both superdrive not writing DVD's

Question

Level 2

174 points

both superdrive not writing DVD's

i own a Mac Pro (early 2008) with 2 superdrives originally assembled by Apple.

The system is running OSX Yosemite 10.10.2

I do not write often DVD's nor CD's but i realize recenttly that it doesn't burn and DVD anymore. It seems strange that the problem is on BOTH the superdrive so i think that must be a software problem. Is it possible? Nobody experienced with such a problem?
Any possible solution will be appreciated.

thanks

m.

Mac Pro (Early 2008), OS X Yosemite (10.10.2), 12 Gb RAM

Posted on Mar 3, 2015 12:59 PM

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Answer 1

lllaass

Level 10

210,417 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:05 PM in response to oesse

What happens when you try?

Error message(s)?

Do they ready DVDs?

If you go to System Report and look under how they are connected (SATA or PATA) does it show burning capability?

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Answer 2

oesse Author

Level 2

174 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:35 PM in response to lllaass

the superdrives are listed as OPTIARC DVD RW AD-7170A and are ATAPI

The error is "the attempt to burn a disc failed. The disc can't be burned; it might be incompatible with this disc drive. Please try a differente brand of disc, or try burning at a slower speed (this happens trying to write a DVD using iTunes).

Using the finder, the error message is "The disc can’t be burned, because the device failed to calibrate the laser power level for this media"

DVD can be read without problems

thanks

m.

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Answer 3

lllaass

Level 10

210,417 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:41 PM in response to oesse

Try a cleaning disk.

Can you burn these DVD on another drive/computer? Maybe they are bad. How old are they?

I would try ones from batch that burn on another drive.

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Answer 4

pmiles

Level 6

16,013 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:50 PM in response to oesse

This can be quite common with burning a DVD. It's why commercial DVDs are pressed not burned. They can be quite finicky towards media.

You say the error happens while using iTunes. Have you tried burning a data DVD from Finder with the media? If the media is bad (relatively speaking) it won't burn under any application. Have you cleaned optical drives lately? Dust is the number one culprit. Speed at which the media is rated is also a factor, the slower the rated write speed, the better (2X or 4X write media for example). Sometimes merely using a different brand or write speed is the ticket.

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Answer 5

oesse Author

Level 2

174 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:50 PM in response to lllaass

i cleaned already many times the driver with the cleaning disk but unsuccesfully

I have tested some DVD-R branded APPLE dvd (quite old indeed, maybe 6 or 7 years) as well as a Verbatin DVD 16x certified quite new (less than 1 year) . What i find strange is that BOTH the drivers are not working.....

m.

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Answer 6

lllaass

Level 10

210,417 points

Mar 3, 2015 1:57 PM in response to oesse

Try resetting the SMC and NVRAM

Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)

About NVRAM and PRAM

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Answer 7

pmiles

Level 6

16,013 points

Mar 3, 2015 2:00 PM in response to oesse

You could also try resetting the NVRAM/PRAM and SMC.

When was the last time you actually burned a DVD? And have you ever successfully burned the Verbatim media on these drives? 16X is a fast write speed... DVDs that are only certified for slower write speeds force the drive to only write at the lower speeds... which is why you want slow write speed media for the best possible chance of success.

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Answer 8

oesse Author

Level 2

174 points

Mar 3, 2015 2:01 PM in response to lllaass

done already, even the pram

still the same error, unfortunately

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Answer 9

pmiles

Level 6

16,013 points

Mar 3, 2015 2:04 PM in response to oesse

Still likely to be the media itself...

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Answer 10

oesse Author

Level 2

174 points

Mar 3, 2015 2:07 PM in response to pmiles

with 2 different media? 😕

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Answer 11

pmiles

Level 6

16,013 points

Mar 3, 2015 3:33 PM in response to oesse

If you haven't burned a disc with either media successfully recently, then yes both media could be to blame. Try slower speed rated media, 2X or 4X write speeds. They tend to do better with fickle drives. It can be a bit of trial and error to find the right media.

Again, have you tried burning just a data DVD from Finder? iTunes could be the problem child, but you have to prove that you can burn to this media (or any DVD media) successfully to prove that it is.

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Answer 12

gumsie

Level 4

2,179 points

Mar 3, 2015 10:35 PM in response to oesse

There are 3 at least possibilities as I see it. The OS, the media or the drive and you would need to eliminate what you can.

If it's the OS can you boot into a different one and try it?

If the Media, can you purchase a small quantity of 'quality' discs and try?

If the drive, do you have another chassis, (Mac or PC), that you can try?

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Answer 13

oesse Author

Level 2

174 points

Mar 4, 2015 3:18 PM in response to pmiles

I have solved the problem simply reducing the number of files (and consequently the total dimension) to be burned on the DVD.

I have no words....

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Answer 14

gumsie

Level 4

2,179 points

Mar 5, 2015 12:10 AM in response to oesse

Before we put this to bed. Can you tell us what you reduced from, to?

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Answer 15

Ziatron

Level 5

4,186 points

Mar 5, 2015 5:36 PM in response to pmiles

It's why commercial DVDs are pressed not burned.

Generally true, however I buy movies directly from studios that are burned all the time. In fact, they have even stopped copy protecting because they realize it's a waste of time.

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