Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Technical Questions DVD Player won't recongize any discs

I have a Pioneer DV-563A that has been wonderful for the last year or so. Howevever, last Thursday evening I turned it on to listen to a CD and it tells me "NO DISC". So, I reseat the disc, close the door... same thing. I try another CD. I try a burned CD. I try a DVD. I try several of each. Same thing over and over. These are all discs that this player has played in the past. Now, I can get into the DVD player's menu fine. It outputs video, but just will not recognize that it has a disc in the tray.

Ideas? I really cannot afford to replace this player right now. I just spent the weekend snowboarding in Tahoe and am flying to Seattle in 2 weeks to visit a friend for a week. My funds are tied up, but losing my ability to listen to my CDs via my Axioms is really bumming me out!

-james

James, no deep thoughts, but for a start, have you unplugged the player and then replugged it to reset, repeating several times if no results?

Check the manual. There should be some provision for "resetting" the player, which might solve the problem (might not). Sometimes there is a reset button, or you may just have to unplug it and leave it unplugged for a specified length of time. Doing this will change all your settings back to the factory default settings, so, if you're able, you might want to make note of all your current settings before "resetting."

Day late and a dollar short as usual. While composing my post, I paused to watch the end of the 1936 movie San Francisco, and John sneaked in there while I wasn't looking. . He who hesitates is lost!

Yes, Jack, I deduced that you were about to suggest unplugging to reset, and decided to punish you for your dilatory tactics. Just hope that it's that simple!

You're a very sneaky guy, John. And yes, let's hope resetting solves the problem.

Well, as justification, I was outraged to detect that you were watching Turner Classic Movies(now to analyze the rage). The earlier Eddy-McDonald program was very nostalgiac and worth a tear or two.

Worst case scenario, you can always grab the cheapest player you can at Future Shop (hell, they have a Kaco ?!? for $35CDN here) for now... bought Lisa's mom a Daytek one for about $50 a few Christmases ago - no component outputs, but has S-video, and it's outlasted my two Toshibas, despite them watching 20x the number of discs we do, and the primary user being a 12 year old.

Bren R.

Have you tried a cleaning disc? I looked up the specs of your player and it has a twin-laser pickup (two lasers using a sing pickup), so a dust bunny or other obstacle could be obscuring the lens.

Heh Heh. I "live" at Turner Classic Movies. I was weaned on the movies of the 30s and 40s. And, NO, I wasn't around to see them in the theaters. But, in the 50s and 60s, when our 3 TV channels showed a movie, it was from the 30s and 40s because they were old enough to be out of copyright and in the public domain, meaning TV didn't have to pay for them (or, at least, didn't have to pay much).

I've become an old movie buff, and love them to this day. I'm particularly hooked on the many character actors that populated those movies, always giving a wonderful performance. The list is infinite.

The earthquake scene in San Fransisco was pretty darned impressive considering it was done in 1936, and without computers.

Is Turner Classic Movie "rage" anything like road "rage"?

Apologies for the hijack, but I can talk old movies for days (and often do, much to the displeasure of those around me ).

I love the old movies also, anything with Jimmy Stewart were always some of my favorites.

Thanks fellas. All things I should have tried before I wrote the post. I blame the beer I had with dinner! And my annoyance puting me in a 'forest/trees' mind set. I'll pick up a lens cleaner and try the power cycling tonight.

-james

Getting the lens cleaner is good but I can't figure out how riding a bike really fast will help.


Oh...

hehe, oops!

For a novice fixer upper, how do you check that? Is it obvious when you take the player cover off. I just ran thru the same problem with a different manufacturer and bought a new player, but would be nice to have a backup. Thanks, Guy

I've had a couple of DVD players do the same thing. The first was a first-generation Sony. After much searching I found a site that gave me the key-combinations to enter the service and maintenence menus. I ran the auto-calibration utility and that fixed it right up. I later gave that player to Goodwill since it became obsolete regarding the ability to play most burned discs, MP3 discs, and such features as progressive scan DVD.

My second player was a Panasonic DVD-S35. I like this player very much. Matter of fact I bought another one for the bedroom. But it turns out there is a flaw in the retraction mechanism that can rear its ugly head and can cause discs to not get aligned properly for playback. Wish I would have known this at the time I bought the second S35. Like most lower range electronics this player is not worth the cost of having it fixed. For now I have the bedroom S35 in the main system and a cheapy $50 CC special in the bedroom until I can convince myself it's alright to buy that Denon 3910 or like-quality universal player.

So, if the cleaning disc doesn't work see if you can find the diag and maintenence utility codes on the internet. If the player is not under warranty it may be more cost-effective to buy a new player than get the current one fixed.

If nothing listed above works dont waste your money on a cleaning disc. Take the cover off, Locate the laser lens, get a cotton swab and dip it in rubbing alcohol. clean the laser with it and let it dry. see if it works. If not then observe whats going on when you put a disc in when the cover is off. Does it spin up? etc. See if you can see the laser light up. Dont look directly in it but you can see it from the side too, that wont hurt your eyes.


Unless, you dont think your handy enough to tacke the above, then get a cleaning disc. Also make sure the unit is unplugged while your working in there. You can get shocked if you touch the wrong stuff

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and dip it in rubbing alcohol

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I'd suggest not using rubbing alcohol unless it's over 70% and closer to 90%. 70% is the most antiseptic mixture, but that distilled water's not the best for lens cleaning.

Everclear if it's legal where you are is actually one of the best things to use... almost pure ethyl alcohol. *G*

Failing that, the stuff in the CD len cleaner is usually 90%+.

Bren R.

Plus, you can also use the everclear to make Jell-o shots...or any other intoxicating concoction to your liking!

I like your reasoning

And Ajax wins! Unplugging it for a 1/2 hour then plugging it back in led to happy sonic goodness (no foxiness sadly). Thanks!

Oh, and Sonicfox (and other Iowans) I grew up in a town called Stockton on Route 6. I'll be amazed if you have heard of it. It's the kind of place where if you sneeze twice while driving by you'll miss it completely. I miss the thunderstorms in the summer....

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And Ajax wins!

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I'd like to thank the academy and all it's members, for selecting me, and everyone else who was involved with the process of solving the problem. Then there's my brother and sister, and the rest of the family. I couldn't have done it without their support. Lastly, I must share the award with JohnK who actually suggested unplugging before I did. However, I thought of it first!

Speaking of Jack and Oscar , the Academy Awards provided a little local excitement around here.

Phillip Seymour Hoffman (just "Phil" when he was wrestling in high school and before he became important) is from our little village of Fairport, NY (a 'burb of Rochester). He went to the high school that is across the athletic field complex from the backyard of the house we lived in for 18 1/2 years. Several of the neighbors knew him.

This factoid will not get me any interviews or discounts at the local Piggly Wiggly, but it's interesting to have someone from "your own backyard" (sorry, couldn't help myself )do something successful on a national scale. By the same token, I guess I wouldn't share this kind of information if O.J. was from our village.

I don't know Phillip, but I am extremely happy to be able to count Jack as one of my friends, especially since he won the award for this thread!!

That reminds me of a family story. My aunt would always mention to her kids (my cousins) whenever a Polish person was in news for doing something important/courageous/interesting. She was curiously silent when they finally caught the Unabomber. My cousins called her on it, of course.

Oh yeah........

Well, LeBron James grew up 1/2 hour from me!!

Jack, did you thank your parents for not throwing you back in the pond? Hehe!