desperately seeking advice (dvd/cd combo)

It's been about a year since I bought my computer which was built with a "defective" cd/dvd combo drive, and I just don't know what to do anymore! I've tried searching through tutorials, downloading many dvd-ripping programs, and even tried to play EVERY dvd I own, but nothing helps! You guys seem pretty smart around here, so I thought I'd ask you as a last resort.

Here's the problem:

No program, not even windows itself, can see that there is a dvd in my drive. It burns cd's just fine, and windows does recognize that there is a dvd burner there, but it just can't see the disk.

Now, the really strange part is that it has randomly recognized 2 dvds in the past, but later when I tried to play them again it didn't see them!

I've even tried changing my OS from windows 98 to windows XP and that didn't help either.

Does anyone know what's wrong with it?

I'd really appreciate any suggestions you could give.

thanks


~Scud

 

The possibilities are poor cable connections or a fault in the operating system or even the defective drive you mention. Have you gone into System Manager to check the drives, their drivers, and if necessary troubleshoot?

Use the drive test in the Nero toolkit and/or download and run the SiSoft Sandra test utility and run the disk drive test. It may be just what you said, a defective drive. In which case, you'll have to replace it. The tests will give a starting point to troubleshoot the problem. You can download Nero and SiSoft Sandra from the net, both have free trials.

Nero is a recording suite as well as having test tools, so if you have a slow download speed, you may want to just use Si Sandra.

BTW, have you checked the wiring connections for the drive?

 

Wow, thanks for all the ideas! I didn't know I had a troubleshooter... anyway, I checked the drivers and it said I have the best one. Also I ran troubleshooter and it said maybe a decoder would be helpful so I might start searching for that.

Nero couldn't do much because it didn't see that a disk was inserted, and SiSoft Sandra said that I needed a compatable cd/dvd drive to run the test.

So I guess it could be a wiring problem or a decoder problem. Hmm. Maybe I'll have a friend look at it. Thanks for your help


~Scud

 

You really do need to clarify what you have on your machine - make, model burner etc.

Many laptops have CD Burner/DVD ROM combo units installed. This means you can read and burn CDs and read/play DVD's. However, if you have one of these combo's you will not be able to burn DVD's.

 

I took that to mean there is a burner. However, it is nice to have model and number so people can reference info on your particular setup.

With a DVD Video in the drive for just viewing (even with a DVD ROM with CD burner), SiSandra and the system should have recognized the drive to run a read test.

Scudly,
Give us the PC model and the model and number of the burner so the system info can be checked. But it sounds to me like it's time to put the PC in the shop if you've been suffering the problem for so long.
_X_X_X_X_X_[small][bold]'brobear'[/bold]



I was an earth-rim walker, a lurker at the threshold of the abyss. - Grendel -

[bold]Et tu, Brute![/bold][/small]

 

I'm kind of clueless about this stuff, so I don't know what my computer model is. Here's what I do know about it...

it's a pentium 4 3.21GHZ, 512RAM and running Windows Xp pro. (They didn't tell me much else about it because I bought it off of Ebay.)

The drive that I'm having trouble with copies both cd's and dvd's. The brand name is NESI, and the read/write speed for cd's is 40x/16x; and for dvd's it's 10x/4x.


~Scud

 

If you run SiSoft Sandra, that will list the components you have, or at least what it can read of what you have. Either have a friend that knows PCs take a look at it or have it checked out in a shop.

 

Well, Scudly may have already told us his problem. I checked the Nesi website and took a look at their products. Seems Nesi makes CD-R/RW DVD Combo Drives. I've never seen these in a manufactured PC except as an add on. Seems the drive may only be for reading DVDs.

Scudly,

Do you have a viewer program? If not, download one from Intervideo, they have a trial version and it's one of the best on the market. Will the DVD play?

If you want a good DVD burner (which you don't even have one now), go to PC World Magazine's web site and look at their list of best items. That will give you an idea of what's available. On the forums, we all have our own preferences. So, you'd hear a lot of bests from us. I've got a Memorex burner and not too many people talk about those. Mine's worked flawlessly. I'm not even saying the current Memorex are the best as mine is an older model. Look at what is best for you and if you aren't that good with PCs, try getting a knowledgable friend to look over what you have, as far as a system setup, and help make the decision.

 

http://www.nesi-fdd.com/main/support.htm
Tech support for Nesi, they have email and phone contacts.

 

Ok. I'll check that out. Thanks a bunch, Brobear.


~scud

 

You're welcome Scudly. Hope all goes well. I didn't think to ask what type PC you have. If you're buying drives to update your PC, here is the setup most people use if they have space in their case. A DVD ROM for reading CDs and DVDs. These read only drives are fairly inexpensive and lets you save the more expensive burner drive (lasers only last so long). Then a good DVD/CD -/+ R/RW. The faster DVD ROMs also save time on rips over some slower burner drives. You want a good drive that will read and burn all formats and it isn't a bad idea to get one of the newer drives that will burn the DVD 9 dual layer media. The DL burner will handle the 4.7 and the new DVD 9 dual layer media. The price is a bit high on the new DL media, but it will be nice to have a burner that will handle it when the prices become more affordable, until then the 4.7s are a good standby.

Well, good luck and I hope all goes well.