CD Player question
 

My LS-L has the orignal cd player in it. When I play an official cd it works fine but when I put in a burnt cd in it some times it takes a while for it to load and sometimes when I switch to the next track it picks a different track and starts to play in the middle of a different track. (It doesn't skip) I really don't want to get a new radio and or cd player. I like the stock look. The cds I play are good quality cds and freshly burnt and use a good program. Is there anyway of cleaning the lens or replacing the lens. Thanks

P.S. I already searched for this topic

Are they colored disk...mine won't play a black CDR disk, but plays a "silver" one fine.....

I'm always skeptical about paying more for brand names or "premium" products but have found that good "music" quality CD blanks track better on mine than dollar-a-dozen, general purpose discs. Last time I tried using a cheapo disc it wouldn't track at all, but I burned a Maxell 700mb Music disc and it plays just fine.

Also, slowing the "record" rate of your software might help a bit.

I've used a lens cleaner disc but can't tell any difference.

dcb

Yes the CD's are silver and they work perfect in my cousins 2006 nissan cd player. Just in the my svx they don't play right. And I also have tryed maxual and sony. But the ones I'm currently using is Imation. They all work fine in my cousins car and my boom box. I didn't know you can ajust the burn time. I'll try that next time. And that cd cleaning disc doesn't make a difference. Is there any other way to clean or replace the lens. Thanks guys

Your laser's tired. You have a 15 year old CD player, cut it some slack lol.

Also the way the cd player works, the arms that fit around the cd to make it spin, might be slipping, so the player doesn't know where to start.

If you're up to it, pull the player out, clean the laser, maybe replace it (if you know how) and tighten any little screws you find here or there. My CD player did the EXACT same things you mentioned, so I serviced it.

I used to work at an arcade, and modern games use discs, since they run continuously for days at a time, we'd regularly fix 'em up. Bout once a month. Tekken was a big one.

If you don't feel comfortable taking the unit apart, try getting a lens cleaner disc. I'm not sure how well it'll work with a front loader, but hey it's worth a try.

One final thing, burned CDs may not work well because, face it, how often did people play burned CDs in 1992?

"One final thing, burned CDs may not work well because, face it, how often did people play burned CDs in 1992? "

Thats true. I guess then I'll try the disc thing and if that does't work then I'll try to take out the lens. I also heard if you use alchol and a Q-tip on the lens that works also. Is that true or should I just replace it?

Yeah that's fine too.

Yeah considering back then a 1x burner was about $1200 (I have a 4x from 1994 that's SCSI, has a built in hard drive that's used as a buffer, since most computers back then couldn't keep up with the data rate) and discs were 8 bucks a pop.. (I remember my first burner, 4x write, 2x RW, $150 on sale at staples, about 1999... lol Still have it, still works.... (But flash forward to 2004 and I got a SuperMulti (DVD +/- R/RW + DVD-RAM) LG burner for $50 off ebay)

I used to distribute computer supplies. There is no physical difference between "music" cd's and "data" cd's. The music ones have a copy encryption code on them which must be there in order for them to work in the dedicated burners attached to hi-fi systems.

In the early days (read 90's) there were compatibility problems with many car cd players (particularly Sony), some home cd players and burned cd's . The problem is in the software code of the player. They are just set up to a different standerd for tolerance and error correction. The best way to get arround the issue then was to burn at 1x or 2x but still many brands of cd would not work. The early Maxell's (4x, 8x and 16x) were particularly bad.

Borrow a few diff. brands from your friends to see if they play ok, then burn one of those brands. If they still don't work either your burner or your panasonic may be out of alignment.

There are plenty of basic aftermarket cd players that most people would never know weren't OEM. Why not just replace it?

That doesn't surprise me. Must be a brand/manufacturing thing, then, or one heck of a coincidence. I haven't found a sure-thing, but the cheapest discs seem to have the most trouble tracking. And a disc that plays reliably in my teal SVX may be promptly spit-out by the silver.

New factory-original CD players are apparently still available from Subaru for (ah-hem) approximately $600.

dcb

I'm having the same problem with all 3 of my 92's. None of them will play a burned CD and you never know if its going to play a factory one or not.
Like its been said before, its a 15yr old CD player and the encoding has changed. If I had a 15yr old CD, it would probably play it fine:p
Theres lots of double din decks on ebay, I plan on finding something I can plug my MP3 player into for my DD.

I think the problem is more a function of age and wear on the machine, not so much that the technology has changed. The stock player in my teal SVX (which I bought used from a member here) plays discs of every vintage and flavor without trouble. The original unit got to where it wouldn't track anything.

I've had home stereo CD players progressively fail, too. Don't know what it is that goes bad over time, but they just get to where they won't track a disc correctly.

dcb

My 91 Legacy Turbo has a factory CD player in it (I imagine it's the same unit as the SVX) and it had a TDK CD-R in it that played fine lol (I love when cars come with things..)