I'm using a NEC DVD+RW ND-6100A 8x burner, but, when i put in a Memorex 8x DVD+R, the faster recording speed is only 4x or when i put in a Sony 1x-8x DVD+R, the fastest speed is only 6x. I called dell and they say its the discs and their compatiblitiy with the writer but can say whether an update of software or firmware can help, or where to go, or what media is best for this particular writer. Basically i'm pissed b/c i paid for an 8x but can't write at that speed and I dont really want to go out and buy and test various DVD+R medias...so can anyone help me out?? and btw, I use Nero 6 if that can help as far as how updates might work....
The first thing to consider is that Memorex is poor quality media to test anything with. They buy from many different companies and put the Memorex name on it. In some cases the failure rate is about 50%. So using Memorex for any testing can't be trusted. Is your burner internal or external?? If internal, go into your device manager and check the IDE controllers. They should be set to DMA not PIO. Change if necessary. The DVD burning process is a trial and error process at first and does take some testing of different media to get the ideal combination. Some media dealers like Meritline.com sell sample packs of several types of media for this purpose. Last, burning above a 4x speed may cause burn errors on dvd movies. Good luck. Jerry
That silly need for speed. Most people on this forum will tell you that the best speed for burning DVD's is 4X or less. The few minutes that you might save burning faster are really not worth it. Failed burns and DVD's that do not play correctly increase greatly as you increase the burn speed. Your drive is selecting the burn speed it is currently able to use with the disc's you are using. Newer firmware might help some but there really isn't any new manufacturer firmware for your drive. Your drive should have the current 104D firmware. http://www.de.nec.de/softwareoverview2.php/id/557 http://forum.rpc1.org/dl_firmware.php?download_id=1883 There is some hacked firmware that will give you some other options, but won't improve the write speed to the disc's you are already using. And I guess you can also flash your drive to a ND-6500A. But you are taking your chances using these types of hacked firmware. Especially if the drive is new and under warranty. http://tdb.rpc1.org/#ND6100A http://tdb.rpc1.org/#ND6500A
Thanks for the quick responses, It is an internal writer and i tried the device manger suggestion but it was set one what you said. I guess I'll just keep on tryin' different brands. I know its probably not needed to burn at an 8x but i paid for that and its a matter of the principle. I have a precision M60 so this computer's able to handle heavy program stress, and I do always close down any unnneeded programs when burning, i was also told to disk defrag which is my next step. Other than all the I'll just deal with it i guess. thanks for your guys time. I just think its kind of funny that there's no certrain answer to this question especially from the media manufacturors or Dell.
I would start with the list of recommended media for your drive/firmware. Here's the link to the European site: http://www.de.nec.de/softwareoverview2.php/id/557 but I don't see the 6100. Is that a US model ? Also, I have in the past just emailed NEC and asked them whether a particular disk is compatible. They usually reply very quickly. The email I used was datastorage.support@UK.neceur.com
