Question: Unable to use DVD RW drive x2

Hi everyone -

I'm having the same issue with two burners on my PC. Windows will see the drive, but anytime I put a disc in (CD or DVD) it spins up and down for a minute or so and that's it. I am able to read the same discs with my regular DVD ROM drive. The first drive I had this problem with is a Lite-On SHM-165H6S. The drive I currently have installed is a Philips SPD2413P. The DVD ROM drive is a Sony DDU1615.

I first noticed the problem shortly after purchasing and installing the game Spore. I've read a bunch of pages claiming that SecuRom is the issue and just as many responses saying it has nothing to do with it. I have no idea what is true or not, but the timing seems right with when I first noticed the issue.

When my Lite-On first gave me trouble, I brought my PC into work (I'm a desktop support tech) and borrowed the Philips drive from our stock. It worked just fine in the office, so my manager told me to keep it a few days till I could replace mine (figuring the Lite-On had simply died). When I got home that night, I tried to burn a DVD just to test, and sure enough, it wouldn't work - just kept spining the disc up and down.

Since then, I've been trying to find a solution, or at the very least, a definite answer as to what would cause two drives to act in the same fashion...

Here's the short list of things I've tried:
-Uninstall Spore and SecuRom (using SecuRom uninstaller from thier site as well as following instructions posted on various forums)
-Flash the drives firmware to the latest version
-Install latest Windows updates
-Check for Spyware/Malware/Virus (all came up clean)
-Tried my Lite-On in an external enclosure on another PC @ work - didn't work
-Reformatted my home PC
-Went from Windows XP to Vista Business
-Tried swapping the DVDRom and DVD RW between Master and Slave

My PC specs are:
Intel Core 2 Duo 6600 @ 2.4ghz
4gb ram (3 recognized in Windows 32bit)
GeForce 8800GTS
EVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard

Has anyone come across a similiar issue? Any suggestions? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Hi zeroeffect44 and welcome to the forums

Since you have reached the point of formating/reinstalling the OS and the problem persists, i think we can rule out the possibility that the problem lies with securom. Since you have also tried the litie on another computer and it doesnt work still, the options are limited (althought it would be better if you would have tested it not in enclosure). Does the philips work when you try it in another pc?

Is there a specific error coming up in Nero or whatever other program you are using for burning?

Hi Hemispasm - thanks for the welcome!

I tried the Philips in another PC this morning and got the same result. I just tried to burn something using Nero ver. 6.0.0.19 and it never recognized the disc. It tried for about 3 minutes. I don't get an actual error message. After a few minutes of futility, it just asks me to insert a disc heh

Edit: I'm not sure if it means anything, but the drive shows up as a DVD RAM drive in Windows Explorer.

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Last edited by zeroeffect44; 16-11-2008 at 19:27.

Well if you have tried the drives in other computers and still they don't work, then, although it sounds strange, both drives are not working properly. I don't know if there is something wrong with your PC that would end up in ruining the optical drives you install to it, i don't even know if it would be possible.

Adding a new drive will answer this question, just make sure you try it first in another computer and verify that it is working

Well, the Philips DID work when i put it in my pc while i had it at work. Then i got home and it wasn't working heh

Is it possible for a program to disable an optical drive? I mean, is there (for lack of a better word) a switch or something that can be written to that could possibly lock or disable a drive? I'm just hesitant to go out and buy another drive without understanding what happened to the first two :P

To my knowledge there is no such thing. Maybe a faulty controller or even cable could be the reason. Have you tried getting new cables? But even so, the drives should be working in other computers.

Hrmm... I didn't try new cables, simply because the DVD Rom seemed to work with no issue on the same cable, and I did switch them between Master and Slave and their positions on the cable. I guess I'll just have to try a new drive and hope for the best! Thanks for the assistance! I appreciate it