Abstract: The invention provides an optical disk medium reproducing apparatus, having shortened the processing time for re-discriminating (estimating) the optical disk medium type when the discrimination of the optical disk medium type fails. In discriminating two types of optical disk media in which a distance from the disk surface to the recording layer of one medium is a first distance (CD-based medium, 1.2 mm) and a distance of the other medium is a second distance (DVD-based medium, 0.6 mm), a predetermined range in which erroneous discrimination of the two types of optical disk media is likely to occur is determined by setting “point B” and “point C” between said first and second distances, and when the distance falls within said range, a “reflectivity information of the recording layer” is prioritized over a “distance information of the recording layer” in estimating the optical disk medium type, by which the processing time is shortened.

Abstract: To provide a disk reproduction apparatus capable of reducing time required for reading a disk medium and making a retry. When a type of a disk is discriminated by making a retry because the disk cannot be read at the first time of loading, a user selects in advance one of a fixing method of setting types of disk media to be discriminated and a discriminating order thereof and a historical data method of automatically setting the order of discriminating disk media in the order of decreasing frequency of reproduction, on the basis of historical data of reproduction frequency for each type of disk media. The historical data method is selectable from an addition method and a calculation method. The historical data is visually recognizable by displaying it. A user can select a method which requires less reading processing time, through selecting a discriminating method and making each setting.