"No additional sense information" error on 708UF DVD burns

[Mallomar]

I am trying to determine if my problem is media, hardware, software, or what. And how to fix it.

I bought a 708UF about 16 months ago. I'm running XP, SP1. Dual processors (about 2 GHz, IIRC), 1.5 GB of RAM. 708UF is hooked up to USB2.

I was able to burn DVDs (using Nero) until about a month ago, when I started running into various frequent problems: Invalid field in command, Could not perform end of Disc-at-once, etc.

I've tried various brands of media, and finally got some advice here to try Taiyo Yuden. I just bought a boatload of them, and although Nero burns them with no error messages, there are problems when I test the DVDs.

When I run Nero's File Test/Surface Scan, the Surface Scan shows three little red squares (damaged areas) at the very end of the burn.

And when I run the Nero Transfer Rate Test, I get the mysterious "no additional sense information" message. Two screen shots -- attempts to burn the same files -- are attached. (Hmmm. I'm having trouble uploading the attachments, so they might not be there.) The files are AVIs, if that matters.

One thing I noticed with the Taiyos is that the burn seems to take a lot longer than it did with other brands of media. I don't know if this is normal, or a sign of trouble. All of media is 4x.

I used EndItAll to shut down all applications before burning a DVD. I suspect Norton Antivirus might still be running in the background, although I don't see it listed in my list of processes. I do have Auto-Protect disabled. If NAV could be causing the problem, I'm pretty sure I can figure out how to disable it completely -- should I try that? I think the worm protection and update notification are still running.

Or is the problem more like to be media (if Taiyos don't work, I don't know what else to try!), the 708UF, or a system/connection problem?

I would really appreciate suggestions on how to troubleshoot/fix the problem. I am not a technical person and have no idea what to try next.

I have Nero version 6.6 (just updated it a week ago), so it should be the latest version.

I have never updated the 708UF firmware -- should I do that? Is it easy for a novice?

FWIW, I am able to burn CDs, usually with no problems. It's just the DVDs I can't get to burn.

Thanks.

[DVD_ADDICT]

what firmware is on the drive? if you've never updated the firmware i would suggest you do so.

[DVD_ADDICT]

http://www.plextor.com/english/support/downloads/firm_708UF2.htm
that's the link to download the latest firmware for your drive. you may want to do the self diagnostic test on the drive. the instructions are in the manual.

[G11]

(Hmmm. I'm having trouble uploading the attachments, so they might not be there.) The files are AVIs, if that matters.

You can only upload images to this forum and certain files types (bmp doc gif jpe jpeg jpg pdf png psd txt zip).

[Mallomar]

I did the firmware update and now it's worse than ever! Nero reported read errors at the end of the burn; file test had errors; surface scan reported many damaged areas; and the transfer rate test look awful. I'll try to attach a JPEG.

What can I try next? Or should I just give up and buy a new burner? I would have no problem with that, except I want to make sure the burner is the problem first!

[Mallomar]

You can only upload images to this forum

I worded my message very stupidly! I was trying to upload a JPEG. The files I had burned to the DVD were AVIs.

Anyway, I figured out what I was doing wrong regarding uploading the JPEG.

What I can't figure out is why I can't burn a good DVD!