Plextor Help

[gh0sth@cker]

I need to know if the Plextor 16/10/40 can copy SD2 games. I've heard they can only be read in the recorder with this model. Is this true?

Are there any firmware upgrades or downgrades that will help - and where do i get them.

O yea - i don't have the writer yet so i can't test it.

[His Majesty]

The backup you make MIGHT work in your Plextor 16/10/40, but it will NOT work in any other CD-ROM drive. I have the Plextor SCSI 12/10/32S (and a little boy who loves ruining cds) so the need for a backup goes without saying. The backup I made "sort-of" works in the burner, but it seems the drive really has to think about it before it allows the game to load.

Ideally, you'd want a backup that'll work in any CD-ROM drive. This way if you have more than one CD-ROM installed in your PC you can lengthen the life of your burner by using it only to burn, instead of both reading and burning, and playing the game in the reader.

So, to that end, the folks at Clone-CD say that the only readily available Plextor that can successfully backup SD2 discs that can be read in ANY CD-ROM drive is the PX-W2410A (Atapi). If you want to be able to burn SD2 discs but don't want to spring for the $200+ PX-W2410A, consider the Acer 20/10/40 (CRW 2010A). I made a perfect backup of NHL2002 with it, and I've seen this drive floating around on pricewatch.com for about $100 (including shipping).

***** By the way, the folks at www.cdmediaworld.com did a wonderful write-up on the different types of copy protections in use today, and in one of the follow-ups someone mentioned that Plextor seems to have edited old firmwares, seemingly locking out the (once there??) ability to backup SD2 discs. If you decide to downgrade your firmware anyway, don't be surprised if it doesn't work!! *****