WolveRyan

Q: my DVD player/burner stopped working

I have 10.5.8 non-intel and it just ejects every DVD that I put in it.  I have an LG Portable external drive, but the CPU only acknowledges it about 7 per cent of the time.  Is there a way to de-activate the drive so that the external is more easily recognized, or an affordable brand of external DVD drive that will be more friendly with this mac?  Thanks in advance

Posted on Mar 28, 2013 6:55 AM

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Q: my DVD player/burner stopped working

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  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Mar 28, 2013 8:38 AM in response to WolveRyan
    Level 6 (13,927 points)
    iPad
    Mar 28, 2013 8:38 AM in response to WolveRyan

    Try using an optical drive that uses FireWire 800/400 connections instead of USB.

    Google is your friend.

  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Mar 28, 2013 9:40 AM in response to WolveRyan
    Level 8 (35,187 points)
    iPad
    Mar 28, 2013 9:40 AM in response to WolveRyan

    The first thing I would do is to get and use a dry, brush-type optical drive cleaning disk. I have this one:

     

    http://www.ixos.co.uk/us/ixos-products-detail.asp?PROID=595&Category=20

     

    Very Mac-friendly in its operation. Often a seemingly dead optical drive can be restored to full function with a cleaning. The disks are certainly cheaper than most external drives.

  • by Jeff,

    Jeff Jeff Mar 28, 2013 8:44 PM in response to WolveRyan
    Level 6 (11,559 points)
    Mar 28, 2013 8:44 PM in response to WolveRyan

    I suspect that the external optical drive has a mechanical and/or electronic problem, as opposed to having a compatibility issue with your G5.  I've got many different external optical drives/burners (by a variety of manufacturers) and the only problem (if any) with a Mac would be bootability.  Reading disks is not typically a problem, and burning disks (with "Toast") is trouble-free.  Other World Computing has this external DVD±RW drive, which has every connection option you'd need.  If you want a Blu-ray drive, there are a several from which to choose on this page.

     

    There is no way (or need) to disable the internal optical drive with a control panel, as one might do with the Device Manager in a PC or with BIOS settings.  The compatibility of the OEM internal drive doesn't diminish the System's capability to recognize an external drive.