re: a problem with a sata tj-a6-4 usb optical case

[reble]

I have a HP model TS-L633 sata type read/write cd/dvd optical drive in a TJ-A6-4 usb case. See the picture in the link I found http://www.pchub.com/uph/laptop/440-91199-21056/UPH-Component-USB-2.0-HDD-Optical-Caddy.html. The link is just so it is knowen what board I have. (The board in the link is the same except that the one in the picture is for IDE mine is SATA). I got the usb case and the drive together new, a few years ago. I have a Gateway model MD2614U laptop, os Win7 home 32bit. For some time the HP optical drive in the TJ-A6 usb case worked fine with the Gateway laptop. Then the HP optical drive started getting flakey. Sometimes it would not read/see a cd/dvd and the same cd/dvd reads just fine in the Gateway's internal optical drive. Finely the HP optical drive just plain stopped reading or writing period. I took the HP drive and usb case to a local teck and he told me that the drive and case are fine. Just replace the 5vdc wall wart. I did with a 1 amp one (he told me 1 amp would be fine). I am still am having the problem. I pulled the internal sata optical drive from the Gateway laptop and stuck the HP optical drive in the Gateway. The optical drive is fine. Now he tells me that there is a driver issue How can this local teck tell me that the usb case with the HP optical drive in it works on his tower that he uses for testing. Then tells me I have driver issues when this same setup had worked just fine for 2 years, same drivers, same os and same laptop. It don't make sense to me. My tests tell me that the usb case interface has gone bad since the HP optical drive still works fine when it is put in the Gateway laptop. What is the consensus of opinion here based on the facts. Am I on the right track?

 

[hang-the-9]

If the issue is going on with the case, then replace the case. A new enclosure on eBay is maybe $10 including a dual head USB power cable. I use one of those and they work fine.

Drive is fine outside the case, does not work in the case, that points to the case.

Why not watch when the guy tests it on his computer and see what happens? It takes about a minute to plug in the drive and read a disk from it.

Hopefully you did not pay for someone to look at this, you will spend more on getting it looked at than you would just buying a whole new external DVD drive.

 

[reble]

No I didn't pay John to look at it. He did it for free. John is a close friend of my room mate. I looked at some of the usb sata drive case's on Ebay, some good deals. But getting a new drive case will have to wait for May's SSDI check. April is going to be a tight month, a lot on the plate already.
"Hopefully you did not pay for someone to look at this, you will spend more on getting it looked at than you would just buying a whole new external DVD drive"