I've had this alpine cd player since i've owned my truck, around 3 years. It's an old cd player, a 96 or so, and i never had a problem with it even with burned cd's and i figured it would have problems with them, it would take a while but it would read them and start playing it. Since a month ago, the cd player wouldn't even keep a normal or burned cd, it would always eject it after about 2 seconds. I have a 95 cd player also, but haven't even tried to see if it works, it's also an alpine.

Is there any way to get this thing to read these cd's? I was trying to get it to play the korn greatest hits cd, brand new, and it kept ejecting it. The cd's aren't burned or anything, not even scratched, brand new!!.

Is there any way to fix it, or should i just get a new one? I know it is a dumb question, and i would like to get a new one, but my money goes towards a new exhaust system, and fixing my truck.

What would be a good cd player/head unit for 100 to 150? I don't care what brand, i just wand a good quality unit that looks good.

Thanks for any and all help.

 

In all seriousness, get rid of it. It is ridiculous how cheap an MP3/WMA multi-format CD-player of top brands is now. Alpine was king once but that day is over and sometimes we just got to let the old girl die. As for your new brand
MP3 model I recommend the Kenwood KDC-MP228

non MP3 model
JVC arsenal KD-AR260
Kenwood KDC-1028
Clarion Pro-audio DXZ555MP

any other questions and put them on this thread and I'll answer to the absolute best of my ability. I am a former installer and am now in the custom fiberglass arena.

 

whoops completely forgot two things.

one. all of those I mentioned fit your price range (if it increases or decreases let me know I'll help you find some good online companies)

two. if your unit is that old odds are it is running at 35 watts per channel peak all of the units I recommend are at 50 or above per channel. so I guess my question is are you on stock old school ford speakers and if so what would you like to go in the route of upgrading.

 

Thanks for all the info. I finally got the cd player to play some cd's. I just kept puting the cd in after it ejected it, and after like 15 minutes, it finally started to read the disk. It still has a hard time switching from song to song, but i think it will get better. I took the face plate/unit thing off and then took it completely apart. some of the buttons were sloppy and sticking, though the eject button was fine. The whole thing needed cleaning.

It started working when i was out ice fishing, and wasn't catching anything, so i started screwing around with the cd player. I kept putting the cd in it, and it kept ejecting it so i looked in the owners manual, and it didn't say anything about it, then all of a sudden, it started playing, it was crazy. So i am happy it works, even if it doesn't work the greatest. I may get a new one soon though, probably from crutchfield.

I am using the stock ford speakers.

 

duster:

glad to hear you got it working...if/when? you decide to go a new one track me down and I'll get you some websites (I do purchasing at my location, so I got a few suppliers).

it's nice to see good old fashioned boredom curing all our technological ailments.

And don't worry I don't see a dime for the people I order from. Just love being able to help my fellow ford people.

 

Hey Duster,
Ive got a possibile solution; a cd cleaner kit. I think their about 10 bucks. The CD has little brush bristles on them that dust the lens.
Other than that, I agree with Tex. Get another unit. Theyre cheap...in fact on eBay, you can get brand new, good brands, for a discount

 

Thanks guys, i will definately have to do that. The cd player started ejecting the cd's again today, could it be because it's cold? Last time it was working the truck was warmed up for a while. I am going to try my other alpine to see if it works any better, but i think i am going to get a new one soon.

Dizzead, I don't think the cd cleaner will work because it won't keep the cd in there long enough, but it might.

Thanks texas, that sounds awsome, i might just have to do that. I'll get back once i find out if my other cd player works.

 

i went out ice fishing again, and when i got back, the cd player started working again. The truck was all warmed up, so i think it is because it was so cold, could that really be the problem? It was about 8 degrees today. It's electronic so it works when it feels like it, even if it isn't broken.

 

I had an older model Sony CD player (back when CD players in cars where a rare thing) and after several years and a couple different trucks it got to where it wouldnt play a CD when it was cold.

I have to agree with a previous post though...when you can get a new one and save yourself a lot of headaches dealing with that relic.

 

For a new cd player, what should i get? I was looking at the crutchfield catalog today, and i saw a panisonic cd player with 4 25 watt channels, a remote, and was 120 bucks. I want to put speakers/woofers in the truck also, and that made me look at this cd player a lot more because it had 2 preamp hook ups. I don't know if those are standard on most models, but i just want a good cd player with a remote, with power, that's cheap in price not quality, and can be easily installed and hooked up to speakers/woofers.

 

Most CD players have 2 sets of pre-amps. Almost all name brands are going be fairly good quality and last several years. What I recommend doing is fiding one you like in Crutchfield and then buying off Ebay. You can usually get it quite a bit cheaper. I saved $500 off the Crutchfield SALE PRICE on my in-dash DVD by buying off Ebay.

 

It has to be the heat, because the only time it works is when it's warm in the truck. It has worked like that the last 5 times i have driven the truck. It only plays when it is warm. Isn't that stupid?

 

I put my older (a 1995) alpine cd deck in there in place of the 96 that only works when it's warm. The thing played all types of cd's flawlessly. Me and my friend were amazed, although the deck was sitting in a box unused since 98 or so, that it played even burned cd's without any reading problems. It is great, i just hope it keeps working like it does.

 

Sorry about not getting to it sooner. I don't know if you have changed your mind about getting a new HU since you got a free replacement through the backup. If you still are, post what you would like. While Panasonic is a decent entry level, most of their better units are in the much higher price range while other companies have comparable units at much lower prices. Give me a rough estimate of what you want and I'll help you track it down. Either through crutchfield or ebay or a mass merchandiser in your area. Give me some specs. Hard hittin system, enough to annoy the neighbors or just some nice smooth tunes for yourself only.