How to replace Pioneer 220s DVD Burner?

[Brent G.]

(Sorry if this is a double post, but my previous post never showed up, not sure why)

I have a Pioneer 220s DVR and it looks like the dvd burner has gone again. When I put in a blank disk, it churns away and eventually says "Disk unwriteable". The disk can still be read. The same disks worked fine yesterday and for the past 'x' months.

I had this problem before and they replaced the drive under warranty. But now it is out of warranty and I'm wondering if I can replace the drive myself? The connectors on the back of the drive are not the standard variety found in computers. So where do I order the replacement drive from (I'm in Canada)? I could take it to a repair center but they take forever to fix it and will charge me an arm and a leg for labor. Any suggestions?

TIA
Brent

[Seeker47]

I have a Pioneer 220s DVR and it looks like the dvd burner has gone again. When I put in a blank disk, it churns away and eventually says "Disk unwriteable". The disk can still be read. The same disks worked fine yesterday and for the past 'x' months. Brent

Can you read known-good discs that play in other players ? (Probably more evidence for a bad burner.)
This topic has come up here before, at least in regard to the hard drive equipped DVRs. Do a forum search with keywords "replace", "Pioneer", "burner" -- especially in the DVD Recorder section.
In brief, you need to know exactly which model of burner was in your 220. For that, you may need to open the case, or to ask someone with your model who has. Even if you are able to purchase a replacement burner (probably not from Pioneer, though, as they will charge an arm and a leg for the replacement unit), you will still need a service remote (or some other device like a Palm Pilot that can be programmed to impersonate one), and a service dvd, in order to get your replacement burner accepted by the DVR. At least, that has been the case for the hard drive models, and I think it may also apply here. Rounding up the items and doing this project is not going to be easy, but some owners have managed to do it.

[Brent G.]

"replace", "Pioneer", "burner"

I haven't found the thread. Can you post the link?

Why are the replacement DVD drives so expensive if they are the same drives as found in computers, but with a different interface?

you will still need a service remote (or some other device like a Palm Pilot that can be programmed to impersonate one), and a service dvd, in order to get your replacement burner accepted by the DVR.

I can understand this for units with a hard drive that may have a driver file, but for a DVD burner-only unit, where would it burn the info to?

Brent

[apicella]

"replace", "Pioneer", "burner"

I haven't found the thread. Can you post the link?

Brent

Hi, Brent G, I guess this is the thread you were looking for
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=304500&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=30

not sure there is useful information for you, though...
I have my recorder 530-HS at the service center for Pioneer for the second time, as they are trying to
find out what are my problems...I am keeping them under pressure to have the burner replaced in a worst case scenario...

[Brent G.]

I just got hold of an authorized repair center for Pioneer out of warranty products and the price to replace the DVD burner is a whopping $263 (CDN). Which is about what I paid for the unit 18 months ago.

Talk about getting screwed. Sheesh.
I still haven't been able to get through to Pioneer themselves because I've been put on infinite hold. This is the second time the dvd burner has gone like this, I just had the unit back from repair some 7 months ago. It looks like I may have to shell out $263 every 7 months to keep this recorder running.

Brent

[next]

If it turns into a door stop make your next purchase one that can easily take a replacement burner. By easily I mean user friendly plug and play. It seems like burners are a weak spot across brands. Being able to replace one yourself will significantly extend the life of your recorder.

[Brent G.]

If it turns into a door stop make your next purchase one that can easily take a replacement burner. By easily I mean user friendly plug and play. It seems like burners are a weak spot across brands. Being able to replace one yourself will significantly extend the life of your recorder.

Good idea. Does anyone have any recommendations on DVR's that have user replaceable DVD burners?

When I talked to the authorized Pioneer repair center they couldn't replace the DVD burner for me because they needed a special tool that only Pioneer has and I have to ship it to Pioneer to get it repaired. So it appears Pioneer doesn't want anyone else replacing the DVD drives. Pioneer is charging me around a 500% markup over a comparable computer DVD drive. Yikes! Imagine if computer DVD drives were like that?? There'd be a revolt.

Of course when I purchased the Pioneer 220, it was one of the few times I did not get a 4 year extended warranty. Bummer.

[Seeker47]

"replace", "Pioneer", "burner"

I haven't found the thread. Can you post the link?

In addition to the thread already suggested, try these:
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=253998
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=311856
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=310499
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=306729
Some are longer threads, and I don't have time to search them for you, but if you skim through these I think you will find some useful leads.

Why are the replacement DVD drives so expensive if they are the same drives as found in computers, but with a different interface?

More often than not, with replacement parts for many electronics items (and not just with electronics), the company has you over a barrel. They can make a real good profit by sticking it to you. (Maybe this helps them compensate for not making enough money on other things ?) In such cases, and if no warranty applies, you first want to determine if that part is somehow unique and non-replaceable by something equivalent. Then, whether it is or it isn't -- and again, particularly if you have no recourse to warranty or extended warranty -- you'll want to see if you can purchase the replacement part much more cheaply from some third-party supplier. Maybe you can. Or via eBay.

The burner in question might not be a standard off-the-shelf model such as you might buy as an OEM part to go into your computer, but rather some model variant they are using specifically for the DVR. For example, someone in one of these threads posted that the burner in my 520 model is a 107XL (or XA ?), or somesuch, vs. the standard 107 (OEM) or A07 (retail box) model you might have gotten for your computer awhile back. I can't confirm that for sure, as I never opened the case, which is why I also can't make any positive statement about the particular connectors it uses. At some point, I expect I will have to deal with this. Since the 107 burner family is far from current issue, it may no longer be easy to find. However, one of those threads had a link for a parts supply place, which had a supposedly equivalent 107-level burner for around 75 bucks. I really should have gotten that spare by now, but never got around to it . . . .

you will still need a service remote (or some other device like a Palm Pilot that can be programmed to impersonate one), and a service dvd, in order to get your replacement burner accepted by the DVR.

I can understand this for units with a hard drive that may have a driver file, but for a DVD burner-only unit, where would it burn the info to?
Brent

Not sure. Firmware, presumably. And that would be on a chip somewhere. At least, that is my reading & recall of these threads.

[next]

If it turns into a door stop make your next purchase one that can easily take a replacement burner. By easily I mean user friendly plug and play. It seems like burners are a weak spot across brands. Being able to replace one yourself will significantly extend the life of your recorder.

Good idea. Does anyone have any recommendations on DVR's that have user replaceable DVD burners?

When I talked to the authorized Pioneer repair center they couldn't replace the DVD burner for me because they needed a special tool that only Pioneer has and I have to ship it to Pioneer to get it repaired. So it appears Pioneer doesn't want anyone else replacing the DVD drives. Pioneer is charging me around a 500% markup over a comparable computer DVD drive. Yikes! Imagine if computer DVD drives were like that?? There'd be a revolt.

Of course when I purchased the Pioneer 220, it was one of the few times I did not get a 4 year extended warranty. Bummer.

The Toshiba DKR2 is a 2004 model that takes an off the shelf DVD burner - an LG that sells for $30 online. I think the newer recorders are moving away from standard IDE connections which makes this a tougher challenge as time moves on.

The Polaroid 2001G is a hard drive model that takes off the shelf burner replacements. It also is plug and play for a larger hard drive replacement.

The 220 is on ebay right now for $125 delivered with warranty. Much cheaper than replacing the drive.