CD Player not Reading Disc Fix - Increase Laser Power (to 11)

A relatively quick fix to an age-old problem: your CD player sits and spins the disc making weird electronicky noises for ages, until either working (until you skip), or until your nerves give up.

Make sure to only increase the power to lowest satisfactory amount

[wackydan]

You must be very careful to check before turning the pot that it hasn't got a spot of weak glue (like a nail polish) sometimes red in colour which is used to hold the the pot you turn in place. If you don't remove that glue/nail polish whatever it is the the whole pot will turn ripping itself off the circuit board damaging it completely. A dab of isopropyl alcohol on the pot for 10 seconds before you turn it will suffice.

[jgizzy]

Everything about this video was perfect: your attention to focus, lighting, zoom, angles -- perfect! Also you explain the issue with fluency and keep your verbiage lean and to the point. Thank you

[robertenglish]

Tried this on 30 year old Technics which just stopped reading cd. Amazingly it worked. Christmas magic. Thank you for a very clear video

[stevenk]

Fixed a Panasonic RX-DS750 boom box that was built in 1996. Laser adjustment can be accessed without taking unit apart. Insert CD, select something around track 6-10. Stop it and remove CD. Head will be aligned where you can get a small screwdriver in the gap on the left side of head. Mine just took about a 10 degree counter-clockwise adjustment of the screw. Thanks for the video!

[moc]

I've been looking for a lot of repair movie clip so far. Most of the videos were about replacing or cleaning pickups. I couldn't find any explanation for calibrating the laser power. After watching this, I fixed the CDP that was difficult to fix very easily. Thank you very much.

[mstakenagain]

70 year old woman here. Our 30 year old 3 disk CD player was not reading in any of the positions. I bought a cleaner disk that would not even read. I was thinking of buying a new one. I decided a drastic fix wouldn't hurt anything. I doused an unwanted CD in alcohol and put it in and tried to play it. It didn't work. I then poured about a teaspoon of alcohol on the middle of where CD #2 sits. I closed it and pressed the play button. It played funny for a few seconds and then it worked just fine. I played it about 30 minutes and it was still working and the alcohol had evaporated. I'm not suggesting this method, but I didn't need to unscrew anything. Now I don't need to buy a new CD player in 2020 when they are on their way out anyway.

[hestheMaster]

As a laser diode ages it loses it's conductivity like a dimming bulb. To compensate the current going to it can be increased by this small pot to allow the laser
to become brighter and read the disk correctly! Just don't turn it all the way up or the current will shorten it's lifespan very quickly. GOOD FIX!

[peterjennings]

Absolutely brilliant. Thanks so much. This has corrected my pioneer cd changer.... fantastic. Thanks again.

[joejones]

Thank you. I have a 20 yr old Bose acoustic wave that was acting the very same way your stereo was acting, spinning the disc, but no music, did the adjustment and whola!!! Mu-zac was spilling forth!! Thank you...thank you...THANK YOU!!

[dangodfrey]

Thanks very much for this info, I have just fixed a Marantz CD-63 mk2 KI with this technique. Currently 17 mins into a CD which it could not previously even see! This is a must share video.

[unpluggedlamp]

Recently purchased a 90s technics CD player for my setup. Burned a cd today and ran into this problem. Saw your video, popped open the hood and followed your directions and BOOM! It worked! This is what YouTube is for! Thanks so much! Managed to fix it!

[krish]

Great, I just followed as u said . Tank u so much .My Bose wave radio CD started working more than I expected. It is a vey good lesson to every one who face similar problem without spending anything. God bless.

[JUNO-]

This method worked flawlessly on an old Technics SL-P111 cd player that i purchased as part of a vintage Hi Fi setup. It was the only piece not working. Super easy fix. This is what Youtube is made for. Thanks so much.

[owenmcintyre]

My Denon DCD-510AE wouldn't read some of my discs. I was just about to shell out almost £300 for a new player and I thought "Give this a go. Nothing to lose. It's not working anyway." I can't believe the slightest turn of a screwdriver and voila, problem solved. It might deteriorate again, but at least I still have it for now. A small miracle. Thank you much!

[USAMPC]

I can't thank you enough for this video. I just pulled an old Sony Discman D-1000 (which I loved but had given up on) out of the closet and fixed it based on the info from this video. I can't believe it. Sweet!

[amajorseven]

Thank you. This helped with my Denon CDC-680. I had to take a guess fir the right potentiometer because there are 3 next to each other. The left one did the trick.

[computernostalgia]

Thank you so much. I didn’t want to put any crappie aftermarket stereo in my 1999 Plymouth Neon Expresso. Now thanks to you my factory Chrysler stereo is working again!

[TheJewelleryDesigner]

Thank you for the tip! I did this on a JVC PC-X300 ghetto blaster I bought new in 1989. The CD stopped reading 10 years ago but the unit is otherwise in mint condition. Was about to give up on it until I started researching and found this video. Only thing different is I had to turn the trim pot clockwise for it to read the CD. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge, this has brought new life to my old classic stereo.

[yosoy]

Genius!!! Thanks a lot for the tip, worked perfectly! ❤

[runescaper]

I can't believe it actually worked! Thank you! Mine was a pioneer brand and I had to turn clockwise.