Billycar11 Selling Flashed Pioneer UHD Drives, Remote Flashing,Tested& Makemkv Discount

[fiddletwix]

Been trying to find the answer, but can someone tell me the differences between the three pioneer drives besides price?

Read the details including design and features of the following. I cannot find the page of the exact model of BDR-212 Billy sells but it is certainly the most popular of the three likely because of price. The actual design and build is quite important for discernment amongst them. Billy did not sell the BDR-S13U-X until I enquired about it for I wish not to settle for BDR-S13UBK. Fortunately its pre-2022-12 firmware is able to be flashed.

BDR-S13U-X product website
BDR-S13UBK product website

Thank you for the helpful links!

[applegrcoug]

Interesting first post for me...

I see on the main page of this thread it now says that pioneer drives are supported again...that was as of yesterday. Billy, can you elaborate at all for us? Do they work out of the box or do we need to flash them?

And to those wondering, I actually did buy an external LG drive from Billy back in 2021. I also have a couple internal LGs I flashed myself recently.

My problem is I have a few UHD disks that just won't rip...I always get hash errors. The disks are brand new and the drives are brand new, so it is something else. Hoping a pioneer can get the stubborn ones. Ya know, use the LGs for most stuff and then break out the heavy hitter when needed.

[TurboBopper]

I'm wondering the same thing. You can buy them brand new from Pioneer for around $90 it seems.

[Billycar11]

Billy, can you elaborate at all for us? Do they work out of the box or do we need to flash them?

I'm wondering the same thing. You can buy them brand new from Pioneer for around $90 it seems.

No the pioneers I sell do not work out of the box if not ordered from me. Me and Asmcom have a supplier that if ordered in bulk they can request new drives with old fw from pioneer.

I do have a code of conduct I never sell drives that would work out of the box so I did not sell pioneers until pioneer patched them.
That's my way of never scalping I still test every pioneer that comes in just like the ones I flash myself that's 3+ hours of testing per drive.

I can also tell you the 5.25 drives I sell will work better than that $90 pioneer not that it's bad but I have grown tired of the USB powered cases they vary so much some require so much power a powered USB hub is almost necessary. Can't tell you how many times someone said my USB slim drives are broken but it's their USB ports not putting enough power out. And it worked perfectly after they get a high powered USB hub.

[TurboBopper]

Billy, can you elaborate at all for us? Do they work out of the box or do we need to flash them?

I'm wondering the same thing. You can buy them brand new from Pioneer for around $90 it seems.

No the pioneers I sell do not work out of the box if not ordered from me. Me and Asmcom have a supplier that if ordered in bulk they can request new drives with old fw from pioneer.

I do have a code of conduct I never sell drives that would work out of the box so I did not sell pioneers until pioneer patched them.
That's my way of never scalping I still test every pioneer that comes in just like the ones I flash myself that's 3+ hours of testing per drive.

I can also tell you the 5.25 drives I sell will work better than that $90 pioneer not that it's bad but I have grown tired of the USB powered cases they vary so much some require so much power a powered USB hub is almost necessary. Can't tell you how many times someone said my USB slim drives are broken but it's their USB ports not putting enough power out. And it worked perfectly after they get a high powered USB hub.

Thanks for the reply. I'm still learning.

Do they work out of the box if you are only wishing to rip standard 1080p Blu Ray, not 4k? From your 1st post it sounds like they do.

[Billycar11]

Do they work out of the box if you are only wishing to rip standard 1080p Blu Ray, not 4k? From your 1st post it sounds like they do.

yes any bluray drive works for standard bluray out of the box in makemkv
but mine are required if you want to Read UHD 4K blurays

[IDtheTarget]

Repeat customer here. This is the third drive I've purchased from Billy.

The first was (believe it or not) eaten by my dog (I got the plastic case on the first one). It was an LG and needed to be replaced.

The second one I wanted UHD anyway, so I bought an LG BU40N with an aluminum case from Billy, and it's still going strong (ripping a DVD right now).

I am re-ripping my entire library now that I have a better and larger server and can store my raw MKVs, so I wanted a second drive so I could rip two disks at a time. I contacted Billy and asked for a second BU40N. He convinced me to go with a Pioneer, so I bought the Pioneer 212 and the NexStar enclosure he recommended.

Oh. My. Goodness!

So, I'm getting at least five times faster rips with the Pioneer than I did with the LG. A TV show DVD that normally took about 45 minutes to rip just took 10. And it's reading disks I had problems with on the BU40N. I bought a Blu Ray movie trilogy, and the second movie wouldn't read with the LG. It's ripping just fine on the Pioneer.

As always with my previous interactions with Billy, he communicated well during the entire process, was accommodating to my peculiar issues (come on, I'm almost 60 here!) delivered exactly what he promised and was professional throughout. This guy is absolute gold, and I don't hesitate to recommend him to anybody. If I ever need another drive, he's the only person I'd even consider. You cannot go wrong with Billy!

[KKMakeAMovie]

I purchased the Pioneer BDR-S13UBK from Billy a few weeks ago. He shipped it quickly and it was well-packaged. The first case I purchased from Amazon was DOA and I let him know that I could not get the drive to power on and was returning the case and purchasing a new one. He followed up to make sure the drive worked with the new case. So far the drive works well and exactly as described. A big improvement over my old ASUS. Thanks Billy!

[haydoselefantes]

Billy did not sell the BDR-S13U-X until I enquired about it for I wish not to settle for BDR-S13UBK. Fortunately its pre-2022-12 firmware is able to be flashed.

What features on the BDR-13 models made you choose them over the cheaper BDR-212?

I read the links you provided, and the big feature seems to be “PureRead”? Is “PureRead” what attracted you them? Or is there something else? Do they rip discs any faster in your experience?

[MKV Maker]

What features on the BDR-13 models made you choose them over the cheaper BDR-212?

I read the links you provided, and the big feature seems to be “PureRead”? Is “PureRead” what attracted you them? Or is there something else? Do they rip discs any faster in your experience?

First and foremost I refuse to have an older model. Secondly I demand to have the best of the best and the BDR-S13U/J-X is the absolute top-tier model. The build quality and internal components of the design attracted me very much. PureRead and real-time PureRead applies only to audio but it is nice also. Rip speeds do not attract me; quality attracts me and this is good as it gets – especially for audio.

[haydoselefantes]

quality attracts me and this is good as it gets – especially for audio.

Thanks for the response!

[haydoselefantes]

I see the bolded warning "DO NOT UPGRADE FIRMWARE ONCE YOU GET THE DRIVE!!". Is there anyway the firmware can be automatically upgraded without me actively trying to upgrade? Is there any automatic upgrade I need to worry about and stop?

Years ago, I bought and flashed my own LG drive and its firmware has remained intact after using it with MakeMKV. So, I believe the answer is "No, firmware only gets upgraded when the user actively tries to upgrade."

[MKV Maker]

I see the bolded warning "DO NOT UPGRADE FIRMWARE ONCE YOU GET THE DRIVE!!". Is there anyway the firmware can be automatically upgraded without me actively trying to upgrade? Is there any automatic upgrade I need to worry about and stop?

No. Firmware upgrade occurs only when the user downloads and uses some tool of any kind to initiate the process. It is not possible for drives to phone home, download a specific file, then run some installer unattended/automated. That sounds like nightmarish malware.

[haydoselefantes]

I purchased a BDR-212. For the enclosure, I am looking at the Vantec NST-536S3-BK (the first enclosure listed in the OP)

There are multiple options on Amazon:

• Enclosure
• Enclosure + Adapter

I believe I only need the "Enclosure". From the photos of the enclosure, the enclosure has connections for SATA data and power, so it looks to be a complete solution.

Can someone please confirm that the Enclosure option will work to use a BDR-212 via USB connection?

[Billycar11]

I purchased a BDR-212. For the enclosure, I am looking at the Vantec NST-536S3-BK (the first enclosure listed in the OP)

There are multiple options on Amazon:

• Enclosure
• Enclosure + Adapter

I believe I only need the "Enclosure". From the photos of the enclosure, the enclosure has connections for SATA data and power, so it looks to be a complete solution.

Can someone please confirm that the Enclosure option will work to use a BDR-212 via USB connection?

Yes that will work you only need the case