www.makemkv.com

Hello,

I am making this post because I would like to know if the LG WH14NS40 is a good option for ripping Ultra HD Blu-rays. I heard about this drive from several YouTube channels such as TwoGuyzTech with their "How To Rip 4K Dolby ATMOS Blu-rays in 2023!" guide, among other sources, and would like to know if this drive is a good option for ripping movies to mkvs and then mp4s. If there are any other drives around this price range (or cheaper) that do not need to be flashed to work with ripping please let me know. I have gone through this process before with my Samsung SE-506 drive for ripping DVD's and standard Blu-Ray's, but I know that the process is different with the Ultra HD Blu-ray format.

Thank you for your time.

A search for "WH14NS40" here finds over 1500 messages where it is mentioned, with a variety of opinions and information, including comments from "had the drive 2 months and it died", to "works great now". You might want to just do a search and see what others (some of whom don't hang out here anymore) have said about it.

its among the worst

worst
WH14ns40
WH16NS40
WH16NS60
Asus BW16D1HT
all above are the same along with some others like WH16NS58...

the best are the pioneers

Billycar11 wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 11, 2024 2:00 am

drive quality rank here you go best to worst

Pioneer BDR S13UX
Pioneer BDR S13UBK
Pioneer BDR 213 212/S12
Pioneer BDR XS07, XD07, XD08
Pioneer BDR UD04, UD03, XD05

LG BU40N BP50NB40 BP60NB10 ect..
LG/ASUS WH14xx-WH16xx Asus BW16D1HT BH14xx-BH16xx ect... all the same junk if your getting one of these they are all the same get the cheapest available and hope you get a good one.

All pioneers need old FW or to be professionally flashed
for most i recommend the UBK as the UX is way over priced in the USA. the UX has a fw cents worth of better caps black paint job and slightly more sound deadening on the disc tray not worth it.
i myself have a UBK.

Okay, I see that the LG WH14NS40 is very similar to the WH16NS40, WH16NS60, and the Asus BW16D1HT, but are there any better drives are around this price range of >$60 that work over USB instead of SATA? I have a SATA to USB cable for use with older hard drives, but i would rather just use something that works over USB natively without the need for an adapter.

LG WH14NS40 wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 27, 2024 1:28 pm

Okay, I see that the LG WH14NS40 is very similar to the WH16NS40, WH16NS60, and the Asus BW16D1HT, but are there any better drives are around this price range of >$60 that work over USB instead of SATA? I have a SATA to USB cable for use with older hard drives, but i would rather just use something that works over USB natively without the need for an adapter. Another question I have is can normal Blu-Ray drives like the Samsung SE-506 be used with LibreDrive to rip Ultra HD discs, and if so, is there any need to buy a new drive like the LG WH14NS40, if the one I have is already usable for ripping UHD discs.

To get a recommendation you need to tell us your country of residence.

United States

LG WH14NS40 wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 27, 2024 3:29 pm

United States

PM sent.

Can I get a recommendation too? I have an ASUS BW-16D1HT but is not opening UHD discs. Also in US.

roberte1342 wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 17, 2025 4:45 pm

Can I get a recommendation too? I have an ASUS BW-16D1HT but is not opening UHD discs. Also in US.

You need to flash it. Post your Makemkv info.

Here is the output with a normal bluray
Full output: https://pastebin.com/EZCzqtQ8

roberte1342 wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 17, 2025 6:52 pm

Here is the output with a normal bluray

Code: Select all

makemkvcon -r --cache=1 info disc:0
MSG:1005,0,1,"MakeMKV v1.18.2 linux(x64-release) started","%1 started","MakeMKV v1.18.2 linux(x64-release)"
DRV:0,2,999,12,"BD-RE ASUS BW-16D1HT 1.01 K98DATA2234","Avatar_Book_1_Disc_1","/dev/sr0"
DRV:1,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:2,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:3,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:4,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:5,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:6,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:7,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:8,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:9,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:10,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:11,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:12,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:13,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:14,256,999,0,"","",""
DRV:15,256,999,0,"","",""
MSG:1011,0,1,"Using LibreDrive mode (v06.3 id=9EC5F0DCACFE)","%1","Using LibreDrive mode (v06.3 id=9EC5F0DCACFE)"
MSG:3007,0,0,"Using direct disc access mode","Using direct disc access mode"
MSG:5085,0,0,"Loaded content hash table, will verify integrity of M2TS files.","Loaded content hash table, will verify integrity of M2TS files."

Full output: https://pastebin.com/EZCzqtQ8

No. Run Makemkv without a disc in the drive and post the text that is listed on the right side.

Got it, thanks:

Drive Information
OS device name: /dev/sr0
Manufacturer: ASUS
Product: BW-16D1HT
Revision: 1.01
Serial number: K98DATA2234
Firmware date: 2113-02-05 19:30
Bus encryption flags: 1F
Highest AACS version: 64

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1939
Firmware type: Original (unpatched)
Firmware version: 1.01
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Partial
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

No disc inserted

roberte1342 wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 17, 2025 10:58 pm

Got it, thanks:

Drive Information
OS device name: /dev/sr0
Manufacturer: ASUS
Product: BW-16D1HT
Revision: 1.01
Serial number: K98DATA2234
Firmware date: 2113-02-05 19:30
Bus encryption flags: 1F
Highest AACS version: 64

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1939
Firmware type: Original (unpatched)
Firmware version: 1.01
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Partial
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

No disc inserted

You have the older, incompatible version of the drive. It has the old MT1939 drive platform, is manufactured before Oct 2015 and has the wrong hardware inside. It cannot be flashed and will never be able to read UHD discs.

Libredrive is already enabled so is good for standard blu-rau discs. That is as good as this drive gets.

Appreciate you checking it out. Thanks

I think I got duped into buying the incorrect drive off of Newegg, there are many listed as "16X BW-16D1HT Internal Blu-ray Burner Drive with 1 pc 4K movie(4K RW/NO RETAIL BOX)" implying that they support UHD. Mine arrived without the "1 pc 4K movie" and now I know why.

roberte1342 wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 18, 2025 2:17 am

Appreciate you checking it out. Thanks

I think I got duped into buying the incorrect drive off of Newegg, there are many listed as "16X BW-16D1HT Internal Blu-ray Burner Drive with 1 pc 4K movie(4K RW/NO RETAIL BOX)" implying that they support UHD. Mine arrived without the "1 pc 4K movie" and now I know why.

Sorry to read this!
SIMPLE RULE I learned the hard way: AVOID NEWEGG LIKE THE PLAGUE

Check out this:
65 5-star reviews, but 1,215 1-star baddies at https://www.consumeraffairs.com/computers/newegg.html