leo
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Post by leo on Dec 14, 2007 2:04:11 GMT
BTW removing the laser head is a little fiddly, only do it if your confident, its a delicate job, that shop shouldn't really be asking you to do it yourself
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Post by dmonte on Dec 14, 2007 9:09:46 GMT
thank you Leo
I think the puck spindle is a definite possibility, since I received the unit two months ago I noticed the puck never centered always had play. If I put the puck on with no CD it sat nice and tightly centered but when placing over the CD there is always wiggle room, it would never spin true. just didn't seem like a good setup. Is there a way to adjust it that you know?
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 14, 2007 10:36:15 GMT
Its mainly that little disc the cd sits on, normally a spacer is used underneath that which fits around the spindle, you adjust the disc until its sat ontop of the spacer so the height of the cd from the laser is correct, you then just remove the spacer. You normally get the spacers with a new mechanism for setting up
I've not had the CD88 but I imagine if its a top loader it uses micro switches to activate the laser once the lid is closed, sometimes these can get dirty contacts too.
The hardest thing is finding exactly whats causing the problem, you could fit a new laser head but if something like the switches are dirty it won't cure the problem or say if the spindle motor has dead spot.
When you place a cd in and close the lid does the cd spin at all or does it just display error without the cd moving?
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Post by dmonte on Dec 14, 2007 12:54:21 GMT
usually the error message is displayed just after I close the door but sometimes it will try to spin up and then show no disk, but this unit has never skipped shutdown or stop playing once it began. Any chance this condition might just stay the same? I actually could probably deal with it for its beautiful full bass rich dynamic sound qualities even though it's noise floor is a bit high in between passages.I agree I could probably end up switching out the laser which may have nothing to do with the problem. Past five or so attempts it has worked flawlessly. Too bad these units are not just a couple of notches higher in quality and quality control, it would be worth a bit extra for that for sure.
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leo
Been here a while!
Team wtf is it?
Posts: 3,638
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Post by leo on Dec 14, 2007 22:19:48 GMT
Once the unit is working and if then theres no track jumping etc I'd say it may not be the laser tbh I'll try and find some good pictures of this unit to see if it gives us any clues to a possible fix, I still think its either the micro switches or the spindle disc/puck If you really like this unit it may actually be worth thinking about replacing the laser unit and spindle motor with the original parts for long term reliability
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Post by matthewr on Dec 15, 2007 12:50:34 GMT
Good morning all - Since owning this cd player i have read people saying Rolling the valves and it was also suggested to Roll the op-amp. I have searched and can not find the definition of "Rolling" I am assuming that you mean to Pull in and out different components to see what sounds best for you? as far as easy mods - should I consider changing the (in my terms) the vacuum tubes to different brand? or will this be just waisting money? thanks all.
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Post by dmonte on Dec 15, 2007 13:23:53 GMT
the laser pickup and spindle for the 88e
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Post by dmonte on Dec 15, 2007 13:25:42 GMT
the underside of the Puck that has a slight chip off of one of the magnets maybe that's causing a inbalance I feel it would definitely be worth it for me to upgrade to original components but where would I get them? richTon the eBay seller that I purchased this unit from has not gotten back to me with their return address for their offer of a laser replacement ;D
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Post by dmonte on Dec 20, 2007 9:57:07 GMT
would anyone know where I can purchase a replacement upgraded genuine Sony top loading set up including Puck for my 88e? not exactly sure what replacement part numbers to look for on this cloned clunker. richton the eBay seller never got back to me with a return address for their exchange offer,nice
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Sol
100+
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Chief Technical Numpty
Posts: 135
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Post by Sol on Dec 20, 2007 11:12:15 GMT
Good morning all - Since owning this cd player i have read people saying Rolling the valves and it was also suggested to Roll the op-amp. I have searched and can not find the definition of "Rolling" I am assuming that you mean to Pull in and out different components to see what sounds best for you? as far as easy mods - should I consider changing the (in my terms) the vacuum tubes to different brand? or will this be just waisting money? thanks all. That is exactly what rolling means ... it describes the motion required to pull the tubes and replace them. A gentle rolling a rocking motion. Take a look at the following article for the differences tube rolling can make www.6moons.com/audioreviews/tuberolling/tuberolling.html
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Post by matthewr on Dec 20, 2007 13:47:15 GMT
Good morning - Which tubes are recommended for this CD player - are they worth the cost of changing them - In your opinions Thanks Matt
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Post by onlyme on Dec 23, 2007 0:53:13 GMT
Hi folks, first post here. Has anyone managed to solve the terrible power supply breakthrough this thing has? I think there's a ground loop, but have to admit I don't know where to look. See spectrum pic; loads of harmonics at about -80db and quite audible if the volumes turned up. Test signal BTW is 1khz at -14db. Distortion here is low because I've bypassed the tube stage. I measured 2nd harmonic at only -45db with the valves in so chopped them out in disgust! Sounds quite decent now.... ;D
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Post by lars on Dec 26, 2007 23:52:30 GMT
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 27, 2007 12:28:49 GMT
Good morning - Which tubes are recommended for this CD player - are they worth the cost of changing them - In your opinions Thanks Matt I have quite a few Brand new RCA 6952 which sound fantastic in the CD33 and also quite a few mil-spec 6N3P-E.... both valves sound a lot better than the stock Chinese valves that come suppied with the CD33. Send me a PM if you're interested in a pair of either. Mike.
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Post by merton on Dec 28, 2007 3:15:21 GMT
that thing looks a lot like the cambridge players.
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Post by matthewr on Jan 17, 2008 12:04:23 GMT
Good morning! This may be a stupid question, but is there any other way to extract the HD portion of a HDCD, meaning can you hook up the digital out of this unit into say a preamp or somting else and extract the 24bit information? Thanks Matthew
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Post by matthewr on Jan 18, 2008 12:41:42 GMT
This cd player is only the second one that i have owned, the first was a 1992 sony which this one replaced. IYHO how do these cd players rate, meaning would i be better off selling it on ebay and purchasing a used Rotel or simular for around $250-$300 or are these actually good sounding cd players as is? thanks Matt
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Post by scott on Mar 4, 2008 13:46:41 GMT
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Post by magicsam on Jan 14, 2009 15:19:07 GMT
I had a bloody good session with the CD33 last night and something certainly wasn't quite right with the sound, it was pretty hazy as if someone had coated the lens with varnish.... you know the kind of sound I mean... fuzzy and distant, pretty compressed and congealed sounding.... not bad but far from what I'm used to. Straight under the bonnet this afternoon and whipped the OPA2604 out and fitted a dip8 socket.... there were about 14 1N4007 diodes on the main board so I whipped them all out and fitted UF4007 in their place, whilst I was there I replaced some of the caps with Panasonic FC / FM (I'll probably get round to replacing all of the Rubycon lookalikes over the next few days) Let me say right now, the PCB is the best I have yet seen in a commercial product... a joy to work with and no way will you ever lift any of those pads, the PCB is as solid as a rock and the quality of soldering second to none.... anyways, I digress...... Popped in an OPA2107 and fired her up.... you know what? chalk and cheese, the improvement is VAST with the sound now being extremely open, spacious and with absolutely subterranean bass... astonishing improvement (not a difference but a marked improvement) I've got a feeling the stash of 1N4007 were adding a bit of grunge to the sound and the OPA2604 probably not the optimum chip for the job. As it stands the CD33 is coming very close to my Marantz CD17KI and surpasses my heavily modded Denon DCD-835 by quite some margin and I've only really dipped my toe in so far! This degree of improvement with the stock Chinese 6N3 valves still in situ, the PSU board untouched and the grotty latching pin output connection still in place. I can't wait to hear this puppy with half decent output valves, hardwired output connections, Ultrafast diodes in the PSU section, more capacitance, damping... etc. etc. etc. This is a true tweakers dream and @ £180 (or cheaper) an absolute bargain! I really must get some pictures uploaded, I've run out of space on most of my websites but will be upgrading from 250MB to 1500MB shortly so my camera will go into action again soon. One helluva CD player for the money though and one I know I'm going to have a lot of fun with, not only can you opamp roll to tailor the sound to your own ears you can also valve roll.... PCB's are quite easily removed from the chassis too (a few screws) so you can whip either of the PCBs out in a couple of minutes and go to work on them should you want to go further than simply opamp / valve rolling... as I previously mentioned the PCBs are top quality and virtually impossible to lift pads / destroy them. This guy has LOTS of potential and it's got my juices flowing again... watch out! Pictures to appear shortly.
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Post by magicsam on Jan 14, 2009 15:24:48 GMT
Hey, How's the OPA2107 & UF4007 changes working for you on the MHZS CD33. Planning to do the same shortly Anyother quick changes to advise? Very much appreciated. New to DIY. 'magicsam'
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Post by hifijunkie on Mar 4, 2009 11:21:59 GMT
hello friends.....
I have just ordered this CD player.....looking forward to modify on the same lines as it done by some here...
looking forward to your support.
Cheers!
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Post by PinkFloyd on Mar 4, 2009 12:40:55 GMT
I no longer have this player guys, I gave it to Leo so he is the man to ask (I believe he has done some mods to it)
Mike.
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Post by hifijunkie on Mar 5, 2009 17:50:41 GMT
perhaps Leo can suggest me a few mods to improve sound... I really want to change the laser pickup unit..it seems to look extremely flimsy..
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Post by PinkFloyd on Mar 9, 2009 16:09:19 GMT
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leo
Been here a while!
Team wtf is it?
Posts: 3,638
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Post by leo on Mar 9, 2009 16:31:26 GMT
Missed the recent posts on here
Well spoted with the lasers Mike!
I still use the CD33 in the bedroom system, the lasers started being little intermittent so will replace it soon
For those wanting to mod these units first have a read through the thread, start off with the easy stuff.
The diodes, caps and op-amp replacements are a good start, you can even bypass the op-amp but it requires a little more work
Theres a fair bit of noise floating about in these cdp's, the digital signal lines are carried around the insides with wire, its worth replacing as much as you can with shielded cable
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