I have a used ADCOM GCD-700 5 disk CD player that was given to me and it is overly sensitive to vibrations, bumps and slight scratches on the CDs. I've mounted it on vibration absorbing rubber and this has greatly impoved its bump and vibration sensitivity, but it is still very sensitive to the slightest mark or scratch on cds. How can I cure this.
If this machine is as old as I think it is, then its not worth putting any serious money into it. There is likely a manufacturing date on the machine that will give the month and year it was made. Make sure if there are any transit screws on the bottom they are removed or in the released position.
You could try cleaning the lens and the disc platter. You'd have to open the machine to do this. the lens is about the size of a pencil eraser, and is on a suspension, so be gentle with it. I use a cotton swab moistened with lens cleaning fluid, though Windex will probably do. I also clean off the platter that the disc sits on while spinning. I've seen enough debris build up on the platter over time that it no longer lets the disc sit flat, and that can cause all kinds of grief. Again, a moistened swab or slightly damp cloth is all you need to clean it.
Beyond that, you are likely to have a worn out laser, which is likely to be more expensive to replace than the machine is worth.
First, clean out any crud from the laser head assembly. If that doesn't improve things, replace it. That's a 1997 vintage machine so parts may be tricky to find... Oh, too easy:
However, I don't think it's worth $50 to fix something that old.
More:
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
This CD player is a higher quality model and one of the only multidisk units that uses high quality components. Mechanically it's not made very well though, but the electronic audio stages are all class A, so it's worth my time and some money to try to fix it.
KSS240A lasers should be available from many sources for much less than $50. This is a very 'bog-standard' laser made by Sony, and used in many manufacturers' products over the years, as well as their own. Try to make sure if you get one from a cheaper source, that it is a genuine Sony one though. Of all of the KSS series replacement lasers, I've found the '240 to be probably the most critical, when used in most manufacturers' machines.
Oops. I didn't recognize the Sony part number. Plenty all over the web
and $17-$31 on eBay.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
Then after cleaning and before ditching. Find the "power pot" ,measure resistance with a DVM , "both ways" in case of a difference, so you can get back to that value. Change the value , no more than 5 percent, to see if it improves error proneness
It's not quite that straightforward on a '240, as there are three pots on there, and considerable interaction between them. I would not recommend touching them, as at least one of them is *extremely* critical in its setting to get the thing to play at all.
Which implies 3 analoguey things that could drift over time. I would take 3x
0.1 percent measurements and tabulate some twiddlings v drop-out time of a known bad ie deliberately scratched track on a CD. As last legs anyway, nothing to loose except a bit of time
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