I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on track
15 and gets worse on 16 and 17. I've already cleaned the lens with some alcohol. Any suggestions?
I've never had this thing apart and today I tried getting it apart by attempting to take out the small Phillips head screws on the bottom, each of which has an arrow next to it. Seeing the arrows, makes one think that these screws are removable, but I cannot remove them. Are they glued in?
This usually indicates one of two problems. First, the sled drive worm or slides are dry and sticky. This usually shows up on a long disc, as the area where the laser has to go to, right at the outer edge of the disc, is somewhere that it doesn't usually go on average length discs, so the lubrication never gets 'circulated' and distributed around the moving parts, so has a tendency to collect dust, dry out and go sticky.
The other problem that can show up on long discs, is spindle motor or spindle servo troubles. This is because the further the track is towards the end of the disc, the slower the disc rotates, so any tendency for the motor speed to be erratic, shows up worse, to the point where data loss is beyond the level that the auto-correction can cope with, so the servos start to lose lock, skipping being the result.
Occasionally, you can get similar problems with a weak laser, but this more usually results in poor playability and shock resistance, throughout the whole disc.
The first move would definitely be to clean and relube the laser slides and drive. The screws marked with arrows are the right ones, and I don't know why you should be having any problem getting them out. They certainly aren't glued, but you will need a good quality jeweller's philips to not damage their heads. Many of the Sonys are also clipped together, so even with the screws out, you might need to insert a thin scalpel blade between the case halves, to seperate them. The deck is usually not secured once you are inside. It just lifts off the plastic pegs, but be *very* careful of the flexiprint connections to the deck. They are quite delicate, and can easily tear.
Since cleaning the head and lubricating the track had no beneficial result, I thought that a small adjustment of the pot relating to head alignment would.
Thanks. I did try lubricating the worm drive, but that didn't seem to have any effect. I thought that by taking it apart, I could lubricate the slides a little better, but even though I am using a jeweler's screwdriver with a pliers attached, I just can't budge them. They do have normal clockwise threads, don't they?
To say that it skips on the upper tracks may be inaccurate. What happens is that the time display disappears along with the sound, but the track number remains displayed. After a few seconds the time display reappears with the sound only to have the whole process repeat.
If they are screwed into plastic, sometimes you need to apply a hot iron to the head for a second. But you need to be brave an knowledgeable or be prepared to lose the device. And you need a screwdriver that won't slip. Some have a hole so you can apply more torque.
My analysis of the problem stands, and I still feel that the first place to go, is to a proper and thorough clean and relube of the slides and drive. The time display disappearing tells you that the servo has lost lock, and valid data is no longer being recovered from the disc. Under no circumstances should you adjust the pot on the laser. It is not a valid adjustment, and even a small misadjustment can result in permanent laser damage. The screws are standard counter-clockwise undo, and I can't remember ever having had a problem getting them out on any of the many Discman models that I've worked on, so I'm at a bit of a loss as to why yours won't undo. You could try going clockwise first. Might break any kind of seal that has formed for whatever reason ?? Sometimes also, a shock will get a screw on the move. Locate the screwdriver tip in the screw head, then give it a firm clout with a pair of heavy pliers or whatever comes to hand on the bench, then try rotating the screw again in either direction.
Try looking for an opening in the spindle motor and send in a tiny blast of wd40.Treat the spindle shaft/motor bush similarly. These motors are fairly cheap and easy to find.
WD40 is about the worst thing you can use on motor bearings. It is essentially to release seized parts, and makes a very poor bearing lubricant as it is too thin and strips any existing lubrication away. Any benefits are very short term and wear will be accelerated in the longer term.
Far better is a light oil designed for electronic servicing. Even DIY shop light oil like 3 in 1 is better than WD40, and that's rubbish as it tends to gum up tiny bearings. WD40 tends to migrate as well- it will end up in places it can do more harm than good.
Agreed. Please please PLEASE do not go near it with WD40. As the old saying goes, " If I had a quid for every bit of kit I've seen wrecked by WD40 ... "
Yes, I wouldn't use it for anything worth more than a PC case fan, and even then it gums up fairly quickly. It's still better than WD40 though!
Off topic slightly, I've had great results restoring PC fans by lubricating them with MolySlip, a car oil treatment compound. They seem to go on for years!
Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread especially to you, Arfa Daily, for your very detailed analysis. I finally did manage to remove the screws after rapping each one as Arfa suggested. I am always reluctant to administer that kind of treatment to delicate electronic apparatus, but in this case it was necessary. I've never encountered screws this tight in electronic apparatus before.
Another cleaning of the lens and a very thorough cleaning and lubrication of the screw drive and tracks seems to have solved my problems.
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