Article ID: 906934 - Last Review: October 4, 2011 - Revision: 5.0

Disc formats supported by the Xbox 360 disc drive

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SUMMARY

The Xbox 360 console disc drive is designed to read single and dual-layer DVD and CD discs in various formats.

There are two important factors that determine whether a disc will play:
  • Disc type and format
  • Disc region code
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THINGS TO TRY

If a disc will not play on your Xbox 360 console, try the following:
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Step 1: Check the disc type and format

  • If you are playing a game, the game disc and packaging will indicate if the game is designed for the Xbox 360 console. If you are trying to play an original Xbox game on your Xbox 360 console, please see the following file:
    http://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/backwardcompatibilityfaq.htm (http://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/backwardcompatibilityfaq.htm)
  • If you are playing a DVD, look for the DVD video logo on the disc or the package. The supported DVD playback formats are listed in the table titled, "Supported DVD playback formats" below.

    If you are playing an HD DVD movie, look for the HD DVD logo on the disc and packaging. See the following article for information about how to set up and use the HD DVD player:
    927345  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/927345/ ) How to set up and use your Xbox 360 HD DVD Player
  • If you are playing a CD, see the table titled "Supported disc formats" below.
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Step 2: Check the disc region code

Each Xbox 360 console is manufactured for a specific region, following international standards.

The Xbox 360 console can play discs that are sold in the same region as the console. For example, you can play DVDs from the same region as your console or DVDs that don't have regional coding.
  • If you are trying to play a game:

    North American game discs (NTSC) only work with North American Xbox 360 consoles. Similarly, Japanese game discs (NTSC-J) only work with Japanese Xbox consoles, and European game discs (PAL) only work with European Xbox consoles.

    See the table titled "Supported game regions" below for information about NTSC, NTSC-J, or PAL and corresponding geographic regions.
  • If you are trying to play a movie:

    Find the region code represented as a number between 1 and 8 on the packaging.

    See the table titled "Supported DVD playback formats" below for information on the geographic area associated with each region code.
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GOOD TO KNOW

TV regions only apply to analog standard definition (SD) connections. If you are connecting your Xbox 360 console to your TV by using an Xbox 360 HD-Component or if you are using a VGA or HDMI connection, the television region should not cause any problems when you try to play discs.
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ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

For information about how to contact Xbox support, please visit the following Web site:
http://www.xbox.com/support/contact (http://www.xbox.com/support/contact)
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Supported game regions

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RegionGeographic regions/countries
GR1 : NTSCNorth America and South America (United States, Canada, Mexico, Chile, and Brazil)
GR2 : NTSC-JAsia (Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan)
GR3 : PALEurope, South Africa, India, Australia, and New Zealand
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Supported DVD playback formats

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RegionGeographic regions/countries
1United States, Canada, and U.S. territories
2Japan, Europe, South Africa, and the Middle East region, including Egypt
3Southeast Asia and East Asia, including Hong Kong
4Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, Central America, Mexico, South America, and the Caribbean
5Eastern Europe, former Soviet Union, Indian subcontinent, Africa, North Korea, and Mongolia
6China
7Reserved
8Special international venues, such as airplanes and cruise ships
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Supported disc formats

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TypeDescription
Game discsXbox game disc
Original Xbox game disc
DVD discsDVD–video
DVD–audio
DVD–ROM
DVD-R/RW (read only)
DVD+R/RW (read only)
Dual layer DVD+R9
CD discsCD-DA (Red Book)
CD-ROM (Yellow Book, Modes 1 and 2)
CD-ROM XA (Yellow Book, Extended Mode 2, form 1 and 2)
D-R, CD-RW, CD-Extra
C
WMA CD
MP3 CD
JPEG photo CD
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Supported disc drive speeds

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Media typeSpeed
CD defaults:
Playback: Low CD-speed
Copy: Medium CD-speed

3-7.13x
6.4-14.8x
DVD defaults:
Movie DVDs: Medium DVD-speed
Original Xbox game discs: Medium DVD-speed
Xbox 360 game discs: High DVD-speed

2-5x
2-5x
5-12x
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APPLIES TO
  • Xbox
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