Sony CD player CDP XA 20 ES question

You should take the top off, and look at it when the drawer closes.
Does it even spin the disc?
If not, then try starting the disc up by hand as soon as it pops in place.
Sometimes it is the motor gets ' stuck.'
If it spins and no data, then the laser is not working. It may be a cap, or the laser itself. or even some other thing.
Usually the whole sled the laser sits on is a replacement. and usually worth doing.
Most of the time the new laser is not as high quality as the original, but it still is worth the bother.

Replacing stuff like the whole sled is easy. IF it is a snap in exact replacement (like four screws and a cable) . If it is not calibrated correctly, then an expert may be needed to recalibrate it. Though trying to replace it IS worth doing oneself as it is so easy...

This unit was the next model down from the highly praised
Sony XA7ES. Parts for both these units are iffy at best due to age. Problem could be a lazer and sometimes parts are on Ebay. Worth fixing if possible..Good luck.

Thanks for your responses. I've since found out that this player is supposed to have a "stabilizer" which as best as I can tell looks like a 3/8" thick 45 rpm record adapter, that you sit on the disc over the center spindle before closing the drawer. If this is amongst the load of stuff I got, I'm not able to readily find it. Anyone know if this player would work without the stabilizer? Thanks!