Are there any drives you can purchase without riplock?

[jimmypopjr]

I've got a brand new Mac Pro and I'd like to get a drive without the limitations of Riplock. Are there any drive models that you can buy without these limitations? I've searched for updated firmware for the Mac Pro's current drive, but haven't found anything.

Also, does the riplock firmware carry over to a windows partition as well?

Thanks a bunch!

[Earl Urly]

Someone on NewEgg says this drive has no riplock

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151154

Riplock is a feature found in the DVD drive's firmware, it has nothing to do with anything in any computer's OS

[Igantius]

Maximum PC ran a recent article, looking at fastest drives for DVD ripping, which you might be interested - http://maximumpc.coverleaf.com/maximumpc/200904/?pg=69

One reason I mention this, is the Samsung drive tested didn’t fare brilliantly (a model that was rated very highly in other areas according to a previous article) – so it tried a firmware patch, one that’s pretty much a utility.

Using the patch/utility to disable Riplock, ripping performance was no different (just over 15 minutes).

However, this patch has an option to increase the speed at which double-layer discs are read - when selected, it was considerably quicker (a little over 8 minutes, so not too far from taking half the time).

It doesn't say how much louder this made the drive, but I would imagine it would be noticeably more noisy.