Do you have a Pioneer mini-hifi (X-HM71-S, X-HM71-K or X-HM81-S, X-HM81-K, X-HM20) where the CD won’t eject? If so it may be a simple fix that will avoid you throwing it away or resorting to another music source.

First thing to try is unplugging the unit for 10 seconds and trying again. This has reset my X-HM-71 on one occasion when the CD eject button fails to move the tray. Simply powering off using the Standby button made no difference. But this may not always work.

Another option is to unplug the unit and use a penknife to insert it gently into the slot on the base of the unit just below the eject button. Disclaimer – remember to disconnect the mains power first and never insert any metal object into other slots in the case. The tray should pop out when the blade is pushed gently against the internal mechanism. Remove the blade and plug the unit back in and power up. The tray should close automatically and when fully booted press eject. With luck the CD tray should glide out. You may need to nudge it back in if pressing the eject button a second time does not close automatically. It took a complete cycle of manual open, auto close, eject button open, manual close to work on my X-HM-71.

Why the Pioneer behaves this way is a mystery but I’ve found these two techniques can retrieve a stuck CD and make the player usable again. Even if you can’t get the tray to operate at least you have your CD!

If your Pioneer hifi just sits and blinks at you try reading my other post and the comments – Pioneer timer light blink fault.