Cd Player Says No Disc Fix

[Yamila Comejo]

I just burned a playlist to a fresh CD. It plays fine on my computer, but my home CD player doesn't recognize it. When I put the disc in I get the message "no disc". Any ideas? It was burned from CD songs, not mp3's.

My RDR-HXD710 recorder has been brilliant but recently has been reluctant to let me archive stuff from the hard drive to DVD. I get a message 'Disc is dirty' and recording stops despite using new Sony discs just out of the wrapper. This is happening more often than not so I am accumulating rejected discs - but when it does work the resulting disc plays fine. Anyone got any ideas, please?

Update on this problem: since buying a new pack of discs I haven't had a rcurrence of this problem. So either a glitch in the machine has cured itself, or more likely, Sony went through a bad patch in disc production which is hopefully now resolved.

On the subject of dirty discs, disc read errors etc.., a while back I was experiencing similar issues with equipment from another manufacturer. I always handle my discs either by the centre hole or outer edges, I keep them clean at all times and never allow fingerprints onto the disc surface.

However, having started to experience issues with dirty disc/disc read errors I opened my DVD player only to discover that the centre spindle on which the DVD rests had a slight greasy smear on it. Presumably this had accumulated over many months of handling the discs by their centre hole and the grease was in fact transferred from my finger tips. This greasy layer was in fact causing the disc to 'slip' when rotated by the machine resulting in those error messages.

Solution? I wiped the centre spindle on which the DVD rests with a cotton bud moistened with Isopropyl Alcohol (CD/DVD Cleaner) and the problem was solved instantly. No more disc read errors or dirty disc alerts.

Hi Quinnicus, you're very welcome! I struggled with that issue for months before deciding to lift the lid on my DVD player. Normally I would not do such a thing but as it was outside the manufacturing guarantee I decided to have a poke around. I'm sure glad I did and since discovering what had caused the problem I've also managed to rescue a couple of friends DVD/CD players which suffered the same fate. Interestingly some manufacturers recommend holding discs by their centre hole! Terrible advice if you ask me.

IMPORTANT: Not all CD/DVD players are supplied with the same functions and/or features. To verify model-specific information on any of these steps, refer to the instructions supplied with the product. Manuals are posted on your model support page.

NOTE: There are some disc players that do not support VCD or DVD discs, as well as not supporting CD-R or CD-RW discs created by a CD burner. For information regarding disc compatibility with your unit, refer to the operating instructions.

NOTE: If more than one commercially-produced disc does not play, verify whether the discs are extended-length discs. Some players are not able to play discs where the recording exceeds the standard 74 minutes. If the recording of the disc is longer than 74 minutes, it is possible that some of the specifications of that disc were compromised and therefore, the CD player will not recognize that disc.

I have a Sony DVD player model DVP-S560D. When I insert the dvd into the player I get a message on the player telling me to insert the disk.

Why isn't the player recognizing the disk already in the player? Does something need to be cleaned?

Thanks for any help.

-submitted by dale


Answer:I'm going to assume that you're having this problem with all DVDs and CDs that you insert into the drive. If this problem only occurs on one disc, the problem is usually with the disc itself.

There are many reasons why a DVD player may be incapable of recognizing a DVD when inserted.

1. Many DVD players are not able to properly detect and playback recordable DVDs. If trying to play a DVD disc that is a DVD-R/RW or DVD+R/RW, you'll need to refer to the DVD players documentation on compatible formats.



2. Insert the disc and listen closely by placing your ear to close to the drawer of the DVD player. After the disc tray has closed, you should be able to hear the disc spinning. If you hear no such sound, it is common that the disc is not spinning up, which is why you would recieve a "No Disc" message when a disc has been inserted. In some cases, it can be difficult to hear the disc spinning, so you could remove the lid of the player to actually see if the disc spins.


If this is the case, you could try to determine the cause of this, which is usually the "hat" above the center of the disc is stuck and needs to be repositioned to lay against the top surface of the DVD. If you are uncomfortable doing this, you'll want to bring the DVD player to a service center.


3. In your case, the DVP-S560D is an older DVD player, and I'm sure it has had its fair share of use. Over time, dust and deposits can accumulate on the laser that reads the disc. In many cases, DVD players with this problem can still read CDs. You could try a DVD laser cleaner, which is usually a disc that has a tiny brush glued onto it. Run the cleaning disc 2 or 3 times, and try it again. Try both CDs and DVDs, since CDs are easier to read than a DVD.



4. After a DVD player has been used for awhile, another common problem is that the laser in the DVD player becomes misaligned, inhibiting its ability to read DVDs. In many cases, DVD players with this problem will still be able to read a CD. I'd try a cleaning disc first, since the only way to fix this problem is to bring the unit to a service center for repair.



5. There are other possibilities for the players failure, such as a defective laser motor (the motor that moves the laser), bad spindle motor (the motor that spins the disc), as will as other various circuit falures that could be the cause.

Try all things you can do yourself to repair the unit. If none of them are successful, you will need to have the unit repaired, or purchase a new DVD player. As a general rule-of-thumb, if the unit repair cost exceeds 2/3 the cost of a new comparable unit (in both features and quality), then don't bother fixing it. You'd be better off with a new player.

Let us know how it goes by following up in the discussion page below.

Matt Whitlock - Editor, TechLore.com

if you replaced the laser mechanism ( with the comunication board ) and the motor then it is most likely the processing board and thier usually not cheap and sometimes not available , and after some time will not be made or sold ,also always check to see if parts for your device are available or if they have been having problems getting the parts before spending money at the repair shop on a device that will not be able to be fixed

I have an iview-102dv. As you said above in #2, mine is a 'hat' no contact problem. It is a hand me down from a friend. He said the shelf above dropped on the player, and after a while it stopped playing completely. I openned the thingie and found the bottom spinning but it did not make contact with 'the hat'. I tried to push down the hat, still it did not work. So I tried raising the bottom up with a flat screw driver and it made contact and it spun. Since the there was no dvd in there as I could not put a dvd and use screwdriver at the same time. I noticed that when I open the tray, the bottom thing goes down, and comes up when closed with the msg 'loading', so my dilemna is I cannot put a piece of wood or something to raise the bottom tray height as it would want to go down upon opening. Please help.

if it will not stay up , you need to determine if it is because of the tray not pushing on the plastic pin which in turn lifts the laser mechanism up to the cd/dvd
if helping the door close ( by pushing in on it ) makes it read the disc , then you may just need to replace the belt , otherwise it may also be wore down where the plastic lifts up on the laser mechanism

Thank you repairdude. The player was bought only a month ago by my friend (who does not know how to set alarm on his clock radio, and I am no techie myself either). Nothing is worn or anything. Only the shelf above dropped on it once per my friend and it still worked for a few days and then stopped working with 'no disc' msg. Like I said the lower tray comes up, raises up when door is closed but for some reason does not make a complete contact with the top 'hat'. They seem to be in contact but perhaps not. Pushing the 'hat' down while 'loading' does not help but force-raising the bottow a wee bit does the magic. If anyone comes up with a solution please let me know, I thank you all in advance.

if the plastic that lifts the "laser mechanisn" is not worn ,and the belt is not slipping, then the focus on the laser is failing and the lens can't stay lifted that high anymore or the lens is blurry and makes it hard for the laser to see , try cleaning the lens manually, otherwise you have a focus problem

I know you're trying to help repairdude but maybe it's me who is not explaining things properly, not a techie remember. Okay, (1)insert dvd, no disc (2)unscrew the top and watch inside, close the door (top still open please remember) and watching, loading message comes up but the 'hat' is not moving and you can hear the 2 to 3 spinning going on underneath (4) unscrew the 'hat' and close the door (top still open), what do I see?- the bottom tray has risen up and is doing the 2 to 3 spinning and stops w/no disc (5) I screw back the hat and try it again with/(A) after closing the door (no dvd inside, please remember) and when it says loading, I press the 'hat' gently to make contact with the bottom that is going to spin, no contact, I hear spinning underneath which is the bottom tray doing it and with/(B) I repeated the exercise again but instead of pushing down on the 'hat' (no dvd inside, please remember) I raise the bottom tray a wee bit and I notice the 'hat' makes contact and the hat spins along with the bottom tray. Since there is no dvd inserted, I can never find out if there is other problem beside no spin. If I insert dvd with the cover unsrewed, there is no way I could raise the bottom tray, if I could I would be able to see when the dvd is being spun by the bottom and the top and whether it plays or I get 'no disc' again, then I would worry about lens cleaning, right. If I dont hear from you repairdude, thank you for trying to help me.

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