NEW OPTION: 'UHD Friendly' Firmware Downgrade / Cross-Flash Using Official (Modified) ASUS Flasher for ASUS & LG Drives

[MartyMcNuts]

The Archgon (BU40N) is an excellent drive. I have one myself!

It will most likely be delivered to you with firmware 1.01. Regardless, the best firmware for this drive is DE_LG_BU40N_1.00. It fully enables UHD ripping and is compatible with more (other) software.

Thanks for the help Marty!
Glad I picked it then !. I had done some research and I felt it was a great deal for a rebadged (LG BU40N) UHD-capable slim external burner.

I will use the flasher I linked to in my post then and select the DE_LG_BU40N_1.00 then.
I assume that the Asus ODD FW Changer flasher will allow me to downgrade to the above firmware, regardless of which OEM version it ends up shipping with?
(My drive arrives tomorrow).

Looking forward to getting it!

You can use the ASUS flasher or the newer SDFtool Flasher (just unzip it to the same folder as the ASUS flasher/firmware). Either will do the trick!

If the drive arrives with 1.01 on it, you can flash directly to DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

If it comes with 1.02 or 1.03, it becomes a 2 step process:
1. Flash the matching MK firmware from the "old" folder in the MK pack first, ie: 1.02 --> HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BU40N-1.02-NM01201-211711301218
2. Then you can flash DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

[njweb]

The Archgon (BU40N) is an excellent drive. I have one myself!

It will most likely be delivered to you with firmware 1.01. Regardless, the best firmware for this drive is DE_LG_BU40N_1.00. It fully enables UHD ripping and is compatible with more (other) software.

Thanks for the help Marty!
Glad I picked it then !. I had done some research and I felt it was a great deal for a rebadged (LG BU40N) UHD-capable slim external burner.

I will use the flasher I linked to in my post then and select the DE_LG_BU40N_1.00 then.
I assume that the Asus ODD FW Changer flasher will allow me to downgrade to the above firmware, regardless of which OEM version it ends up shipping with?
(My drive arrives tomorrow).

Looking forward to getting it!

You can use the ASUS flasher or the newer SDFtool Flasher (just unzip it to the same folder as the ASUS flasher/firmware). Either will do the trick!

If the drive arrives with 1.01 on it, you can flash directly to DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

If it comes with 1.02 or 1.03, it becomes a 2 step process:
1. Flash the matching MK firmware from the "old" folder in the MK pack first, ie: 1.02 --> HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BU40N-1.02-NM01201-211711301218
2. Then you can flash DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

Thanks a lot!
It arrived late this afternoon. Will be trying it out tonight or, worst case, tomorrow morning.
Can't wait.

Side note - I was a bit surprised that Amazon shipped it in just the small original box (other than the carrying case there is no padding in that box) with a shipping label slapped on top.
Meanwhile they often pack non fragile items in a separate box...
Anyway, hopefully the delivery guys did not toss it around (it was not marked Fragile).

The drive looks nice - compact / sleek with a sturdy nicely finished enclosure.

Update / Edit - The drive came with fw 1.01. I flashed it to DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.
Very easy and the whole process took only 10 seconds or so!

[MartyMcNuts]

Thanks for the help Marty!
Glad I picked it then !. I had done some research and I felt it was a great deal for a rebadged (LG BU40N) UHD-capable slim external burner.

I will use the flasher I linked to in my post then and select the DE_LG_BU40N_1.00 then.
I assume that the Asus ODD FW Changer flasher will allow me to downgrade to the above firmware, regardless of which OEM version it ends up shipping with?
(My drive arrives tomorrow).

Looking forward to getting it!

You can use the ASUS flasher or the newer SDFtool Flasher (just unzip it to the same folder as the ASUS flasher/firmware). Either will do the trick!

If the drive arrives with 1.01 on it, you can flash directly to DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

If it comes with 1.02 or 1.03, it becomes a 2 step process:
1. Flash the matching MK firmware from the "old" folder in the MK pack first, ie: 1.02 --> HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BU40N-1.02-NM01201-211711301218
2. Then you can flash DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.

Thanks a lot!
It arrived late this afternoon. Will be trying it out tonight or, worst case, tomorrow morning.
Can't wait.

Side note - I was a bit surprised that Amazon shipped it in just the small original box (other than the carrying case there is no padding in that box) with a shipping label slapped on top.
Meanwhile they often pack non fragile items in a separate box...
Anyway, hopefully the delivery guys did not toss it around (it was not marked Fragile).

The drive looks nice - compact / sleek with a sturdy nicely finished enclosure.

Update / Edit - The drive came with fw 1.01. I flashed it to DE_LG_BU40N_1.00.
Very easy and the whole process took only 10 seconds or so!

Good stuff!! Enjoy!

[Marx1313]

Hello,

I just got a new LG WH16NS40 SVC code NS50 with firmware 1.05

I've tried flashing it to WH16NS60 1.02MK and keep getting Updating Failure #5.

[MartyMcNuts]

Hello,

I just got a new LG WH16NS40 SVC code NS50 with firmware 1.05

I've tried flashing it to WH16NS60 1.02MK and keep getting Updating Failure #5.

Your drive comes with an encrypted firmware. Grab the SDFtool flasher from here https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896 and follow the steps to flash.

[Marx1313]

Hello,

I just got a new LG WH16NS40 SVC code NS50 with firmware 1.05

I've tried flashing it to WH16NS60 1.02MK and keep getting Updating Failure #5.

Your drive comes with an encrypted firmware. Grab the SDFtool flasher from here https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896 and follow the steps to flash.

The SDFtool flasher worked prefect! Thank you.

[elduderino]

I have only recently taken the leap to 4k, and was really excited to rip a big Chris Nolan Collection I recently bought to my Plex server, only to realize that my existing Bluray drive was not up to snuff.

Thank god for you guys! I bought an ASUS BW-16D1HT, and with fairly little effort, was able to get it working, and we are currently extracting the mkv for Dark Knight now

I don't want to put irresponsible advice out there, so mods, please weigh in if what I did was bad, but I also got the Updating Failure message (#4 for me though) when trying to rollback to an older official firmware. I was about to try the SDFtool, but on a whim, I tried the MK firmware for this drive, and that updated just fine. From there, I was able to choose the firmware I wanted without any further errors. I feel like y'all won't be surprised to hear, but none of the official firmwares for this devices worked, but the tried-and-true NS60 one did the trick.

Anyway, thanks for providing this additional support, and for the great app that is MakeMKV.

Cheers

[njgura87]

hey, I'm really new to the whole drive firmware flashing,

I recently bought an LG BP50NB40 with SVC NB40 (i didn't specifically choose that SVC) and it has a drive platform of MT1959. the revision is also 1.03. I believe from one of the posts in this thread or another that I SHOULD, in theory, be able to flash the BP50NB40-NB40 IF it has a drive platform of MT1959, but when I use the modified Asus flasher I get an updating failure #5 error. when I used the modified LG flasher I just get stuck on 0%.

can anyone help me with this as I really feel like I wasted my money?

Drive Information
OS device name: G:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE BP50NB40
Revision: 1.03
Serial number: SIKB1K7805309
Firmware date: 2120-05-07 09:17
Bus encryption flags: 17

LibreDrive Information
Status: Possible (with patched firmware)
Drive platform: MT1959
Harware support: Yes
Firmware support: No
Firmware type: Original (patched version available)
Firmware version: 1.03
DVD all regions: Possible (with patched firmware)
BD raw data read: Possible (with patched firmware)
BD raw metadata read: Possible (with patched firmware)
Unrestricted read speed: Possible (with patched firmware)

Yep, use the SDFtool Flasher. Get it from here. https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896

Your drive comes with an encrypted firmware, so here are the steps for you to follow:

• Run SDFtool Flasher and select drive.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin from the "HL-DT-ST" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Check the "enc?" box as your drive's stock firmware is encrypted.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP50NB40 1.03 MK, which will have enabled LibreDrive. Now, if you also want UHD capabilities, please perform the below steps:

• Select the drive in SDFtool Flasher.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP60NB10 1.00 MK which has LibreDrive enabled and can also read UHD discs.

Thank you for the steps! I just picked up the same drive too from Best Buy and decided to try it on a friend's disk. I did the flashing steps as stated, but makemkv is not opening the disc.

[MartyMcNuts]

hey, I'm really new to the whole drive firmware flashing,

I recently bought an LG BP50NB40 with SVC NB40 (i didn't specifically choose that SVC) and it has a drive platform of MT1959. the revision is also 1.03. I believe from one of the posts in this thread or another that I SHOULD, in theory, be able to flash the BP50NB40-NB40 IF it has a drive platform of MT1959, but when I use the modified Asus flasher I get an updating failure #5 error. when I used the modified LG flasher I just get stuck on 0%.

can anyone help me with this as I really feel like I wasted my money?

Drive Information
OS device name: G:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE BP50NB40
Revision: 1.03
Serial number: SIKB1K7805309
Firmware date: 2120-05-07 09:17
Bus encryption flags: 17

LibreDrive Information
Status: Possible (with patched firmware)
Drive platform: MT1959
Harware support: Yes
Firmware support: No
Firmware type: Original (patched version available)
Firmware version: 1.03
DVD all regions: Possible (with patched firmware)
BD raw data read: Possible (with patched firmware)
BD raw metadata read: Possible (with patched firmware)
Unrestricted read speed: Possible (with patched firmware)

Yep, use the SDFtool Flasher. Get it from here. https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896

Your drive comes with an encrypted firmware, so here are the steps for you to follow:

• Run SDFtool Flasher and select drive.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin from the "HL-DT-ST" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Check the "enc?" box as your drive's stock firmware is encrypted.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP50NB40 1.03 MK, which will have enabled LibreDrive. Now, if you also want UHD capabilities, please perform the below steps:

• Select the drive in SDFtool Flasher.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP60NB10 1.00 MK which has LibreDrive enabled and can also read UHD discs.

Thank you for the steps! I just picked up the same drive too from Best Buy and decided to try it on a friend's disk. I did the flashing steps as stated, but makemkv is not opening the disc.

Did you cross-flash it to BP60NB10 firmware?

[njgura87]

Yep, use the SDFtool Flasher. Get it from here. https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896

Your drive comes with an encrypted firmware, so here are the steps for you to follow:

• Run SDFtool Flasher and select drive.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP50NB40-NB50-1.03-NM00800-212005070917.bin from the "HL-DT-ST" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Check the "enc?" box as your drive's stock firmware is encrypted.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP50NB40 1.03 MK, which will have enabled LibreDrive. Now, if you also want UHD capabilities, please perform the below steps:

• Select the drive in SDFtool Flasher.

• Select "WRITE firmware" if not already selected.

• Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

• Press START to flash your drive.

Your drive should now be on firmware BP60NB10 1.00 MK which has LibreDrive enabled and can also read UHD discs.

Thank you for the steps! I just picked up the same drive too from Best Buy and decided to try it on a friend's disk. I did the flashing steps as stated, but makemkv is not opening the disc.

Did you cross-flash it to BP60NB10 firmware?

Yes, per this step, Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

The device now shows as:
Drive Information
OS device name: D:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE BP60NB10
Revision: 1.00
Serial number: SIKX1K7M92258
Firmware date: 2117-11-21 17:20
Bus encryption flags: 17

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.00
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

When I put in a UHD or blu-ray disk, makemkv just spins.

[MartyMcNuts]

Thank you for the steps! I just picked up the same drive too from Best Buy and decided to try it on a friend's disk. I did the flashing steps as stated, but makemkv is not opening the disc.

Did you cross-flash it to BP60NB10 firmware?

Yes, per this step, Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

The device now shows as:
Drive Information
OS device name: D:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE BP60NB10
Revision: 1.00
Serial number: SIKX1K7M92258
Firmware date: 2117-11-21 17:20
Bus encryption flags: 17

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.00
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

When I put in a UHD or blu-ray disk, makemkv just spins.

Sometimes it takes a minute to be read. I've also had to disconnect/reconnect the drive on occasion for the disc to be picked up.

[njgura87]

Did you cross-flash it to BP60NB10 firmware?

Yes, per this step, Select firmware HL-DT-ST-BD-RE_BP60NB10-1.00-NM00200-211711211720.bin from the "old" folder in the MK firmware pack you have already downloaded with the ASUS flasher.

The device now shows as:
Drive Information
OS device name: D:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE BP60NB10
Revision: 1.00
Serial number: SIKX1K7M92258
Firmware date: 2117-11-21 17:20
Bus encryption flags: 17

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.00
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

When I put in a UHD or blu-ray disk, makemkv just spins.

Sometimes it takes a minute to be read. I've also had to disconnect/reconnect the drive on occasion for the disc to be picked up.

I just noticed that, I have 2 other drives, WH12LS38 and BU20N and I noticed neither of them were able to open a disc on my new MakeMKV 1.15.3 install. I did a reboot and was able to open the discs again. I also noticed I was using the SDtool flasher incorrectly so I rolled back my drive and I'm attempting it again.

[karsus]

I have an LG BE16NU50 and LG BH16NS55 drives. Thanks to this guide I have succesfully flash a DE firmware and I can rip 4K and burn blank media.
Is it possible to crossflash these drives to enable scanning of burned bluray? (Qpxtools or Opti Drive Control).
Could this change possibly break the possibility of burning new discs?

[...]
I ordered a BH16NS55 today, I'll flash it to BH16NS55-MK (as it'll probably come with the 1.04 firmware version with downgrade protection), then crossflash it to WH16NS58-1.V5-MK. I'll cross fingers and report whether it works here.

If it doesn't, well, we're probably out of luck (and I've been looking into this topic for a bunch of hours).

Alright, answering to myself: it works!
I received my BH16NS55 today, with fw 1.04 as expected. I flashed 1.04-MK over it, successfully, then crossflashed WH16NS58-1.V5-MK. I can now successfully scan BD-R discs!

Note that as a cool bonus feature, it does also support DVD quality scanning (PIE/PIF/POF).
Of course, it also happens to be a LibreDrive, which may come out handy at some point Clearly, it's the perfect drive for me!

You sir, rock! Thank god for this forum... This is awesome news.

Mods, can we somehow sticky this info?
I know that UHD friendly firmware is important. However, quality scanning on BD media is critical for those of us also interested in long-term archival applications. (In addition other forms of backup, my family videos & pictures are currently stored on JVC ISO-10995 certified media.)

More questions:
1. Does the modified Vinpower firmware support BD-XL quality scanning? I'd love to get this confirmed.
2. Do we know if any of the current scanning software supports the extended capacity that multi-layer BD-R/RE media provides?

General cross-flashing question:
3. I've an WH14NS40 NS50 on v1.02. with a manufacture date of 2016. From my reading, I'm assuming there is not a significant hardware difference compared to a WH16NS58. If I cross-flash to WH16NS58-1.V5-MK would there be any reason to believe it would perform burns/scans differently than the native Vinpower duplication hardware?

I've got some BD-XL media coming, so I'll try to follow up with my own experiences on this relatively soon.

[mazdamundi]

Hello, I was going through the forums trying to figure out how to downgrade my LG BP60NB10 from 1.02 to 1.00 since it is taking a really long time to process a movie (it estimated 140+ hours and growing).

Anyways, After reading through the forums I came across the process and landed here. I downloaded the flasherfrom [here][https://www.mediafire.com/file/mezq26ac ... 9.zip/file] and ran it through VirusTotal scanner [results][https://www.virustotal.com/gui/file/d2f ... /detection] and it got 2 hits for Malicious Archive. Is this something to be worried about or just by the nature of the flasher, it may show up as a threat.

Thanks!

[MartyMcNuts]

Hello, I was going through the forums trying to figure out how to downgrade my LG BP60NB10 from 1.02 to 1.00 since it is taking a really long time to process a movie (it estimated 140+ hours and growing).

Anyways, After reading through the forums I came across the process and landed here. I downloaded the flasherfrom [here][https://www.mediafire.com/file/mezq26ac ... 9.zip/file] and ran it through VirusTotal scanner [results][https://www.virustotal.com/gui/file/d2f ... /detection] and it got 2 hits for Malicious Archive. Is this something to be worried about or just by the nature of the flasher, it may show up as a threat.

Thanks!

It is clean. That's just the nature of the type of software. I can tell you that this flasher won't work on your drive as 1.02 is an encrypted firmware. You need to use the SDFtool Flasher. Just unzip it to the same folder as the ASUS flasher & firmware. Grab it from here and read the instructions: https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic ... 16&t=22896