DVD Burner won't recognize Discs

[varanus87]

This never happened before. Usually when I put a dvd in the DVD recorder the little light turns on until the blank disc is read and then turns off. Recently, when I put a DVD into the burner, the light remains on and the burner tries to read the disc. On DVD Identifier a message tells me that the disc won't be read. I tried 5 brands of DVDs (some worked but still wouldn't burn). I also tried computer software and commercial DVDs, but none will read. Since the burner is external I will try to see if discs can be recognized on another computer as soon as I can. I believe that I have the latest firmware and driver update, and my burner is a TOSHIBA CD/DVDW SD-R5372.

Any help with this will be greatly appreciated.

[LT. Columbo]

how old is this thing? sounds like the drive may be faulty/dirty.

[varanus87]

I've had it since this January.

[varanus87]

I tried it on a computer and the same thing happened.

[varanus87]

A different computer I mean.

[LT. Columbo]

examine the discs carefully for dirt/scratches.

[varanus87]

Most of the discs I used are brand new, and if it doesn't work with all the discs I have some reason to believe that it isn't the discs that are causing the problem. Do I need a drive cleaner or something?

[LT. Columbo]

you can certainly try to clean the lens with a lens cleaning disc.

[varanus87]

Great. It doesn't even read the lense cleaning disc. Now what?

[LT. Columbo]

try it again, then try a disc.
if still nothing, then take it back or to a repair shop and have them test it/inspect it.

that's all i can suggest

[varanus87]

I got a new burner. It's the same one, but an upgraded version. My computer won't recognize it as a drive. Any suggestions?

[jmet]

Check your connections. Make sure the "pins" are selected right. (pins = Master, Slave, or Cable Select.)

[varanus87]

How do you do that?

[jmet]

There are pins on the back off your hard drive, next to the power plug and where the IDE cable plugs in. There will be 3 settings: Master, Slave, and Cable Select. Those are called your "Jumper Settings". If the drive is on the IDE channel all by itself, use the Master setting. If the drive is sharing the IDE channel with another drive and it is the Secondary drive on that channel, select Slave.

[Chewy]

I got a new burner. It's the same one, but an upgraded version. My computer won't recognize it as a drive. Any suggestions?

Is this a laptop computer with an external usb burner?