Kitchen Table Electronics Repair: Denon DCD-920 CD Player

[MyTechtime]

You Should Turn K.T.E.R Into a YT Show

[uxwbill]

@MyTechtime In a way, it kind of is. Someone offered long ago to turn it into a playlist, but they never did. I recently did that myself, so you can watch all of the "episodes" start to finish.

[MyTechtime]

@uxwbill Wow That Was A Quick Response! It Only Took Like 8 Minutes!

[Lachlant1984]

You say this CD player was made in 1989, in that case see if you can find a copy of The Stone Roses first album, that came out in 1989, I have it, I love it. That's what you call a CD player, look at the size of that circuit board, it's massive. I have a Teac PD-P1 here somewhere, I've seen on the RadioShack Catalogues website they have a Realistic branded version from 1987.

[carswesty]

wondering if you know what my problem is? i have a denon 3 disc 3 draw cd player! now i have cleaned the lens but the disc spins but it's hit' n' miss weather it reads the cd! sometimes it will play the cd all the way through & sometimes skip & jump!!!hope you can help as i luv my denon cd player!!!

[uxwbill]

@carswesty I would suspect a bad connection, intermittent electronic failure, slipping or intermittent laser sled drive. Out of all of those, check the connections (remove and reinsert them) and examine the sled drive. I'd not expect that you will find a bad spindle motor, as once they're running, they usually remain functional. It's startup time that will show most problems.

[TheBeefqueen]

You are very groovy dude UXWBILL

[12dthompson]

can u show me how to soder new channel on my car cd player please i need help

[Knaeckebrotsaege]

most old CD Players have 2 common problems.

- worn spindle motor (slow spinup, sometimes requiring to manually give the disc a spin to start reading. cheap to replace)

- gummed up laser sled mechanics (takes forever to skip (many) tracks. just re-lubricate)

if it's a really worn player, the laser unit is possibly weak. if it's the very common Sony KSS-150 or KSS-210 (those are compatible & interchangeable), you can still get those new & pretty cheap on ebay (if you know what you're doing) ;)

[edison700]

hey bill the funniest thing happened today. I came across a technics SL-p118 cd player dated march of 87 on the "broken items" shelf at a pawn shop. i picked it up for 4 dollars. When i brought it home, it was working perfectly and played CD-R perfectly.

What was really cool about it though was it had a "High Speed Linear Tracking System" which as far as i could tell uses some sort of solenoid rather then a motor and gears, to move the laser assembly, I was amazed at how fast it gave me the

[edison700]

@edison700 tracking info and skip from the last song to the first song. It was about 5-7 seconds faster then a fairly new and nice cd player i have.

Maybe I'll post a video response of it sometime

[uxwbill]

Cool find! It probably just needed some use like this one did. The linear tracking system is a "voice coil" drive similar to what is used in speakers. It can move very quickly. I have a similar Technics unit but the laser pickup appears to be dying.

[Watcher3223]

@edison700

Your Technics CD player does use a motor to move the optical pickup back and forth; it's a linear motor.

[vwestlife]

I happened to find a Denon DCD-1300 CD player sitting on the shelf in the thrift store today. I believe it was dated September 1986 on the back. I passed on it because it didn't come with the remote, and my 1985 Sony CD player does a fine job, but it certainly looked like a high quality piece of equipment.

[Jallge]

my playstation 2 did exactly the same thing, it wouldn't read any DVD's then it got knocked around a little while i was trying to see what was wrong with it. then it suddenly worked!

[iamdave0887]

My older Sony 300 disc CD Changer has an Optical output. Same goes for my Sony 5 DVD changer. Both are hooked of via Optical cable into my JVC RX-8000V driving a pair of Cerwin Vega D-7's on channel 1 and a pair of "Audio Spectrum III"(according to the back of them) on channel 2. Sounds fantastic.

My father has an old Sony single disc player that has a screen just like that, with the graphic for the tracks. No optical out though.

[uxwbill]

I'm pretty used to seeing an optical or coaxial digital output on disc changers new and old. (In fact, my Pioneer PD-F407 changer is somewhat unique in that it is the only changer I have without any form of digital output.)

It seems to be a lot less common on vintage single disc players.

As it is, I've never used the digital outputs on these players because I have nothing to hook them up to! I am, however, using a digital output from a SoundBlaster Live to drive some Boston computer speakers.

[iamdave0887]

@uxwbill You should try to hunt down a receiver with an optical or coaxial input. The sound quality is superb over analog. I find the optical sounds better than the co-ax, but that could just be my receiver there. I even have an older(early 90s) Sony Mobile ES 10 disc CD changer in one car that has an optical output, but the head unit doesn't have an optical input.

[collinsup]

rock solid machines! before, mine wouldn't even play a cd. After cleaning the laser and oiling the sled it worked like new....its a shame i had to put it back in storage!

[uxwbill]

I hope that you can get it back out sometime soon and put it with your stereo receiver. With yours being a "higher" model than this one, I'll bet it has even higher quality internals. It's surely a sign of the times and quality level that they used a better DAC than was required to convert the audio back to analog.

I know Denon is still a premium brand, but I wonder if their new ones are anywhere near as good as these oldies.

[collinsup]

@uxwbill i'd love to use it daily if i could....problem is it belongs to my dad and he would flip if he knew i even got it out. its a shame, that thing deserves to be used, it's in mint condition! i'd use it over my RCA 5 cd changer i have, i just love the cool retroness to it

[uxwbill]

You're right...that is too bad! Hopefully someday he'll change his mind and let it out, because it won't do any good to keep it locked away.

[CavemanPerson]

What a neat machine! I've always wanted a dedicated CD player with Toslink. I guess I could just play a CD in a DVD player w/ Toslink, but most DVD players aren't that good with CDDA.

Is that little processor "card" removable?

[uxwbill]

It seems like most DVD players do high speed digital audio extraction, but I guess they have to as the path to any output is through the system processor. I don't think it's as good of an approach but it will work when you have nothing else!

The card appears to be soldered into place with through-holes. I'm not sure why it is that way, unless they were trying to isolate the decoder to stop it picking up noise from other circuits.

[MacintoshUser1986]

Sorry, it's actually called Clean Safe.

[uxwbill]

I wonder if it's a regionally available or not always stocked product? I called around to a few Wal-Mart stores here and nobody there had ever heard of it.

You know, I just had an idea... (goes to the other browser window, looks up Wal-Mart, uses location given on your channel, searches...) Oh, well, that didn't turn up anything. Got a manufacturer name?

[uxwbill]

Okay...some more looking later...I don't think that's the stuff I'm talking about. The stuff that I use is actually a tuner/control cleaner and lubricant, not just an air duster. For all my air dusting needs, I have an air compressor with a clean and DRY output.

[MacintoshUser1986]

@uxwbill Hey Bill, I sent you the link to the company. Also, try looking around the blank cd/DVD area of your local Walmart that's where it would be.

[Zinthius22]

And I really wish you had a tri-pod. :0

[uxwbill]

I do have one, it's just that I have never thought to use it. Maybe I should.

[Zinthius22]

@uxwbill Atleast 1 video using it pl0x :)

[uxwbill]

What exactly do you want to see about it?

[Zinthius22]

@uxwbill Well, I see you edited out taking apart the CD Player (My guess is because u needed 2 hands) with 2 hands we could see the entire process :)

[uxwbill]

Not as much that as "never filmed it". I don't have enough hands to do that and run the camera, but if I'd find the tripod...that might work. In any case, it's not hard...four screws at the top (three, because one was stripped ;-) ) and it lifted right off.

[Zinthius22]

CD's are like last millenium! :-)

[uxwbill]

Maybe so, but they're the way I like to buy music. I don't mind compressed digital music (as long as the encoder that processed it did a good job, since I can hear the shortcomings of the bad ones or low bit rates) but I do like exploring the rest of the disc for music I haven't heard. Plus, I get to decide at what bitrate it will be imported.

[Sansui350A]

I've got myself a little DCD-520.. not a bad toy.. I like it for the "dirty" DAC in it.. chops the digital high nastiness off of CD's...

[redneckbryon]

What would the price have been new?

[uxwbill]

I went looking for a price catalog and didn't find one. My guess is that it would have been several hundred (probably around three to five) minimum.

[blazerlover25]

nice cd player ya got there and ahhh jimmy buffet i like him cause his last name is like the all you can eat buffet and boy do i ever love an all you can eat buffet so hes alright with me lol

[MAG315]

If only they could all be that simple, eh Bill?

[CVRealMan]

where do you get contact cleaner from? what brand do you recommend?

[uxwbill]

I have always used the stuff sold by RadioShack and gotten along well with it. Some people swear by Caig Lab's DeOxit product. I haven't ever tried it.

[MacintoshUser1986]

@uxwbill That stuff works good but it's pricey, you should consider a brand called Safe Clean. It's sold at Walmart and for about $5 bucks you get a great sized 12oz can and it works just as good as the Radioshack and Best Buy products selling for more. I use it to clean everything from my Xbox 360 to my Alu iMac and iPhone and it works perfectly. 

[clubcar98]

Buicks are capable of magical things!!

That motor driven volume control is really cool, never seen anything like it before.

But definitely a score, that thing will out do any of the newer ones. And I dont even think my dads over priced Aiwa has any of the output except the regular ones.

[JDMowerGuy1998]

Another interesting video...

[uxwbill]

? ? ? ? ?

[wizard101emily]

@uxwbill sryy

[uxwbill]

No need to be sorry, but please don't do that here.

[simplicityford]

Did it come with a remote? I'm assuming it originally came with one due to the motor being on the volume control.

[wizard101emily]

@simplicityford Yes it didnt come with a remote

[uxwbill]

I didn't get a remote with this unit, and I'd be really surprised if I could find a universal remote that would operate the volume function (most would treat this as a "punch through" to some other device that is "supposed" to have a volume control).

I believe you are correct--it surely would have included one when new.

[randomrazr]

how old is this cd player? Denon is another company i have not heard of lol

[uxwbill]

It's from 1989. The date codes on the components hovers around the mid 80s. Denon is another long-standing (and still around today) Japanese audio equipment company. They control a few different brands--Marantz and Boston Acoustics are just two.

[randomrazr]

@uxwbill

well all i can say is they made good shit back then.

its to bad the qualiy in todays electronics are not as good.  high tech none the less, but not as long lasting

[wizard101emily]

@uxwbill I did not no they had mother boards :) i fixed a emachines I just bought windows7 with the computer :)

[uxwbill]

Most electronic devices have printed circuit boards. There are too many connections and circuits to make point to point wiring (one wire connecting the appropriate pins of devices in a circuit) practical or reliable. Motherboard is a computer specific term but I guess it could be used here as well.

[iamdave0887]

@uxwbill The only piece of audio equipment i have that is 100% point to point wiring is the Tube amp in my 50s Magnavox. When i saw that I was astounded at the amount of different wires, both gauge and color, that was under that chassis. I suppose it goes for all the "antique" stuff as PCB's weren't around until i believe the early 60s correct?

[uxwbill]

I think you're right. Motorola was playing with some sort of circuit board like device in the very late 50s. I've seen some of their portable radios that have it. The Philco Predicta TV also had early PCBs that were unreliable.

When I see that stuff, I find it amazing that they got it right in the factory as often as they did. I guess the production line was pretty closely controlled...

[iamdave0887]

@uxwbill i have an old(possibly early or mid 60s) General Electric AM only clock radio that is a vac tube unit but has a PCB in it. My other vac tube console is a PCB unit as well, but it's not one of the better quality or higher wattage ones, yet it has Hitachi tubes in it.

[tghbenz99]

I have a Hitatchi CD player from 1983 with that style of volume control, however on it intead of having a knob on the front panel it has an up and down button which runs the motor attached to the volume potentiometer. Unfortunatly the player doesn't work, the disk spins up but no information is read from the disk, also the motor which actuates the vertical loading cd tray seems to be shot.

[itscool1968]

the lazer eye might be getting weak and haveing trouble focusing

[MacintoshUser1986]

That's an amazing CD player for the late 80's. That Realistic player is one of the units I mentioned before we had that got trashed.

Also, is that Royal Crown Cola on the table? I haven't seen that here on the East Coast since I was a kid. Though, I recently spotted a bottle of Yello Mello at a local Subway which is also a drink not common here anymore.

I miss Pepsi Kona... ;(

[uxwbill]

It's pretty cool. I need to find a disc that will run things out to the 74-80 minute limits and let it run a few laps on that to limber things up.

That is Royal Crown Cola. It's every bit as good as the others and doesn't cost as much. It's usually always on sale for 99 cents. I was surprised when I saw some cases of Mello Yello at the local grocery store.

I miss clear Pepsi...that stuff was COOL.

[vwestlife]

@uxwbill Supposedly "Steely Dan's Greatest Hits 1972-1978" is 80:18 on CD. Technically a CD that long should not have the official "Compact Disc Digital Audio" logo on it, because although it is possible to go over 80 minutes, it is not Red Book compliant, and some CD players will have trouble playing it.

[Madness832]

I have a Sony ES player I bought in '91. It has a similar remote volume control w/ separate fixed & variable analog outputs (even has an LED indicator on the knob that flashes when moved by the remote). And it also has the index controls/display, which of course, I've never used.

[nelizmastr]

sweet cd player. and finally, no caps need changing

[wizard101emily]

@nelizmastr pleASE SUB

[nelizmastr]

@wizard101emily why? I only sub to people that make good videos that interest me. yours don't so, tough luck.

[wizard101emily]

@nelizmastr fuck err

[nelizmastr]

@wizard101emily now now,. no need to swear at people if they dont want to sub you. If you want more subscribers, make videos that a broader spectrum of people like.