I was looking around for a good CD ripper when I came accros this :
Advanced Audio CD Ripper 1.046A

The drive I use to rip CD's with is a Plextor PlexWriter 40/12/40A .
Now this CD ripper has a mode specially designed for Plextor drives .
I fiddle a bit with the settings and (no joke) it rips a 5 min. long track in 5 sec.
I don't know about other drives but I think that's a record !

Also they claim to have a "unique" technique to avoid popping sounds and other background noises .
I think they are speaking the truth : the best MP3's I've heard sofar coming from a CD ripper !

Too bad the software is shareware ($20)
More info : http://www.mediatwins.com/

BTW: I have some CD's with serious scratches on them .
If it still produces a reasonable result I'm buying .
Also , the "ultra-super-fast" ripping only works on Plextor drives .
You might want to consider buying a new writer for this reason alone LOL !