MCD500 cd tray gets stuck lately
 

I have been noticing that the cd tray of my MCD500 gets stuck almost all the time now when opening the cd drawer and it needs to be gently pried open. I can hear the motor running when I press the open/close button, but the tray doesn't open.

The musical characteristics are fine and this seems to be a purely mechanical problem.

Do you think I should send it to McIntosh, Audio Classics, Terry DeWick or some other "renowned" dealer for repair or do you think a local McIntosh authorized repair dealer would be good to solve this problem?

I would like to avoid having to ship the unit for repair if possible.

Thank you

I would think this to be an easy "tweak" on a bracket of some sort or tightening a screw inside the unit so the tray can find home so to speak. I would start at the local authorized repair dealer to avoid shipping as you note unless you are feeling adventurous to open the unit up yourself and take a look if the warranty has expired. I had a similar problem with an old Pioneer Elite DVD player that I ended up fixing myself by tightening inner mounting screws once I took the case off. Good luck!

-Ryan

Gary.......Pete (Vintage Pete) had the same issue with his MCD7009 tray. It turned out to be an aging belt. He replaced it himself but he said it was quite an issue. I suggest you ship the MCD500 to Audio Classics. They have the kind of repair experience you can trust and the parts. While there have them replace both belts, as I believe there are two in the tray mechanism.

I had a similar issue with my MCD 550 several years ago. I removed the top cover. On either side of the drawer are 2 screws. Adjusting them would raise or lower the entire drive mechanism to allow the drawer to line up with the opening in the front panel. It is similar to screwing in or out the feet of a kitchen appliance to make it level. As I recall, it was a straightforward repairs. I hope this helps.

cdr1... Welcome to AA! :wave:

Gary,
One of things you can check for and fix is the tray binding on the front bezel. Check the tray to bezel clearance visually from the front to see if there is clearance on all four sides. If not, you can adjust the position of the drive by taking off the top cover and adjusting the position of the drive. Also you can inspect the tray and see if there are any rub marks on it where it fits into the bezel.
Tom

If you decide to open the cover and perform the adjustments recommended by the other posters, it would also be a good idea to take a can of compressed air and blow out any dust that’s accumulated inside the unit. It’s good preventive maintenance to prevent future issues.

As the OP is in NY, he could easily drive to Auto Classics or McIntosh for the service. Would guess that a call to AC could result in a trip thru the McIntosh factory, with repairs done while doing so.

Same thing happens on mine if I don't use it for awhile, which indicates a belt issue to me. Kind of surprising belts would go out that quickly. It looks very similar to the drive in the MCD301 for which there is a belt replacement guide online.

when I owned a MS300 I owned it up and adjusted a couple of screws to get it going for awhile. I later ended up replacing the drive which was an easy swap. Not sure how difficult the MCD500 is to change out;.