Installing the MRX-525G in our test computer took only a couple of minutes. I took the drive out of the box, left the jumper set to master and installed it on the secondary IDE chain by connecting the IDE cable and power connector. When I turned on the computer the BIOS detected it as a drive supporting UDMA 66. After making sure that DMA was enabled in the Device Manager, I was ready to start installing the software.
Software Installation:
As I mentioned earlier, the MRX-525G comes with a CD full of software from Nero. If you have autorun enabled on your computer, the menu you see below will automatically come up when you insert the disc. From here, you can choose to install Nero 7 Essentials, PhotoShow Express or the entire Memorex Software Suite.
Installing Nero 7 Essentials and PhotoShow Express is fairly straightforward. Just keep in mind that by default the setup program for Nero 7 Essentials will install everything, but InCD, onto your computer. If you don't want to install the entire suite, select the custom installation. From here you can choose the components you want. Once you reboot, you'll be ready to start burning your own discs.
In case you run into trouble and need some help, Memorex has included a small "Software Guide." This guide includes some brief instructions on how to install and use the various applications included in the Nero 7 Essentials suite.Because the guide is fairly small, these instructions only go over the basic features of each application. If you need to go beyond the basics, additional documentation can be accessed through Nero's SmartStart launcher.
Documentation:
Most of the MRX-525G's documentation is located in the "Hardware Guide." Similar to the one included with the MRX-500N, this fold out guide is well laid out and contains a fair amount of information. It starts out by getting the user familiarized with their new DVD writer. The first section goes over the MRX-525G'sfeatures, system requirements, package contents and specifications.
From here, the guide jumps right into the physical installation of the drive. The instructions take the user step by step through the entire installation process and cover all the basics including how to set the jumpers, install the drive into an empty drive bay and hook up the cables. If you're not sure whether the drive should be set up as a master or slave, the guide also has a few example configurations along with their corresponding jumper settings. Last but not least, the guide finishes up with a few short sections on how to operate the MRX-525G and troubleshoot some of the common problems that people might experience.
Like the other Memorex drives I've reviewed, the MRX-525G was very easy to install. I had no problems getting the drive or the software installed and working. If you do need a little help for some reason, the documentation contains a lot of useful information about the drive and software. With this in mind, the MRX-525G scores a 9 out of 10 for the installation portion of this review.
