Esoteric K-03 X - mechanical problems w tray

"But this is what upsetting. In spite of their reputation for a great build, esoteric still releasing for sale units that are not 100% defect free. I have $100 panasonic dvd player that working flawlessly for 5 years in a row."

You're assuming there's a defect. The OP admits that he may have put the disk in wrong. There could also be shipping damage.

"I still see complains on the forums from owners of new K-03x and K-01x about noisy transports."

Some transports are noisy. It doesn't mean its broken. The one in my Wadia 850 was noisy, and I used to use it to break in equipment. It probably sat on repeat for at least 10 years total. The person I sold it to still has it.

When one pay about 10-15 grand for a cd player, it should not have any noise. My first K-05 had noise that was heard from 12 feet.
I am not bashing esoteric here, they build great sounding CDPs and my second K-05 is flawless, but for the price it should be perfectly build (no noise from transports) and service should impeccable.
Btw, it’s not only related to esoteric, the same can be said about some other brands.

.....Mr. Denon - you are correct - I contacted Esoteric first. Lesson learned

"08-18-15: Denon1
When one pay about 10-15 grand for a cd player, it should not have any noise. My first K-05 had noise that was heard from 12 feet."

I'm not talking about a defect. Some transports make more noise than others. The Teac unit that Wadia put in the 850 wasn't silent. You could hear it opening and closing the tray. But all the 850's sounded exactly like that. My 861 and 861SE are both silent. My 302 can be heard loading, but the 301 and 830, both predecessors, were both silent. That's just how it is.

.......it jammed once again after 20-25 hours of play. So it as NOT me and now the fun will begin as I want a new player ! Still no call from Esoteric ...let's see how they handle this going forward