Need to buy new CD burner (external) - any suggestions?

[hokiemon]

The CD-write drive on my PC is starting to go....and costing me $$$ in the process. I typically burn all my lossless audio music onto Delkin Gold Archival CDRs (which cost around $1 each). Problem is, my current write drive is starting to crash on just about every other burn (I use Exact Audio Copy for all my burning, which is pretty much the best program out there for true audiophiles). With every other burn, the writes don't complete, I get errors and end up having to trash the CDR.

I can't keep throwing out these gold CDRs, they're too damned expensive. So I'd like to invest in a good external CD burner. Problem is, I've been relying on my PC's burner for so long that I have no idea what drives are good and what aren't. I only burn music, no interest in burning DVDs or any of that nonsense.

I don't even know if an external CD burner still relies on your PC's CD-read drive or if it comes with its own read drive (meaning the burner has a read drive and a write drive).

I should also mention I'm on a pretty tight budget so I can't afford to lay out a lot of cash for a new drive. Ideally no more than a couple hundred bucks.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

[Trout606]

If budget is an issue, why not just get a replacement internal drive to swap out for your dying one? Internal is always cheaper, I got an OEM CD/DVD burner for under $30, and all you'd need to do it is a phillips head screwdriver and like ten minutes of time. All you'd have to do is open up your case, take out the old drive, stick in the new one, reconnect the cable (be sure to check if you're using IDE or SATA) and then open up your BIOS on startup to make sure the computer recognizes it.

[hokiemon]

If budget is an issue, why not just get a replacement internal drive to swap out for your dying one? Internal is always cheaper, I got an OEM CD/DVD burner for under $30, and all you'd need to do it is a phillips head screwdriver and like ten minutes of time. All you'd have to do is open up your case, take out the old drive, stick in the new one, reconnect the cable (be sure to check if you're using IDE or SATA) and then open up your BIOS on startup to make sure the computer recognizes it.

Good point. I guess my only apprehension with that approach is I'm not really a hardware guy, I'm a software guy. I'm not all that comfortable with opening up my PC and fiddling around with it. I know some people really dig that sort of thing, I'm always worried I'm going to do something wrong and damage it. Hence the reason I was looking for external - less mess, so to speak.

[hokiemon]

bump

[Trout606]

Good point. I guess my only apprehension with that approach is I'm not really a hardware guy, I'm a software guy. I'm not all that comfortable with opening up my PC and fiddling around with it. I know some people really dig that sort of thing, I'm always worried I'm going to do something wrong and damage it. Hence the reason I was looking for external - less mess, so to speak.

It's understandable, but I just built my first rig from scratch and had no previous experience with that, so if I could assemble the whole thing, you could swap out a CD drive, trust me.

You'll want to power down and unplug your PC, naturally, then find out how the case opens. Generally, at the back of the PC (the end where you plug all the cables in) there should be 2 thumbscrews that hold in each side panel to the case. When you unscrew those, the side panels should slide/pop off. Cases hold in the CD drive differently depending on the case/brand, but usually they're held in either with a few phillips head screws, or there's a tool-less locking mechanism that should be labeled in lock/unlock positions.

You'll want to take note of what kind of cable(s) are connected to the drive. The two types these days are IDE and SATA. IDE should be a wide ribbon cable, SATA is a small thin cable. This is important since most drives you buy are keyed for one or the other, not both, so you'll need to buy the right kind. You should open the panel to your PC and check first before anything. Once you have that, check Newegg for IDE/SATA drives in your price range.

Installation itself is easy, you simply take out the old drive, it should slide forward out of your case, then slide in the new one, screw/fasten it down, then plug in the cable.

[hokiemon]

might have to try that. Can you recommend any brand/model?

[arnodeltoro]

I have a LG external cd/dvd burner (50$).It works like an external HDD.
They give you some software but you are not forced to use.

[Holeman]

Get the DVD-RW drive, it burns both DVD's and CD's and should you ever feel the need to stop paying Blockbuster's crazy ass rental fees, it also burns movies too.

Putting it in is easy, it's a matter of a couple of screws and a couple of wires. If you can pulg in your VCR, you can install a new DVD drive into your computer.

*wait, should've read the thread first. Listen to Trout, he knows his **** and has much more patience to describe it than I do.*

[hokiemon]

thanks guys