Problem with Marantz SA-8260

sounds to me like the laser needs replacing.

Intermittent reading... discs have to be ultraclean.

yep. sounds like that laser is about gone. That's what usually happens to CD players with time. My sony xa777 es needed that... cost about 300.00 incld labor. two lasers, red book and SACD, and the drive/sled itself.

your's may cost lots less though.

Macdonj,
Seems like you need the laser needs replacing. It will set you back about $200 inclusive of the labor, laser and mechanism.

Macdonj,
I have a lot of experience with 8260's over the past 5 years. You need to send your player to the nearest Marantz Service Center. You can go to Marantz.com and find the service center nearest your location.
You most likely have the TOC reading error problem that made the 8260 such a pain in the a**. This is easily corrected with a resistor, and I think some new firmware. Any Marantz Service Center can do this repair as they have the Service Bulletin. Some don't install the resistor, and unfortunately the problems come back. You can only check for this by removing the entire transport assembly.
The Service Center will also check for laser output.
Cost for the TOC fix is $200, which includes return shipping. If you should happen to need a new laser, that will up the cost a fair bit. The Service Center should contact you if you need a new laser, and then it's your choice.
The player will not operate correctly without the TOC fix. A new laser is somewhat optional.
SA-8260 players with read troubles have real low resale value. So you are somewhat stuck.
If you send the player in to Marantz, it's a good idea to also send along 2 or 3 discs that the player fails to read.
Hope this helps

Thanks for all the help, everyone. That's even more than I got from Marantz directly.