Meridian 508.24 problem

My cdp uses one of the CDM12xx lasers. When it developed issues reading the last few minutes of cds which had 70+ minutes of music I emailed the company about a fix. They said I could send it in for a new laser. Before shipping it off I removed the laser to see how difficult it was. While I had it out I put a few drops of Tri-flow on the shafts the laser rides on. reinstalled the laser and it hasn't had trouble since.
It is a fairly delicate procedure but I figured there was nothing to lose. I'm going to purchase a replacement laser on ebay just in case.

Meridian 508.24 is a great player, but CDM12.xx sucks. They are made in Asia and are of cheap plastic. If you want a real 508 cd player, get yourself the original 508, which has the Philips CDM4 swingarm laser mechanism with real glass optics; I did, and upgraded to .24 and never had any problems with any cd's whatsoever.

The laser failed on my 508.24 a couple of years ago and I contacted by phone (nice folks!) and sent it to Meridian North America. They promptly repaired and sent it back to me. Cost of the whole laser assembly plus labor and return ship to the west coast was around $250.

Strooper, before you send your player for repair, try cleaning the lens with a dry cotton bud. If this method fails I think you need to give Meridian a call.

Strooper, it's not the lens it's the laser. Usually the entire CD mech is replaced, as they are inexpensive (under $100). You'll mostly pay for labor for a job like this. I'd give Meridian US a call for an estimate.

Hello everyone!

As a follow-up to my earlier post, I regret to say that the skipping problem came back after a few days of playing.

Each time I used the compressed air to clean the lens, the player would play fine for a couple of CDs. And then the skipping would happen again.

Now, indeed I'm contemplating about replacing the lens. However, would this problem be commonly associated with the lens? Or could it be some other part of the tray mechanism that has worn out?

Yesterday, I went out to get an air pump one might find at a camera shop for blowing dust out from camera lens. For some reason, compressed air in a can is impossible to find where I live.

Carefully regulating the pressure from the pump, I aimed it on to the lens at a 45deg angle and gave it a few puffs. The lens seem to be "suspended" by some mechanism, so some caution may be needed in applying the amount of air pressure vs. the nozzle-lens distance.

After that, I played a CD (that skipped before) for about 60mins. During the time, no skip occured. However, it may yet be too early to tell for sure, so I will post my feedback after I put more playing time into it.

Thanks for all your helpful inputs.

My experience was a simple fix on a Sony cdp, don't recall model. I removed the cover, located the lens and sprayed the air can at it. It did not look dirty but when I turned it on and put in a disc the player worked for the first time in a month and has been going ever since.
It was the compressed air in a can that is available at most office supply stores. Never be without it.
With the lens exposed on the drawer, it sounds even simpler.

I have a 508.24 and because the laser lense is mounted on the tray, and exposed each time you change the CD. I've always wondered if the lense is more suseptible to becoming dirty than units which have it (ie the lense) sheltered inside.

So far I haven't had any problems, but I think Timrhu's suggestion would be the first thing I try. It's cheap and quick. I hope it works for you . . .

Ryder, I believe the compressed air Timrhu refers to is the spray can you can purchase at office supply and computer stores. On the 508.24 it's simply a matter of opening the CD drawer and spraying air on the lense asm.

Timrhu, I'm intrigued by your method in dealing with problems associated with the reading of discs, and would be grateful if you could share a little of your knowledge by elaborating in more detail on your success with the can of compressed air that you've used. Or any other methods worth trying before sending the machine for lens replacement. Not too sure what equipment did you use to force compressed air to clean the lens though.

Cheers.

You might try cleaning the lens before sending it in for repair. I recently had a Sony player that was having trouble reading discs until I removed the cover and blew it out with a can of compressed air. Been working fine for two months or so. Good luck.

The CD player's lens need to be replaced. You might want to send your player to the manufacturer for service/repair by a qualified technician.