Have a big problem, need help

[richardall]

Quite some time ago, I purchased a CDCyclone REVO external FIrewire drive which uses a Pioneer DVR-A03 drive. The drive has failed when I need it badly.

I have just volunteered to make over a hundred CDs to help the local boy scouts troops and I'm now one drive short.

Can anybody tell me what the most compatable (newer) Pioneer drive is? The tech page form CD cyclone suggestest using a pioneer 104 or Toshiba SD-R5002 drive. These don't mean anything to me.

I by no means consider myself a techie but I can swap out this drive if somebody can point me to the best one.

Please help, many CDs to make, not a lot of time.

Thank you in advance

[debro]

Um .... any pioneer drive. I think you might still be able to find a 107, if you look really hard.

Even in Oz, I can't find anything below the 108 though.

Any reason you insist on a pioneer?

The benq1640 / the NEC3540 / Liteon1693 / LG 1643 are all great drives ( and there are many others as well), and can be whacked in a firewire enclosure, the LG I found best for the (usb or firewire) external enclosures though

Personally I've find the pioneer 108 to be very picky with media. And it performs very badly with, apparently, supported media, even expensive TY/MCC media.

[richardall]

As I said, I looked on the CDCyclone web site and their recommendations are to use the pioneer 104 or Toshiba SD-R5002. Evidently that information is ancient as those models appear missing off the face of the earth.

I don't know why they are specifying these. Without knowing any better, I would assume that the interface in the back of the external drive would communicate with most any drive. I guess I should have asked if that was a reasonable assumption?

I'm looking to replace the drive. What is the best choice to make sure I don't buy something that I’ll have to take back and go through that trouble.

Thanks,

[Hawseman]

I think the only place you'll find those two drives now, are in a museum. It's like trying to buy an Intel 386 computer.....not very easy.

[richardall]

Yes, that's been said.

What drive would be the best recommendation for me to put into the my firewire box to solve my problem.

I'm looking for technical advise

Thank you,
RIchard

[debro]

I think you are missing the point. Unless it's a custom/moulded drive, rather than the usual square blocky external cases which most companies feel the urge to overcharge us for, you can whack any standard IDE drive (aka any DVD writer) into it and it will work. Any of the above mentioned drives are recommended, and will burn anything that your old drive could.

I couldn't imagine ANY company recommending a competitors hardware.

Assuming that pioneers external firewire case DOESN'T work with a new drive, it'll only cost $20us anyway to grab one.