Yesterday my Sony DVD player stopped recognizing the DVD's - now what? (1 Viewer)

[Lanny_B]

I put the disc in and it still says "Insert Disc". Yesterday I re-inserted it and then it worked. Today, no such luck, no matter how many times I re-insert it.

So, is there a cheap cleaner kit or something that will fix this? Or is this one of those things where I have to weigh paying like $150 to get it repaired or $300 for a new player?

It's about two years old, btw. Advice?

 

[TomCW]

Depending on the model and the problem, this calibration procedure might work.
http://209.145.176.7/~090/awh/sonydvd.html

To enter the service mode/test mode on my Sony I have to use,Top Menu, Clear, and Power instead of Title, Clear, and Power on the remote.
Let us know if it works.
Tom

 

[Lanny_B]

I'm trying to find a single-layer disc to try out that callibration. I have mostly dual layer. If it's dual sided, can it be single layer? Because some (Iron Giant, Groundhog Day) have Widescreen on one side and P&S on the other.

Otherwise, what are some single layer discs, becuase I'm having trouble making sure? I have Simpsons season 1, Friends Season 1, a bunch of Disney cartoons, and a few other titles.

 

[Marcel_V]

What is the model number? Ive got a model S560D from a couple years ago that is well known for its design flaw that causes that insert disc error. Basically it overheates and a fuse blows causing the problem. :frowning: Quite a few people have fixed it on their own, if you have some basic solder and electronic skills. Do a search on Google or even here to find web pages people made about the problem. I luckily havent had to do it yet.

 

[Lanny_B]

Mine is a Sony DVP-S330

 

[TomCW]

Lanny-
I believe, (someone correct me if I'm wrong) silver are single layer, gold are dual layer.
Tom

 

[Lanny_B]

Since I'm going to be calibrating it, I'd want to know for sure wouldn't I? I mean, could I screw it up if I put it a Dual Layer disc while I was calibrating it for Single Layer? I do have some that look silver in color, btw.

My question above still remains, though. Can they be single-layer even though they are double sided? i.e. are DVD's that have Widescreen on one side and P&S on the other capable of being Single-Layered? Groundhog Day, Dave, and Iron Giant are like this and they are silver in color.

 

[TomCW]

If you mis-cal it by using the wrong disc, it's no big deal, just re-cal using the right disc. I used a silver one for single layer, and a gold one for dual-layer and everything worked fine.
If calibrating doesn't fix it, there is something broken, not just slightly out of adjustment.
Tom

 

[Lanny_B]

Is it possible (speaking from ignorance here) that the lens is just dirty or something? Are there cleaning discs or kits or something that could also fix this kind of issue?

 

[TomCW]

Yes, could be just dirty, but that usually makes the problem come and go. You could use one of those 'compressed air in a can' aerosol things for blowing out camera lenses etc, or even a cd lens cleaner 'cd' with the little brushes on it, but most manufacturers don't recommend the cleaner 'cd's, as they could knock the lens out of alignment as they wipe past it.

If you're somewhat handy (and fearless), unplug the player, remove the case and very carefully, clean the lens with a q-tip moistened with windex, then wipe with a clean, dry q-tip.
My guess is that calibrating will fix it, at least temporarily. If cleaning and calibrating don't fix it, you're not really out anything, as I doubt it will be cost effective to have it repaired. You could probably get a new, better model for the cost of a repair.
Tom

 

[Lanny_B]

Thanks, I'll try the callibrating first, then maybe the compressed air thing.

Thanks Tom and all of you who have contributed your advice and taken your time. Much appreciated.

 

[Adil M]

Lanny,
I have/maybe had that player. The calibration works and is very easy. Silver is single sided and gold is dual. This fix works temporarily as proven by my player. It will fail soon, unfortunately. Mine did 9 months later, but it's a great reason to upgrade your dvd player. I mean the thing doesn't play cdr's.

If you are really worried about what type of dvd it is go into the manual calibration category and there is a part which identifies your dvd. Plus it's kind of cool to see the many options it has. The dvd calibrates about ten variables just called "jitter."
Single first and then dual. That's it. Good luck. Might as well calibrate a cd while you're in there.

Sony customer service is a real piece of shit on the service of this problem. They just kept denying it and claimed it was a dirty disk. It was a goddamn design flaw. I had the stupid thing professionally cleaned and the disk's were perfect. All I wanted was to know how to service the problem so the CC service guys wouldn't f it up. Don't even bother w/ them, Sony. They are known to do the brush-off to everybody and even our local Sony rep alluded to this.

 

[Lanny_B]

Yeah, that sucks.
I tried the auto callibration thing, and it won't do it. I set it on the DVD-SL disc part and about 10 seconds into it it spits out the DVD and says
"Error!!!
Adjustment Quit
Sled On"

I tried that on two silver discs. Uh oh. Um, should I try the Dual-Layer one? I don't have money to get a new player right now.:frowning: I'm in the middle of changing jobs.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

I had the S360 which did the same thing. It worked wonderfully for about 13 months (just long enough for the warranty to give out) and then refused to recognize discs. The calibration trick didn't work either. Sony still does not admit there's anything wrong and it costs more to have it repaired than to buy a new one--and some people who've had the repair done find that it breaks down again in a couple months. There was talk on audioreview.com of a class action, so I still haven't thrown out my old one, but I haven't heard of anything happening on that front.

Time to get an el cheapo model to tide you over. Best Buy often has models under $80 that are no great shakes but at least let you play DVDs.