Disc won't eject in Pioneer DVR-104 (imac G4 800mhz superdrv).Force eject?

[KeepItSimple]

Hello.
I bought an iMac G4 800mhz flat panel model with DVR-104 superdrive recently.
It's was working perfectly until I tired to burn my 1st disc using Toast 7 (DVD-R). That's when things started messing up. I stuck the disc in and after "thinking" about it for a minute ejected it without any message -- it just spit it out.

I repaired file permissions, restarted, tried another disc and now I can't get the disc out. When i push the eject button i get the eject icon on the screen but the disc doesn't come out.

Under Disc Burning in System Profiler it now says "No burning device was found. If you are using an external device please make sure that it is connected and powered properly". Toast 7 says "no recorder found".

So to recap: There's a disc stuck in the Superdrive that my iMac doesn't think is there.
Any ideas??
Thanks!!


Oh BTW here's what is says under System Profiler about the Pioneer DVR-104:
Model: PIONEER DVD-RW DVR-104
Revision: A216
Serial Number: BCDL160039WL
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk1
Protocol: ATAPI
Unit Number: 1
Socket Type: Internal
OS9 Drivers: No
S.M.A.R.T. status: Not Supported

[KeepItSimple]

Ok after doing some research it seems I committed a huge no-no by trying to use 8X and 16X DVD-R's in my iMac with a Pioneer DVR-104 SuperDrive. I'm REALLY sorry I didn't know --I just got the iMac, plus the discs work fine in the DVR-105 on my PowerMac. What a difference 1 little number makes.

If those older DVR-104s don't work well now oh well that's the way it goes. I'll just upgrade the drive to fix that hassle but MEANWHILE there's a blank 8X DVD-R stuck in the drive and I can't get it out.
I tried all the things here but none worked:
http://guides.macrumors.com/Force_Eject_a_Stuck_CD_or_DVD

How can I get the disc out?
Thanks!!

[terryj]

Open the flap on the front of the iMac
(the Drive bay door)
with a flashlight look at the front of the drive.
There should be a little pin hole either on the left
or right upper corner.
Find a paperclip.
Straighten out said paperclip.
Stick said paperclip into the little pin hole and push,
but not too much force!
This will MANUALLY open the drive tray, and eject out the blank.

Once you have gotten it out, reboot the system.
Hold down the Option, Apple, and P and R keys after the
screen goes black, but before the first "bong" startup chime.
This is called "Zapping the PRAM" and it will help
with making sure the Superdrive is properly polled upon reboot.

You should get a brief flash of screen, goes black, and another bong (startup chime). Release all keys, and it will startup normally.

Last, go here and look into buying media rated for the drive
at 1x-4x :
meritline.com
supermediastore.com

But eventually, yes, you will need to buy and replace the drive, as
sources for older media are becoming SCARCE.
You can replace(upgrade) the Superdrive in the iMac for as little
as $40-$60 bucks.
check out OWC ( google it) for options.

[KeepItSimple]

with a flashlight look at the front of the drive.
There should be a little pin hole either on the left
or right upper corner.

Thanks for the response once again terry!
On the Flat Panel iMac with rounded front there is no plastic area around the CD tray with a hole below-- it's just the tray, bare, with LOTS of places to stick paper clips but I wouldn't know where.

Anyway it's OK because I got the disc out. I used Onyx (complete automated maintenance mode-- I checked every box) then came back later and hit the power button by mistake while it was asleep. The iMac woke up but the screen was frozen. I pushed the power button off, then on, held the mouse AND eject key down on start up and the disc popped out. So much for that hassle.

Thanks for the heads up on where to get 4X DVD-Rs online. I will order 1 BILLION discs today.
Oh BTW what's the highest number CD I should use? I have tons of Memorex 52X CD-R -- do I dare try on of those in the DVR-104?

Thanks!!!

[KeepItSimple]

It would be so much simpler to go to Core Care, the new Apple Authorized repair place here in Sacramento, and have the drive replaced with a new super duper SuperDrive, so that's what I did!

I walked in there and about 40 minutes later walked out with a new Pioneer DVR-111D installed by the pros. It was WELL worth the $50 charge for them to put it in and now it's time to BURN BABY BURN!

[rumplestiltskin]

I would buy just a few discs and try to burn them just to verify that the attempt to use the higher speed discs in your burner didn't fry the unit. I don't recall the specific model number but Apple did release a firmware update for an early DVD burner they used which would permit the burner to recognize faster media at 1X (rather than attemptig to use it).

When a burner sees the blank disc, it attempts to write a few bytes of data and then attempts to read it back; this identifies the media for the burner. The problem was that the older burners would not understand what they had burned on the newer media and would repeat the burn procedure over and over until the unit simply self-destructs.

This is why I am recommending you try the burner with the proper media first before purchasing lots of discs (for a burner that may be dead).

Sorry; I'm being paranoid for you.