Win-XP,SP3 DVD not functioning

Its a Sony DVD/CD drive. Shows in device manager as OK.
The CD part works just fine i used the Xp Write to CD, its OK. The DVD
does nothing, can't read or write at all.

The reg does have Upper/Lower filters for the DVD but it won't let me
delete them (a right click does not show "permissions" as an option
altho i have Administrator rights). The upper filter has "redbook" as a
value, the lower has Im something,i don't remember exactly). I uninstalled
the drive, from device manager, and rebooted - windows then reinstalled the drive.

One other indicator is from NERO, When i select DVD and try to do
something, NERO will switch from DVD to CD.....

This is the second drive i tried. Both drives worked for a short time
then this happens..

I'm not sure what the problem is or what to try next.

Any help appreciated,
savagcl

 

Steve,

Thanks for the reply.

Its a new drive.
Don't think its had time to get dirty but the cleaning kit isa good thing to
have. I'll get one just in case.

savagcl

 

Its not a lens problem.

Try changing the cable or the drive firmware may have a problem.

 

I don't know if this will help but Sony has a Drive Check utility: http://sony.storagesupport.com/DriveCheck

I just bought a Sony DRU-840A but have not installed it as yet so I cannot speak for or against this utility program.

My drive instructions say to use an EIDE connection which I believe requires an 80 (vs 40) wire cable. The connectors are still 40 pins.

I am interested in how your experience turns out. Please keep us posted.

 

Thanks for the url scout.

When you use 40 wire PATA cable, you are limited to UDMA Mode 2 [33.3 MB/s]. The extra 40 wires in 80 wire cable are connected to ground & this cable is required for any speed above UDMA Mode 2.

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confCable80-c.html

 

And thank you, rsinfo, for the link and an accurate description! While I know a little about hardware it is sometimes only just enough to get myself into trouble.

I hope savagcl can find the solution to his hardware issue. There is an FAQ section on that Sony website that may be helpful as well.

 

I'll try the disk test and see what that shows.

savagcl

 

Well, the Sony disk drive test didn't do any writing/reading for the DVD.
I replaced the cable and tried the jumper on all 3 settings (Cable select, master and
slave but still no DVD writing/reading.

Still cannot get the registry to allow me to delete the upper/lower filters. Don't
understand why not since i'm signed as Admin.

Help!

savagcl

 

FWIW I installed my new Sony DRU-840A DVD/CD RW drive yesterday and I ran the Sony Drive Check utility using both a DVD and a CD and the drive passed both tests. So I can vouch that the program does work. It produces a log file in a ZIP folder. Here is an example of the log data from the CD test:
----------------------------------------------------
[09/08/2008 07:55:38 PM] 1 log - 702 MB Blank CD-RW
[09/08/2008 07:55:38 PM] 1 log - Media ID: 97.25.30
[09/08/2008 07:55:38 PM] 1 log - Testing drive: SONY DVD RW DRU-840A (SS01)
[09/08/2008 07:55:38 PM] 1 log - Begining Test
[09/08/2008 07:55:38 PM] 1 log - Begining CD Write
[09/08/2008 07:56:09 PM] 1 log - 32768 bytes written to track (16 sectors)
[09/08/2008 07:56:12 PM] 1 log - Adjusting track 02 start from 6144 to 6296
[09/08/2008 07:56:13 PM] 1 log - Adjusting track 03 start from 173780 to 174084
[09/08/2008 07:56:33 PM] 1 log - 32768 bytes written to track (16 sectors)
[09/08/2008 07:56:39 PM] 1 log - Adjusting track 04 start from 179924 to 180380
[09/08/2008 07:56:40 PM] 1 log - Adjusting track 05 start from 347561 to 348169
[09/08/2008 07:57:01 PM] 1 log - 32768 bytes written to track (16 sectors)
[09/08/2008 07:57:05 PM] 1 log - CD Write complete
[09/08/2008 07:57:05 PM] 1 log - Begining data verification
[09/08/2008 07:57:38 PM] 1 log - Data verification complete
---------------------------------------------

What is the model number of your Sony drive?
Are you using compatible media as listed on the Sony Support web site (http://sony.storagesupport.com/) for your model drive?

 

I have the DRU840A, same as you. Its a DVD\CD Combo unit. In
addition to above attempts, i've had the jumper in back of the drive
set to Cable Select, Slave and Master, no luck there.

I also tried the + and the -. DVD's neither one worked.A DVDRW don't
work either.

Had a Pioneer unit before, it worked for a shor time then quit. This
Sony worked for a shorter time and it quit (the DVD part that is).

Thanks for the feedback,
savagcl