Arcam CD192 loading time?

petehall347

the brandy coffee man
have recently acquired a Arcam CD192 .. it wouldn't load a disc over 3 songs .just kept saying loading on the screen .
so i cleaned the laser lens now it loads any disc but takes about 5 seconds to display track list etc .
it seems to be playing fine and skipping a few tracks is pretty instant .
i wondered if 5 second load time was normal for one of these as any other transport i have had loads in an instant .
 
I think the laser power is low. Try putting a couple of drops of light machine oil on the top bearing of the disc motor. If you're lucky that may fix it. If not, the laser is going. I couldn't find out what laser it uses but other Arcams use a KSS213, available at B&D Enterprises for around $20.
 
been looking around the web and found others saying they are a bit slow loading . but i couldn't find a definitive answer .
am going to run a cd through a few plays and maybe leave it powered on all night and see if gets better or worse .
there seems to plenty of laser assemblies for sale .i just didn't want to be messing around with it if its supposed to take a few seconds ..
one thing i have noticed whilst loading it seems rather noisy when its initially focusing .
i think laser power is maybe ok as i have tried a pretty dirty scratched disc and it plays it .although you can tell when it would have skipped in another player . bit like a scratch on a record .
 
I think the laser power is low.
i think you are correct ...i just adjusted it .. found out less is more as in anti clockwise a very tiny amount not even 1 degree and its now loading in about 2.5 seconds .. that's from drawer closing .spin up time is about half that .and laser is quiet focusing now
will leave it playing again and see how it is later ..
 
i think you are correct ...i just adjusted it .. found out less is more as in anti clockwise a very tiny amount not even 1 degree and its now loading in about 2.5 seconds .. that's from drawer closing .spin up time is about half that .and laser is quiet focusing now
will leave it playing again and see how it is later ..

You really need to do the adjustment with a scope to look at the rf waveform or a laser power meter.
 
yes i know how its supposed to be done but i don't have a test disc and not sure if my scope will be able .40mhz:scratch2:
i don't think i could get it any closer anyway as i tried a bit further on the adjustment and no different in load time . tiny amount the wrong way and loading time goes up ..
i don't think i could turn that pot any less than i did .it is marked up where it was and still looks lined up . the mark must be all of 0.5 mm
 
Just use a commercially recorded disc, older ones are better, tend to have higher reflectivity. Adjust for 1.5V P-P RF wavevform on players with Sony chipsets and most others. Technics players are 1V P-P.
 
have been playing same disc all night over and over ..load time is 2.5 to 3 seconds .. i figured as it says loading on the front panel it is supposed to take a few seconds to load or why have it saying loading in the first place ?
due to it being a fairly high end machine and the new laser being dirt cheap i think i will just fit a new one and see what happens .
on another note it does play really good . must be the best i have heard . i don't know why they chose this sort of transport as i have seen much better ones in cheaper low end machines . Philips swinging lasers look much better to me rather than these things on a single rail .
then again it seems to work just fine . its just the 3 second wait .
 
have been playing same disc all night over and over ..load time is 2.5 to 3 seconds .. i figured as it says loading on the front panel it is supposed to take a few seconds to load or why have it saying loading in the first place ?
due to it being a fairly high end machine and the new laser being dirt cheap i think i will just fit a new one and see what happens .
on another note it does play really good . must be the best i have heard . i don't know why they chose this sort of transport as i have seen much better ones in cheaper low end machines . Philips swinging lasers look much better to me rather than these things on a single rail .
then again it seems to work just fine . its just the 3 second wait .

If you think this is a cheap transport you ought to see the one in the Rega Saturn! It's the same thing used in boom boxes and portable players.
On the laser there will be a label with the part number on it. If it's KSS213, I suggest you order one while they are still available, but just hang onto it. You might get at least a year out of the original pickup. When it quits or won't play burned CD's, then replace it. It's pretty easy to do, you only need a screwdriver and there are no adjustments to make. Clean the slide post with alcohol and put 2 or 3 drops of Dupont silicone oil with Teflon on the post, on both sides of where the laser sits.
 
finally got round to putting in a new laser unit ksm-213ccm . its includes the motors as well . laser is a kss213c .. its working as it should . 2 seconds load time .
 
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