CD-RW drive problems....

[TboneMarching]

I currently own an NEC 7700-A CD-RW drive and I'm experiencing some difficulties with it. When I attempt to burn CD's in Nero (audio or data) I get a "Power Calibration Error". This is when I use the 12x speed. If I switch to 8x, the CD burner seems to work fine. The error shows up in 12x mode about 95% of the time although every once in a while it seems to function fine. I burn CD's very often as I trade concert's for a hobby. My system (home built) is:

Soyo Dragon Plus KT266A
1.4 Athlon T-Bird
WD 20 GB 7200 HD
Lite-On 16x/40x DVD-Rom (thanks to the people in the "Hot Deals" section
ATI TV Wonder VE
Creative AudioPCI ES1371
Linksys LNE100TX(v5)
ATI Radeon 32MB DDR
E773 ViewSonic

If anyone needs more info on my system to make a guess at what could be wrong just ask and I'll post it. It would be great to get to the bottom of this problem because it's a bit of a pain. Any help at all is much appreciated.

 

[Bleep]

No guess, facts only
Not using good media will cause this error,Your CD-RW drive uses a power calibration process that adjusts the recording laser power to the optimum level for each recordable disc you insert into the drive. Each CD-R and CD-RW disc contains a reference value for laser power in a preformed track, which helps the CD-RW drive determine the ideal laser power. There is also a special area on each CD-R and CD-RW disc set aside for the CD-RW drive's laser to power up to the level required to burn the disc. If the laser power calibration process fails, a power calibration error will occur.
Bleep

 

[TboneMarching]

Thanks for the input, that had been my first guess at the problem. Surprisingly, I had been getting this error with every kind fo CD-R or CD-RW I tried. I just found the solution though - my power supply. The power supply I had ordered for my computer was supposed to be 300W but I just realized I had installed a 250W unit without even noticing!! I also just realized that the problems only started happening after I added my DVD-Rom and ATI TV Tuner card. I think my CD-R is starving for power. I disconnected my DVD-Rom and everything seems to work fine now with the burner; much fast and smoother response. I'm going to invest in a better power supply and make sure that I get the correct one this time!