JoeMuc2015
New Member
Hi folks,
I couldn't resist buying a defective T+A CD2000AC (not MK2) off eBay recently. The seller was honest about the defect but I was a little naive about the availability of information about the player online. I had to place my bid without having enough time to do some research in advance. Now I see that there is practically nothing to be found, not even a user manual. Almost like it was only an engineering sample that didn't make it to market but it very well did. It's just kept secret a little more than usual.
On first glance there is a lot of dust inside (no wonder after 35 years or so) and the tray belt is worn out. After a CD is set, the drive will give it two little nudges and then claim that there is NO DISC. I guess it cannot "see" the CD, i.e. bad laser diode, obscured optical path, whatever, and give up before actually trying.
What is amazing about the player is the internal complexity. There are at least five or six individual boards of *very* high build quality, and it looks more like an industrial computing unit than a CD player. It's full or large ICs and EPROMs, PCBs interconnected by PC-style ribbon cables, quite service-friendly construction, too. It would be amazing to see it back in action.
I checked the laser output first and the meter indicates there is only 0.9mW reaching the CD. It's barely visible on the smartphone camera, other players from the collection do emit more light. The measurement seems to be on the low side but as there is no technical information, it might also be pretty normal. All I could find was that the little brother (CD1000AC) has a designed laser output of 2mW. It might not be relevant as there's no way of knowing (for me) if both units share the same drive. They have chosen Philips CDM, and the CD2000AC probably has one of the CDM3 units, by the looks of it. Duh. Totally Unobtanium there so I'll need to try and resuscitate this specific unit, there is no realistic way to replace the entire drive without sacrificing another player.
I plan to measure voltages next, and give all the pieces in reach a cleanup. The CD spindle motor may need new oil along its bearings but still moves and isn't stuck. It's not likely that any of that will help much.
Before I go any further: does any of you have technical documentation on this unit, or knows where to get it? I have checked all the places I know, even the paywalled portals don't have anything to offer about this player.
So any input on this would be greatly appreciated. It's such a nice player and would be a total shame to just write it off.
Thanks a ton in advance!
Cheers,
Joe
I couldn't resist buying a defective T+A CD2000AC (not MK2) off eBay recently. The seller was honest about the defect but I was a little naive about the availability of information about the player online. I had to place my bid without having enough time to do some research in advance. Now I see that there is practically nothing to be found, not even a user manual. Almost like it was only an engineering sample that didn't make it to market but it very well did. It's just kept secret a little more than usual.
On first glance there is a lot of dust inside (no wonder after 35 years or so) and the tray belt is worn out. After a CD is set, the drive will give it two little nudges and then claim that there is NO DISC. I guess it cannot "see" the CD, i.e. bad laser diode, obscured optical path, whatever, and give up before actually trying.
What is amazing about the player is the internal complexity. There are at least five or six individual boards of *very* high build quality, and it looks more like an industrial computing unit than a CD player. It's full or large ICs and EPROMs, PCBs interconnected by PC-style ribbon cables, quite service-friendly construction, too. It would be amazing to see it back in action.
I checked the laser output first and the meter indicates there is only 0.9mW reaching the CD. It's barely visible on the smartphone camera, other players from the collection do emit more light. The measurement seems to be on the low side but as there is no technical information, it might also be pretty normal. All I could find was that the little brother (CD1000AC) has a designed laser output of 2mW. It might not be relevant as there's no way of knowing (for me) if both units share the same drive. They have chosen Philips CDM, and the CD2000AC probably has one of the CDM3 units, by the looks of it. Duh. Totally Unobtanium there so I'll need to try and resuscitate this specific unit, there is no realistic way to replace the entire drive without sacrificing another player.
I plan to measure voltages next, and give all the pieces in reach a cleanup. The CD spindle motor may need new oil along its bearings but still moves and isn't stuck. It's not likely that any of that will help much.
Before I go any further: does any of you have technical documentation on this unit, or knows where to get it? I have checked all the places I know, even the paywalled portals don't have anything to offer about this player.
So any input on this would be greatly appreciated. It's such a nice player and would be a total shame to just write it off.
Thanks a ton in advance!
Cheers,
Joe