Can I replace the DVD drive in a Pioneer 533H-S ?

[gwoiler]

gwolier, what you are doing now is shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic. Your 533 is failing, and when they fail there's no predicting how they'll react to various discs. It is typical of how utterly wacky these models get that the damn thing would suddenly develop a taste for TDK 16x, now universally despised as the worst rock-bottom crap media you can buy, running neck-and-neck with Memorex (these brands have not been actually alive for six-seven years: they're all shell names bought by junk media mfrs). If you have priceless stuff on the HDD of your 533, take advantage of its momentary compatibility with the TDKs to back up all your shows. Just don't expect miracles to last forever: TDK is notoriously incompatible with most DVD recorders, eventually the laser will get disgusted and start wonking again. This might be tomorrow, or it might be next year: totally unpredictable. Make sure you immediately back up each new archive recording from HDD to DVD, don't leave stuff sitting with the assumption, "oh, it works with TDK now". TDK compatibility varies from disc to disc in a single pack, and each pack comes from a different factory in a different country.

Thanks... I will. I am limited in how I use the unit. I record prophecy and present truth programs off the G19 satelite and make DVDs. These include health programs... Ever heard of Amazing Discoveries or Amazing Facts? They are both on the internet. For anyone wanting to know the Truth about what is going on in our wacky world... these sites... programs put all the pieces together. I just copy... trim... make DVDs and give'm away. Lately I been giving it a workout. Sometims I aim a 3 chip vx2000 cam at the laptop screen and firewire it in to the 533 and make actually good looking videos from online shows. Anyway... I will keep in mind that at any given moment I might be doing the transplant from the editing computer that has a 109. Here is a link to a new one if anyone is interested...

http://www.esaitech.com/commerce/catalog/product.jsp?product_id=18258

[[_chef_]]

The firmware of the 109 is immaterial: the recorder will not accept the PC version of the drive and thus cannot accept updated or different firmware (not that Pioneer firmware hacks ever worked all that well anyway). When you replace the 109 drive in a Pioneer 531-533-633, you are either using a complete drop-in replacement from Pioneer (rare, excruciatingly expensive) or you are transferring the controller board and firmware from the original recorder burner into the chassis of a generic 109 burner mechanism meant for PC use. Either way, you are limited to the DVD-recorder-dedicated burner firmware from early 2005. And in any case, no update that I know of will make a 109 burner work reliably with todays often-cruddy 16x media: these discs are designed for very quick PC-hosted burners, period, that they work at all in any DVD recorder made before 2006 is a bonus, not a guarantee.

I have my reason asking that... your explanation is in my opinion too limited and stuck.
I never said that I would do what you posted anyway. There are other ways.

@gwoiler,
thanks for the info!
The model number is exactly "DVR-A09"?
A 109 drive can be transformed into an A09 just by firmware flashing...

Way overprized 109 burners, even they are newish... I found some on ebay for less than 25 bucks.

[orsetto]

I have my reason asking that... your explanation is in my opinion too limited and stuck. I never said that I would do what you posted anyway. There are other ways.

You misunderstand my point. I did not realize you were interested in repairing your own recorder, my post was not meant to criticize you, but to advise gwoiler that your comment about firmware was immaterial to him, because his question regards a USA/Canada model 533 which is dramatically, grossly different from the model 530 that was popular in Europe. The North American models of 2005 are nothing like the European models, repairs are way more complicated because of a motherboard defect combined with poorly-implemented guide software which is again nothing like the European 530 guide. I realize you are trying to give options to gwoiier, but unless you've repaired a number of the American 2005 Pioneers (as I have) you could unintentionally give advice based on your German model that won't work for gwolier. The guide software, motherboard/burner interface, and HDD format on the three USA/Canada 2005 models is different from every other Pioneer model ever made: all the others can be repaired fairly easily using similar methods, but the 531-533-633 are a very peculiar subset.

@gwoiler, thanks for the info!
The model number is exactly "DVR-A09"?
A 109 drive can be transformed into an A09 just by firmware flashing...

People are easily confused by the burner models because Pioneer rather stupidly used three or four model naming schemes for different countries and different retailers. The DVR-109 and DVR-A09 are exactly the same burner, minor differences appear when used in a PC but Pioneer DVD recorders cannot tell the difference because they do not recognize the controller chip in the generic 109 or A09 drives: these burners are useless in any recorder unless you open them up and swap the controller board from the dead recorder burner into the replacement 109 or A09 generic burner.

ALL of the 2005 Pioneers- American, European, and Asian- use a proprietary dedicated recorder version of the 109/A09 burner which is model number DVR-R09-XP. This is the ONLY version with the CPRM code interface that lets the recorder "talk" to the burner. This CPRM data is hard coded into the DVR-R09-XP controller board: you cannot obtain it elsewhare, and you can't "flash" a generic DVR-109 or DVR-AO9 into a DVR-R09-XP. Also, only the DVR-R09-XL controller board has the proprietary miniature ribbon cable connection from burner to motherboard: the 109 and A09 have the large EIDE multipin socket. There are only two repair options: buy a complete replacement DVR-R09-XP from Pioneer service (very expensive, $200+ US$) -or- swap the controller board from the "dead" DVR-R09-XP in your recorder into a working, generic DVR-109/DVR-A09 (converting it into a DVR-R09-XP). Note many used, second-hand Pioneers have already been repaired in this manner, if you open them up the label on the burner may indeed say "DVR-109" or "DVR-A09", but that is the outer shell and laser mechanism only- the required DVR-R09-XP controller board has been swapped into it.

An older VH thread dedicated to the DVR-R09-XP can be found here.

[gwoiler]

chef

It is the DVR-R09-XP exactly like can be seen in some pictures on one of the threads in this topic that someone else posted in the past.

The TDK 16x DVDs are working flawlessly. Have burned 4 or 5 already. So smooth... not initial hunting.... just burns with no hesitation. Sweet. These were bought at Radio Shack in Washington state. I know... it could die at any time. But, until then... I am happy camper.

[[_chef_]]

Hey orsetto,

good point and good info!
Wasnt aware such a special model existed. The specific info made me think then.

greetings _chef_

[gwoiler]

Again.. I wanted to say "thanks" for all the help I received in this forum...! I now have the new Magnavox in a box... and will leave it there until I need it.

[Seeker47]

Regarding the workaround to get rid of the "Empty Title" DVD menu item in the Magnavox: I wasn't suggesting you record continually past your desired material to fill out a DVD in a single pass. While that does kill the "Empty Title", as seeker47 says it is not recommended to record a single program until the DVD shuts down at capacity runout (due to quality issues at the outside edge of most media). Instead, you would dub your trimmed HDD title to the DVD, but before finalizing switch to "direct dvd" record mode and begin a second "dummy" title which will run out the disc. Delete this placeholder title before finalizing, and you will get a nice clean DVD menu design. Note this dummy recording must be of an active video signal: it can't be dead air. Also, if you record the dummy title at XP it will finish faster.

Does this "direct DVD" record mode with this fake secondary title actually put anything onto the DVD ? (Otherwise, how would that avoid filling up the disc ?) Just wanted to make sure I understood what you were saying here.

[orsetto]

Yes, you would need to actually record something to the "dummy" title for this to work. Like most things recorder-related, explaining in words is way more convoluted than the actual task. I'll try it again and see if I can be more clear:

The Magnavox (and Phillips and current Toshibas) use a special VR+ native file mode/operating system, which has a few quirks compared to the more traditional proprietary file formats used by Pioneer, Panasonic, etc. This system insists on visibly displaying remaining/empty disc capacity in the menu of all burned DVDs. As an example, lets say you record a 98 minute movie at the SP record mode. This leaves approx 25 mins unused on a typical blank DVD. If you finalize such a DVD in most recorders, you'll get a menu showing the title info for that recording and two or three blank title areas that are unused (no text or thumbnail, but perhaps a frame). The Magnavox, OTOH, will have a menu showing the recorded title info plus an obnoxious bold-text "EMPTY TITLE" heading underneath, with the remaining disc capacity in minutes. This looks really lame, amateurish, and confuses the hell out of many people you might give the discs to.

The only way to eliminate this pointless menu contamination is to make sure you don't have any unused capacity left on a DVD before you finalize it. So lets go back to our example of a 98 mins movie you recorded to the Magnavox HDD. First, you would high-speed lossless dub it to a blank DVD. Before finalizing, use the DVD setup menu to choose a thumbnail and make any last-minute changes to the title text. Then, switch operation mode from HDD to DVD. With a channel or other input visible on your TV, hit the record button and let the recorder run until it burns up the rest of the blank space on the DVD (it will stop automatically). Go back into the DVD setup menu, and delete or "hide" this second dummy recording (no need to enter a title or thumbnail). Now you can finalize the disc. The result will be a clean menu, similar to what you would get from other brands of recorder: a thumbnail and text title for the movie, and nothing else showing except blank frames where additional titles would be entered if the disc had any. (No need to worry about the "dummy" recording extending to the outer limit of the disc: its never going to be played, and your primary recording remains well within the safety zone circumference).

Some Magnavox users are fanatical about this and always strive to get rid of the "EMPTY TITLE" menu entry. Personally I only bother if its a disc with just one or two recordings on it. Otherwise, since the default menu design accomodates three titles per page, if you have three or more "legit" recordings on the DVD the dopey "EMPTY TITLE" notice will be pushed back to the second page of the menu, and not be visible upon first loading the disc in a player. Most of the irritation happens if the "EMPTY TITLE" appears on the opening screen of the DVD: if you have a disc of three or more TV show episodes, having the "EMPTY TITLE" appear on the second page is not nearly as bothersome as having it appear on the opening menu right underneath "Citizen Kane" or "Casablanca".

UPDATE: a brand new model has already replaced the MDR513, which has only been out a couple months. The new model MDR515 increases the HDD size from 320GB to 500GB, and includes several operational refinements to make the machine a bit easier to use and understand. One of these "updates" is they changed the heading "EMPTY TITLE" to read "EMPTY SPACE", much less confusing and arguably less annoying. The MDR515 currently sells for $279 via Wal*MART online, going by past history the price will likely drop by $30-50 within a month or so (the MDR513 initially sold for $269 but dropped down to $229 within weeks). Don't forget to check the J&R website for like-new factory repacks of the older models: the 160GB H2160 goes for only $159 and the 320GB only $179 when they have some.