Replacing the DVD-R Drive in G5 Tower by Myself?

Question

Level 1

116 points

Replacing the DVD-R Drive in G5 Tower by Myself?

Hi guys - this has probably been asked before but are there any online manuals or tutorials that walk you through the steps involved in replacing the superdrive in a G5 tower?

My local shop wants $50 just to install it. I've got a feeling I can do it on my own. I don't want to shell out $50 if it's a simple procedure.

I've already installed my own RAM & switched my own video card... how much harder could a DVD drive be?

Thanks in advance for the help guys!

Oh and p.s. - the reason I want a new one is because the one in there now - a SONY DVD RW DW-U10A - refuses to burn 99% of the 16x media that I throw in there. It burns any 8x DVD... but it doesn't seem to like 16x media. Toast gives me errors and the disc will hardly ever burn. And Using the finder to burn also yields errors. So I assume it's the drive.

Dual 1.8Ghz PowerMac G5, Mac OS X (10.4.8), 1.5GB RAM, 160GB HD, 256MB ATI Radeon X800 XT, Samsung 22" LCD, 30GB iPod 5G

Posted on Jan 27, 2007 8:15 AM

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Answer 1

maclover

Level 4

3,850 points

Jan 27, 2007 8:37 AM in response to Paul Alessi

Hi. The DIY on optical drives is here

http://www.info.apple.com/usen/cip/pdf/g5/073-0807.pdf

It's not difficult - just a bit fiddly. You usually have to remove the plastic bezel from the front of the tray so that it will clear the sides of the aperture in the front of the G5 - and the four screws ("stand-offs") that raise the drive to the correct height for the aperture, sometimes have to be adjusted.

Many, many people - no, most people, in this Forum have done it themselves. And, if you have a problem...

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Answer 2

Jan 27, 2007 8:41 AM in response to Paul Alessi

Paul Alessi-

You have the needed documents per maclover.

If I can do it anybody can do it. Sounds like you already have the necessary mad skills.

Luck-

-DaddyPaycheck

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Answer 3

Paul Alessi Author

Level 1

116 points

Jan 27, 2007 8:59 AM in response to Paul Alessi

Thankyou thankyou thankyou!

Doesn't seem too tough at all! Just to clarify - the "plastic bezel" is what exactly?

And the stand-offs are just to properly align the tray with the opening in the tower casing correct?

Anything in specific I need to know so that the metal hatch on the G5 still slides down properly? Or is this mechanism nothing I have to worry about?

Thanks!

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Answer 4

maclover

Level 4

3,850 points

Jan 27, 2007 9:41 AM in response to Paul Alessi

The plastic bezel is the bit on the front edge of the tray with CD, DVD, etc. on it

http://www.pioneer.co.uk/uk/products/45/73/442/DVR-111D/index.html

If you pull the bezel out and up from the lower edge, the two plastic lugs holding it should clear the tray edge and allow you to remove it. On the Pioneer 110D, anyway. Haven't checked all possible optical drives...

You are correct about the function of the stand-offs.

The silver optical drive gate mechanism may work (slightly) better if you smear a smidge of silicone polish, with a finger(etc.), on the two plastic bumps (lumps, wedges, cheeses, things, whatever-they-are) that operate it. It will still clonk, though. Have Fun!

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Answer 5

Paul Alessi Author

Level 1

116 points

Jan 27, 2007 7:00 PM in response to maclover

Ok so can somebody recommend a drive that I should be looking for? Anything specific to stay away from? How are the Lacie dual-layer drives?

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Answer 6

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Jan 28, 2007 5:45 AM in response to Paul Alessi

this one
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Pioneer/DVR111DBK/
or this one
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Apple/DVR109AB/

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Answer 7

Ben Furuta

Level 4

1,173 points

Jan 28, 2007 6:46 AM in response to Paul Alessi

Ditto to all the above. It is very simple to do the replacement. I replaced my sony drive with a Pioneer DVR 111D and have no problems. Would suggest however, that regarding speed, that depending on the brand of media you use, burn at the slowest speed you can. So the 8x vs 16x may be a factor in your decision. I have had my best luck at burning compatible disks when I burn at 2 - 5x.

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Answer 8

Paul Alessi Author

Level 1

116 points

Jan 28, 2007 7:29 AM in response to Ben Furuta

So Ben - it's not uncommon that a drive would reject most 16x media if it's only an 8x burner?

I mean have you guys ever heard of such a thing? Even on slower speed settings the discs still fail. Toast 7, Toast 8 and the Finder all fail to write to the discs.

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Answer 9

Ben Furuta

Level 4

1,173 points

Jan 28, 2007 1:55 PM in response to Paul Alessi

Not sure about the first part of your response in that I don't believe that the capacity of the disk is the factor. What I was really commenting on is that the faster the burn, even within the capability of the drive, the more chance for error. so that the resulting disk, even if it appears to have copied, will not run on some players.

From what you describe --"Even on slower speed settings the discs still fail. Toast 7, Toast 8 and the Finder all fail to write to the discs."-- seems to me that the disk drive itself is flawed... May be time to replace (How long have you had it?).

BTW, maybe the drive simply needs to have the lens cleaned...

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Answer 10

Jan 29, 2007 8:55 AM in response to Ben Furuta

I've replaced my original Superdrive in my G5 with a LaCie Lightscribe model (which appears to now be discontinued). It took me all of five minutes, and the drive's been working flawlessly.

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Answer 11

Paul Alessi Author

Level 1

116 points

Jan 31, 2007 4:37 PM in response to Ben Furuta

I've had my computer since January 2004.

Perhaps it does just need a cleaning? But why would all other 8x discs write perfectly? I can't see a little dust causing all 16x media to fail while all 8x media still works perfectly fine... or maybe I'm assuming too much?

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Answer 12

Feb 1, 2007 6:01 AM in response to Paul Alessi

As someone mentioned above, the generation of Superdrives in your Mac did have problems with higher speed disks, even at slower settings. Your 8x disks will usually write okay at 4x (although I found that errors sometimes get introduced). There are even warnings on the disk packages about using lower-speed burners. But for maximum reliability, buy 4x DVD-Rs. Those shouldn't give you a problem. Or just replace your Superdrive with a more modern optical drive (that's specifically labeled as Mac-compatible).

Do CDs burn reliably for you? Usually those are never a problem; it's just various DVDs that cause problems.

Jay

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Answer 13

Paul Alessi Author

Level 1

116 points

Feb 2, 2007 5:08 PM in response to Jay Ducharme

Question guys - in terms of the two burners posted - which would be the smarter choice? The Apple one looks like it already has the plastic in front removed?

Is there much difference between the two?

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Answer 14

Feb 2, 2007 7:34 PM in response to Paul Alessi

Heck, for $30 the "Apple" drive is a bargain. They're both made by Pioneer anyway, and are nearly identical. But for $20 less they remove the bezel for you!

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Answer 15

Feb 2, 2007 9:21 PM in response to Paul Alessi

I was having the same problem at the end of last year with the 16x media and dug around for a couple of days, off & on, trying to find out what was up. I learned a lot about the various manufacturers, which evidently makes a HUGE difference. But the most important thing? If it's 16x, it will only burn DVD+R. I had assumed when I bought my DVDs I should get -R, because the drive will only do CD-R. Wrong. It will burn DVD+R, -R, +RW and -RW (which I had been using for archiving) media below 16x, but only +R for 16x. I burned over a dozen at the first of the year in iDVD and Toast 6 and didn't lose one. And I have a useless spindle of 25 DVD-R.

My superdrive is a Sony DW U21A, but I'll bet the models are close enough that that may be the only problem. Give it a try. And good luck with whatever you end up doing.

dual 2.5 G5 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

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