Sony D-J50 Question

theglowpt3

Hi,
I have a Sony D-J50 I purchased on CL many years ago. It plays some CDs and not others. When it doesn't work, it seems to have tracking issues, so it sort of just makes the laser squeeking tracking sound for a while then shuts off. For CDs where it does work, it doesn't transition between tracks as smoothly as my other PCDP (e.g. D-33), but it gets throught the whole album fine without skipping within songs. I must note, that one of the balls in the centre spindle fell out as the plastic that holds the ball broke. But when CDs are placed into the discman, they still appear flat and tight and rotate fine. CD playback always has this laser squeek spinning sound, even when playing normally. It's louder than other discman I have.

Second issue, is the audio-out (not the line out) also has a rotatating sound coming from it (could be a resistor issue?). So when I listen to the discman with headphones on a low volume, I can hear spinning sounds coming from the headphones.

I'm not sure I would know how to fix these problems, but I'm curious as to what their source may be from your experience and how serious they are.

Cheers, Thanks

serge1996

Wow, you are a brave man!: spindle should be reset to within 0.1mm of the original one
The easy step now (before you send it to Kaosun for restoration) would be to play a bit with Focus Bias (Focus Offset) pot (mark the original position before doing this!). Kenwood DPC-55 which I was reviving today made a lot of noise while playing, once F.O. got adjusted it is dead silent.
Also, make a CDR copy of any CD which plays OK and let us know how it plays.
Overall your Discman sounds like my mega-buck Wadia 781i player: some CDs it just refuses to play
Since Discmans do not have "gain" switch, low-impedance h/p give some background noise, but if I use Sennheisers HD650 they are dead silent. With a few exceptions of D-10 and D-50mkII (and Kenwood DPC-55, as I've learned today!) they are struggling when driving such beasts!

serge1996

Sony D-33 has a similar spindle platter:

and when just one of plastic decorative flaps gets broken, folks at DIY/Head-Fi recommend breaking off the other two:

You have one steel ball missing, not just plastic flap, eccentricity of the platter itself and CD being held askew should exhort extra strain on this aging spinner. New platter would be my first fix, then laser re-calibration
Your second Q was answered by KAOSUN at the end of this thread "Craig JC6011..."

kaosun

The disk holder on the Dj5 is not a detachable design. So it can only be replaced with the spindle motor. Other solution will have to consider remove the broken upper part of the disc holder. For the noise issue, pls check your power supply, test with battery, last step will be circuit repair.

theglowpt3

serge1996 2017-05-24 11:34
Sony D-33 has a similar spindle platter:

and when just one of plastic decorative flaps gets broken, ...

So I never thought of taking my D33 spindle off and placing it on the D-J50. I always thought the D33 spindle was attached to the motor, but I managed to get it off and it's a perfect fit the D-J50. So the CDs are much more stable in it, but I still have the same issues with no playback with some CDs and lots of screeching laser sounds as it tries to track when first putting a disc in or when I skip tracks. I am assuming the laser needs some sort of calibration then?

theglowpt3

kaosun 2017-05-24 16:39
The disk holder on the Dj5 is not a detachable design. So it can only be replaced with the spindle m ...

Yes, I replaced the upper spindle plastic part with my D-33 one, it was a correct fit, and the CDs are stable but I still have all the same tracking issues. It just makes a loud sound while playing CDs. Is the next step laser calibration?

In terms of the headphone sound, I don't have my good headphones with me to do a check (I could notice it with my Grados), but through speakers I hear no difference. Should be noted, that I am using the original Sony adaptor for the discman. Also, this discman does not go completely silent when turned to 'MIN' on the volume knob. Is this normal for older CD players?

Thanks for the tips guys, love this discman, but haven't used it over the years due to it's poor status.

theglowpt3

Here's a video I took of the issues:
https://youtu.be/ozvasGFYncc

kaosun

The vintage CD players couldn't thoroughly shut off the volume potentiometer. You can hear some music even it's at 0. It's quite common among vintage CD players so it's cannot be regarded as an issue.

For the issue of reading, the player should be precisely re-calibrated. After the adjustment, the performance of your Dj5 will be better than it was more or less. It depends on the laser's situation.

serge1996

I stand corrected, there is quite listenable background music thru HD-600 even at zero volume setting. Kaosun is right, as always

theglowpt3

kaosun 2017-05-25 12:42
The vintage CD players couldn't thoroughly shut off the volume potentiometer. You can hear some musi ...

Looked through the service manual's re-calibration directions and between the required oscilloscope and the CD tool, I think it's beyond me. I think I'll just stick to using my D-33 for now. Maybe someday when I'm really in the mood for a change in aesthetic and disman on my desk, I'll look into sending it to you for a repair ;)

Thanks for all your help! Good to know that there is still hope.