Help with Cambridge Audio CD player tray

[bcwang]

I've got a D500se but the tray has been degrading lately.

Starting months ago, the tray would be stuck closed most of the time, if no disc was in it, and would require a tap on the cd player to get it to eject. If there is a disc in it, then it will open every time

More recently, discs will go in, but it will not be fully seated and after a few seconds pop back out. It got worse now that it happens almost every time and needs a good hit to get the disc to stay in and load.

The most recent, even when the tray is fully open, the close button will make the motor try to move but the tray won't move. You have to help with your finger to get it to go in.

So does anyone have any ideas how I can fix this myself? The player is out of warranty and I don't think hitting it everytime can be good for the electronics. Is this a common problem with Cambridge Audio players?

Thanks!

 

[musicexpression]

can it be the rubber belt that operates the tray is loose?

 

[Herandu]

I would also go along with a worn out tray belt. A quite common problem in some tray design. Look on the CPC website to see if they sell that type of belt.

 

[jimholt]

If it is the belt then give the manufactures a ring they may just send you a freebie. Rotel did that for me. Jim.

 

[bcwang]

Thanks for all the tips. I think after looking at the symptoms, it just may be a slipping belt. I'll contact the distributer to see if they can help me.

Let's say I do get this belt, is it an easy swap or is it going to require taking the whole transport apart to get access to the belt? It would be better to have a working cd player with a tray that needs manual intervention, than a CD player that no longer reads disks but has a perfectly sliding tray mechanism.

 

[Herandu]

I don't know the inside layout of your deck, but you can help by taking the top cover off and look for the tray loading motor. In most cases it is on the right hand side, looking at the deck from the front.
With the top off, switch the unit ON and eject the tray and close it again a few times.
Have a look at the tray loading motor pulley if you can see it. If at the end of the tray closing session the motor pulley is still spinning away, but the belt is just stationary (normally lasts for about 2 to 3 seconds), the belt has lost some of its tension.
If the motor pulley stops spinning right away, the motor could be faulty. That is less common, but keep that in mind.
I used to prolong the life of a slack belt by scraping the motor pulley a bit with a flatblade screwdriver so that the belt got some extra grip. The other trick is to turn the belt inside out. So the side that currently sits in the pulley grove then faces outwards instead. And if really desperate, cut a few millimeter off the belt (2 to 3mm) and glue it nicely back together with decent super glue. But that's for absolute situations only, like on a defunct unit with no available spare belts.
Taking the CD mechanism out can be a very tricky job depending on design. So seek the help of a repair engineer if in doubt. And don't lose those spring dampers under the tray whatever you do!!!

 

[musicexpression]

the idea is to study and memorise the steps involved in taking apart the player, and reversing the steps once u replaced the faulty part. use discretion; ie, do not force something even if all screws/nuts have been removed. be careful on the clips, once broken, they are irreparably damaged. good luck

 

[bcwang]

I went and inspected the unit. The belt is definitely slipping, I can see the motor spin, and the belt isn't very tight. But it also looked like there was a coating of grease on the drive motor pulley. So I took a q-tip and water and tried to clean it up a bit. Now, the tray seems to be working again. Though it might be water on the belt giving temporary additional friction. I'll know in a few days if my tinkering permanently fixed the problem.