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SATA CD/DVD-ROM/RW

lopri

lopri

Elite Member
My current DVD+-RW has been dead so I'm in dire need of a new one. I'd like to get one with SATA interface since my board has tons of unused SATA connectors, and for the obvious cable management advantage.

The problem is, I can't seem to find a decent one with a decent price. 🙁
Any recommendation? Also is it true that SATA optical drives have problems with many motherboards?

Thanks in advance.
 
Many SATA integrated controllers don't support ATAPI devices. However all SATA II is supposed to support ATAPI. The only burners currently sold that are SATA are the Plextor 712SA and the 716SA. All other burners require the use of a PATA to SATA adapter card (as low as $10. on Newegg - they are also plentiful and cheap on eBay and you might even find one in the FS/T section here). You need to be SURE that your integrated SATA can handle ATAPI before investing in a Plextor or an adapter card. If your integrated SATA does not support ATAPI, you can get a SiliconImage based PCI card that will for under $20. shipped.

.bh.
 
According to the Plextor site home page > burning > support > compatibility > Mobos w/716SA - some owners have reported compatiblity with the A8N-SLI but not tested in-house. You might also want to browse/search the Plextor section on the http://www.cdfreaks.com web site for the experiences of others with your mobo. May save you some experimentation...

Make sure you have the latest stable BIOS for your mobo. Others have found better results in one SATA mode or the other (IDE or RAID) which should be selectable in the BIOS. One would think that IDE mode would work best with optical drives as you really can't RAID them, but "it ain't necessarily so".

Even though I really like, constantly recommend and have owned Plextor drives for at least the last 6 or 7 years, and their software packages offer more technical stuff and fine control than most others, you can get nearly as good every-day burning performance for a lot less $$s with other brands (e.g. Benq 1640 which is practically the same drive as the PX-740A).

BTW, those IDE to SATA adapter/converter cards really do work, but do add one more variable into the equation.

And be aware that you can often find a better bottom-line price on Plextor drives from other top-20 online resellers than from Newegg. Try Froogle, Pricegrabber, etc.

.bh.
 
I found on my Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe that PATA to SATA adapters did not work. At least for my hard drive. The adapters work great on my nForce2 (on a Silicon Image controller) board but did not work on either set of my SATA ports (nVidia or SI) on the Asus. I am not sure how similar the A8N-SLI is to the A8N32-SLI, so take my information with the appropriate disclaimer that your mileage may vary. Also note, i have no idea about SATA burner support, as I don't feel the added cost is justifiable and don't mind using my rounded 6" PATA cables. 😉

\Dan
 
Many thanks to Zepper, and also thanks for sharing your experience, DBSX.

I have a further question. 😉
While searching a IDE-to-SATA converter, I found there are basically 2 different ways (which have to be the same way, however)

One hooks to a IDE HD/CD-ROM
http://cgi.ebay.com/SATA-TO-IDE-DONGLE-...06QQcategoryZ74941QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

The other one hooks to the motherboard
http://cgi.ebay.com/IDE-Interface-to-ne...23QQcategoryZ74941QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

And of course there are IDE-to-USB, SATA-to-USB, etc. but those are not what I'm looking for. So, among above the twos, which one would give a better chance for less-hassle? BTW, I really appreciate you guys' input. I learned alot from the CDFreaks.com, too. My main gripe is that I want to do away with the IDE cable (be it flat or rounded). But if it's too much hassle, I guess I should comprmise.. That Plextor drive looks so damn nice, though.. I wouldn't mind paying for 100 bucks but I just don't want to install it then only to find it incompatible.. 🙁

lop
 
Actually I haven't seen any PATA controller to sata drive adapter that I'm aware of - I'm a bit leery of the one pictured in the eBay listing (shipping = 6x item price - one way to cut down the eBay fees 😉 ...) . A PCI controller for your SATA drives is a much better idea (technically and economically) than any IDE to SATA atapter, even if there was one.

In any case, what you said you wanted to do is use one of your mobo's sata connectors to hook up a burner. So the two choices are a SATA drive (the Plextor which should work), or an IDE drive with a SATA adapter. And you may possibly need a SIL (SiliconImage Logic) based PCI SATA or PATA controller (under $20-. shipped) in case you can't get either of those arrangements to work.

Here are the two IDE to SATA adapters that newegg carries. I'd recommend the SiliconImage based one both because it's SIL and also because it tucks out of the way - note the similarity (but for color) of the other card to the one on eBay. Coincidence? 😉

If you want perhaps a better PATA to SATA adapter than the Sybas, then Abit still offers the Serillel 2 for around twice the money...

.bh.
 
Now not only that I can do away with native SATA CD/DVD-ROMs but also I could use my old IDE HDs as SATA?! Wow! Thank you very much!
 
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