edit

TIA,
-AB-

 

[pdo]

why settle for the 12x4x32 when you can get the 12x10x32. They are both about the same price plus 12x10x32 has burnproof. Don't know much about HP but I love me Plextor.

 

[Jeff H]

Afterburn, you're going to get almost unanimous response to Plextor. FWIW I've been running an HP 8x4x32 9210i SCSI CD-RW for nine months now, and it's performed flawlessly. I have yet to burn a coaster that wasn't my fault. The HP's have been made by Sony. I don't know who makes the current units.

 

[AfterBurn]

Where i live, there is almost a $100 price difference between the 9600si (12x8x32) from HP and the PX-W1210TSI (12x10x32) from Plextor. I dont need burnproof, as i usually dont do anything while burning anyway, and i dont need fast RW, as normal CDR are so cheap i dont bother getting CDRW disks. However, i need to work hard enough for my money to not want to toss away $100 if its not nessesarely needed. Ill gladly pay it if the Plextor is substantially better than the HP, but if they are about the same, i'd rather spend that $100 differently.

 

[MrCraphead]

in that case, i'd get the HP. w/ SCSI, the need for burnproof is non-existent.

 

[DaveJ]

I'd get the Plextor. HP's hardware is quite good (I have a 9200i at work), but their software bundle is pure crap. The newest models don't even ship with Adaptec EZCD (not that it's much good anyway) and they force you to install their proprietary crap instead...

I bought a Plextor 12/10/32a a month ago, and it's been great!

Dave

 

[seewhy]

I remember the Plextor didnot support RAW, but their newer drives may support it. My HP9200i suport RAW, and if you wanna BACKUP stuff, RAW is a good thing to have. HP9200i didn't support overburn though, that is a minus. Don't worry about burn-proof stuff, they are all hype, I have abosolutely zip problem with my hp for buffer under run. What you want to take a look is other functions..., RAW,Overburn..etc(mostly for BACKUP purpose...hehe) If you wanna in depth info on CDR, look at this site..cdr info

 

[billandopus]

<< I remember the Plextor didnot support RAW >>



You mean the 12/10/32scsi? Which models?




<< but their newer drives may support it. >>



Newer drives? What are you talking about? Look at the official CloneCd compatibility list here and tell me which ones aren't supported. I think everyone and their dog at Anandtech are running either the 8/20 or the 8/4/32a or the 12/10/32a and they all support RAW.

If anything, there is anecdotal reports that the newest 12/10/32 drives may have a problem with CloneCd here and there but it certainly is not fully documented. Some people aren't that savvy and when they find out that they have problems with CloneCd and their new Plex they automatically say that &quot;RAW&quot; writing is not supported without delving further into the issue which usually gives way to other issues.

As for Plex Vs Hp I would go with the Plex without hesitation. Plex has been doing this better than HP IMO. Why mess up a good system. Get the Plex. As for burnproof, it's not an issue if you are running SCSI.

 

[seewhy]

Well, most IDE supports RAW including Plextor, but SCSI CDR/RW is entirely different story(Even ClonCD page talks about that). About a year ago, when I wanted to get a SCSI CDR/RW, I wanted a Plextor but they didn't support RAW, so I went with HP9200i. I was just saying I am not sure if they support it right now, but since I got flamed for that, I did a little more research for ya. Yes, with firmware 1.04 and above revision (came up around May), Plextor SCSI supports RAW now.

So now that those stuff are not an issue anymore, it's really up to you which brand you wanna go with. Like everyone else, I really wanted a Plextor before, but since they didn't offer the option I wanted, I went with HP. Like you, I have the Plextor UltraPlex SCSI CDrom, and the only function I find missing going with HP is the ability to use Plextor Manager. Right now, I am using Nero, and my setup with Plextor CDRom and HP CDRW is perfectly fine (I am not going to say what I copied, don't wanna incriminate myself...hehe, but I can do pretty much anything I want). So yeah, sure spending money on Plextor CDRW will give you good feeling that you have the absolute best. But with HP, you can get a cheap drive (I remember that HotDeal forum has a deal a few days back) that is practical. So it is up to you!!

 

[AfterBurn]

Thanks guys,

You really didnt make things much easier , but hey. I had a lot of thinking to do, but with already having very good experiences with the Plextor CDROM, i went to get the Plextor writer. Just put it in and both of them look like brother and sister sitting there. Havent burned yet, but thats the next thing ill be doing. Im sure it will blow me out of my socks, coming from an ole 3610 that could burn at 2x2x6x.

Thanks again for your advice guys!

 

[billandopus]

<< Well, most IDE supports RAW including Plextor, but SCSI CDR/RW is entirely different story(Even ClonCD page talks about that). About a year ago, when I wanted to get a SCSI CDR/RW, I wanted a Plextor but they didn't support RAW, so I went with HP9200i. I was just saying I am not sure if they support it right now, but since I got flamed for that, I did a little more research for ya. Yes, with firmware 1.04 and above revision (came up around May), Plextor SCSI supports RAW now. >>



Fair enough. I stand corrected.

 

[Smbu]

I'd go with the Plextor. I have a Plextor 12/10/32 Scsi drive and it works great. I've had no problems w/CloneCD using DAO-RAW with it. My Plextor 40x MAX scsi cdrom drive works fine in CloneCd, too. I've never used the 12/4/32 version, but it looks to be the same as the 12/10/32 version, except for the slower CDRW speed and no burn proof.
Where I work they have a tower system w/8 Plextor 12/4/32 scsi drives and one Plextor 40x cdrom drive, so it must be a pretty good drive, too.