frustrated with my tdk 440n

[preludervtec]

so i got a test pack of media online today and tried it out in my tdk 440n. i tried using dvd x copy xpress to backup my dvd movies as usual but it didn't work this time. i was using the ritek 4x g04s and i was counting on them to work since i hear they are the better media. but my burner rejected it. so i tried the other ones which were like dvdpro, mediapro, and optodisc. all those failed except the optodisc which is currently burning right now. i'll let you know if that works well. im using copytodvd now as my burning program and dvd decrypter and dvd shrink for ripping and compressing. oh yeah my error was some sort of calbiration error and burner dirty. any suggestions?? thanks

[deno]

Disc incompatiblity is a firmware issue if your drive is otherwise functioning fine. The various software burning programs will put up different error messages but if the disc is rejected before it starts burning, you are probably looking at a firmware issue (especially if other media works). TDK is lousy at providing support for any but the biggest manufacturers of blank DVD-Rs.

But, there is hope. http://herrie.rpc1.org has "hacked" firmware available for this drive (I also own it) which supports MANY more brands of blank media than TDK's useless versions.

It let me use AN31 discs which had previously been rejected. These discs have burned better and had better set-top compatibility than the RITEK G04s I used to buy and cost about $.80 US.

[preludervtec]

hey thanks for the reply. ive got some of my media to work now actually. the riteks that wouldn't work before do now that i burn at only 2x instead of 4x. maybe i got a bad batch? i tried herries firmware and they didn't seem to do much. plus im not sure if i should use his auto-reset or normal versions? i still dont really understand the difference between the two.

[tvdavid]

I have the same burner. I updated the firmware and I have not had any problems with any media. Look at the comments in the writers section and you will find the link to the firmware update (to version "1.08").

[deno]

Either one will work. The auto-reset version basically keeps your drive in a region-free state which allows it to play discs destined for different parts of the world.

If you have herrie's latest firmware for the TDK 440n installed you should be able to burn just about anything. You might also want to try TDKs official 1.08 firmware but it didn't support the discs that I wanted to use.