Problems With External CD Burners?

[aycorn]

Hi all - maybe someone here can provide some insights.

I recently upgraded from my ancient computer to a brand new Windows 10 machine.  It has a built in CD-drive, which seems to work fine, but the tray seems very flimsy, and it's vertically mounted for some mysterious reason.  So I decided to get an external to burn CDs as I make a fair amount of them.

For CD-burning, I used to use Windows Media Player which worked just fine for me, until this (apparently well-known) bug in which it stops recognizing certain files for whatever reason.  I read up on and tried a few fixes to no avail, then said ____ it and switched to CDBurnerXP, which worked fine for me.  

I tried CDBurnerXP on my new machine, using the internal drive.  It worked fine.

I also tried burning two CDs, using the internal drive, with Windows Media Player.  The first one was perfect.  The second one I got the "does not recognize" error, so that was a failure.  So, whatever the case, my computer itself does not have a problem burning CDs.

Then I tried the external (a MUSC), with CDBurnerXP.  It could not see the disk in the drive and kept telling me to insert a disc.  I tried with a few disks - same error.  I assumed the external might be a problem, and bought a second, different brand, a Cocopa.  CDBurnerXP could see a disk in this drive, but did not think it was blank (kept insisting there was insufficient space).

After poking through a CDBurnerXP forum, and attempting a few fixes, I decided it was time to man up and go for a commercial program, and chose Roxio.

So - first bit of weirdness - I downloaded what I assumed was the latest and greatest Easy CD and DVD Creator.  But according to the software, this is 2, not 6, that I have.  Weird.  I don't particularly care - 2 is fine with me and I'm not excited about doing another download (I don't have high-speed internet and it literally took hours).  So, I fired up Roxio and and plugged in the Cocopa drive.  Roxio insisted the disk was full and it could not burn to it.  I switched to the MUSC.  The MUSC seemed to work fine and burned my CD nicely - EXCEPT that is clipping on the last 2-3 tracks, which is unexpected.

I tried burning to the Cocopa using Windows Media Player.  That worked fine as well, except for, again, the WMP "not recognize" bug.  So clearly both the Cocopa and the MUSC work fine -  but seem to have compatibility issues with software - both with Roxio and CDBurnerXP.

So - my questions:

Why would these externals have such problems?  Any ideas?  They're both good little externals and I'd like to continue using them.

Why did I somehow end up with Easy CD and DVD Creator 2 if 6 is the latest?  Or did I just overlook something?

Any thoughts on the clipping?  I used to get clipping probs years ago when I used Nero, and it was apparently (so I was told) due to track volume.   So I started reducing the volume on tracks and - voila - no more clipping.  Is that still the likeliest suspect?

Incidentally, I have not yet tried burning a CD to the internal drive with Roxio, nor burning any CDs with my laptop (which does not have a built-in CD but can accept the externals).  I hadn't planned on turning this thing into a science project, after all!

Any insights are appreciated!

 

 

[Brendon]

Aycorn,

Which Roxio product do you have that you are needing help with, please?  You posted in the old legacy Easy CD Creator 4 and 5 forum, but that won't run under Windows 10 so you obviously haven't got that one.   You are saying you have Easy CD and DVD Creator 2 and want version 6, but there's no such software.

 

When you're running your software, and in the Home screen you go to the top bar and click the Help button you should see an "About" option.   Click on that and you should see an "About this software" display.    Please tell me the exact name of your software so we can answer your questions.

 

Thank you very much,

Brendon

[aycorn]

Thanks Brendon - actually I'm not overly concerned about WHICH version it is - as long as it works.  I was just surprised when I realized that 6 was the latest version, but mine says this:

 

Edited October 12, 2019 by Brendon

[aycorn]

I see … it seems "Easy CD & DVD Creator" and "Easy CD & DVD Burning" are two different products.  This is making my tiny brain hurt.  Should I repost this to a different forum (I chose "4 & 5" forum cause it seemed like the closest match).

 

[Brendon]

Good Morning Aycorn,

What you have is the cut-down "lite" version of one of the older Creators - the type of version which came to be known as "in the Red Box".  It dates from around Creator NXT.   The latest full version of Creator is NXT 7.

Different versions often have specific problems, so that's why we have to ask your version.    Now we've ascertained what you have I'll get this thread shifted to the 'Redbox" forum.   Then we can work on your actual problem.

There's no reflection on you that you started here.  Roxio has engaged in some quite confusing product naming, and it's not your fault.  

[Brendon]

Hello again Aycorn,

Here we are in the Easy CD & DVD Burning forum.  I'll bet you can't find your way back here without setting a bookmark, or going back through the Easy CD 4 & 5 forum. I don't know why it's hidden down here.  (It reminds me of that notice in the Hitchhiker's Guide, "It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying ‘Beware of the Leopard.' ")

Your questions, from last to first:

-If the problem is amplitude clipping, I think you may need to reduce track volume.  It's worth trying, anyway.

-Version numbers - The latest version of the main Roxio Creator suite is Creator NXT 7 at the moment.   A long time ago a severely cut-down 'lite' version of Creator was marketed, called Easy CD & DVD Burning.   They have now made a more modern severely cut-down "lite" version called Easy CD & DVD Burning 2, and that's what you have.   See here (LINK)

-The external burners - This is the difficult one because I don't have access to those burners.  However I do know that the Roxio software does much of its disc I/O through the operating system, rather than independent of the OS.   I think the problem is between the drives and Windows 10, rather than a problem with CDburnerXP or the Roxio software.       Did the external drives come with driver software, or have drivers available on their manufacturers' sites?

Brendon

[aycorn]

Hey Brendon - thank you for the tips.  I will try reducing the volume on the tracks on that particular disk.  I also want to try burning it with the internal drive before doing so, just to eliminate the possibility that the clipping had something to do with the external.

To answer your second question: both of the externals are supposed to be 100% plug and play, and came with (and supposedly require) no drivers.

 

[Brendon]

Plug and play?  Yet one fails to recognize a disc in the burner, and the other one thinks the disc is full.

If they both worked properly under other software but not in the Roxio suite, that would suggest the Roxio software's faulty.  However neither of them are faultless under CDBurnerXP, and the internal drive seems to be working fine.

Try your disc in the internal drive, and I'll think some more about this.

 

[Brendon]

Hi Aycorn,

I've been off trying to find what brand/model of DVD drive is used in those two external drives you have.  Sometimes a firmware update is needed when drives won't recognize the presence of an inserted disc, or think the disc is closed when it isn't, but you need to know exactly what drive you have before you can progress.

I couldn't find a MUSC brand drive in any of my searches.  I found that Amazon sells Cocopa drives, but going through the reviews I found a very high number of complaints about them, and couldn't find anything about what was inside them.    The unit originates in China.  Complaints included many that were DOA, and many that wouldn't work in Mac or PC, and many that had stopped working after a short time.    A reviewer said the "Instructions" were written in micro-print on a tiny piece of paper, and there was an offer to send drivers for the unit "if requested".  The problem was there was no model or serial numbers on the unit or the box, and there was no address to send a request.   Another customer said although it's advertised as a USB3 interface, his machine reported it as USB2.   In any event, Amazon says  "Currently unavailable. We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock. "

I invite you to read some reviews for yourself, at the bottom of the page HERE, but I'm afraid you may have bought yourself a lemon or two.

Best regards,

Brendon

[aycorn]

Good research Brendon.  Yes I checked these out review-wise, and both had good and bad reviews - and the ratio was about the same with every other external burned in this price range.

I'm not sure about the "lemon" though - the Cocopa worked fine with Windows Media Player - and I wouldn't have any problem using Windows Media Player to burn discs if it wasn't for WMP suddenly deciding it can't recognize sound files.  That's a MWP bug for sure - I've had it happen on two other machines.

The MUSC worked fine with Roxio - except for the clipping - which may be volume and nothing to do with MUSC - haven't had a chance to test that one yet.  I also want to try these with my laptop (which does not have a built-in optical drive).  It does seem odd to me that both Roxio and CDBurnerXP would have probs with these drives, but WMP would not.  But Windows 10 can be a strange beast....

 

[Brendon]

A problem is that in each case we don't know what is in the box, or who made it.   Without that info we can't see if the manufacturer(s) have issued corrected firmware or are even still in business.      [Hope it's not like the '128 GB pendrive' I saw which held only 8 GB, or the '1TB 2.5" drive NEW from China' on my bench, which is really an old 160 GB drive with a fake label and 2,500 power-on hours on it.]

I'm sorry I can't help you, but I think it's a matter of what the drive is reporting to your computer about presence or fullness of discs,  rather than the Roxio software and CDBurnerXP misinterpreting it.

[aycorn]

You've been a big help already.  I have a couple more experiments I want to try.  It sounds like, at the least, this is not a known bug in Roxio (it is actually in CDBurnerXP - forgot to mention that - but none of the recommended fixes have worked).