Problems w/ TSST TS-L632H and inkjet printable DVDs ... considering external drive

l_glass · 30-03-2008

Hi everyone,

I wasn't sure whether to post this with the Samsung drives or with Media or Labeling or just with Hardware ... so, I'm just picking a spot and hoping someone can help.

I have a Dell laptop that is less than 6 months old. It came with a Samsung TSST Corp TS-L632H DVD burner. I also just purchased an Epson RX-595 printer.

I have spent almost half the day digging around this forum today and quickly getting in over my head as far as DVD burning technology goes. I did find some posts that reported very similar problems to the one I'm having with the inkjet printable DVDs, but they had not been updated in several years.

My problem seems to be specific to burning DVDs that have the inkjet printable surface. The DVDs will begin playing back in our standalone player (Philips) or in my computer just fine, but will start to freeze up/resume playing/freeze again for a few seconds/resume playing within 5 minutes or so of the beginning of the video. I've had this happen with every DVD I've tried burning. The videos play fine from my hard drive backups. I finally just picked one video to use as a test and started trying various things like reducing the burn speed, changing media types, etc. I've tried HP 16x +R's (burning at 6x and 8x) and Maxell 8x -R's (burning at 8x). I've updated the firmware to the drive to the latest release. None of that helped, and it's not consistent in the places that it freezes/resumes.

Yesterday a friend gave me a plain JVC DVD-R (i.e. - no inkjet surface) to try burning to, and it worked flawlessly. That was the first video DVD (out of probably over 25-30 inkjet DVDs now) that I've burned with no jerks or pauses. I'm using DVD Decrypter and DVD Shrink (when needed) and Nero 7.

At this point, I am strongly considering an external drive, because I REALLY want to be able to use my printer. I'm wondering if any of you who currently use inkjet printable DVDs and an external drive, could make recommendations ... what type burner do you use if it's still available (if not, what would you buy if you were in the market right now?) and what type of media? Or, if anyone knows of something else that might be causing the problem with the TS-L632H ... ??? I've read lots of posts on various forums about people returning this drive to Dell (after lots of hassle), but none having the same problem as me. Honestly, I'd rather buy an external drive than deal with Dell Tech Support.

My laptop is running XP SP2. It's a Core 2 Duo T7500 with 2GB of RAM and 320GB HD (if any of that helps).

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

lg

**Albert** · 30-03-2008

HP 16x DVD+R is not the best match for slim laptop drives. Generally, 8x media is better. However, the Maxell 8x -R probably isn't that good, either, for the purpose, as it could be poor media [which can be had from time to time].

I'd suggest trying some Taiyo Yuden 8x media, personally. It agrees well with my TS-L632M.

Also, Verbatim-branded media made by Verbatim [the 16x and 8x variants] do well with the drive.

However, for the premium burning experience, I'd suggest getting a full-size external drive, or at least an external LG slim drive, paired with that same media that I suggested above.

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l_glass · 30-03-2008

Thanks Albert, I ordered some Verbatim 8x -R's today from Amazon. I will definitely give those a try. I noticed that a lot of people suggested the Taiyo Yuden media. I'll put those on my list to try next. I'm getting quite a stockpile of media since I can't successfully burn anything. I hope that some of it will be useful if/when I end up with a full-size external drive.

*bjkg* · 30-03-2008

@ l_glass,

Welcome to the Form.

Your problem is not with your DVD Burner but is caused by the use of poor quality Media. The symptom you describe is the classic problem when poor quality problematic DVD Media is used. Both HP and Maxwell branded DVD Media have a rich well-documented history of been poor quality problematic DVD Media.

You have demonstrated that by using better quality DVD Media (JVC DVD-R) then the crappy HP and Maxwell Media you have been using that your Computer/DVD Burner/SoftWare Program(s)/Procedure(s) are able to produce a Video DVD that “worked flawlessly”. By using the JVC DVD-R Media your friend gave you and producing a Video DVD that “worked flawlessly” demonstrates your problem is caused by the use of poor quality problematic DVD Media (Both HP and Maxwell).

Suggest obtaining known proven quality DVD Media such as Taiyo Yuden or Verbatim DVD Media that has an excellent track history of providing consistent quality error free results. Suggest visiting Rima.Com (http://rima.com) for Taiyo Yuden Media which in many circles is considered top of the line quality DVD Media.

In short obtain known proven quality DVD Media as suggest above and your problem should be corrected.

Regards,
bjkg

l_glass · 04-04-2008

I have now tried the Verbatim DVD-Rs (inkjet hub printable) and am still having no luck. An hour into the video, it began to freeze and skip constantly ... worse even than the other media.

Do you all still think this is a media problem? Or could there be a chance that my burner just is not going to be successful with these inkjet surface DVDs?

*bjkg* · 04-04-2008

@ l_glass,

Have you ensured that your DVD Burner has the newest most current up to date Firmware that is available installed?

Suggest burning the Media not at Maximum Speed but at a speed slightly slower/lower than the Media rated speed.

Have you ensured that ALL background MultiTasks have been curtailed during the DVD Burning process.

Have you run Widows Disk Defragmenter (Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/Disk Defragmenter) prior to beginning the DVD Burning process?

Have you ensured that you have the newest most current up to date version of your DVD Burning software program?

It appears that you believe your problem is caused by the use of InkJet surface printable Media. There isn’t anything “special” with InkJet surface printable Media other than you can print on the top surface of the disk.

Suggest visiting Rima.Com (http://rima.com) and obtaining some known proven high quality Taiyo Yuden InkJet Printable Media.

Regards,
bjkg

l_glass · 04-04-2008

My reason for questioning the inkjet printable surface was actually due to an older post on this forum ... which was the only thing I managed to find through Google searches that accurately described the problem I am having. I do realize that this post is old and is somewhat mixed in responses, which is why I reposted the question to see if anyone was still having similar problems.

http://club.cdfreaks.com/f33/printab...oblems-123723/

As I said in my original post, I have tried slower burn speeds (most recently the Verbatim 8x DVD-Rs at 6x burn speed) and also have updated the firmware to the latest release available for my drive (11-07). I am not running any other programs while burning and am using Nero 7 Premium, which I would assume is sufficient for what I'm trying to do. I defragmented my hard drive over the weekend, also thinking that could be an issue, but that did not change the outcome.

Is there a reputable place that sells a smaller number of Taiyo Yuden DVDs? I have already spent more on media than it would cost me to replace the drive. I am somewhat hesitant to invest in another 100 discs even if they are the best available.

I very much appreciate the help. This is just very frustrating.

**mciahel** · 04-04-2008

Hi,

Quote:

Originally Posted by l_glass

and also have updated the firmware to the latest release available for my drive (11-07).

Your drive is a Dell OEM, isn't it? Then get the latest firmware update D400 published on 01-04-2008. Maybe this helps.

Michael

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l_glass · 05-04-2008

Yes, it is Dell OEM. Thanks! I'll go look for that update now. Wondering why it didn't show up with my Service Tag # when I got the Nov 2007 update about a month ago. Weird. Thanks again.

rodrigo207 · 08-04-2008

First of all I´d like to let you know that i have no experience what so ever with your drive and that I never used printable media, but.... are you printing before or after burning? If you are printing before, i´d try printing afterwards. Best of luck

l_glass · 19-04-2008

Thanks ... and I was printing after I burned the disc (often several days after), because I would watch the DVD first to see how bad the skipping and freezing was. I was trying to find a pattern in the problem, and there just wasn't one.

Anyway, I ended up buying an external Sony DRX-840U (less than $100). Have not had a minute's trouble burning anything since. Even the HP media works with no problems. So far, I am extremely happy with it.

Problems w/ TSST TS-L632H and inkjet printable DVDs ... considering external drive

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