HP storage experts : please respond! T7303 w/ 7200i CD-RW

[AJ Dajani]

I have the same problem described by tens of people in :

http://forums.itrc.hp.com/cm/QuestionAnswer/1,1150,0x90978d77ef20d411b66300108302854d,00.html

Nobody gave a good solution, except Dale Smith who advised to clean the lens with a CD-lens cleaning disc. I tried it, but it wasn't very successful. However, I enabled me to record on some types of CDs only.

My CD-Writer works perfectly without any errors when recording on CD-RWs. Some high-quality CD-Rs make it with some error messages. Other cheaps CDs always fail, and sometimes I get a "Sense code 0x64" error.

The drive passes all kinds of tests without any errors, but fails the actual recording.

This problem happened to me after long months of no use. I am sure nothing was changed since it was working perfectly. It could be dust inside.


Would you HP engineers out there think of a solution for this problem? Or at least, give instructions on how to clean the lens? It's urgent! Please respond ASAP.

Thanks.
AJ Dajani

P.S. This thread has been moved from General to Optical Jukeboxes & Drives. - Hp Forum Moderator

[Roger Faucher]

Notwithstanding, Dale's cleaning success, here is the HP line on cleaning.

"HP CD-Writer and CD-Writer Plus Drives - How to Clean My CD-Writer

QUESTION: How do I clean my HP CD-Writer drive?

ANSWER: The HP CD-Writer Plus drive requires no maintenance or cleaning. If you simply keep your CD's clean, you will prevent most problems.

CAUTION: Do not attempt to use the CD-ROM cleaning CD's that use a small brush to sweep dirt off the laser mechanism. Do not use high-pressure air to clean the inside of the drive. These techniques will damage the HP CD-Writer Plus drive."

Excerpted from the following web page:

http://www.hp.com/cgi-bin/cposupport/get_doc.pl?SNI=hpcdwriter22108&LC=information_storage&Tfile=lpg40259

Which means that if your drive is under warranty, get ir repaired/replaced under warranty. If out of warranty, I would try just about anything, CAREFULLY!

[AJ Dajani]

I do have the manual and I read that. I want to CLEAN it, not protect it. It's already dirty. I sent an email to SureStore_Support@hp.com and here's what they said :

"All you will need to do is go to your local department store or possibly even your local gas station and pick up a cd lens cleaner. they will look like a normal cd except it will have a tiny brush on it."

I replied :

"Thank for the fast reply. Will this clean the 'recording' lens? I heard this only could fix reading's.
My drive writes perfectly, but only records to CD-RWs."

They replied :

"The CD-Writer Plus requires no maintenance or cleaning. If you simply keep your CDs clean, you will prevent most problems.

CAUTION: DO NOT use the CD-ROM cleaning CDs that rely on a small brush to sweep dirt off of the laser. DO NOT use high-pressure air to clean the inside of the drive. These cleaning techniques will damage the
CD-Writer Plus drive."

Look again. The second reply reluctates the first! Which should I follow?? Anyone, please give a reliable answer!!!