Panasonic DMR-EZ48V Problem Reading DVDs

[must066]

My Panasonic DMR-EZ48V has problems reading a prerecorded DVD. It will make several grinding sounds and then display No Read. Disk is not scratched. Sometimes I can put it in again and it will read it fine. The DVDs are from our public library. They have security strips on on the label side. Could that affect reading? If I put the DVD in my Magnavox unit it always loads and plays fine. Anyone have this problem?

[hech54]

The Panny is dying. Nothing lasts forever. The End.

[jjeff]

Try cleaning the spindle. Unfortunately to gain access to the spindle correctly you need to take the cover off the unit followed by taking the cover off the DVD drive. Cleaning DVDs do nothing to the spindle. Once your familiar with the spindle and it's location it is possible to somewhat clean it from the front slot. Eject the tray, unplug the unit and then gently move the tray in and out to gain access to the spindle. Note doing it that way you'll need a good flashlight and long handled Q tips, similar to whats used in a Dr's office. It's quite hard cleaning from the front and like I said unless you've done it I really wouldn't suggest it.
If you said all your DVDs give the no read symptom I'd say you had a bad laser but since you occasionally get something to play it's probably just a dirty spindle causing disc slippage.

[must066]

Thanks for your replies. Here is some additional information as to why I don't think it's a spindle problem: When I load DVD-RW discs that I recorded TV shows on, I never have a problem. Everything works fine. When I load the DVD movies I bought, they load fine. This leads me to believe the Panny does not like the library's security strips (actually RFID) on the label side. But some library DVDs play fine. Some will eventually load. Also, if I don't finish the movie and turn off the unit, the next day it may or may not give me a "no read" indication. It's not totally consistent when playing library DVDs. Just curious if anyone else has experienced this. Also, I can't figure out what is causing what I call a grinding sound when the unit is trying to read the DVD.
I could understand the spindle issue if it at least sometimes happened with other than library DVDs, but that's not the case so far. I'm totally puzzled. The DVDs play fine in my Magnavox HDD/DVD recorder.

[jjeff]

A dirty spindle shows up as a variety of problems, often times intermittent or will work one time but not the next. I know what your talking about with the security strip and I've seen it but truthfully never play DVDs in my DVDRs, rather I use a $50 DVD player to play DVDs and only record on my DVDRs. Not only does the DVD players work better they are much cheaper than our DVDRs, most of which are pushing 10 years old and no longer made.
If you haven't cleaned your spindle in the last few years or so it probably needs it. I clean mine at least once/year, often times more frequently for my most heavily used Panasonics. Magnavox and most other DVDR brands don't seem to require this periodic cleaning, it's mostly a Panasonic thing and probably has to do with their design.

[must066]

Thanks again for the information.
Good point about just using a cheap DVD player for watching movies and only using the DVD drives in the Panny and Magnavox for copying to the DVD. I put my DVD player away when I bought the Panny and the Magnavox.
Based upon your earlier email, I'm a bit hesitant to disassemble the unit to clean the spindle. I don't want to make things worse. I do have long have long Q tips, so I might try cleaning it from the front. Do you just moisten the Q tip with use rubbing alcohol and just rub it on the spindle?
Thanks again.

[hech54]

Way back when I paid BIG for my old Philips DVDR985 recorder....I deemed it a recorder only.

[jjeff]

Do you just moisten the Q tip with use rubbing alcohol and just rub it on the spindle?
Thanks again.

Yes but because the spindle moves when trying to clean it, I like to use a spinning motion with the Q-tip. That is roll it between your fingers while resting it against the spindle.
Again it's pretty hard to do and doesn't clean the rubber on the spindle nearly as good as actually taking the DVD drive apart, but in a pinch it may help.
Besides wear and tear the reason I prefer a dedicated DVD player is because of features. My favorite players(Sony and Pioneer) have several key features(to me) missing on my Panasonic DVDRs. Of course for just outright playing a DVD they would both work.

[must066]

jjeff,
Once again, thanks. I'm going to haul out my DVD player. I've never had problems recording on the Panny or playing movies I've bought. If/when I do, I'll give the spindle cleaning a shot. I keep coming up with more questions, but don't feel obligated to answer if you've had enough with this thread. I would think the spindle would remain clean since it's not exposed to constant dust and the DVDs are clean. I've never cleaned the spindle on my CD player, and I use that a lot more that the Panny. What is actually getting dirty on the spindle that would cause the problem I'm having reading DVDs from the library with the RFID strip?

[jjeff]

Unlike DVD players many DVD recorders have a fan that circulates air through the unit to keep it cool while burning, I believe part of the dust comes from this. Not sure where the rest comes from but I can tell you that basically every Panasonic DVDR I've taken apart has a dirty spindle. Call it a bad design(other mfgs. don't seem to have this problem, other than maybe Pioneer) but for sure it's an issue with Panasonics.
I agree about DVD players, I have literally dozens and many have probably been used hundreds of hours and NONE have required this spindle cleaning but I also have quite a few Panasonic DVDRs of all different models and ALL have required periodic spindle cleaning, even ones that don't get a lot of use, it's just one of those things with Panasonic DVDRs. I'd gladly use a different brand to avoid this maintenance issue but even though I've tried many different brands, none give me the picture quality I want, at least on speeds longer than 2hrs or SP and at this stage of the game since DVDRs are all but dead, I'm stuck with Panasonic and their poor spindle design.

One thought about your RFID disc issues, it's possible that the strip is causing an imbalance when the disc spins. This imbalance causes a small amount more stress on the spindle, and if your spindle is dirty the imbalance may cause the spindle to slip, causing the poor reads. Whenever I've seen such RFID strips it's only been on one side of the DVD with nothing on the opposite side to balance the disc. It's one of the reasons people around here don't like disc labels that cover only one half of the disc, you really want to balance the disc to prevent disc wobble and issues associated with it.

[orsetto]

One thought about your RFID disc issues, it's possible that the strip is causing an imbalance when the disc spins. This imbalance causes a small amount more stress on the spindle, and if your spindle is dirty the imbalance may cause the spindle to slip, causing the poor reads.

I've held off commenting until now, so jjeff would have a chance to post his long-earned advice re the infamous Panasonic clamp/spindle maintenance issue. Every Panasonic recorder owner left in the world who is blissfully unaware of the "dirty spindle syndrome" should know how to deal with it when it inevitably happens (at least its user-curable, unlike the horrendous "sudden laser death" issue their dvd players had). Over time, Panasonics have proven to be the most durable dvd recorders by far, with total drive longevity easily double that of any other brand. But one does need to know how to clean them, because they do appear to play "permanently dead" like other brands when they simply need a spindle cleaning to revive them.

In your specific case, must066, I don't think the problem is a dirty spindle. You pretty much answered your own question in your first post: the problem is with the library sticker on this particular dvd. You noted that your EZ48 has no difficulty whatsoever playing any other dvd- only this one dvd with the moronic sticker (that every library and rental place has long since been warned NOT to apply). While I'd recommend cleaning your drive clamp and spindle per jjeffs instructions as preventative maintenance, it won't help the unit cope with this label-crippled dvd: going forward, play any stickered dvds in a different unit. Players and recorders vary widely in their playback tolerances: sometimes a player can plow thru a dvd that a recorder chokes on, and vice versa. Plus as jjeff mentioned, since quality recorders are no longer available, the less laser life you "waste" on playback the better- a separate dvd or bd/dvd player should prolong the useful life of your recorder.

[must066]

Many thanks to both of you for your insightful comments. I'm taking your advice and using a DVD player to watch DVDs and saving the DVRs solely for recording. My initial question was whether others experienced the same issue I did. I'm surprised I never heard from anyone else that encountered the same problem. Both of you provided outstanding advice for which I am grateful.