Sony Optiarc DVD/RW Not Reading DVD's

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by timmytiger69, Nov 20, 2009.

  1. timmytiger69

    timmytiger69 Private E-2

    Hey guys, I have a problem (yet another) with my DVD Drive.

    I had recently started noticing that my DVD/CD Player would not read DVD. It would read CD's perfectly, but I was getting to the stage where i had to out in a CD, quickly eject it and put in the DVD i wanted to play (games) just to get it to recognize. Now however, it is not recognizing DVD's what so ever. The model number is Optiarc (Sony?) DVD-RW AD-7200s.

    After further digging, I found that i may need to update my firmware for the Player. I have done this, to no avail. (Firmware version: 1.0B) After this, i decided that there must be some sort of problem with the Software, until i realized I had no codec software on my machine. I downloaded DivX and you guessed it, to no avail. I finally downloaded WMP 11, hoping that the codecs used in the Microsoft Software, would halp my DVD player, but again to no avail.

    Please help me guys, I have tired everything i can think of. Thanks in advance.
     
  2. thesmokingun

    thesmokingun MajorGeek

  3. plodr

    plodr Major Geek Super Extraordinaire

    Win 7 is a bootable DVD) and see if the computer will boot from it. If not, then the laser for the DVD is burned out. If it will boot from a bootable DVD, then you are looking at a software problem.
     
  4. plodr

    plodr Major Geek Super Extraordinaire

    I was in the process of editing the above and got called to the phone...the first part of my post should say "Borrow a bootable DVD" then I mentioned that Win 7 is a bootable DVD. If any of your friends have one, borrow it - not to install, just to test if your computer hardware is able to read and boot from it.
     
  5. timmytiger69

    timmytiger69 Private E-2

    F*cking Microsoft! :banghead In order for me to use Microsoft Fix It, it wants me to download IE7/8. I have done this, but now it wants me two download another effing update, in which it requires SP2. Did the "trick" thing, rebooted to find the this hotfix clashes with some other files on my computer. Therefore, I cant use this Fix It thing. Any other suggestions? Please let me know.

    (note: i use Firefox, because i hate Microsoft for many reasons :guns)
     
  6. thesmokingun

    thesmokingun MajorGeek

    I would update to sp3 ;)

    and for your problem, i would try the above suggestion about a bootable dvd, to see if it's recognized before getting into windows. That will help eliminate an OS problem vs. a hardware problem. I've had a dvd rw drive go bad on me in the past, same as you. Tried it in a different computer to make sure, and it would only read cds. wouldn't burn dvd's or read them.
    Lo and behold it was a sony.
     
  7. sach2

    sach2 Major Geek Extraordinaire

    My only comment is that DVD writers do go bad. There is a separate laser for each DVD and CD discs. The CD lasers seem more durable yet the writing capability is usually the first to go and then eventually the reading ability follows.

    I know people (my brother for instance) who has CD players from 15 years ago that work fine. I, on the other hand, have never had any CD or DVD player last more than a few years before it became annoyingly picky. I used to buy the best quality available and figure I would get advanced technology. Now, I just pick up a cheap lower-end model from a reputable brand and plan on replacing it in 2 years. I find it works better than buying the top of the line and trying to clean etc. A new one always reads anything and as long as you don't invest a fortune in it, you won't feel so bad about replacing it at the first sign of trouble.

    *****
    You may not like Microsoft but it doesn't compare to my frustration at the cabal that got together and weighed costs versus durability/reliability when coming to a consensus on the CD disc standard. Everything was centered on coming up with a medium that would be cheaper to produce than vinyl records and any scientific opinion that didn't fit that criteria was dismissed. 20 years later we are still stuck with the same skip-prone format and DVDs are an extension of that decision. DVDs shouldn't exist! There should have been a much better, more durable, more reliable format for digital movies when the design decisions were made over a decade later...but the factories were in place to produce disc shaped products and so it goes...
    *****
    I don't see a software problem but a hardware problem.
    My suggestion would be buy a cheap Lite-on DVD writer in the $30-40 range. A few times of having a DVD read or written with no hassle will make it worth your while. :)
     
    Last edited: Nov 21, 2009
  8. timmytiger69

    timmytiger69 Private E-2

    Hey guys, I have some updates.

    I tried a different DVD and low and be hold, it worked. For some reason, the DVD i was playing, was not being picked up by the Drive, so i tried a different bootable DVD, and it worked. Chucked the old one back in, and it detected it. Thanks for all your help guys, funny how with technology, it always comes down to the basics. :-o

    TheSmokingGun: I all ready had SP3. The update wasn't compatible with SP3, so I tricked the OS into thinking it had SP2 and went to re-install the hotfix, only to find that it clashed with some files on my pc (typical Microsoft :***) It is still under warranty, and i am planning to have a mate look at it (the bloke that built it). He works at the company were he ordered the parts, so he'll get it swapped over for a new one ;)

    Thanks for your help guys, very much appreciated.


    Cheers, Tim
     
  9. thesmokingun

    thesmokingun MajorGeek


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