CDROM is as slow as molasses... Problem Solved!

[FrontlineWarrior]

CDROM reads data, but does it REALLY REALLY slowly. It is always seeking, spinning down, etc... and it takes FOREVER to copy stuff from the CD to my HD. When I play mp3's from my CDs it skips and all that stuff. What the hell is going on and how do I fix this?

I am running WinXP, Iwill KK266, Aopen 12x DVD/CDROM, Liteon 32x.

I tried upgrading Via's 4 in 1's to 4.37... nothing changed.

Pleezzzzzzzzzz help.

 

[corkyg]

When was the last time you used a laser lens cleaner? If anyone smokes in the vicinity, you could be seeing the results of colloidal particle pollution accumulating on the lens.

 

[eclectro]

I have an old samsung 20x that I just love. The reason why is I don't need high speed to read off a cdrom. It reads EVERYTHING and doesn't spend a lot of time spinning down from lightspeed to read a dirty disk. The newer highspeed units are much better at not "spinning down" when they have a problem. If you have an early highspeed CDROM it may be having problem with the slightest amount of dirt on the CDs. At least thats the way it is with a magic-spin 40x that I bought when they first came out. It had a hard time reading alot of disks new out of the box. I ended up switching back to my trusty samsung that wouldn't give me a hassle. If you don't need CDR capability I have seen new CDROMs as low as $20 through the mail, and it may be cheaper than a lens cleaner.

If it was my drive, I would be very tempted to screw the top off and take a damp cotton swab and wipe the lens.

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

Thanks fellas. I will try that because I have a lens cleaner here (you just insert the disc and it has little brushes that clean). I do get a lot of dirt inside the comp because I create negative pressure through rear exhaust fans. I will update later after the cleaning!

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

Brilliant! The CD cleaning did the trick! Such a simple solution... very elegant. Thanks so much corky-g and eclectro!