DVD drive in dual core noisy - is this normal?

Is everyone else's superdrive in their dual cores noisy when reading discs?
Loads of seeking type noise.
Drive - Hl-ds-st DVD-RW GWA-4165B

mine is the same as yours and it seems to be very sensitive because some disks, with the exception of the sound of spinning, are very quiet while others, including the ones that came with the computer, are noisy--sounds like an unbalanced disk--with lots of 'clicking' noises. It does work, however and I've no trouble burning cd's, dvd's (-r and +r) and will try the first dual layer today.

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Recently I bought a Mac book pro online, but I was surprised when I received it because there are no DVDs at all with it. Is this normal?

Recently I bought a Mac book pro online, but I was surprised when I received it because there are no DVDs at all with it. Is this normal?

Ziatron-
That is a really great question! It took some digging to find the answer!
On an older Mac, about 2010 or older, you need access to one of:
• The Mac App Store ( such as on a Mac with a working 10.6.8 or better)
• working Recovery HD
• a bootable 10.7 Installer, on thumb drive, Hard drive, or DVD
So for ONE 2010 or older Mac with a bad drive, you would have to buy the US$70 Apple thumb drive, or have previously made a DVD or Hard Drive when you previously downloaded 10.7. Or you re-install 10.6.8 then overwrite it with the downloaded 10.7.
• another Mac with 10.7 installed so you could transfer Recovery HD to the down Mac with "Lion Recovery Disk Assistant"
OS X Lion: About Lion Recovery Disk Assistant
On some 2010 and most 2011 models, if Recovery HD is messed up or not Installed, but you have a working Broadband connection [with DHCP enabled], the Firmware has been upgraded so it will boot from the Internet and do the whole job using "Lion Internet Recovery" as described in the second section of this glossy article:
http://www.apple.com/macosx/recovery/
If no DHCP is available [no Router upstream, either yours or your ISP's], it may not work.

On boot, both DVD drives eject - any way to prevent this?

when I boot, both DVD drives eject. Not a huge deal, but fairly annoying.

Hi Tim,
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities. It sounds like resetting the computer's PRAM might help with this:
OS X Mavericks: Reset your computer’s PRAM
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph14222
Cheers,
- Ari

Loud dvd drive while using toast....normal?

I just burned some videos onto a dvd-udf format with toast and my drive made a lot of noise, sounds like a very loud cell-phone vibration. is this normal? the disc still works fine though. thanks.

> Sounds like a very loud cell-phone vibration. is this normal?
Yes, they can get pretty noisy when running at full speed

My finder quits when accessing my Drobo External Hard Drive iMac Dual Core 24"

My Finder Quits Every time I access my External Drobo 8TB Firewire Drive. I have several other FireWire Drives online with it and have no problem with them. This happened soon after the 10.7.2 update. I have a lot of files on this drive. Could it be the number of files that is causing the problem? Is there a Limit onnumber of folders on the surface of a drive? Please help if you can, I am desperate to preserve my software. But I need to do something soon, Or else I will have to just reformat the drive so I can use it again. I don't really want to do that.
Thanks in advance for any comments or cures.
Rev

I had the same problem but only after I upgraded to Lion. I could see the files on my external drive on other Macs using older software. It seems that Lion wasn't seeing old files on the external drive. So we accessed the files on a Mac using Snow Leopard, copied all the files into one new folder on the same external hard drive and now they're there on Lion. Problem solved! I hope this helps

HT1539 How do I redeem my Digital Copy if I have a Retina Macbook Pro with no DVD drive? Apple should have fixed this by now!

I have a Retina Macbook Pro, but iTunes is asking me to insert a disc. Well, I can't. Why has Apple not fixed this. I want to enter my code and get my movie.

I know that this isn't a real solution for your computer, but the digital copy is tied to your Apple ID. So if you have another Mac, you can redeem it on that Mac, then download the movie to your Retina MBP (Movies in the Cloud FTW).
If you don't own another Mac yourself, find a friend's computer, log out of his iTunes (or make a new user account), log into your Apple ID within iTunes, Authorize iTunes, then insert the DVD and redeem it. I redeemed Skyfall & Frankenweenie from an iMac at work just to see if it works, which it does. Heck, I don't think they even need a Mac, a PC running iTunes should work!

500 gig drive only 465 gig. Is this normal?

Hi all,
whilst I realize that the amount of space you actually get on a drive is less than it is meant to be, how much is acceptable? Actually, it always made me wonder why the available size is not reported accurately, isn't it contravening consumer rights to say one thing and give another???
Maybe I could go into the Apple store to buy a $2,000 iMac, with an envelope stuffed with cash, and the amount of $2,000 written on the front, but with only $1,850 actually inside. Isn't it the same? Would they give me the $2,000 machine? That aside, here is my issue.
I have a MBP with a 200 gig drive - actual space available = 185.99 gig. So, I lose 14 gig.
But the iMac that I took delivery of today has only 465 gig available on the 500 gig drive. So the loss is 35 gig, and that seems like a lot to me.
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
Thanks.
Hugh
Message was edited by: Hugh Anderson1

Hi Hugh,
Hugh Anderson1 wrote:
Yes, I just noticed that the ratio of "lost" space is the same from my examples. Why don't they just tell you that though?
Thanks for the input.
Hugh
Just to clarify further the responses you have already received. In brief, when you see HD capacity advertised as 60GB, 80GB, 100GB etc, that's the marketing way where they take "decimal" road and base 1GB as being equal to 1,000,000,000 bytes. This is true for all HD manufacturers and computer manufacturers.
Once upon a time, computer professionals noticed that 1,024 bytes (binary) was very nearly equal to 1,000 (decimal) and started using the prefix "kilo" to mean 1,024. That worked well enough for a decade or two because everybody who talked kilobytes knew that the term implied 1,024 bytes. But, almost overnight a much more numerous "everybody" bought computers, and the trade computer professionals needed to talk to physicists and engineers and even to ordinary people, most of whom know that a kilometer is 1,000 meters and a kilogram is 1,000 grams.
Often when two or more people begin discussing storage capacity, some will refer to binary values and others will refer to decimal values without making distinction between the two. This has caused much confusion in the past (and still does). In an effort to dispatch this confusion, all major disc drive manufacturers use decimal values when discussing storage capacity.
Some simple arithmetic will convert the advertised (decimal) capacity to the actual (binary) capacity:
1KB = 1,024 bytes
1MB = 1,024 x 1,024 bytes = 1,048,576 bytes
1GB = 1,024 x 1,024 x 1,024 bytes = 1,073,741,824 bytes
Therefore, in your specific case:
500GB (decimal) = 500 ÷ 1.073741824 = 465.66128730774 GB (binary or actual capacity)
Rounded off to two decimal points = 465.66 GB
I hope this clarifies it for you and explains the reasons for the discrepancy.
Kryten

My Airport Extreme always needs a reboot for it to see an external drive plugged into it. Is this normal?

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Relax. It's normal for an iOS device to turn on when it is plugged in and charging. You didn't hurt anything. As long as it has a charge, you can use it and it should come with a sufficient charge to use it right out of the box.
Your phone will be fine. Charge it when you need to charge it. You didn't damage anything.

Does anyone know when the Mac Pro switched from ATA to SATA DVD Drives

Does anyone know when the Mac Pro switched from ATA to SATA DVD Drives ?
I tried to find this answer online but failed.

Appears the Mac Pro (Early 2008) is the last model to suggest Ultra ATA/100 optical.
And with an optional card, use Serial Attached SCSI via Mac Pro Raid.
This kind of information gets sketchy in that the hard drive bus and other parts are SATA
and only this (and earlier) model Mac Pro has optical drive interface w/ Ultra ATA/100. The
logic board on the early 2008 appears to have two Serial ATA ports, 3.0GBPS; so to check
these, you may need to look into specification in iFixit.com repair guides, any takeapart
guides, and note specifications in everymac.com and those from mactracker.ca.
The MacPro after Early 2008 model build series (Early 2009) appears to sport an optical
drive with 18x speed, compared to Early 2008 & before, whose drives indicate 16x spec.
Other changes may be indicated by certain parts and differences; processors, graphic
support, and those kinds of things. 2008 shows dual-core, afterward, quad-core.
So on what little I found, that would appear to be the divide or when optical drive spec
on the logic board changed from Ultra ATA/100 to SATA versions. But double check.
Good luck & happy computing!

Should I go with a dual core or quad core MacBook?

Hi all,
I am going to be a college student this fall majoring in a science related field. My first question is what processor I should go with. I am looking at either a 13" MBP with a dual core i7 and 8 GB of RAM (750GB HD), 13" MBP w/ a dual core i5, 8GB RAM and 500GB HD, or a 15" quad core i7 with 8GB RAM and 500 GB HD. I plan on upgrading to a SSD once prices come down in a few years and would like to stick with the MBP without Retina Display so that I can upgrade RAM and HD later on.
Will I see a noticeable difference between dual core i5 and i7? From what I have seen, it has not been much of a difference. I only plan to do light Photoshop and doubt I will do any video editing or even 3D modelling for the most part. This will mainly be used for research (web), streaming, and Office. I know that the i5 is more than capable of all of that, but I am looking to make this machine last 4+ years at least. That is why I am considering jumping up to the 15" MBP just to get the quad core and ensure that I will have a longer lasting machine.
Most of the time the laptop will be travelling around, but I will also be plugging this into a Thunderbolt Display for more screen space.
Let me know what you all think! Right now, I am leaning towards the 13" MBP with dual core i7, but this is subject to change. Will it last throughout college?
Thanks,
Sean

seanbrownie wrote:
Screen size set aside since I plan on using a TBD most of the time,
Then you want the more powerful graphics of the 15" with it's dedicated GPU to better/faster drive the external display as it's larger, and larger displays pumps more pixels so you also need the better cooling of the 15"
would adding more RAM solve the OS X upgrade issues over time?
Yes, but more RAM isn't a cure all, processors and graphics also has to be powerful to last longer.
RAM allows one to do more things at the same time, and gives a performance boot with programs with larger files it's working on (like large Photoshop and video files)
Plus, would upgrading the HD to SSD help in making the jump to say OS X 10.11, 10.12 down the road easier?
Not that much really, with the non-Retina 15" you can put in a 1TB SSD when the prices come down further
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100008120%2060041492 0&IsNodeId=1&name=513GB%20-%201TB
It would be nice to save a little on the screen size since I won't be able to utilize the 15" to its maximum potential when I'm working at my desk.
Your on the wrong platform if your looking to save money.
If you compare specs and performance of the hardware Apple offers for sale and equivilent i5/dual cores with Intel HD graphics, you'll find for $1500 buys a Mac and for $400 buys the same in a Windows PC.
Really the best value comes with the 15" as if your in that pro market for such a machine you might as well get OS X with it as PC's cost about the same in that range.
The really best value is a Windows 7 tower, that way it's parts are all upgradable and can last a decade or more on one Widnows OS version.
Several of my friends think I'm crazy spending $10,000 on Mac's in 10 years, they are still on their XP towers and haven't paid much more than $2000 over that same time.
Of course now XP is dead and they have to upgrade to Windows 7 towers, but they really get good value out of their boxes.
Mac's are not for those tight on a budget, I don't advise. A Windows machine will do the job for most people
Perhaps a Windows 3D gaming tower and a iPad?

G4 Gigabit install problem: Thinks that DVD drive is Hd:1, ...

Ok i've little homebrew system here:
G4 Gigabit ethernet motherboard
Dual 450 cpu
640MB SDRAM
TI4600 with modbios, works like charm
120GB maxtor in UATA port
IDE DVD drive in Secondary ATA port
So i'm running into problems when installing OS, doesn't matter is is debian or OS X, still same problem:
Open Firmware thinks that my DVD drive is a HDD!
For exsample:
Normal debian install command:
CD:,\install\yaboot and here's the result: can't OPEN boot cd:,\install\yaboot
Well this atleast gives a result:
HD:1,\install\yaboot but i run into parameter problems.
So how do i rename HD:1, to CD?
And reset-nvram - set-defaults - reset-all gives me a Bad Defaults error...
Nothing more this time :P

Hi, s0liddi -
Welcome to Apple's Discussions.
Perhaps the optical drive was replaced at one time? Make sure that the jumpers on the optical drive are set to Master (not to Slave or to Cable Select). On early G4s like your G4 (GE), the optical drive is bootable only when set to Master.

Macbook "checks" DVD drive twice

Hi,
I've been having this problem with my Macbook for a while now.
When I start it up, it checks the DVD drive, lovely whirring sound. That's normal.
But then, when the desktop has loaded, it goes and checks the DVD drive again, another whirring sound, as if I've pressed the eject button.
Does anybody know what could be causing this?
Here are my specs:
Macbook Black 2.4Ghz Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM
250GB Hard Drive
OSX 10.5.7
Thanks,
Michael

Google Notifier has nothing to do with the CD drive so that is fine.
"blueharvest" doesn't sound like it would do that (and thanks by the way, as I have been looking for an something to do what you said as I too hate those ._ files! - I'll be checking that out!)
But I think what is causing it would be the Crossover CD Helper. Go back into the Log in items. Click on Crossover CD Helper and then press the minus sign. That will remove it from launching whenever you start up the computer.
That should stop the CD drive from "checking again" when you log on.
Let me know if that works.
-Scott

Kingston Value Ram modules on PM dual core 2.0Ghz

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I search in the forums about problems with Kingston Value Ram and i would like to know experiences upgrading dual core powermacs with this memory module (KVR533D2N4/X) or other 'Value Ram' memory modules provided by kingston.
Thanks!
Powermac Dual Core 2.0 Mac OS X (10.4.3)

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How do I run system recovery dvd from an external dvd drive?

I am having trouble trying to restore my DV 6000 (dv6915nr) from an external dvd drive. I am aware that this laptop has had several hardware issues, including the loss of use of the internal dvd drive and have tried all the fixes that I could find,including changing filter settings in the registry, changinging the boot order in the bios and even removing the intenal drive. Since none of these fixes worked, I removed the hard drive and installed window 7 Prodessional in a desktop computer. After reinstalling drive in laptop, I installed all the Vista drivers from HP. Computer works fine except for sound card and Nic that failed and have been replaced by USB devices. Simce I am not 100% sure the hardware failures are motherboard failures and not software, I would really like to run my System Restore DVDs that I purchased from HP. And that's where I need help.
I am A Plus and Network Plus certified, so I am pretty sure that I have tried all the obvious soutions. Evedrything turned on, checked the cables, accessed dvd in wimdows and even ran restore disk in a desktop machine to the point that it told me I was trying to restore the wong computer. I downloaded a program called Win To Flash that allows you to copy a setup disk to an external hard drive, but that didn't work. HP restore disk does not have Setup file on it, so it wouldn't copy to drive. Tried just copying the disk to external and that didn't work either. Also tried switching drive letters D and E without any success.
Bios choices are:
USb floppy
ATAPI cd/dvd rom drive
USB diskette on key
Notebook Hard drive
Network Adapter
Original restore partition is long gone.
I would rather restore it with an external Hard drive, not an USB memory stick. I think both would work the same. I do have an USB floppy drive, if there is some way of starting installation from floppies.
Like I said, I really like the computer, even with all its faults, but I would like to restore it to its original Operating System.

Some progress, I got it to try to boot from an external hard drive. Downloaded a program called WINToboot. tried to run it, got as far as formatting my hard drive and might have loaded some kind of boot program. Would not copy my restore disks because they did not have set up program. Copied both restore disks to hard drive and tried to boot laptop. F0 produced choose external hard drive choice. Got "no OS found" error. only choice ctl alt del. I think I am headed in right direction. Just need to know what to load on external hard drive.

How can i restore from Recovery Disk if my notebook's hard drive and dvd drives are dead.

Hi. Good day. My hard drive just crashed and im trying to restore from my restore disks. Unfortunately, my dvd is dead too. I copied the recovery disks to a new hard drive and tried booting from a flash drive but the noteebook is still giving me the SMART hd error message. Please help. Thanks.

Hi,
If you have, or can borrow an external CD/DVD drive it would be worth trying this although I'm not certain your notebook will support booting from a drive connected via USB.
Another option may be to see if you can find a second hand optical drive on somewhere like Ebay - the drives compatible with your notebook can be found on Page 59 of your Maintenance & Service Guide. It may even be worth removing a re-seating your existing drive just in case this helps as described in this section.
Does the drive show up in Device Manager? If it does, right click it and select Properties. Select the driver tab and see if there is an error code in the status box.
Regards,
DP-K
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DVD drive in dual core noisy - is this normal?

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