Why is the tray on my CD player not opening?

A typical problem occurs when you press the “Open” button to open the tray of the CD player. There is often a whirring noise of the loading motor and the tray gear wheels; however, the tray will not open.

How do you open a CD drawer in a stereo?

With the buttons still held in, insert the stereo power cord into a power source. This process will unlock the drawer if the stereo is stuck in security mode. Unscrew the screws on the outside of the stereo housing unit with a screwdriver if the CD drawer still does not open.

Are there any problems with a CD player?

CD players have less moving parts than most electronics and don’t typically experience a high number of problems.

What to do if your CD drive won’t open?

You need to remove the complete CD drive from the unit and open it up if it’s inside a metal case. I’ve described how to deal with this fault in the Restart Wiki.

A typical problem occurs when you press the “Open” button to open the tray of the CD player. There is often a whirring noise of the loading motor and the tray gear wheels; however, the tray will not open.

With the buttons still held in, insert the stereo power cord into a power source. This process will unlock the drawer if the stereo is stuck in security mode. Unscrew the screws on the outside of the stereo housing unit with a screwdriver if the CD drawer still does not open.

You need to remove the complete CD drive from the unit and open it up if it’s inside a metal case. I’ve described how to deal with this fault in the Restart Wiki.

How do you get a CD tray out of a CD player?

Turning the CD mechanism over, there is usually a lever that one must push to the side in order to unlock the latch. Simply pushing the white lever to the RHS will unlock the latch so the tray can pull out. There are other variations of this mechanism where a plastic tab/claw stops the tray from pulling out.

Turning the CD mechanism over, there is usually a lever that one must push to the side in order to unlock the latch. Simply pushing the white lever to the RHS will unlock the latch so the tray can pull out. There are other variations of this mechanism where a plastic tab/claw stops the tray from pulling out.

Why is the tray on a CD player made of plastic?

This part has to match with the outside design of the case, and therefore manufacturers made this bit changeable, so that their mechanism could be compatible with a wide number of brands and models. As you can see in this plan view, the CD transport mechanism is usually made of plastic.

What kind of drive does a CD player have?

Sometimes one could buy an expensive high-end machine or a cheap supermarket brand, and they will have the same drive mechanism, laser, and spindle motor. Almost all CD drive mechanisms found today are of plastic fabrication, with plastic cogwheels. Those old Akio Morita days when you found a die-cast alloy chassis with metal parts are gone!

Why does my CD player drawer not work?

When CD and DVD players stop working, its usually because of the drawer not opening and/or shutting. I’ve fixed several models with that problem. Here is an example of fixing a Sony model. The gear and drawer mechanism on this model was actually somewhat different than others I’ve worked on, but all the basic issues were the same.

Why does my compact disc player not work?

When CD and DVD players stop working, it’s usually because of the drawer not opening and/or shutting. For this CD player, the problem turned out to be a broken belt between the motor and the wheel that has the gear that opens the drawer.

What should I do if my CD player tray is stuck?

🙂 There is usually a very small drive belt driven by a motor, which not only slides the tray in and out, but also loads the inner platform to engage the spindle to the CD.

This part has to match with the outside design of the case, and therefore manufacturers made this bit changeable, so that their mechanism could be compatible with a wide number of brands and models. As you can see in this plan view, the CD transport mechanism is usually made of plastic.