MCT450 First Impressions...WOW!

[bruno2009]

I've had this issue with two or three CDs - no big deal, open/close tray and then it reads perfectly. Out of hundreds that I've played by now maybe a handful that don't read the first time. Had the same issues with all other previous players too though - nothing to worry about.

[wonderboy]

Since I have C2600, I should go with MCT450.... I think DAC of C2600 is very good...

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by rak2806

Yes, I have got D150/MCT450 for 3 months and also see sometimes reading CD problem. So I open/close the tray which helps in most cases.

Do you have still reading problems with some of your discs?
I still have sometimes........most of the time with brandnew discs. I guess it has something to do with poor production of the discs......

No problems with SACDs so far!

[kurt1970]

Not sure if this is only a McIntosh related issue.

I’ve a +10y old Rotel RCD-1072 player. On some discs from the prestigious ECM label, I often got “No disc” after loading the CD. Open/close the tray made it work in most situations.

On a day it happened again and I decided to open the player to see what was going on when the CD gets loaded.
I actually figured out that the first thing the player does after the CD is loaded and before playing music, is spinning up the disc very shortly to check if the disc is really a music CD (as DVD, PS4, Data CD, Blue Ray all have the same form factor). If the player cannot identify it as a music CD, you get “No disc”.

What I literary saw (as the CD mechanism in the Rotel is open) is that with some discs, the disc slips a little when spinning it up when it needs to be identified. As this is a very small period, the disc doesn’t get up to full speed and the player reports it as “No disc”. Open/Close can make it work cause it’s only about having slightly some more pressure between the motor and the disc.

Next thing I checked was the thickness of the discs. Well, the ECM one causing an issue was a fraction thinner than my other discs. All very small differences, but being responsible for the slip.

When the unit was open, I also took benefit from the situation to clean the rubbers in the CD mechanism begin responsible to hold the CD. Since I cleaned this, I haven’t got any CD anymore causing issue. Now, we’re +2y later. Rubbers can get dirty if (like me) you play CDs you borrow from the local library for example. New discs may have a protection film on the disc make it slip easier as well.

So, it’s not one thing; might be several reasons. A Rotel is not a McIntosh, but the way CD mechanisms are built, do not differ that much.

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by kurt1970

Not sure if this is only a McIntosh related issue.

I’ve a +10y old Rotel RCD-1072 player. On some discs from the prestigious ECM label, I often got “No disc” after loading the CD. Open/close the tray made it work in most situations.

On a day it happened again and I decided to open the player to see what was going on when the CD gets loaded.
I actually figured out that the first thing the player does after the CD is loaded and before playing music, is spinning up the disc very shortly to check if the disc is really a music CD (as DVD, PS4, Data CD, Blue Ray all have the same form factor). If the player cannot identify it as a music CD, you get “No disc”.

What I literary saw (as the CD mechanism in the Rotel is open) is that with some discs, the disc slips a little when spinning it up when it needs to be identified. As this is a very small period, the disc doesn’t get up to full speed and the player reports it as “No disc”. Open/Close can make it work cause it’s only about having slightly some more pressure between the motor and the disc.

Next thing I checked was the thickness of the discs. Well, the ECM one causing an issue was a fraction thinner than my other discs. All very small differences, but being responsible for the slip.

When the unit was open, I also took benefit from the situation to clean the rubbers in the CD mechanism begin responsible to hold the CD. Since I cleaned this, I haven’t got any CD anymore causing issue. Now, we’re +2y later. Rubbers can get dirty if (like me) you play CDs you borrow from the local library for example. New discs may have a protection film on the disc make it slip easier as well.

So, it’s not one thing; might be several reasons. A Rotel is not a McIntosh, but the way CD mechanisms are built, do not differ that much.

Very good explanation! I also think it has something to do with bad manufactured CDs.......which not getting the CD standard.