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Thread: Invalid Disc-Lite-ON LVW-5045

  1. #1
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    Default Invalid Disc-Lite-ON LVW-5045

    My Lite-On has gone beresk and is showing 'Invalid Disc' when I tried to play a commercialy recorded DVD.
    So I tried another commercial , same result then a 'Burnt' DVD and it played.Tried a Commericial, got Invalid, another Commercial but it played, a Burnt one and it played.
    Now I have visually checked all the disc's for scratches and dirt and carefully wiped the surfaces but to no avail.
    I did run a disc with little brushes on it and damped them with a disc cleaning liquid that came with a kit but no change.
    I dont really want to open the case to manualy clean the laser with a cotton bud as I dont think it would be of any use as it is playing some disc's.
    Does what I have describe indicate the laser may be out of adjustment as to distance/placement on the directory track?
    Except for one local fellow that I have used before and found very competent for repairs, there are no service centres within a 100k's
    The Lite-On is nearly 3 years but because it has a Hard Drive I really want to keep it up and running.
    Like most I have other DVD players ranging from the El Cheapo to this one and its sort of funny that an El Cheapo a couple of years ago I got as bonus died earlier in the week. Another case of 'Invalid Disc'.
    Maybe if I knew how to do simple tests I could experiment with it to see if it could be made usable again.
    Remebering of course that the laser can be very dangerous if safety precautions are not taken.
    Any thoughts on the matter would be appreciated.

    ps, as a curious question, can the dvd player be replaced by a unit from another different machine or do the maufacturers have their own specific designed/wired players?



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  • #2
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    If the lazer is good enough to read a burnt dvd then I would think it should be good enough to read a commercial one. Most people burn disks region free,are the discs that wont play the correct region(4) ?

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    try googling liteon 5045 drive replacement there is some usefull info to read on drive replacement and upgrading the software

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    firstly thank you Homebrew and Blackpete.
    After posting the first thread I had it switched off at the mains for over 3 hours wondering if that may help but it didnt.
    Homebrew, I first thought your suggestion was a bit out of left field BUT when I got a chance to fiddle, I rechecked the Region setting and it was still on Region Free. This reads 'Free' then 1 to 6.
    So I tried a region 2, damn thing played,I tried a region 1 and it plays, I have reset it back to region 4 and it WONT play the couple I tried.Back to Free and it plays all but region 4.
    So, based on that I am leaning towards a software problem rather than a hardware one.
    Blackpete, for several months after I bought this unit, I checked the Lite-On site for updates but when Lite-On released later models, the updates seemed to stop so I concluded that as usual, all go while prime seller but interest rapidly fades after it is superseded.
    after I post this I am going to check the Lite-On site just on the off chance there is any information regarding this unit.
    I had the crazy idea that Lite-On also make DVD burners for computers and if it was a hardware fault, could this burner be replaced by one from the computer units ?
    From what I have heard, those devises that use a HDD are basically the same units fitted to a computer so I wondered if the same might apply to the DVD player/burner?? You can buy a burner for under $40 today.

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    ADDENDUM.....
    After searching for liteon site I found the last firmware update was 2006 which I have.
    Search put me onto Videohelp.com site,very usefull info as far as I am concerned.
    It appears my problem is not unknown, at least in the UK/USA. What I am not sure of is our model the same as theirs except for NTSC V's Pal and the different tuner frequencies.
    Another informative site is techolio.com which also is now dated (Feb 2007) but reported possible replacements for the DVD unit.
    It seems from info on both these sites, the DVD unit can fail in a number of ways so that it eventualy becomes useless.
    I remember when I was looking to buy the Lite-On (mid 2005) there was a forum member who seemed to have a business/Industry association with Lite-On and went to the factory to advise and pass on information at a senior level regarding sales and suggestions regarding the Australian market.
    I cant remember the members name and unfortunately all the postings were lost during the Forum's computer crash.
    I have posted a question on a forum that claims to have Fixit Guru's available for such help and I will email Lite-On and see what that brings.

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    Keep an eye on how many times you change your region mate,as I know with the ones that go in the computers you only get a limited no of changes, dont know about your type.
    Sounds like your region free seting isnt really working,
    I think you should leave it on region 4 as thats what all the local commercial discs should be, and any backups would normally be burnt as region free anyway
    Might be an idea to check the couple of discs that wont play in your comp with dvdinfopro and find out what region they are as it sounds to me like youve picked up a couple of oddballs from somewhere?

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    Homebrew, there should be no limit basically on this stand alone unit as far as region setting as once you set Region free, that should be it.
    I havent changed the setting in over a year and untill now it has worked.
    The region 4 's that wont play are all locally made and bought and have played both in this unit before and other players and still do,one of the first things I did was try them iagain n other players.
    I feel that at the moment it is better to leave it at region free because I do have a number of DVD's bought from overseas and are either region 1 (US) or 2 (UK/EU) and they play happily.

    No, from what I read on the Videohelp site this Lite-On does have a problem with the DVD player. Some unluckily enough have encounted difficulties almost immediately that were covered under warranty to those who were over the warranty and they claim they were given no assistance from Lite-On at all.
    Thanks for your assistance.

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    Well im out of ideas mate, still seems like software issue with your region settings?
    Have you tried over at cdfreaks? There is a section dedicated to Lite-on, ive found very them usefull in the past.

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    Homebrew, I hadnt heard of CDFreaks but they sure sound interesting and I will try anything for assistance.
    Are they part of the Austech forum?
    I opened the Lite-On today and it is interesting.
    It contains a 160gb Seagate HDD. A run of the mill computer HDD and the DVD player shows Lite_On on the label but the board shows its made by SONY. No model number I could see.
    This might explain why in VideoHelp they said some had changed the drive.
    It appears to be identical to a Computer CD/DV drive except no hard case, instead it was incased with a soft tin sheet, for shielding I presume.
    a strip of copper glued to the tin covered the IDE lead, presumebly to assist in shielding that too.
    !!!!!!!!!!!Warning!!!!!!!!
    BEWARE anyone attempting to emulate me extracting the DVD drive to note the front drawer cover must be removed first to allow the player to be taken into the unit for removal.
    The front Bezel is screwed to a bracket that unclips from the actual drawer.
    I broke it off before I saw how it was constructed.
    The damn screws have star shaped slots so best of luck removing them.
    Thanks again homebrew,I appreciate all your help.

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    Sony burners are rebadged Lite-on I believe,will pm you a link to the lite-on section shortly

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    Ok, further in the saga of the miscreant Lite-On.

    I rang Synnex as suggested by Mavric (thanks again) and yes they are a distributer of Lite-On plus half a dozen other companies, but NO there is no service/repair for Lite-On in OZ.
    If the unit is under warranty they will REPLACE as it is cheaper than repairing.
    Now whether that means they cannabalise others to be able to return your own unit, I have no idea.
    But the bottom line is that once the warranty runs out your on your own, unless you can find a sevice tech and the problem doesnt involve specific parts you could be lucky or you just go buy a new one.
    Depending on the units cost and now like me unless I can fit another DVD to access the HDD with whats on it, its a not quite 3 year old $600 door stop, so extending warranty insurance may be an option.

    Food for thought regarding all the other companies and their equipment isnt it !!!!

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