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External CD/DVD drive and OS Ventura

After upgrading to OS Ventura on my iMac desktop, my NOLYTH external CD-DVD drive is no longer recognized in finder and will not play a CD that I insert into it. With older versions of the operating system, it worked fine. I have tried restarting the computer with the drive plugged in, but that did not help. Is there any workaround for this situation? Alternatively, are there drives that are compatible with the current OS?

iMac (M1, 2021)

Posted on Mar 29, 2023 6:57 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 29, 2023 8:55 AM

It is getting power from the computer. It lights up and the disc inside whirs around, but then it quits, and it never shows up in finder, etc., and won't play the CD.

15 replies

Mar 29, 2023 7:23 AM in response to Frankgold

Is this the Drive in question ?


link below


External CD/DVD drive and OS Ventura - Apple Community


From that image it appears to have a USB - C connector as well as an Adaptor for USB -A


How exactly is the drive connected to the iMac (M1, 2021)


Best results it is Directly to the Computer with No USB HUB between the drive and computer


Have an old Lacie with only USB-A connector but placing a USB-A to USB-C adapter and connecting directly to M2 MBA works fine

Mar 30, 2023 1:41 AM in response to Frankgold

OK, have attached my ancient Lacie DVD- RW drive and not DVD in the drive.


It too is connected to the USB-A port on M1 Mac Mini.


The drive does not appear on the desktop Until a Readable and Formatted DVD disk in placed into the drive


Refer to images below


In this case, a " Repair disc Windows 10 64-bit "


In your computer situation perhaps the issue is more the CD / DVD discs itself that is the issue


Mar 29, 2023 7:42 AM in response to PRP_53

I don't see an image, but as you describe, mine has the USB-C connector and USB-A (a double-headed cable), and also a separate power cord with a USB-A connector. I have the power cord (a round connector) plugged into the external drive, and the USB-A connector in an adaptor to connect to my Mac's USB-C port.


Given that, what's the best option for connecting directly to the computer?

Mar 29, 2023 8:54 AM in response to PRP_53

That drive doesn't appear to be quite the same as mine. Mine can be plugged into a computer either via the two-pronged (USB-C and USB-A) cable that connects to what appears to be a data port marked "micro" on the device, or with a cable that plugs into a round power port marked "DC" on the device, which terminates in a USB-A that I can plug into the computer with an adaptor. Either method powers up the device and causes the disc inside to whir around and eventually stop; it just doesn't play the CD or show up in the finder. I will see if I can paste here a link to the device from Amazon, which is where I bought it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TCQD3QQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

Apr 1, 2023 2:11 PM in response to PRP_53

Success! I plugged in the drive and inserted a different CD, and I was able to play that CD (and could have downloaded it to Music, but it was already downloaded). Interestingly, I then ejected that one and inserted the new CD I was trying to play and download, and that one, too, worked in the drive. For what it's worth, I connected the cable to the data port on the NOLYTH device and the USB-A end to an adaptor on my computer, and that worked. I then tried connecting the cable that way but using the USB-C end (it's a two-headed USB-C and USB-A cable on the USB end) to connect to the computer, and that also worked. I'm confident I tried those methods before, so I think it was the "teaching," if you will, the computer to recognize the device by inserting the other CD that made the difference. Thanks, P. Phillips, for your help and persistence in trying to solve the problem, and thanks also to Luis Sequeira1 for his advice.

External CD/DVD drive and OS Ventura

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