Help! I am sure there is something I am missing. Here is my issue. I cannot recall the brand name of the DVD burner, but here is the info from the Dell order sheet: 16X DVD-ROM/ 16X DVD+/-RW, DIM, M. I use slysoft clone DVD and Any DVD to make back up copies. I have found that I can only use 8X blank DVDs. When I try other brands of 16X speed I get an error message that it cannot use the blank DVD and then insert an 8X to make it work. Only works with 8X blank discs! I was told that even if my DVD burner is malfunctioning and can only copy at 8X that it should be able to use 16X and just copy at 8X speed. I would like it to use 16X blank discs as I am stationed in Germany and the PX does not have 8X as often as 16X. Thanks

In my experience the rated speeds of drives is kind of like the expected milage in the window of a new car. Use is as a comparative gauge. Have you tried manually setting the burn speed to 8X with the disks that don't seem to work? Did the burner come installed from Dell?

The burner came from Dell with the computer. After I returned the last set of 16X I tried I saw that I may be able to select the speed and may try it again. I just hate to buy some more 16X just to try and then return them. I would think there is some setting I am missing. Thanks

If the burner is on the same cable as the harddrive and the data being burned resides on the harddrive that wuld definately slow things down.

You should be able to identify the DVD burner by right clicking on My Computer, select Manage. Go to Device Manager and expand the DVD/CD drives. My Dell came with a Philips 16x burner and Dell produced a Firmware fix for it that I got from their downloads page. See http://support.dell.com/support/dow... for the 4700 series PC. HTH Bryan P.S. I use 16x DVDs but always burn them at 8x to be sure I can use them on devices other than my PC.

Bryco Good find. I don't believe the speed at which a disk is created has any bearing on playback. If the data is not corrupted ANY reader should be able to read properly.

Some notes of interest quoted from THIS page: Question: What is the best speed for burning CDs? Answer: It depends entirely on your computer, the burner, and the discs you’re using. Generally, it is best not to exceed 20x, with 16x being safer. Burning too slow can also cause problems. Unless the disc is optimised for low speed, the minimum burning speed should be 8x Question: What is the best speed for burning DVDs? Answer: We have found 4x to be the best speed on computer DVD-R and DVD+R drives. When you burn at 8x or higher, the disc starts burning at a slower speed, and then speeds up during the burn. We have found that there is sometimes a problem at the point where the burning speed changes. i_Xp/VistaUser