Kaosun's Vintage CD Player Service Bulletin

tsljukic

kaosun 2016-07-01 23:10
If battery powers it well, the player should be basically fine. I'm not sure what the quality of t ...

I actually ordered an AC-CD980, which I know came with some of these players back in the day. I'm hoping it is the power supply, I should know by next week. What worries me is that the universal adapter that I got works for my D-5A perfectly well.

kaosun

It might be something wrong with your CD player. But test it by your new power adapter and let me know.

serge1996

For a few months now I am trying to put together my review on different 9V AC/DC adapters for Sony PCDPs, but get distracted by a new toy (Pono player). In a few words, original Sony adapters, still available on eBay, always work fine. $50 iFi adapter works OK but noisy (ground problems) until you hit Play button on the models with zero Amp standby current (D-5, etc). $20 Chinese 1,700mAmp regulated adapter off eBay works but gives so much noise that calibration is totally impossible, "eye pattern" totally collapses. I guess if the player needs calibration (as most of them do due to 30year old dried-out electrolytics) such an adapter may push it over the edge. 2Amp-9V adapter for laptops works on all my two-dozen-plus Sonys but does not work with Sony D-350, Sony lights up but refuses to start. This same D-350 works fine with all other 9V adapters.
...Go Figure!!!

kaosun

9V2A adapter will drive D350 easily because it just needs  9V0.25A. If the adapter outputs too much noise which called ripple, it'll damage reading. Any adapter with capability of output voltage = 9V and current > 0.5A will drive these players well. Also I don't recommend switching power supply to be used here. I recommend power transformer adapter which introduces less noise but  heavier and bigger than switching power supply. The power adapters designed for laptops are almost switching power supply. Don't use it for audio equipment if you're sensitive to power noise.

tsljukic

I looked at the rating it is 9V 1A so I found another vintage power adapter that is rated lower amperage... An AC-96N. So here's hoping it is overpowering it and creating distortion because of that... I can handle using battery power for a bit longer (I have plenty of AAs )

Edit: Upon experimentation, this might be the exact problem. I lowered the voltage to a meager 4.5V (Which would lower the draw) the screen still lights up and the distortion decreases significantly. The Adapter I got is rated 9V 650mA. Hopefully that will do the trick, otherwise I'll try getting a center pos pedal power adapter (as those tend to be >.5A)

serge1996

I have one, 9V pedal adapter is the same garbage as any other switch-mode AC-DC adapters. Unless you already have or willing to pay extra for the original, "old-skool", transformer-based adapter, your best bet may be this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Universa ... 26sd%3D172260523795
from the look of it, I think it is transformer-based, not switch-mode.
I bet any of my PCDPs that extra Wattage is Not causing the problem. Once you solve the glitch, 9V-2A adapter will always be your better choice than 9V-0.5A. They don't "overpower" anything, but Kaosun will explain this better than I will ever do

kaosun

tsljukic 2016-07-07 14:03
Edited by tsljukic at 2016-07-07 14:09

I looked at the rating it is 9V 1A so I found another vint ...

AC-96N will definitely well drive your D303 because AC-96N is the original power adapter of D303.  There must be something wrong with your power circuit inside of your D303. A necessary maintenance and repair will be needed to restore it. Aging capacitors and spindle motor should also be replaced. Let me know if you'd like to get rid of all issues.

Regarding the voltage and current of a power adapter, as long as the voltage and polars are right, output with 500mA will be more than enough to drive the D303. The working current of a D303 is around 0.26A.

If you decide to send your D303 here for repair, I'll use my AC96N to repair it. So you'll just send the player to me.

tsljukic

kaosun 2016-07-09 12:51
AC-96N will definitely well drive your D303 because AC-96N is the original power adapter of D303.  ...

I haven't gotten the AC-96N yet, it should be coming tomorrow, and I should know if that is the issue then. If it is still an issue, I'm going to assume it is the capacitors. I'd be OK with doing a full restore though. This is a great player and I'd like to hear it at its best.

kaosun

Ok, waiting for your good news!

bru87tr

I know an old thread......

I use a Powerline 3-12v 1000mah universal adapter. Super quiet!

I compared it to my 12v battery setup, just as quiet. Bad thing is they don't make the exact one anymore. Glad I have two.