New to the uhd side, looking for some help

[LanceCBR]

Hello!

I've been using makeMKV for years but only on blurays.

Now that I have a server with ample storage I'm looking at starting to replace my Blu-ray files with 4k files, but I have no idea where to start.

I currently have this Asus drive, and from what I can see, this is considered a "uhd friendly" drive according to the list I found on the forum.
I need an external enclosure for this drive and I'm looking at picking up the vantec NST-536S3-BK.

My question is, will that work with just a laptop to flash the right firmware onto the drive to work? I used to be way more computer savvy but that was 15 years ago any help would be appreciated!

Thanks!

[sandeepsebastin]

Hi Lance,

The drive and the external enclosure are fine for ripping UHD files.

You should be able to do it using a laptop (A PC is required for the ASUS FW flasher as it is an .exe file. Once the drive is flashed, you can use either a pc or a mac). Once you have installed the drive in the enclosure, you need to do the following steps

1. Download the latest version of makemkv

2. Download the modified ASUS FW Flasher + Downgrade Enabled Firmware + the latest MK firmware pack (20/07/2020) from this page (thanks to MartyMcNuts) and unzip the files
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=18933

3. Connect your drive and check the firmware version using makemkv. If it is 3.02, you can see if it reads UHD's and makemkv is able to copy it. This is an unlikely scenario with a recently purchased drive and you will need to download the firmware using the ASUS FW flasher tool above. You have a choice of 3 firmware downloads
a) 3.10mk (compatible with makemkv and anydvdhd)
b) 3.01DE (compatible with makemkv, dvdfab and anydvdhd)
c) 3.02DE (compatible with makemkv, dvdfab and anydvdhd)

The 3.10mk firmware is recommended for maximum disc compatibility. Between 3.01 and 3.02, the 3.02 is supposedly better.

Cheers and good luck.
Sandeep

[rblood01]

Not to hijack the thread. A simple question. What if you have the 3.00 version on your drive. Got lucky and found a refurb that had that version in 3 drives I recently bought. (25 dollars a piece ) Should it be upgraded?

[dcoke22]

Not to hijack the thread. A simple question. What if you have the 3.00 version on your drive. Got lucky and found a refurb that had that version in 3 drives I recently bought. (25 dollars a piece ) Should it be upgraded?

I'm not one of the authority figures here regarding drives and firmware… but in my view, if the drive works for the ripping you're doing, then leave it alone.

[rblood01]

Excellent point dcoke22.

However, I don't have the disk to really test to see if it is working well for me. At least not yet. I'd prefer to have the system setup properly instead of messing around with it in the middle of trying to rip one. However, after this post here I learned how to dump my firmware of the drive in question and restore it if needed in the future. So I have, and updated it to the proper suggested version and make sure I have that dump nice and safe)

Thank You for your suggestion. I will continue using what I have and correct any issues as they occur in the future if necessary.

[Coopervid]

If your drive reports the M1959 chip in Makemkv you should be OK to flash newer firmware versions. If not leave it alone.