Hello all,

Just my two-cents' worth: I'm no "brand-wh*re," but I've had very good luck
with tray-load Pioneer drives (even the infamous DVD-120). They fit the
715, they're very responsive and reliable and the RPC-1 firmware and
utilities are readily-available.

http://pioneerdvd.rpc1.org/

Cons: the RPC-1 120 firmware seems not to address the issue of excessive
spin, so you can hear the drive spinning for at least the first several
minutes into the flick (though still a hands-down improvement over the
factory Raite drive). I've noticed some other re-engineered firmwares claim
to take the opportunity to slow the drive down "while they're at it," as it
does not need to run at full-gallop just to play movies as it might to copy
data in a PC.

As for physical concerns, I used an Exacto knife, a metal file and some fine
sandpaper to make the smiley-face bezel fit, and it does. I do not touch
the 715's bezel or use any glue. You have to plan it out well, so that you
don't end up leaving gaps or unnaturally sharp corners/edges - or worse -
going all the way through the plastic! Depth is perfect as it is, but I had
to bore out the 715's holes top-to-bottom for a factory fit. :)

Now, when you do RPC-1 firmware updates, I cannot stress enough the
necessity to match the firmware TO THE LETTER with the drive. Otherwise,
you might find that the firmware you secured beforehand won't work, and may
kill the drive. Save yourself the nerves: when purchasing used drives (esp.
sight-unseen) with such a project in mind, WATCH OUT for OEM drives (i.e.,
pulled out of an HP/Compaq etc.) with seemingly extraneous letters following
the model number - they CAN make a difference! Consider a missing or even
gray (!) front bezel as a red flag. Even if the drive is advertised as,
say, DVD-115, ask the seller to quote the ENTIRE model number for you
(following the prominent word "CODE: " on Pioneer drives), including any
extra letters without paraphrasing. From experience, the 115 model, for
example, was bundled with many machines with respective variations. Better
yet, have them take a photo of the label, and inquire about any firmware
flashes attempted.

As with any long-distance sale, ask even dumb questions just to feel out the
seller himself. If he's evasive or otherwise rubs you the wrong way after,
say, the second response - you may want move on to another seller and save
yourself "unpleasantries." ;)

After updating the firmware, I put a small thermal label with the version on
both the top of the drive and back of the 715 for easy reference. Seditec
(Europe's authorized service center in Hamburg) had put a similar label on
the back of the 715 when they initially cracked the Raite drive. Yes, they
offered that as an under-warranty service for a whopping 80 DEM.

Whichever route you take, just don't count on warranty coverage after taking
it under the knife! :o

Good Luck! :)

Jed Dunlap
Lancaster, PA

PS.

>> after changing the drive i can play audio cd's and mp3s, but i cant
>> play any dvd movies

Are you sure it's a DVD drive? ;)

PS2. On a *similar* subject, if anybody is having issues with kernel panics
(hex dumps) after installing a Pioneer DVD burner in a Mac, the solution is
very simple: reinstall or update the OS. As it is an internal component,
apparently Mac OS does not thoroughly probe it (and thus does not update any
drivers) without necessity!! Just an FYI, if anyone's tearing their hair
out.

Despite what they would have you believe, you need NOT purchase Apple's
SuperDrive version of the same, to the tune of $600.

Just don't run Apple's firmware update (will show up under Software Update)
on it if you intend to keep it RPC-1. Software update will let you hide
(disable) any given given update. Do that. ;)

> From: "p_h_grobler" <pietergr@...>
> Reply-To: raite-dvd@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2005 13:11:31 -0000
> To: raite-dvd@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [raite-dvd] Re: changing drive
>
>
>
> Hi
>
> Check if the drive is set to the correct region and the latest player
> firmware.
>
> I replaced my drive (Raite RDR-201H) with a Samsung SD-612B yesterday
> and upgraded the player firmware to A2 (715 BT RC free & MV off)
> yesteday and it plays basically anything.
>
> I do have one problem though - the CD-tray is wider (13cm) than the
> old drive's tray (11.5cm) which means the tray cannot open through
> the players faceplate!!! I'll have to "enlarge" the opening. Did the
> 616 fit perfectly? What is the width of the tray?
>
>
> --- In raite-dvd@yahoogroups.com, "bupathyvemanna"
> <bupathyvemanna@y...> wrote:
>>
>> hi everybody this is my first message
>>
>> i have a rait avphile 715 dvd player and it has a hiachi gd-2500
> dvd
>> rom drive, i had problems with the tray , so i changed the drive
> with
>> samsung dvd-rom drive (sd-616erps).
>>
>> after changing the drive i can play audio cd's and mp3s, but i cant
>> play any dvd movies
>>
>> on the display it shows (root) when i insert the dvd but no display
>> on the TV
>>
>> can anyone help me to solve the problem
>>
>> thanking u