Thread: Troubleshooting slim dvd drive issue

Hi,

I have been trying for the last 6+ months to get a usb dvd drive to work with my setup -- with no success.... Today's attempt is utilizing recently purchased equipment (from mp3car):

Panasonic Slot Load CW-8124 DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive
Ultra Slim External Enclosure USB 2.0


My issue -- dvd drive is not seen by my BIOS (or WinXP). Although the salesman at mp3car had said that this drive would run off of usb power, If I just used on usb connector I got nothing. This adapter does come with a connector to allow plugging into a second usb port and suppling additional power. But since I I had already read that people didn't tend to get enough power from that combo either -- so I rewired the connector to come of my OPUS 120 5V line. With both connected I get flashing lights (if I press the eject button). But no signs of it from my boot screen (I have it setup to boot from usb dvd drive first) or Windows.

--Update---
I bought a 2nd enclosure (same type) from mp3car after verifying the drive worked by testing it in another system. With the 2nd enclosure (on my bench) I got the drive to be seen by both the BIOS and Windows using my main home machine. In the car, the dvd drive is only seen sporadically by the BIOS and only twice by WinXP. Worse, there are time when my external hard drive isn't seen (hadn't happened before) -- which is connected to the same powered hub. Even worse is when the BIOS freezes(ie: stops just before the memory check and doesn't respond to attempts to enter setup).

Having searched the forums extensively, I have seen a lot of people using external dvd drives (such as this). Most of the time, when problems are reported it's attributed to power. However, I have ensured sufficient power is being provided (as best I can test). The other 2 areas identified as potential problems were cable lengths and poor quality cables. I have tried different usb cables of varying lengths(I actually had to do a lot of cable swapping just to get the drive working on the bench). I have tried with hubs and without. I have even tried different hardware combos (actually this is my 2nd combo -- look here to see my 1st

DVD Drive Boot problems

I'm totally at my wits end ::

-- end update --

Additionally, when I was testing this out (on my bench) I noticed something weird. I am using a desktop atx power supply to provide the 12V to the OPUS. In the course of testing, I had a one point the usb plug connected and the atx supply connected (but at the point, I had it unplugged) -- and watched with mild surprise as my atx power supply fan still ran. This surprised me as it indicated that the power from the usb port was flowing through the enclosure to the power cord connected to the OPUS and on to everything else connected to it (including the power supply).

If this isn't what suppose to happen, please clue me in!

So, I would appreciate any I can get!

Nasa


BTW: if I should just give up on using usb enclosures, that would be good to know as well.....