T43 Multidrive

[jtharris]

this CD-RAM drive will play music disks but won't read data disks. Help!

[lead_org Microsoft MVP Contributor]

what sort of data disks? DVD or CD?

[jtharris]

CD's. But, I think I identified the problem: Office Depot brand CD-ROM (Aptiva) are the ones that won't read. If I copy the data to another brand of CD blanks,  the drive will read CD data. So, stay away from Aptiva discs. And, thank you.

[lead_org Microsoft MVP Contributor]

some discs due to the cheap dye they use, can produce problems in ageing drives, especially in slim drives, since the laser they use are not as powerful as the desktop version. As part of the laser age, the power output diminishes, which means they can no longer discern the surface features of burnt discs (especially the cheap one), resulting in the problem you have observed.

This is also why many game consoles laser have a shorter life span when they use copied games as opposed to the OEM discs. 

[jtharris]

Thank you for your response!