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DVD+R burning troubles with sonic and nero

Discussion in 'DVDR' started by dametony, Dec 6, 2004.

  1. dametony

    dametony Member

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    hello,

    i'm here humbly asking for some assistance with a problem that's been driving me nuts for a while (a few months!). i hope i'm posting in the right area -- it seems like i am. please forgive me if i'm not.

    here's the deal -- i got a dell dimension 4600 last year, with an NEC ND-1100A DVD+R/RW burner. it worked perfectly until a few months ago, when my sonic recordnow! program stopped burning any DVD's whatsoever. every single one is a coaster. meanwhile, CD-R's burn fine, and still do.

    mostly what i am doing is ripping DVD's with DVDshrink, and then making a data disk with the VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS files. this worked great, and then it stopped working. so i downloaded the newest nero software, and, voila, all of a sudden, i could burn DVD's with no problem with that program.

    now, nero has ceased working, as well (although i just burned a DVD+RW disc with it, and that worked fine. don't know why that would be).

    i've tried LOTS of things like changing media (nothing works at all, really, and the verbatim discs i was using worked fine before), updating my drivers and firmware (i think i did that stuff right), uninstalling and reinstalling sonic and nero, and i tried buying a memorex cleaner disc, but apparently, my computer doesn't want to play it (it works in other players in my house, though). i was going to defragment, but someone told me that it wasn't really necessary for me, as i'm running windows XP. also, i can't defragment, because i need 15% free space, and right now, i have, like, 2%.

    i'm coming here as a last-ditch effort before i call the geek squad...any help would be VERY MUCH appreciated!

    thanks,
    tony
     
  2. colw

    colw Active member

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    I would suggest that your limited amount of free space i.e., 2% is your problem.

    It is recommended that you have at least 8 to 10GB of free space to allow for DVD burning and other operating system functions.
     
  3. dametony

    dametony Member

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    really? do you think it could honestly be that simple?

    i'm burning CD's like crazy to make room right now.

    you know, that would make sense -- a few months ago, i started realizing that i was filling up my hard drive with things, but i never figured that there was a correlation between the amount of stuff on my computer and my inability to burn DVD's.

    gosh, i hope you're right! i'll keep you posted.
     
  4. colw

    colw Active member

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    Could well be - as a rule of thumb it is normally recommended that at least 10% of your hard drive capacity be left free for system processes, swap files etc.

    If you are ripping DVD's to hardisk you will normally need at least 4 to 5 GB free space plus some additional GBs for system processes.
     
  5. dametony

    dametony Member

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    boy, this is invaluable information that i'm thankful for. i appreciate your help.

    does everyone agree that this is probably my trouble?

    i only wonder why sonic would stop working, but then nero would work fine for a little while? maybe it can deal with less disk space better?
     
  6. ccampbell

    ccampbell Regular member

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    I would agree that it is very likely.

    Without actual error messages, or log files to go by, I would have to agree with Colw's diagnoses.

    Regards,

    Craig
    Ahead Software
    USA
     
  7. dametony

    dametony Member

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    craig, the errors i'm getting with nero are of the "power calibration error" and "could not complete disc-at-once" variety.

    the ones with sonic are vague -- just a generic error message.
     
  8. ccampbell

    ccampbell Regular member

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    I would like to see the full Nero log file, minus your serial key of course.

    But the error messages you mention below are not assoicated with low Hard Drive Memory.

    You should still defrag and free up some space on your Hard Drive, but this more than likely will not resolve your issue.

    You can do a search on 'Power Calibration' Errors on this website and you will find a number of possible solutions for this issue. As for 'Can not complete disc-at-once', this is usually preseded by another error, and I would need to know what that error is.

    Regards,

    Craig
    Ahead Software
    USA
     
  9. dametony

    dametony Member

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    the more i think about this, the more i think it's not a media or software problem. the verbatim DVD+R discs i have had worked fine through 50+ burns for me, and the imation ones i bought to test the media question won't burn, either. so unless a computer just starts rejecting media that worked fine before (can this happen?), it can't be media.

    again, CD-R's burn with no problems whatsoever, not a single error. i burned 15 discs last night, and no problems. are CD-R's burned with a different part of the laser than DVD+R's would be or something?

    and if neither nero nor sonic recordnow! are dependable (which probably means the burning program is not the problem), then i would guess a few things:

    1)i should do a disc cleanup, defrag, and make some room on my hard drive. right now, i've only got about 6 or 7 GB free out of 112. last night, i also found a trojan hiding in one of the files that i deleted that CWShredder had been missing.

    (side note: my hotmail has been having trouble loading recently. i can use it fine at work, but when i go home, the page will come up and then freeze for a few minutes without fail. every other website works perfectly fine. i only mention this to give you as much info as possible)

    2)i should do a compressed air dust-blow -- there's big chunks of dust in the fan in the back, and i would guess that some of that is inside the machine (although if dust was a problem, why can i burn CD-R's just fine?!?).

    anyone have any suggestions about how to go about doing this correctly?

    3)think about getting a new drive (although it's only just over a year old, so this doesn't seem right to me).

    i hate to think that this last option is the problem. but it could be, i guess.

    hmmm...
     
  10. ccampbell

    ccampbell Regular member

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    Hi Dametony,

    As a rule, if more than one brand of media has issues, then its unlikely to be a media issue. (But all rules are meant to be broken, but its still a pretty good rule. :) )

    And yes, some compoentes, diodes etc, can go bad or a cold sauder joint could affect DVD Burning, and not CD Burning. I've seen it a number of times already.

    You should clean the optical head first. There is a small chance that dust can cause an issue.

    If all else fails, the recorder should be sent in for service.

    Regards,

    Craig
    Ahead Software
    USA
     
  11. dametony

    dametony Member

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    cleaning the optical head -- is that something i can do with one of those store-bought cleaner discs?

    i tried to do that once, with a memorex brand cleaner disc, but my dell won't accept it. other devices i have like it just fine. any suggestions for cleaners i could/should try?

    as an aside, i'd like to thank colw and craig for their help thus far. it's very kind of them.
     
  12. ccampbell

    ccampbell Regular member

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    Hi Dametony,

    I used to repair drives so I usually just clean the heads manually. So I'm not one to recommend a cleaner.

    Blowing Compressed air through the drive over the heads is the quick easy solution.

    Regards,

    Craig
    Ahead Software
    USA
     
  13. dametony

    dametony Member

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    update:

    i have changed the burn speed in nero from 4x to 2.4x, and i have burned four or five discs in a row with no problems. what does this mean?

    i haven't yet done disk cleaner or defragged, and my hard drive is still very full (only 6 GB of free space).

    does this mean my burner is gummed up, or it's crapping the bed?
     
  14. ccampbell

    ccampbell Regular member

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    Hi Dametony,

    It could mean a number of things. It could still mean you just need a cleaning. It could mean your recorder was having trouble with the media that was inserted, even though you tried more than one brand, it could mean the recorder's head is slightly out of alignment, and is able to compensate at lower write speeds, it could mean the power to the recorder is fluctuating, etc...

    Only time will tell which it is. :)

    Regards,

    Craig
    Ahead Software
    USA
     

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