Stock CD player...WTF?!

So I burnt a new CD the other day, got ready to go to work and popped in the CD. The stereo won't play it. Keeps giving me an error message and pops out the CD. I tried another one I burnt and does the same thing. Lastly I tried a store bought CD and it works fine. WTF?

Do our stock stereo's not like burnt CD's?

If that it the case that stereo is being yanked out ASAP!

I remember having trouble with the stock stereo and some CD-Rs. Make sure you aren't using CD-RW either. Are you 'finishing' or 'closing' the disc when you burn it?

deekster_caddy wrote:

I remember having trouble with the stock stereo and some CD-Rs. Make sure you aren't using CD-RW either. Are you 'finishing' or 'closing' the disc when you burn it?

Also try burning at a lower (under 18x) speed; remember, the last Rivs were '99 models manufactured in November '98. And if you are burning with Windows Media Player tru turning off "Highmat."

Albertj

Make sure the CD you use is marked "Audio CD" it has a copyright file on it that you pay for when you purchase the blank CD's

There used to be a hack for sony and pioneer cd players that allowed you to play your own cut cd's

Nigel

Derek and Albert are both right.

I've burned a half-dozen discs (CD-R) and have had no trouble playing any of them in my '97. In my computer, however, I've often had problems with CDs & DVDs if I tried to use the fastest available recording speed...

deekster_caddy wrote:

I remember having trouble with the stock stereo and some CD-Rs. Make sure you aren't using CD-RW either. Are you 'finishing' or 'closing' the disc when you burn it?

I have the CD-R's not the CD-RW's and if I remember correctly I clicked finish/close CD because I had that same problem with another CD player.

albertj wrote:

Also try burning at a lower (under 18x) speed; remember, the last Rivs were '99 models manufactured in November '98. And if you are burning with Windows Media Player tru turning off "Highmat."

Albertj

I'm using Roxio CD creator classic and some times I use itunes but not this time. I'll try burning it at a lower speed and see if that helps any. I didn't put much thought into how old the stock CD player is and burning CD's wasn't that big back then.

nigelf wrote:

Make sure the CD you use is marked "Audio CD" it has a copyright file on it that you pay for when you purchase the blank CD's

There used to be a hack for sony and pioneer cd players that allowed you to play your own cut cd's

Nigel

I've never heard of that and the CD doesn't have any designation on it whether its a data or music disc. Didn't think they ever did that.

Eldo wrote:

Derek and Albert are both right.

I've burned a half-dozen discs (CD-R) and have had no trouble playing any of them in my '97. In my computer, however, I've often had problems with CDs & DVDs if I tried to use the fastest available recording speed...

Hmm, what program are you using to burn the disc?

I think the most recent thing I used was Burn My Files...

They are right about the formatting but I think you should yank it and all the speakers for general principles! Go to something that lets you play a MP3 or iPod player.

sburch23 wrote:

They are right about the formatting but I think you should yank it and all the speakers for general principles! Go to something that lets you play a MP3 or iPod player.

For less than $100, you can put decent rear speakers in, and play MP3's through one of these (I bought the I-Mobile, and the only flaw is that you have to crank your volume up):

http://www.dealextreme.com/products.dx/category.710

VJD2 wrote:

deekster_caddy wrote:

I remember having trouble with the stock stereo and some CD-Rs. Make sure you aren't using CD-RW either. Are you 'finishing' or 'closing' the disc when you burn it?

I have the CD-R's not the CD-RW's and if I remember correctly I clicked finish/close CD because I had that same problem with another CD player.

albertj wrote:

Also try burning at a lower (under 18x) speed; remember, the last Rivs were '99 models manufactured in November '98. And if you are burning with Windows Media Player tru turning off "Highmat."

Albertj

I'm using Roxio CD creator classic and some times I use itunes but not this time. I'll try burning it at a lower speed and see if that helps any. I didn't put much thought into how old the stock CD player is and burning CD's wasn't that big back then.

nigelf wrote:

Make sure the CD you use is marked "Audio CD" it has a copyright file on it that you pay for when you purchase the blank CD's

There used to be a hack for sony and pioneer cd players that allowed you to play your own cut cd's

Nigel

I've never heard of that and the CD doesn't have any designation on it whether its a data or music disc. Didn't think they ever did that.

Eldo wrote:

Derek and Albert are both right.

I've burned a half-dozen discs (CD-R) and have had no trouble playing any of them in my '97. In my computer, however, I've often had problems with CDs & DVDs if I tried to use the fastest available recording speed...

Hmm, what program are you using to burn the disc?

I used Windows Media Player.

Check in 'preferences' and try to reckon whether Roxio is defaulting to Highmat, which I don't think was out when our CD players were made.

Albertj


Albertj

Well here's some info on copy right and CD AUDIO disks .. more a tax or levy but trust me there is a file on the disk....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_copying_levy#Blank_music_CDs_and_recorders

sburch23 wrote:

They are right about the formatting but I think you should yank it and all the speakers for general principles! Go to something that lets you play a MP3 or iPod player.

Ya I'm thinking that right about now. I already have a head unit laying around that will play dvds, mp3's and such. All I need is to pick up some nice replacement speakers. Eclipse, Alpine, Boston Acc perhaps?

Eldo wrote:

For less than $100, you can put decent rear speakers in, and play MP3's through one of these (I bought the I-Mobile, and the only flaw is that you have to crank your volume up):

http://www.dealextreme.com/products.dx/category.710

Thanks for the suggestions but not a fan of having extra things in the car like that when I can just yank the head unit. I like clean dash and consoles although that is a neat idea.

albertj wrote:

I used Windows Media Player.

Check in 'preferences' and try to reckon whether Roxio is defaulting to Highmat, which I don't think was out when our CD players were made.

Albertj

I'm not finding that setting in Roxio. I might try Media Player then and see if I can find that setting just to resolve the issue until I figure out what to do.

nigelf wrote:

Well here's some info on copy right and CD AUDIO disks .. more a tax or levy but trust me there is a file on the disk....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_copying_levy#Blank_music_CDs_and_recorders

Well ain't that some shit?

...be sure to turn Highmat off.

Albertj

If you are thinking of a new head unit, there a bunch of photos of nice installs here if you search.

albertj wrote:

...be sure to turn Highmat off.

Albertj

I won't forget! Thanks.

sburch23 wrote:

If you are thinking of a new head unit, there a bunch of photos of nice installs here if you search.

I've been poking around and have seen a few. I have a headunit already out of one of my other cars I sold so I just need the harness and install kit. Then of course some upgraded speakers.

So far the aftermarkets haven't looked that bad. I hope my doesn't come out looking goofy.

VJD2 wrote:

albertj wrote:

...be sure to turn Highmat off.

Albertj

I won't forget! Thanks.

sburch23 wrote:

If you are thinking of a new head unit, there a bunch of photos of nice installs here if you search.

I've been poking around and have seen a few. I have a headunit already out of one of my other cars I sold so I just need the harness and install kit. Then of course some upgraded speakers.

So far the aftermarkets haven't looked that bad. I hope my doesn't come out looking goofy.

If you get it from Crutchfield they will give you the install stuff needed to make it look decent and fit well, including jumpers to the factory speaker wiring.

Albertj

Cool, thanks.

albertj wrote:

If you get it from Crutchfield they will give you the install stuff needed to make it look decent and fit well, including jumpers to the factory speaker wiring.

Albertj

So true... That's why I spent $80 at Crutchfield on Rockford Fosgate Prime speakers for the rear instead of shopping eBay - they came with nice little converters for the weird GM speaker connectors. Swapping out both rear speakers required less than 20 minutes of painful contortions in the trunk.

I use to have good luck with black CD-Rs in older players. I don't know if they still make them, and have yet to try them in my 97. Mine seems happy with memorex CD-rs, but the tracks get a hiss in them towards the end of the disc and burning them slower makes it worse somehow.

Quick question, what do I need to remove to get the stock headunit out of the dash. I can't take it anymore!!

Seems like the whole dash has to be taken apart!

Yep, dash face needs to be taken off. Be careful not to break anything.

See interior write-ups index: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/interior-f20/interior-write-ups-index-t1377.htm

The aftermarket writeup at https://rivperformance.editboard.com/interior-f20/write-up-riv-dash-and-door-removal-t1187.htm is nice, except that somehow they didn't have to remove the top of the dash...

On my own car, and in the FSM, you have to start at the top and work your way down:

-Pull the A-pillar garnish moldings
-Remove the defroster grill
-Remove the side panels
-Remove the lower black trim panel with the push-button clips
-Remove the upper trim pad (the whole top of the dash)
-Disconnect the various electrical connections
-THEN remove the main dash panel...

Holy crap, what a PITA! Oh well, thanks for the info.