I had a Plextor drive, and I no longer have it. I replaced it with an NEC 3550a. I upgraded the firmware on it to one of the Lee & Diggy's, but I've noticed it's taking 32 minutes to burn a 4.7GB Single Layer DVD at 16x (according to Nero). What can I do to get this back to the original firmware, or one that might fix my problems?
It might actually just be your DMA setting are off...have you checked to make sure that DMA is enabled for the drive?
I went into the Device Manager, and I found that my Primary Controller had "PIO Only" enabled, so I changed it to "DMA if available". I burned a DVD, but it took as long. After a restart, it seems to be going the same speed.
Try unplugging the drive - both power and IDE cables then start your machine, let it not find it and "uninstall" it. Then shutdown, plug it back in, and restart. It should find the drive and set DMA mode. Also check to make sure all the cables are firmly seated and that you set the jumpers properly while the case is open as that often causes problems. MAKE SURE YOU ARE USING A 40-PIN IDE CABLE WITH MODERN BURNERS! Use the one that came with your NEC.
Why should he use a 40 cable when everything I have read on here and elsewhere says to always use an 80 wire to avoid interference between the wires. Curious
40-pin cables usually do have 80 conductors, one is actually a conducter and the other serves as a grounded shield. e.g. this->http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=711273&CatId=68. Your ATA-133 cables usually fit this bill. If you used the IDE cable that came with the drive - I assume this is the correct cable - and you followed the procedure I outlined with starting with the drive unplugged and then running with it plugged in, I still suspect its a hardware or driver problem. Try looking at the mode again. If you have Nero CD/DVD Drive speed (which is available free by itself, I think you have to do a search here or look in Software). Find out if it's actually running in DMA. Even a Nero log might help with this and other things so feel free to post.
Ack, my bad! Sorry, I meant Nero Infotool. I always confuse them. Look under Configuration and see if DMA is still on. You *might* also be able to tell this by going into Device Manager if you don't have Nero, though it'll only tell you what it *might* use, rather than *does* use.
I uninstalled the Primary IDE and Secondary IDE controllers, and restarted. It found them and the DVD Burner. The Nero InfoTool then said the DMA was on. I put in some DVD's I had burned when it was slow, and they came up as Blank, but I couldn't write anything to them. I burned a DVD ISO with some files on it, but it "Could not perform end of Disc-at-once".
Well, that DMA thing is progress, if only a little. Here's a good generic checklist: 1. A defrag of your hard disk(s). 2. Use good media (see my sig, this is always important!!!!!!!) 3. Make sure burner firmware up-to-date (you've got that covered already.) 4. Make sure all the drive cables are firmly seated in the drive and motherboard. 5. Make sure the jumper setting on the burner drive is correct. Double-check this with the manufacturer's instructions. Pull the drive out if you have to get a look at the instructional labels on the drive. 6. Make sure you don't have too many different burning programs installed. Nero and Roxio are well-known to not get along. Remove Roxio. There is a "cleaner" or "zap" tool available that removes any remaining traces. Use it. You may want to write down your Nero license key, uninstall it as well, use the Nero CleanTool from the Nero site that's appropriate to your version, and then reinstall it fresh. I recommend only using Nero 6.6.0.18 (if you have a license for Nero6) or 7.0.8.2 (if you have purchased Nero 7). I can get the links for that if you want. 7. Check to be sure that the Nero ASPI 2.0.1.74 is installed. Preferably, the System ASPI is NOT installed. You can find this from Neor InfoTool and looking at the ASPI tab. Reinstalling Nero fresh should cure the ASPI problem in most cases, though not always. 8. If all else fails, post a Nero log.
1) I realized I have 67% fragmentation - using O&O Defrag to fix that. 2) I have Memorex DVD+R, but I picked up some Verbatim, so I'll compare between the two (perhaps it is/was a media problem) 3) Taken care of 4) Using a decent quality cable (40pin, 80 wire) 5) Master, only one on the channel. 6) Just Nero 7.5.1.1 7) Nero ASPI is 2.0.1.74 I'll post back with my results once the defrag finishes.
