Hey! I bought a Wurlitzer Tower “Rainbow” CD jukebox from someone that said it worked but needed a new laser eye. I’ve been cleaning it up And troubleshooting and having a really hard time figuring out what I should actually be looking at. The issue is the selector will allow me to pick a CD and track and it will place it on the turntable but it never spins. After about 30 seconds it puts the CD back.
The jukebox uses the Philips CDM12 Industrial or “Pro-Audio” player and I’ve used the built in tests to verify the laser eye actually moves and attempts to get focus but it will just bump up and down during the “93” self test. When I do the “95” test that is supposed to spin the spindle, nothing happens. I soldered on some test leads and I see a constant 4.6 v being applied to both solder joints of the motor. If I apply 1.5v to the leads I can get it to spin so I don’t think the spindle motor is bad.
I’m getting frustrated and just don’t know where to start. Would a bad laser eye keep the disc from spinning? I ordered a replacement from eBay just to see if it helps but I have no idea what I’m doing. Anyone have any suggestions?
I have refurbished CDM 12 players available. Contact me directly if interested in purchasing a replacement
Regards Rick On Tue, Aug 11, 2026 at 12:51 PM parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list < jukebox-list@lists.netlojix.com> wrote:
Hey! I bought a Wurlitzer Tower “Rainbow” CD jukebox from someone that said it worked but needed a new laser eye. I’ve been cleaning it up And troubleshooting and having a really hard time figuring out what I should actually be looking at. The issue is the selector will allow me to pick a CD and track and it will place it on the turntable but it never spins. After about 30 seconds it puts the CD back.
The jukebox uses the Philips CDM12 Industrial or “Pro-Audio” player and I’ve used the built in tests to verify the laser eye actually moves and attempts to get focus but it will just bump up and down during the “93” self test. When I do the “95” test that is supposed to spin the spindle, nothing happens. I soldered on some test leads and I see a constant 4.6 v being applied to both solder joints of the motor. If I apply 1.5v to the leads I can get it to spin so I don’t think the spindle motor is bad.
I’m getting frustrated and just don’t know where to start. Would a bad laser eye keep the disc from spinning? I ordered a replacement from eBay just to see if it helps but I have no idea what I’m doing. Anyone have any suggestions? _______________________________________________ Jukebox-list mailing list -- jukebox-list@lists.netlojix.com To unsubscribe send an email to jukebox-list-leave@lists.netlojix.com %(web_page_url)slistinfo%(cgiext)s/%(_internal_name)s Searchable Archives: http://jukebox.markmail.org/
On 2026-08-11 9:51 a.m., parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
Hey! I bought a Wurlitzer Tower “Rainbow” CD jukebox from someone that said it worked but needed a new laser eye. I’ve been cleaning it up And troubleshooting and having a really hard time figuring out what I should actually be looking at. The issue is the selector will allow me to pick a CD and track and it will place it on the turntable but it never spins. After about 30 seconds it puts the CD back.
The jukebox uses the Philips CDM12 Industrial or “Pro-Audio” player and I’ve used the built in tests to verify the laser eye actually moves and attempts to get focus but it will just bump up and down during the “93” self test. When I do the “95” test that is supposed to spin the spindle, nothing happens. I soldered on some test leads and I see a constant 4.6 v being applied to both solder joints of the motor. If I apply 1.5v to the leads I can get it to spin so I don’t think the spindle motor is bad.
I’m getting frustrated and just don’t know where to start. Would a bad laser eye keep the disc from spinning? I ordered a replacement from eBay just to see if it helps but I have no idea what I’m doing. Anyone have any suggestions? _______________________________________________
Where are you located? It's a big planet...
Check that the CD-player is getting power - to the right of the turntable there is a rectangular hole in the metal and you should see a 7-digit LED display in there. Does this display flash a sequence of numbers wehn you turn the machine on? Please record and post them on this thread. If the 7-segment LED display shows nothing (normally shows a "0" when ready) then there may be a connection issue, a blown fuse, or a CD-Control board issue.
John :-#)#
Hey John,
I'm just north of Dallas, TX. The CD player is getting power, I can run the little self tests and it will try to focus the lens and it will move the lens to try and find the edge of a disc, it just won't spin. From what I'm reading there is a focus test that must pass before the player will allow it to spin so maybe replacing the optical laser unit will allow it to focus and spin but I'm not sure.
The good news is everything else appears to work! The display at the front will allow me to select a disc and the mechanism will pick up a disc and place it on the player but after about 20-30 seconds it puts the disc back. The bubblers work on it too which I think is so cool. Thanks for the reply, hopefully when the part comes in I will have it up and running and if not I'll look into buying a refurbished CDM 12 from Rick.
On 2026-08-11 12:26 p.m., parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
Hey John,
I'm just north of Dallas, TX. The CD player is getting power, I can run the little self tests and it will try to focus the lens and it will move the lens to try and find the edge of a disc, it just won't spin. From what I'm reading there is a focus test that must pass before the player will allow it to spin so maybe replacing the optical laser unit will allow it to focus and spin but I'm not sure.
The good news is everything else appears to work! The display at the front will allow me to select a disc and the mechanism will pick up a disc and place it on the player but after about 20-30 seconds it puts the disc back. The bubblers work on it too which I think is so cool. Thanks for the reply, hopefully when the part comes in I will have it up and running and if not I'll look into buying a refurbished CDM 12 from Rick.
One simple test - see if the turntable turns easily with finger tip pressure!
The cure if it doesn't is to VERY gently pry up the CD turntable! It sometimes gets jammed down (being pounded by CD's and the magnetic puck) and drags against the body of the player. So before spending any money find a couple of very thin jewelers screwdrivers or a pair of razor blades and slip them under the opposite edges of the turntable and pry up 1/64" or 1mm. If the turntable now turns easily try it again!
We find this fixes at least 1/2 of the reluctant CD-players.
If this fixes your machine please consider making a small donation to *Doctors Without Borders*.
Thanks!
John :-#)#
I’ll beat any competitors price
On Tue, Aug 11, 2026 at 3:50 PM John Robertson via Jukebox-list < jukebox-list@lists.netlojix.com> wrote:
On 2026-08-11 12:26 p.m., parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
Hey John,
I'm just north of Dallas, TX. The CD player is getting power, I can run
the little self tests and it will try to focus the lens and it will move the lens to try and find the edge of a disc, it just won't spin. From what I'm reading there is a focus test that must pass before the player will allow it to spin so maybe replacing the optical laser unit will allow it to focus and spin but I'm not sure.
The good news is everything else appears to work! The display at the
front will allow me to select a disc and the mechanism will pick up a disc and place it on the player but after about 20-30 seconds it puts the disc back. The bubblers work on it too which I think is so cool. Thanks for the reply, hopefully when the part comes in I will have it up and running and if not I'll look into buying a refurbished CDM 12 from Rick.
One simple test - see if the turntable turns easily with finger tip pressure!
The cure if it doesn't is to VERY gently pry up the CD turntable! It sometimes gets jammed down (being pounded by CD's and the magnetic puck) and drags against the body of the player. So before spending any money find a couple of very thin jewelers screwdrivers or a pair of razor blades and slip them under the opposite edges of the turntable and pry up 1/64" or 1mm. If the turntable now turns easily try it again!
We find this fixes at least 1/2 of the reluctant CD-players.
If this fixes your machine please consider making a small donation to *Doctors Without Borders*.
Thanks!
John :-#)#
-- John's Jukes Ltd. 7 - 3979 Marine Way, Burnaby, BC, Canada V5J 5E3 Call (604)872-5757 (Pinballs, Jukes, Video Games) flippers.com "Old pinballers never die, they just flip out"
Jukebox-list mailing list -- jukebox-list@lists.netlojix.com To unsubscribe send an email to jukebox-list-leave@lists.netlojix.com %(web_page_url)slistinfo%(cgiext)s/%(_internal_name)s Searchable Archives: http://jukebox.markmail.org/
I wish it was that easy! Unfortunately, mine does spin by hand and I even soldered on some test leads to the solder joints on the motor and applied 1.5v with a AA battery and the motor spins. Seems like it's healthy but the controller just isn't calling for a spin command. At least I'm getting to learn something new :D
On 8/11/26 13:00, parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
I wish it was that easy! Unfortunately, mine does spin by hand and I even soldered on some test leads to the solder joints on the motor and applied 1.5v with a AA battery and the motor spins. Seems like it's healthy but the controller just isn't calling for a spin command. At least I'm getting to learn something new :D
See if your cellphone camera can detect the laser, that will at least let you know if it's working. You can test with a TV remote to see if it works. Most cell cameras detect IR but some are filtered.
On 2026-08-11 1:00 p.m., parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
I wish it was that easy! Unfortunately, mine does spin by hand and I even soldered on some test leads to the solder joints on the motor and applied 1.5v with a AA battery and the motor spins. Seems like it's healthy but the controller just isn't calling for a spin command. At least I'm getting to learn something new :D
If you were in Canada I'd suggest sending the assembly to us for testing. There are a few folks in the US who can service the player and possibly the CD-Controller too.
John :-#)#
On 8/11/2026 3:50 PM, John Robertson via Jukebox-list wrote:
On 2026-08-11 12:26 p.m., parrishmeister--- via Jukebox-list wrote:
Hey John,
I'm just north of Dallas, TX. The CD player is getting power, I can run the little self tests and it will try to focus the lens and it will move the lens to try and find the edge of a disc, it just won't spin. From what I'm reading there is a focus test that must pass before the player will allow it to spin so maybe replacing the optical laser unit will allow it to focus and spin but I'm not sure.
The good news is everything else appears to work! The display at the front will allow me to select a disc and the mechanism will pick up a disc and place it on the player but after about 20-30 seconds it puts the disc back. The bubblers work on it too which I think is so cool. Thanks for the reply, hopefully when the part comes in I will have it up and running and if not I'll look into buying a refurbished CDM 12 from Rick.
One simple test - see if the turntable turns easily with finger tip pressure!
The cure if it doesn't is to VERY gently pry up the CD turntable! It sometimes gets jammed down (being pounded by CD's and the magnetic puck) and drags against the body of the player. So before spending any money find a couple of very thin jewelers screwdrivers or a pair of razor blades and slip them under the opposite edges of the turntable and pry up 1/64" or 1mm. If the turntable now turns easily try it again!
We find this fixes at least 1/2 of the reluctant CD-players.
If this fixes your machine please consider making a small donation to *Doctors Without Borders*.
Thanks!
John :-#)#
I've had that happen to me once when holding the clamp arm up and it slipped down. Pow! Hmm, no spin.
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