User Guide

Symptoms

Solutions

1. Drive is not recognized.

1. Is the power connector inserted and seated properly? Please refer to the Drive Connectors section.
2. Is the interface connector inserted and seated properly? Please refer to the Drive Connectors section.
3. Is the jumper-pin setting correct? Please refer to the Drive Connectors section. Make sure that the settings meet the requirements listed on the page.
4. Check the system BIOS to make sure the EIDE interface is enabled. To check system BIOS settings for the EIDE channels, consult your Dell system documentation.

2. CD-R/RW or DVD disc inserted in drive does not play or cannot be read.

1. Try another disc to see if it will play.
2. Inspect the disc for dirtiness (fingerprints, etc.). If disc is dirty, clean it following the instructions on Using the DVD+RW Drive.
3. Inspect the disc for scratches. Media with many scratches or large scratches may not be readable by the drive.
4. Make sure the disc is not inserted upside-down. See 5-7 below for more information.

3. Disc tray does not open.

1. Is the power connector inserted and seated properly? Please refer to the Drive Connectors section.
2. Is the interface connector inserted and seated properly? Please refer to the Drive Connectors section.
3. Some applications and operating systems occasionally prevent the drive from opening when the drive is in use or being accessed. Shut down all applications and try again. If this is not successful, reboot, and try again.
4. Media or an object may be jammed inside of drive. Refer to Using the CD-RW/DVD ROM Drive for instructions to perform emergency ejection.

4. Certain types of discs do not play.

1. This drive only supports discs with the formats indicated in the Introduction and Specifications sections. It cannot read the data on discs with other formats. Check the disc's format.

5. Cannot write discs or cannot read disc that was just written.

1. Does the CD-R/RW or DVD/+R/+RW disc have dirt or scratches? Dirtiness and scratches can cause write problems.
2. Could the disc have been improperly formatted? Consult your software user's manual to find how to examine the disc's properties. If CD-R or DVD+R media is improperly formatted, replace it. If CD-RW or DVD+RW media is improperly formatted, reformat it.
3. Did a screen saver or other application operate while writing to the disc? Although the drive has buffer underrun prevention, some CD mastering software does not automatically activate it. Consult the software manual to determine how to activate the buffer underrun prevention. Also try writing again without other applications running.
4. CD-R and DVD+R media cannot be re-written. Please check the type of media that is being used to ensure it is compatible with the writing method chosen.
5. Is there enough free space on the CD-R/RW or DVD+R/+RW disc?
6. If writing fails, try to use the writing application's test write feature (if available). If writing completes successfully, try writing to another brand of media.
7. Is the disc loaded in the drive with the read/write surface facing the right direction? The label should be up. If a disc does not have a label, the disc code on the inner side of the disc should be properly oriented for reading when looking from the top of the disc.
8. Large temperature changes in a short period of time can effect writing. Before writing, allow 30 minutes in stable temperature.

1. The drive's play mode may need to be set to "Digital." In Windows XP, for example, use the Control Panel and open "System" and then "Hardware." Start Device Manager and in "DVD/CD-ROM drives," double-click on the entry for the drive, then click on the "Properties" tab. Check the box marked "Enable digital CD audio for this CD-ROM device. You may need to reboot your computer after this step.
2. The CD player application may need to be set to "Digital." In Windows Media Player, for example, from the menu bar click on "Tools," then "Options," and then click on the "Device" tab. Select the drive and click on the "Properties" button. Set the playback mode to "Digital."

7. When playing audio or movies, the sound is noisy or the movie is distorted or not smooth at a specific point.

1. The media may be slightly damaged, dirty, or corrupted. Inspect media and try another disc.

8. When playing MP3 files or video files from drive, audio is distorted or noisy, video is not clear.

1. Inspect media and try another disc.
2. Play quality of MP3 files, or Video files, is dependent on the compression ratio or how they were recorded.

1. Try a different brand of media.
2. Make sure media is clean and free of scratches.
3. Media varies greatly in the market. Media from different manufacturers, purchased at different times, will record at different speeds. The drive will adjust the available recording speeds to make the best possible recording.