CD player does not read CD-RW

[Tobim6]

Hello my CD player does not read a CD-RW. I don't know what the issue is its old but it says it should read CD-RW. ChatGPT told me it can be because my CD-RW can be read only at a higher speed which this old player can't do is that true?

[dbminter]

Could be a few things.

 

Though I generally don't trust anything AI says or does, ChatGPT's initial overview could be correct.  The CD-RW may be newer enough over your older CD player that the player's laser can't read through the reflective laser.

 

It's also possible the CD player doesn't support playback of CD-RW at all.  CD-RW is not something generally universally supported even on modern players.

 

It's also possible that CD player may support CD-RW but just doesn't like that particular brand/manufacturer of CD-RW.

[Tobim6]

The CD player says CD-R/RW.

I tried using my Verbatim 8-12x CD-RW and 16-24x CD-RW. With both the drive just doesnt find the data track and no disc.

[dbminter]

Well, I hate to come across as pedantic but it's not a data track the CD player looks for.  Data tracks only apply to CD's on PC's.  Audio CD is its very own unique beast that a standalone CD player reads.

 

Now, that does actually beg a question.  Is this CD-RW you're attempting to play on the standalone CD player an Audio CD disc or a Mixed Mode disc with audio tracks and a data track or tracks on it?  If it's Mixed Mode, the CD player may not read it because it can't differentiate between the tracks.  If it is Mixed Mode, try writing an Audio CD to the CD-RW and see if your standalone CD player will play the CD-RW as an Audio CD.

 

Also, do you happen to know how old your standalone CD player is?

[Tobim6]

Hello I am trying to play an Audio CD-RW and I burned the exact same way to a CD-R and it would read it.

 

9 minutes ago, dbminter said:

Also, do you happen to know how old your standalone CD player is?

Sorry I don't remember and I can't find any good information about it on the internet at all.

[dbminter]

Rewritable media have a different reflectivity on the data surface than WORM media.  So, it's not unheard of for a CD-R to be readable but not a CD-RW.  For instance, my 1997 Playstation would play Audio CD's burned to CD-R's from TDK and Verbatim, but would not read any CD-RW's I threw at it around 2005.

[Tobim6]

Hello I found the CD player with wayback machine and it seems to be from about 2005

https://web.archive.org/web/20060319003652/http://www.denver-electronics.com/pages/webside2.asp?articleGuid=7812&menuGuid=5387&subMenuguid=5391