Cheap CD-ROM = trash?

[BunnyStroker]

Hello everyone

My DVD-ROM drive just died on me. Seeing as how I was strapped for cash and never use my computer for DVDs, I decided to just get a cheap CD-ROM as an interim solution. I picked up an Acer 50X CD-ROM for pretty cheap.

Anyway, the thing seems to work tolerably, except for one annoyance...the thing flat out refuses to recognize certain audio CDs (Digweed, Bedrock disc 1 & 2, to be exact.) The discs are clean. Moreover, my CD Burner recognizes them just fine. Anyone have a similar experience, or have an idea for a possible solution?

 

[bdaley]

I tried to rip The Cars CD the other day and my Plextor 12/10/32 burner wouldn't recognize it. My DVD drive recognizes it with no problems, and it works fine in my home and car CD players. This is the first audio CD I've ever had a problem with.

The Plextor is supposed to be one of the best drives for audio ripping, so I think it's probably just something screwy with the CD.

I don't have a solution, but at least you're not the only one this has happened to.

"There's no such thing as gravity, the Earth just sucks"

 

[LordKaos]

The best solution is one that you won´t like !
Buy a new one!

The problem might be the poor quality of the lenses!

Better burn in Hell with some company than freeze in Heaven all alone

 

[Arrow]

You might want to try cleaning the drive. It is true that some readers aren't as good at reading as others... so maybe this isn't one of the best.

Rob
Please visit <b><A HREF="http://www.ncix.com/shop/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048" target="_new">http://www.ncix.com/shop/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048</A></b>

 

[jvanber]

The ability to read different types of media is not so much the laser, but how the drive was programmed.

Most drives that are 16X or faster support the newer standards of CD media (joliet, ISO9660, etc.) You may have come across this when you burned a disk, popped it into an older machine's CDROM drive, and it couldn't read it.

Being a brand new ROM drive, I doubt the lense would be dirty, but it doesn't hurt at all to try cleaning it. I'd be tempted to think you just got a lemon, and take it back for an exchange. Its quite possible that the manufacturer has been having problems with these drives, and has released a firmware update, which sounds like it would solve these issues.

Your best bet would be returning the drive, unless you bought it from an on-line retailer, in which case I'd try to update its firmware.

Joshua