A hardware problem? Interesting . . . worked in the past . . .
and since it will burn data discs, I find this curious.
Well, hardware can go bad over time. It is strange that data CD's still work, but since a data CD has much more error checking/correcting built in compared to audio CD's, it's possible that they're still able to be read whereas audio CD's fail. The writing laser could have weakened or be fluctuating or the optical system might be dirty.
I take it that nothing has changed in the CD drive configuration (different cabling, master/slave setting, new drive added, etc.).
Things to try:
1. check your task list for programs that may be accessing the CD drive and disable them.
2. try a different brand and color of media (even though yours have worked in the past)
3. check for upgraded firmware for the drive
4. check for whether the drive is using DMA or PIO and try the opposite setting from what it's currently using (device manager - IDE settings). DMA is almost always the preferred setting.
5. try a couple different (slower) writing speeds, maybe the problem only occurs at the highest speed.
6. [last resort] You could try cleaning the drive, check out "How do I clean my CD recorder?" at this link:
http://www.cdrfaq.org/faq03.html#S3-30Good luck!