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Fixing Oppo BDP-93 “no disc” error

by | Apr 15, 2021 | Repairs

I happen to own this great Blu-ray player. After many years of flawless operation it has started acting up recently and failing to recognize disks. Eventually it got to a point where it would show “no disc” for every disc…

Searching the web for the problem does not turn up much information. One relevant link goes to OPPO knowledgebase, but the solution did not work for me. Another relevant link was to a 4-minute youtube video of a guy putting various disks into the unit, and the unit always reacting with “no disc” error. Truly helpful.

Nevertheless, in the comments to that YT video I found something that pointed me in the right direction. And in case I ever have this problem again – or anyone else has it, here it is broken into step-by-step bits. I only wish I had taken some pictures in the process. Perhaps next time.

Procedure to fix the “no disc” error

  1. Disconnect all cables from the player.
  2. Move the player to a flat, well-lit area. Keep the power cable handy.
  3. Remove 4 screws on the side and 6 screws on the back, and remove the cover.
  4. From the disc player assembly inside – remove the 4 tiny black screws on the sides of the metal top cover. Leave all other screws and connectors as they are.
  5. Remove also the black rubber plugs marked with something that looks like “A” from the disc player assembly, but don’t touch the screws underneath these caps.
  6. Pull up the metal cover from the player assembly.
  7. Take a q-tip soaked in isopropanol and wipe off any dust/dander inside the player assembly. With a separate, clean q-tip soaked in isopropanol clean the lens: both blue and translucent.
  8. You may now connect the power cable and try opening / closing the disc tray – marvel at this magnificent piece of technology and how it works. In my case:
    • Tray open / close: works.
    • Disc motor & lens assembly moving up / down: works.
    • Lens assembly moving back & forth: works.
    • Lens moving up and down: works.
    • Disc motor spinning: ooops! This was my problem.
  9. With the tray open, disconnect power.
  10. Blow compressed air around the player assembly (in my case the rest of the unit was completely dust-free), especially around the disc spinner. Turn the spinner manually several times. Clean around the spinner with q-tip, as well as in all other spots where you see dust or dander.
  11. Reconnect power, put some disc on the spinner and close the tray.

In my instance, the player just caught-up: the disc motor is spinning again and discs are properly recognized. Maybe I was lucky, but the build of this unit seems very solid and unlikely that the motor would fail just like that. There seems to be no rubber bands that would wear out, it’s a direct drive motor and should have a lot of life still left in it – even after 10 or so years.