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General discussion

DVD burner question

Oct 8, 2009 11:05AM PDT

I bought a LiteOn DVD burner last month and I noticed a couple of things and wanted to know if this is normal. I heard something rattling around inside and the tray seemed loose, like it was only attached on one side. I sent it back and got another drive from a local store, it was the same way. I contacted LiteOn both times and the second time was told the noise is from the ball bearings and the looseness on one side is because there are only gears on one side of the tray to open it. Are most drives made today like this? Thanks

Discussion is locked

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This is for laptop or desktop?
Oct 8, 2009 4:14PM PDT

If it's for desktop, then remind me NEVER to get a Liteon.

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It's a desktop,
Oct 8, 2009 7:14PM PDT

but the reviews I read on newegg were very positive.

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You may ask this until
Oct 8, 2009 8:36PM PDT

You disassemble a few CD/DVD drives. There are a few parts that "float" in captivity and will produce a rattle sound. Since that rattle is normal I'll stop here that you may want to find a dead drive (any model should do) and dissect it to see how it works.
Bob

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You are not kidding, right?
Oct 9, 2009 2:29AM PDT

Over the years, I had/have at least 10 drives and I have never heard of such rattles. Am I just lucky or what, hehe.

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This is what I've learned today.
Oct 9, 2009 6:44AM PDT

I spoke to a tech person at my job and another person who owns a photo/video business who has to use computers a lot. I described the situation and asked is this normal for a drive that can be bought today? The answer I got was...yes, unfortunately they do seem to be making things cheaper today.

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Look at the prices.
Oct 9, 2009 11:13AM PDT

I paid 25 bucks for a DVDRW with Lightscribe. It has the rattle but works fine. It does not rattle when powered up and has a DVD in it.

My HP 55 buck drive has no rattle but was it worth more? (not really.)
Bob

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So far
Oct 9, 2009 1:04PM PDT

it doesn't rattle when it's being used, but I'm glad I've got a one year warranty just the same.

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One other noise question
Oct 16, 2009 8:31PM PDT

I noticed when the computer is just turned on or comes out of stand by the DVD drive makes a little noise (hard to describe it). I was wondering is this also normal? My old CD drive didn't do that so I was curious.

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The man behind the curtain noise?
Oct 17, 2009 4:23AM PDT

Coming out of sleep Windows may seek the drive to see if the media was changed. Sounds fine to me.

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OK, thanks
Oct 17, 2009 4:39AM PDT

it was just something different I noticed with the new drive and didn't know if it was anything to be concerned about. I have another issue that has just come up with a DVD I burned earlier this week. I posted this on another part of the forum but haven't gotten a reply yet and I wanted to run it by you. Earlier this week I used Nero 7 to make a data DVD of some old photos so I'd have a backup. I forgot to include one folder so I tried to add it today. When I did, the disc content box shows it as the only folder on the disc. Yet, the amount of space used on the disc is a total of all that I transferred. When I did the first burn I made sure I'd be able to add more to the disc. Just wondering if I messed it up and will have to start over.

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You get used to the changes.
Oct 17, 2009 4:51AM PDT

Replace a fan. New sound.
Replace a hard drive with a faster one. Wow, marbles in a can or is the faster speed making more noise?
Change a connection and the owners ask why it feels different from the old (broken) connector.

This goes on and on and is all part of how one machine is rarely like the next one.
Bob

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pay no attention to Bob
Oct 16, 2009 8:57PM PDT