CD ripping suddenly produces garbage

[Andrew Schulman <andrex@alumni.utexas.net>]

I haven't ripped any CDs in a month or so.  Now suddenly when I try, it
seems to complete successfully but every file that comes out is garbage. 
Whether WAV, OGG, or MP3, they all play static.

I've tried to rip several different CDs, some of which I've successfully
ripped in the past.  No joy.  I get the same result with each of my two CD
drives, and whether I use k3b, audiocd:/ in konqueror, or cdparanoia to do
the ripping.

<gripe>
I am totally fed up and frustrated with CD drives in Linux.  I'm constantly
having to screw with them to get them to work correctly.  They work for a
while, then suddenly they won't play right, won't eject, won't rip, won't
burn.  It's a f****** pain in the ass.
</gripe>

My old OGG and MP3 files play just fine.  (At least I finally got a stable
sound system, after years of screwing with it.)

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Andrew.