Anyone flashed a NEC ND-1100A to dual format 1300A? (more..)

[VEFF]

I have no idea if it is possible, or if what movk says it true, but see his post at:

http://forum.cdfreaks.com/showthread.ph ... genumber=4


Has anyone tried flashing their NEC ND-1100A (+RW) to a NEC ND-1300A (dual format +RW/-RW)?

[Ian]

I haven't heard of anyone doing it successfully. If someone had figured out how, you know the info would be all over the web.

People also need to remember that there are 2-3 different versions of the ND-1100A. Which one is "identical" to the ND-1300A?

[VEFF]

I haven't heard of anyone doing it successfully. If someone had figured out how, you know the info would be all over the web.

People also need to remember that there are 2-3 different versions of the ND-1100A. Which one is "identical" to the ND-1300A?

I suppose you're right on the first count Ian. I was hoping, on some off chance, that someone had just figured it out and was still testing it out or had posted it one some less popular web site, maybe even a foreign language site we wouldn't know about (assuming it is a language we don't speak).

On the second count, how does one know which version one has?
Is it by manufacture date? Or were the various iterations of the drive produced in parallel?


Since I already have an A05 in the PC that has the 1100A, it might not make sense to make (if it is found to be possible via software and/or hardware hack) my 1100A a dual drive anyway:
I would prefer to use my A05 more and not wear out my 1100A for both media formats, since most of my media is +R (just got 200 TDK 4X +R recently) and I hardly use the A05 (relatively speaking).

I try to spread my burning across the three burners, so I can both save time and minimize wear and tear on any one drive.

[Ian]

On the second count, how does one know which version one has?
Is it by manufacture date? Or were the various iterations of the drive produced in parallel?

Supposedly, they were manufactured at the same time, just at different factories. Look at the firmware revision. If its 1.6x-1.7x its one version of the drive and if its 1.Ax, its another.

[nealh]

so what do the different versions mean...mine was 1.A0

[Ian]

so what do the different versions mean...mine was 1.A0

I don't have any contacts at NEC so I wasn't able to confirm this. However, a reliable source said that they have different controller/optics.

[dhc014]

Yah, there was a PUH (pick-up-head) change from what I heard

>Aren't drives with the 1.A0 firmware different (hardware-wise) than the
>others?
>
>
It's hard to know. I've been working with NEC on these since Sept 2002,
back when it was supposed to do Minus media. They went through a couple
of pickup design changes before Dec 2002. I started with 1.27 firmware,
and a later batch had 1.90, 1.A0, 1.AX and 1.A0(b). I'm shipping units
with 1.A0(b) which has the features of 1.AX but keeps the 1.A0 naming to
get around some MS WHQL [BS].

[Dartman]

OT maybe but I'd like to see if the Sony 500 can upgrade to a 510 without being a paperweight afterwards. I did try just to see and it says no compatible drive found.
Sony claims they are different, maybe they are, maybe not...

[Kennyshin]

I have kept contact with NEC since early this year. NEC ND-1100A is ND-1300A according to the guys at NEC, Tokyo. The Japanese air tickets to Tokyo from Inchon/Seoul these days cost as low as less than US$100 per seat. We can actually save more through currency differences and market price differences even considering it takes hours to move between the two countries. NEC produces about 500,000 units of ND-1300A and why should the company let everyone "flash" the cheaper ND-1100A to ND-1300A? NEC is not Lite-On. NEC sells their drives to Dell, HP, TDK, and various other smaller companies by the hundreds to hundreds of thousands.

I don't know if it's possible but I know nobody has yet successfully flashed 1100A to 1300A or vice versa.

I'll try to get more news on NEC 8x drives.

[nealh]

Kennyshin are you saying there is currently no difference hardware wise from a NEC 1100A and NEC 1300A? It would make sense to lower production but just not allow all the hardware features to work...too bad that a simple flash is not available to convert the drive...

I got my NEC 1100A and love from Staples as a Cendyne in June and themanual says nothing about -R writing just + R..so I guess they fixed the manuals at least Cendyne did..I saw alot people saying there manuals indicated the drive was a +/- format

[Spazmogen]

http://etna.rpc1.org/nec/index.html has several firmwares for the drive and the flash utility needed to do it.

Take the time to read this lengthy thread on the matter: http://forum.rpc1.org/viewtopic.php?t=14038

it's a whopper in length, but read it anyway.