Help to fix CD Player

[Alex_UK]

Hi guys,

My current CD Player replaced a previous Marantz - a CD6000SE KI Signature that started playing up about a year ago. From memory it was refusing to play discs as they just skipped, but spurred on by reading this forum I thought I would be brave and open it up and see if I could see any obvious problem. On firing it up yesterday, the discs play fine, but the left channel is lower on volume, and the bass very distorted.

This is the player with the cover off. The eagle eyed may already see what I think is the problem...

http://i653.photobucket.com/albums/uu259/Alex_Steel1969/hifi/IMG_1592.jpg

I found a clue underneath the bar: Smoke damage?

http://i653.photobucket.com/albums/uu259/Alex_Steel1969/hifi/IMG_1593.jpg

And the "capacitor"? (I'm not technical) - roughly in the middle has white gunk around the bottom? Would this be the problem?

http://i653.photobucket.com/albums/uu259/Alex_Steel1969/hifi/IMG_1595.jpg

How easy would this be to fix if it is likely to be the issue?

There might be the same stuff near the gold one above and to the left?

Any advice appreciated - I would like to repair the player to re-use with my now liberated Audiolab amp as a 2nd system, if it won't cost a fortune to do...

[Mike]

That looks more like 'effect' rather than 'cause'...

The tricky bit would be finding where the gremlin is doing it's thing!

[StanleyB]

That white stuff is a special type of glue that you'll find in each and every one of the CD6000SE. That's nothing to do with the problems you are noticing.

The skipping s down to the laser assembly. The easiest one to try is to clean the lens. If you lived up the road from me I would be able to do that for you in a few minutes and professionally.

The low sound on one channel is however a different and more complicated problem. That will need a scope etc. It could be a soldering dry joint, which isn't unheard of on the Marantz units.

[DSJR]

Those mechs can be a pain. Check the guide rails that the laser carriage runs on and lubricate with a little dab of silicon oil (where to get this I don't know). Clean the laser as suggested above too - and good luck :)

[Mike]

I wus lookin at dis bit... be dat just gunk? :scratch:

http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/2600/img15951.jpg
By shian7 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/shian7), shot with Canon EOS 450D (http://profile.imageshack.us/camerabuy.php?model=Canon+EOS+450D&make=Canon) at 2009-08-12

[Marco]

Ach, wot's a creamy wee cap between friends? :eyebrows:

Marco.

[Alex_UK]

Thanks guys - it wasn't a smoking gun after all then! Good job I'm not the President of the US or our prime minister!

Just to add, though - the skipping appears to have stopped since it was retired - I'm guessing there was a bit of dust in there which got dislodged when I moved it around.

I never noticed the sound problem when I was using it as my main player - I'm guessing (probably wrongly again!) that as I never turn off my electronics, the problem (dry solder joint as Stan suggest) may have been masked by the fact that it was warm? Or, possibly the dry joint has happened when it cooled down? Think I will try leaving it plugged in for a few hours and see if that makes any difference.

[Tom472]

As others have said, large components are often glued to the board to try to stop them moving about and creating dry joints, and to assist in the manufacturing process.

Get some meths on a cotton bud and gently clean the lense assembly, should sort the skipping, and as Dave said, check the sled moves freely along its track.

Try playing it again after that and see how it sounds.

Regards
Tom

[James G]

That's some nice looking work inside that case.