Ticket Options

Question Profile

Question Details

TICKET ARCHIVE -> Mac Pro DVD/SuperDrive

markjl - Oct 11, 2007 - 9:21 am

I am a video editor and have a "Mac Pro/3.0Gz - 4.0/500Gb - OS 10.4.10" that I use to burn both CD's and DVD's for Mac and PC clients.

The CD's are no problem for either clients, but when I burn a DVD, the PC clients cannot read them.

I have burned these DVD's using both OS X "Disk Utility" and
Toast 6.0 with no luck on the PC side. Previously, I used a G4 PowerBook and had no problems.

Any suggestions?

***Mark


PS-I'd like to add a second DVD drive to the Mac Pro. Could you recommend a any specific brand or model?

peter_ob - Oct 14, 2007 - 12:10 am

You might have done this already but just to make sure. Did you set toast to burn for mac and pc?
On your second query, I'm sure that there are several brands compatible with a Mac but LG works fne with me.

bests,

peter

markjl - Oct 14, 2007 - 9:47 am

Peter,

Yes, I have set it for "Mac & PC". Also I have used different
brands of DVD's.

Any more suggestions?

***Mark

peter_ob - Oct 14, 2007 - 11:32 am

I have no answer for now but I'll get back to you as soon as I find one. In the mean time I'll reopen this ticket so other techs can have a go at it.

bests,

peter

Serenak - Oct 16, 2007 - 6:47 pm

I have had similar problems in the past with a G5 2GHz DP - turned out the DVD writer was the problem... gradually it seemed to have gone "out of whack"

At first PCs would not read disks it burned, then it would not read back its own DVDs reliably and finally not even its own CDs (though my home G5 would reliably read the DVDs...) In that case I think it was the read head that was screwed in the G5 not the burn one... but DVD writers (and CD ones before them) are far more complicated than simple readers and far far more prone to failures.

I suggest that if you are still under warranty you approach Apple with regards to a replacement drive.. if you are not just look for a good quality 3rd party replacement.

Best test - beg, borrow or steal another burner and try it from the Mac Pro and get a friendly PC using client to test it... if it works then you have isolated the problem.

As to 3rd party drives... well all seem as good as each other really (some will tell you Brand X is unreliable, but just as many will tell you the opposite). Truth is most users have too small a sample to say - you get a dud you get a bad taste... but really unless the tech sites or a Google search turn up a lot of failures for a brand there is little between them.