DVD dead + questions

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying everything its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn. I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

So I guess the simplet thing would be to buy a new one ? (not sure if they
are fixable ?)

When buying one what I am looking for, I have no idea of the type of drive
it is IDE or scuzi?? how to do you tell they apart.

Other than that I guess you just disconnect the power feed, and the ribbon
cable. align new one, usually with screws ? power feed back on, ribbon back
on and install drivers ?

Any advice on all this as not tinkered around with a desktop in a while.

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"James" wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying everything
its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn.
I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

So I guess the simplet thing would be to buy a new one ? (not sure if
they
are fixable ?)

When buying one what I am looking for, I have no idea of the type of
drive
it is IDE or scuzi?? how to do you tell they apart.

*IF* (only IF) you can fond SCSI and *if* you really wanna go this route
then go for it! else, I would suggest to do like everyone else (or at
least
99.xx%) then IDE is the way to go.

How to tell them apart? it's the connector, and SCSI adapter and extra $$$
plus trouble bg

Other than that I guess you just disconnect the power feed, and the
ribbon
cable. align new one, usually with screws ? power feed back on, ribbon
back
on and install drivers ?

Any advice on all this as not tinkered around with a desktop in a while.

*If* you go for IDE then those are pretty much you have to do.

1. Unplug all connectors

2. Check the back of the drive to make sure it's match the MASTER or SLAVE
setting (I mean checking the PIN).

3. Connect all connectors like the dead old drive then you will have a
living one. *But* if the existing one isn't dead but something else
causing
problem then you may end up with 2 dead ones (I mean both are ok but some
problem causing them not to work).

Hi Joel,

Thanks for the helpful and fast reply.

I guess IDE is the way forward then.

As you say what if its not the drive, what else could cause this problem ?
(don;t want to end up with two dead drives as your say)

On Sat, 2 Feb 2008 19:55:55 -0000, "James"
wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying everything its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn. I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

.... but will it read discs? Is it enumerated in the bios,
does it show up in Device Manager (windows OS?)?
How long had you used it, does it have a far bit of wear
from frequent use or is it used in a dusty/smoky/etc
environment?

You might try loading another OS like a Ubuntu LiveCD, or a
separate install of Windows to see if it works, but a
replacement may only cost $25-30 or so online, maybe $5 more
factoring in the shipping cost.



So I guess the simplet thing would be to buy a new one ? (not sure if they
are fixable ?)

If the manufacturer offers a firmware update you could
always try flashing that, and some companies sell drive
cleaning discs or you could try blowing out the drive with a
can of compressed air, but IMO the odds are the drive is
unfixable unless you had some kind of malware on the system
that is interfering with windows use of it... which also
seems unlikely but scanning the system for malware is
something that you might want to do periodically regardless
of this potential failure.

The simplest thing is definitely to buy a new one,
particularly if you have backups on DVDs, it's far handier
to have a spare drive available when the present one fails.




When buying one what I am looking for, I have no idea of the type of drive
it is IDE or scuzi?? how to do you tell they apart.

SCSI is generally reserved for higher end servers or
workstations, has a wider ribbon cable. ATA (ATAPI) is the
most common on an aged drive, 40 pins and usually a ribbon
cable though occasionally the cable is rounded. SATA is a
much thinner cable and smaller connector.

The easiest might be to go ahead and pull the drive out
since you have to do it anyway to replace it, then it's
easier to look at the cable interface and read the label, or
just Google search for the drive model to get info about it.
The original system spec sheet would also likely list this.

You might also try a new data cable if you had been working
around in the system recently and possibly disturbed it, the
ribbon cables use insulation displacement connectors and
while they are generally fairly robust, if one makes bad
contact it is not always visually obvious.




Other than that I guess you just disconnect the power feed, and the ribbon
cable. align new one, usually with screws ? power feed back on, ribbon back
on and install drivers ?

No drivers are needed, though if the drive is newer than the
burning software (version) then that software might need a
data update so it recognizes the drive as a burner. Yes
screws or friction levers or rails will hold it in, though
with some cases (especially OEM mATX cases) the whole drive
cage might slide out the front before the drive can be
easily removed. With such OEM cases generally the front
plastic bezel snaps off, or at least a portion of it does,
then either screws, levers or similar are manipulated to let
loose of the removable drive cage. It should be obvious
enough what to do once you are looking at it, or if it is
not clear how to get it out the odds sway in favor of it
being in a whole cage that slides out the front.

Be sure to disconnect AC power to the system while working
inside, and check the (master/slave/single/CS) jumper to be
sure it is set correctly per it's position on the data cable
(with another drive?).




Any advice on all this as not tinkered around with a desktop in a while.



It's pretty much the same process as it was a decade ago,
but with no need for DOS drivers (unless you definitely need
to use it in DOS), and the update to the burning software if
it doesn't recognize the drive capability.

Also in windows device manager, check the properties for the
drive controller it's attached to to verify it is using DMA
instead of PIO mode.

"kony" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Feb 2008 19:55:55 -0000, "James"
wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying everything
its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn.
I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

... but will it read discs? Is it enumerated in the bios,
does it show up in Device Manager (windows OS?)?
How long had you used it, does it have a far bit of wear
from frequent use or is it used in a dusty/smoky/etc
environment?

It reads discs fine. Its can be found in the BIOS and device manager. Its
running under Windows XP. I've had it for about 2 years 6 months on and off
use. In a clean non smoking environment.


You might try loading another OS like a Ubuntu LiveCD, or a
separate install of Windows to see if it works, but a
replacement may only cost $25-30 or so online, maybe $5 more
factoring in the shipping cost.

I think thats the simples and easiest fix as there so cheap these days.


So I guess the simplet thing would be to buy a new one ? (not sure if they
are fixable ?)

If the manufacturer offers a firmware update you could
always try flashing that, and some companies sell drive
cleaning discs or you could try blowing out the drive with a
can of compressed air, but IMO the odds are the drive is
unfixable unless you had some kind of malware on the system
that is interfering with windows use of it... which also
seems unlikely but scanning the system for malware is
something that you might want to do periodically regardless
of this potential failure.

Will try that.

The simplest thing is definitely to buy a new one,
particularly if you have backups on DVDs, it's far handier
to have a spare drive available when the present one fails.




When buying one what I am looking for, I have no idea of the type of drive
it is IDE or scuzi?? how to do you tell they apart.

SCSI is generally reserved for higher end servers or
workstations, has a wider ribbon cable. ATA (ATAPI) is the
most common on an aged drive, 40 pins and usually a ribbon
cable though occasionally the cable is rounded. SATA is a
much thinner cable and smaller connector.

The easiest might be to go ahead and pull the drive out
since you have to do it anyway to replace it, then it's
easier to look at the cable interface and read the label, or
just Google search for the drive model to get info about it.
The original system spec sheet would also likely list this.

You might also try a new data cable if you had been working
around in the system recently and possibly disturbed it, the
ribbon cables use insulation displacement connectors and
while they are generally fairly robust, if one makes bad
contact it is not always visually obvious.




Other than that I guess you just disconnect the power feed, and the ribbon
cable. align new one, usually with screws ? power feed back on, ribbon
back
on and install drivers ?

No drivers are needed, though if the drive is newer than the
burning software (version) then that software might need a
data update so it recognizes the drive as a burner. Yes
screws or friction levers or rails will hold it in, though
with some cases (especially OEM mATX cases) the whole drive
cage might slide out the front before the drive can be
easily removed. With such OEM cases generally the front
plastic bezel snaps off, or at least a portion of it does,
then either screws, levers or similar are manipulated to let
loose of the removable drive cage. It should be obvious
enough what to do once you are looking at it, or if it is
not clear how to get it out the odds sway in favor of it
being in a whole cage that slides out the front.

Be sure to disconnect AC power to the system while working
inside, and check the (master/slave/single/CS) jumper to be
sure it is set correctly per it's position on the data cable
(with another drive?).




Any advice on all this as not tinkered around with a desktop in a while.



It's pretty much the same process as it was a decade ago,
but with no need for DOS drivers (unless you definitely need
to use it in DOS), and the update to the burning software if
it doesn't recognize the drive capability.

Also in windows device manager, check the properties for the
drive controller it's attached to to verify it is using DMA
instead of PIO mode.


I appreciate the detailed and helpful post.

Somewhere on teh intarweb "Joel" typed:
"James" wrote:

"kony" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Feb 2008 19:55:55 -0000, "James"
wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying
everything its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't
burn. I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard
one.

... but will it read discs? Is it enumerated in the bios,
does it show up in Device Manager (windows OS?)?
How long had you used it, does it have a far bit of wear
from frequent use or is it used in a dusty/smoky/etc
environment?

It reads discs fine. Its can be found in the BIOS and device
manager. Its running under Windows XP. I've had it for about 2 years
6 months on and off use. In a clean non smoking environment.

If it can read then the connection is fine. If it won't write then
you will need to figure out what may cause the problem.

The biggest cause of drives losing the ability to burn, but still being able
to read, with age is deterioration of components (often capacitors) in the
laser driver circuit. Some optical drives have trimpots to adjust this, or
at least they used to, it's been a while since I opened an optical drive. It
wouldn't surprise me if they no longer have them and the laser has just "got
weaker".

Back when CD burners were still really expensive I 'knew' a guy who would
open them up and adjust the trimpots, making them work again. I tried it
myself once but found 5 trimpots all of which could be moved either way, no
indication which one to adjust and the drive required reassembly and
reconnecting to a PC to test each adjustment. After several hours of
frustration I gave up.
--
Shaun.

- What mode you want to burn?

- What disc brand you have? have you tried other?

... more and you are the only one with all answers.

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"James" wrote:

"kony" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 2 Feb 2008 19:55:55 -0000, "James"
wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying
everything
its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn.
I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

... but will it read discs? Is it enumerated in the bios,
does it show up in Device Manager (windows OS?)?
How long had you used it, does it have a far bit of wear
from frequent use or is it used in a dusty/smoky/etc
environment?

It reads discs fine. Its can be found in the BIOS and device manager. Its
running under Windows XP. I've had it for about 2 years 6 months on and
off
use. In a clean non smoking environment.

If it can read then the connection is fine. If it won't write then you
will need to figure out what may cause the problem.

- What mode you want to burn?

Not sure I understand what you mean. I usually burn mp3s to cd-rw and dvds
to dvd -rw when it was working.

- What disc brand you have? have you tried other?

I use phillips and sony.

... more and you are the only one with all answers.

"James" wrote in message
news

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"James" wrote:

My dvd burner has given up the ghost today and despite trying everything
its
definitely dead. Getting power put burning any type of file won't burn.
I've
even tried different burning programs from nero to win xp standard one.

So I guess the simplet thing would be to buy a new one ? (not sure if
they
are fixable ?)

When buying one what I am looking for, I have no idea of the type of
drive
it is IDE or scuzi?? how to do you tell they apart.

*IF* (only IF) you can fond SCSI and *if* you really wanna go this route
then go for it! else, I would suggest to do like everyone else (or at
least
99.xx%) then IDE is the way to go.

How to tell them apart? it's the connector, and SCSI adapter and extra
$$$
plus trouble bg

Other than that I guess you just disconnect the power feed, and the
ribbon
cable. align new one, usually with screws ? power feed back on, ribbon
back
on and install drivers ?

Any advice on all this as not tinkered around with a desktop in a while.

*If* you go for IDE then those are pretty much you have to do.

1. Unplug all connectors

2. Check the back of the drive to make sure it's match the MASTER or
SLAVE
setting (I mean checking the PIN).

3. Connect all connectors like the dead old drive then you will have a
living one. *But* if the existing one isn't dead but something else
causing
problem then you may end up with 2 dead ones (I mean both are ok but some
problem causing them not to work).

Hi Joel,

Thanks for the helpful and fast reply.

I guess IDE is the way forward then.

Only if you have an IDE controller with spare ports, otherwise SATA is the
way to go! Tell us more about your PC...

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"GT" wrote:

snip
Hi Joel,

Thanks for the helpful and fast reply.

I guess IDE is the way forward then.

Only if you have an IDE controller with spare ports, otherwise SATA is
the
way to go! Tell us more about your PC...

Do we have SATA DVD burner these days? I know we have SATA hard drive and
I have 2 but don't pay any attention to the DVD burner.

I have one here!

"Joel" wrote in message
news
"GT" wrote:

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"GT" wrote:

snip
Hi Joel,

Thanks for the helpful and fast reply.

I guess IDE is the way forward then.

Only if you have an IDE controller with spare ports, otherwise SATA is
the
way to go! Tell us more about your PC...

Do we have SATA DVD burner these days? I know we have SATA hard drive
and
I have 2 but don't pay any attention to the DVD burner.

I have one here!

Thanks for the information. I will get one when my current 2 DVD burners
act up. Hmmm... but then I dunno whata do with my hard drives, and I want
to go for SATA hard drives instead of IDE hard drives (I have 4 hard
drives
and 2 DVDs on current system, 1 DVD just been disabled)

Just keep them. If you have 5 IDE devices attached at the moment, then you
obviously have an extra PCI EIDE controller card, so just keep that with
your hard drives attached.

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"GT" wrote:

"Joel" wrote in message
news
"GT" wrote:

"Joel" wrote in message
...
"GT" wrote:

snip
Hi Joel,

Thanks for the helpful and fast reply.

I guess IDE is the way forward then.

Only if you have an IDE controller with spare ports, otherwise SATA
is
the
way to go! Tell us more about your PC...

Do we have SATA DVD burner these days? I know we have SATA hard
drive
and
I have 2 but don't pay any attention to the DVD burner.

I have one here!

Thanks for the information. I will get one when my current 2 DVD
burners
act up. Hmmm... but then I dunno whata do with my hard drives, and I
want
to go for SATA hard drives instead of IDE hard drives (I have 4 hard
drives
and 2 DVDs on current system, 1 DVD just been disabled)

Just keep them. If you have 5 IDE devices attached at the moment, then
you
obviously have an extra PCI EIDE controller card, so just keep that with
your hard drives attached.

Yup! I am using EIDE controller and external hard drives as well (between
desktops and notebooks). And I have been using additional EIDE controller
for ages. And I can get rid of the EIDE controller when replace the 3
existing IDE hard drives and 2 DVDs with SATA.

What I meant that because SATA is faster than IDE, and if I go for SATA
DVD then I will lose 1 SATA connection for hard drive bg

SATA I - 150Mbps
SATA II - 300Mbps
EIDE - 133Mbps
Typical HD - 60 to 70Mbps

Sata controllers can handle more throughput than EIDE controllers, but
current hard drives are only just fast enough to saturate half of an EIDE
channel at present, so maybe in a few years your statement will be true, but
for now, it simply doesn't matter. The cost and market demand should be the
overriding decision at the moment.