Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

nabilanwar · Aug 19, 2006, 05:40 AM

Okay, so i have a 17inch iMac G5 2ghz PowerPC w/ 1.5gb RAM and the Superdrive. This was bought about a year ago. Recently my Superdrive freaked out on me while trying to burn a DVD. Now it wont recognize any DVDs at all, no matter what media, original or burnt. Well i guess i have been using the drive extensively over the year...

Its CD reading capabilities still exist, ripping and burning. Just wont read any dvds or burn them. So unfortunately i think its time to replace it. Now has anyone ever replaced any optical drives on the iMac, i did some searching on Google and it doesnt seem like anything is available specifically for iMac g5. Now i browsed Apple Support and saw somewhere that u can get a replacement part from them, and somewhere else i saw that its going to be a $150.

Actually even though its expensive, i'm willing to plunk down the cash, because i plan to sell the iMac in a month or two (buying a Macbook).

So does anyone know where i can buy an optical DVD burner for the iMac g5? It doesnt matter what brand, although Apple ships a Matshita drive.

Help please, i havent dealt with any Apple internal hardware purchases.

chefpastry · Aug 19, 2006, 10:21 AM

I think just about any slot loading optical drive will work fine. There's no need to pay the $150 ransom.

nabilanwar · Aug 19, 2006, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by chefpastry

I think just about any slot loading optical drive will work fine. There's no need to pay the $150 ransom.

Where do i find these drives? I have shopped for RAM and HDD so far, never had to look for optical drives. Can anyone direct me to a site here.

eddiecatflap · Aug 19, 2006, 10:48 AM

i had a problem like this with my imac dc

i repaired permissions , used macjanitor and restarted

and somehow it all started working again

worth a try ?

chefpastry · Aug 19, 2006, 12:51 PM

I get lots of my hardware from Newegg.com - Buy Computer Parts, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras, and Electronics. I'm sure they carry these drives.

nabilanwar · Aug 19, 2006, 01:54 PM

To eddiecatflap,
I tried ur suggestion. Fired up Cocktail, repaired 'permissions', ran all the cleanup 'scripts' and rebuild 'launch services database'. Dont know if the last one does anything or not. But still no luck, no DVD recognition. Thanks for the suggestion though, but i'm pretty convinced now that its the Drive.

To chefpastry,
I checked out Newegg.com bfr, i've bought other stuff from them before too. At first I didnt see any 'slot-in' products. But after doing a search, only one product came up. 'http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustR'atingReview.asp?Item=N82E16827106033'

And reading a few reviews on DVD Burners, it looks like lots of people like Panasonic drives, so I found this one so far, 'http://www.meritline.com/panasonic-845-slim-dvd-burner-panasonic-3x-4-7gb-dvd-ram.html'

Am i missing any sites that have a good selection of slot-in optical drives?
Thanks guys.

chefpastry · Aug 19, 2006, 03:27 PM

Your link to newegg didn't work, but the one at meritline looks fine.

nabilanwar · Aug 20, 2006, 01:23 AM

LITE-ON 8X DVD±R Slim Slot-in DVD Burner Black IDE Model SLW-831S - OEM at Newegg.com

That should be the right link. In any case, so iMac optical drives are just regular slim laptop drives?. I noticed while pulling the Superdrive out today that it had a special case, which would fit into the body of the iMac. Maybe its a casing over the drive, i should inspect. Has anyone had to change their optical drive for their iMac, and if so was it a non-Apple provided drive?

chefpastry · Aug 20, 2006, 03:38 PM

Yes, it's just a casing over the drive.

nabilanwar · Aug 20, 2006, 04:04 PM

Originally Posted by chefpastry

Yes, it's just a casing over the drive.

Thanks 'chefpastry', i opened it up again, and checked it out. Looks like ur right, the exteranl case shouldnt be too hard to open up.

The meritline.com website, has 4-5 other offerings, think they are Panasonic, Pioneer and Sony i think.

My plan is to sell the iMac in 1-2 months, should I just get cheaper Lite-On from Newegg? I mean i've never heard anything bad about Lite-On, as far as i know, they are supposed to be a good brand.

But i cant remember which, is it Panasonic or Pioneer that is supposed to be the top of the line. While browsing the net i saw lots recommending either Panasonic or Pioneer as their most trusted top of the line brand. 'Twas one of the 'P's, cant remember.

I'd pay about $30 less if i went with the Lite-On, so what do u think guys?

chefpastry · Aug 20, 2006, 06:31 PM

Personally, I'd go with a Panasonic only because Apple seems to use them all the time. But any of the drives you looked at should be fine as long as they are slot loading.

nabilanwar · 01:20 AM

Originally Posted by chefpastry

Personally, I'd go with a Panasonic only because Apple seems to use them all the time. But any of the drives you looked at should be fine as long as they are slot loading.

Thanks 'chefpastry', i'll report back to this thread in the future to update status.

UPDATE: Ordered the Panasonic. Will update, when i get the drive.

nabilanwar · Aug 27, 2006, 09:58 AM

Okay, so got the Panasonic Drive a few days ago. Been ripping and burning DVD without any problems. Great drive. Also very glad it can read DVD-RAM, its my new Rewritable format of choice.

A side note to anyone else that may have to change their iMac Superdrive in the future. The external casing that Apple puts around the DVD Drive, requires a Torx screwdriver. However the screw size is #6, which is a rare and the smallest torx screw. So I suggest getting the correct screwdriver before you open up the computer. I lucky had it, because i recently bought a screwdriver set specifically for the #6 torx from Radioshack for the purpose of fixing a CellPhone.