Blu Ray BURNERS

[Roxy.music]

Is it better to buy a external portable burner or a internal one I have this
Icybox External Enclosure for 5.25 inch SATA Blu-Ray/CD/DVD Drives and 3.5 inch HDDs and thinking of something like this

Asus BW-16D1HT 16X SATA Blu-Ray Recorder Drive .Would the internal one have a better sound than the external portable one ?I am thinking of this one Pioneer BDR-XD05TB 6 x Slim Portable USB 3.0 BD/DVD/CD Burner or this one
Buffalo BRXL-16U3-EU 16 x USB 3.0 External Blu-ray Drive in its own enclosure that would be the same price as the external portable one
I don't need a portable one.

or the Buffalo one

Are mains powered ones better than USB ones?

 

[Juicy Box]

I would think that there probably wouldn't be any performance differences, but a portable one might be nice in case you want to use it with a different computer.

A side note that might influence your decision, I noticed that my USB BluRay drive sometimes has errors if used with only one USB port, so I usually plug it into two ports for the extra power.

 

[HDFan]

There is an Asus Blu-Ray drive that can have the firmware reloaded so that you can rip 4K videos.

I had 2 Buffalo BR-XB16U2s. One eventually died, but the other is still going after ~7 years. All of my drives require external DC power packs.

 

[Roxy.music]

I have seen that HDfan. There are so many drives out there I read the reviews on. Amazon.Does the one I put up on here have the firm ware reloaded?

 

[HDFan]

When manufacturers discover firmware which allows 4K rips they update it to remove the capability. There are only a few drives which can be flashed:

Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2025 - www.makemkv.com

The "ASUS BW-16D1HT, UHD Friendly Internal 5.25" is on the list. After purchase it would need to be flashed.

 

[satcomer]

I’ve used for 7 years using the OWC Pro 16K Blu-Ray Burner and it‘s still going!

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd suggest an EXTERNAL (so it's portable) USB Bluray/DVD/CD burner with M-DISC capabilities, in either a "top-loading" or "slide-out door loading" style enclosure.

I don't care for "slot-loaders".

 

[Roxy.music]

Does the Buffalo BRXL-16U3 have the firmware for 4K videos. HDfan I see it does not appear in the list.Another thing is if i got one with out the firmware can i record a pre recorded Blu Ray disc?
I would like to say i don,t own any Blu Ray disc,s and i don,t have a 4k monitor at present.

 

[HDFan]

Does the Buffalo BRXL-16U3 have the firmware for 4K videos.

No manufacturer ships a Blu-Ray drive with firmware that permits 4K ripping. As for 4K video playback I can only suggest that you search Amazon or the manufacturers description to see if it supports 4K playback.

Here's one:

Pioneer BDR-211UBK 16x Internal Ultra HD 4K Blu-ray BDXL Burner, Bundle with Cyberlink Software and Cable

Pioneer BDR-211UBK 16x Internal Ultra HD 4K Blu-ray BDXL Burner, Bundle with Cyberlink Software and Cable

www.amazon.com

Does the Buffalo BRXL-16U3 have the firmware for 4K videos.

I don't see on the Buffalo website that it supports 4K playback.

 

[Roxy.music]

They do them on ebay This is a genuine LG 14X Reader / Writer. Although originally designed to READ UHD/4K Blu Rays the Firmware now shipped with the original drive restricts this to standard Blu Ray Read / Write. I am experienced in what is called "Crossflashing" of the Firmware which removes this restriction. You are left with the original capabilities of the drive as shipped but now you can read/play UHD/4K discs without paying for a more expensive UHD/4K native drive.
BE WARNED - YES, IT IS POSSIBLE TO DO THIS YOURSELF IF YOU HAVE THE TECHNICAL KNOW HOW BUT IT IS NOT RECOMMENDED AND THERE IS A HIGH PROBABILITY OF BREAKING THE DRIVE IRREVERSEIBLY AND INVALIDATING YOUR WARRANTY.
ALSO - THE OFFICIAL LG FIRMWARE FLASHING TOOL ON THEIR WEBSITE WILL NOT ENABLE THIS FEATURE. THERE IS A MYTH ON THE INTERNET SAYING THAT BY SIMPLY "DOWNGRADING" THE DRIVE TO AN OFFICIAL OLDER ASUS FIRMWARE IT WILL ENABLE UHD / 4K READ CAPABILITY - TRUST ME IT DOESN'T! THIS OPERATION REQUIRES YOU TO KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
FINALLY - FLASHING THE DRIVE WITH A GENERIC "HACKED" FIRMWARE ALSO DOES NOT WORK AND WILL RENDER IT UNUSABLE. THIS IS BECAUSE EACH INDIVIDUAL DRIVE HAS UNIQUE CODES WHICH GET OVERWRITTEN IF YOU TRY THIS.
MY CREDENTIALS - I AM A SEMI RETIRED IT ENGINEER / CONSULTANT WITH 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN THE INDUSTRY AND HAVE PROVIDED THIS OR SIMILAR SERVICE FOR FREE TO FREINDS AND FAMILY AS A TEST. NONE HAVE COME BACK AND ANYWAY YOU ARE COVERED BY MY 100% FREE OF CHARGE GUARANTEE. GIVE ME A GO AND YOU WON'T BE DISSAPOINTED.

 

[Roxy.music]

There is an Asus Blu-Ray drive that can have the firmware reloaded so that you can rip 4K videos.

I had 2 Buffalo BR-XB16U2s. One eventually died, but the other is still going after ~7 years. All of my drives require external DC power packs.

I’ve used for 7 years using the OWC

When manufacturers discover firmware that allows 4K rips they update it to remove the capability. There are only a few drives which can be flashed:

Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2025 - www.makemkv.com

The "ASUS BW-16D1HT, UHD Friendly Internal 5.25" is on the list. After purchase, it would need to be flashed.

Pro 16K Blu-Ray Burner and it‘s still going!
[/QUOTE]
I have ordered the Asus one you mentioned here this guy has it with the firmware you mention.

I got a used one on eBay.
And the OWC Mercury Peo encloser

 

[satcomer]

To watch Blu-Rays I would use MacGo Mac Blu-Ray Menu Player if you are interested!