Is there a way around it? or a way to update it myself. I've tried three computers, and none of the drives were detected.
current laptop drive:
HL-DT-ST DVD-RW GWA-4082N Firmware-CG03
Let me provide a little history and perhaps that will help you modify the program.
There are three basic strategies to deal with identifying the functions a burner provides:
1) You can ask it (but it might not tell the truth)
2) You can look it up in a list of drives you know about
3) You can ask it, and then modify that if it matches a drive with known quirks
Goldenhawk's CDRWin (and presumably the Phatnoise burning software) choose method #1. That was good back when there were a limited number of burners (my first burner was a Yamaha 2x SCSI one, and CDRWin was well-known already). But these days new models are coming out daily. Probably the worst offender is LG. If you look at LG burners at Best Buy, the model number changes practically every week. OTOH, Pioneer model life cycles seem to last for at least a year.
If you can identify a supported drive from the same manufacturer with similar features, it is usually possible to patch the burner program(s) to detect the new drive as an older model. That doesn't work if the new drive has features (such as double-layer DVD burning) that don't exist in the older drive - you won't be able to use those features because the program will consider the drive to be the older model. Also, if you have a drive brand that the software has never heard of (for example, Optiarc - the new NEC / Sony joint venture) you'll have a hard time picking an older drive to emulate.
Another possiblity is to cross-flash the drive to a different firmware that is recognized. For example, the Plextor PX-740A is actually a re-badged BenQ DW1640. Note that this will void your drive's warranty and if you do it wrong, you can make your drive permanently un-usable. A good source for info on cross-flashing (and drive firmware in general) is
http://www.rpc1.orgBurners report their information in 3 pieces - Brand / Model / Revision.
Different software will look at various pieces of that. Most software ignores the revision information. CDRWin ignores brand and only looks at model.
Using a binary file editor, search for the model string for a drive that matches your drive most closely. Let's say your drive is a Pioneer DVR-214D (I made that up) and your software supports the DVR-212D. Using your editor, change the text in the program from "4" to "2" and save (make a backup first). Now try your software and it should recognize the drive.
