Beginner need some advice to get started

[Lynellia]

I would like to start to rip my movies and TV shows so I start streaming them through Plex or JellyFin. I'm looking into blu ray burners now, are there any current recommendations on which one to get that will allow flashing so I can properly burn my collection?

[Woodstock]

I can't think of why you didn't consult the Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2023 topic, unless the date threw you off.

[Mundy]

I am also a beginner, I have looked through the Ultimate UHD Drive Flashing Guide Updated and am overwhelmed with the info available. What is the recommended external drive for ripping UHD Blue-ray disks? I have a handful of disks that I want to store on our NAS. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you

[Lynellia]

I can't think of why you didn't consult the Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide Updated 2023 topic, unless the date threw you off.

I wasn't sure if that was the most updated and I saw a note that said the Pioneer drives are the best but can't be flashed but most of the drives on that list looked to be the Pioneer drives.

I'm a newbie to this so I just got confused and wanted to make sure before I buy something that it will work. I was also hoping for more External options to pick from since I don't have a PC tower to plug an internal one into.

[Woodstock]

The first message in the topic is updated by the author as things change. If things aren't covered there, they aren't "new".

If you want UHD capability, it lists what you can buy and what can be modified.

There hasn't been much change, although, MAYBE, the author could change it to include "2024" in the "updated" date? Naw... that wouldn't change the number of people who ask the same questions every few weeks...

[dcoke22]

Pioneer drives are generally considered the best these days. There was a period of time where you could buy a new Pioneer drive and it would just work with MakeMKV. Now unfortunately, you generally can't buy a new one at your favorite retailer because Pioneer updated the firmware on all their drives to disable support for MakeMKV. You are very unlikely to find a new Pioneer drive with old enough firmware at most retail shops.

Pioneer firmware update February 2023

However, the sellers here on the forum have still be able to source new drives with old firmware. Your best bet is to buy one from the seller in your region.

If you live in Europe, the Verbatim 43888 has an (older) Pioneer drive in it (the UD04) that works well enough right out of the box. It isn't the best Pioneer drive, but it is an easy entry point if you can get one. There was a period of time where the quality of those drives was shaky, but lately they've been okay.

If you don't want to do any of that, the afore mentioned Ultimate UHD Drives Flashing Guide lists the other drives that work and will have to be flashed to support LibreDrive. Despite whatever brand is printed on the drive, all the innards are made by LG. The BU40N is probably the best of that bunch, otherwise buy the cheapest one you can find from a place with a decent return policy in case you get one that's dead in the box.

One final note, in my experience some discs just don't like some drives. I have 4 different drives and often when a disc doesn't work in one of my drives, it will work fine in a different drive. My Pioneer drives are the most consistent, but no drive is perfect.