After a while the laser units in these players wear out and start getting weak. The player will start having problems reading finger printed disks and don’t even think about a burnt disk. You can fiddle with the laser intensity but that just delays the inevitable a bit longer. With the price of replacements these days it just better to drop in a new one. The CDV-1 used a fairly common unit, the Philips CDM12.1. This unit was used by Marantz, NAD Cyrus and Mark Levinson to name a few. The CDM12.1 is not made any longer but has been replaced by the VAM1202. They look almost exactly the same and are completely interchangeable. I got mine on fleaBay for $15.99 plus $10.00 for shipping from Taiwan. I do not know how I can get a box airmailed from Taiwan for 10 bucks yet people can not ship a 12AX7 from across the US border for under $15.00 I digress.
Unpack the unit from the static bag but do not remove the clip from the flexible lead.
Disassemble the CDV-1 by removing the side screws and back screws there is also two on the front top.
Once open, unplug all off the leads going to the transport board. Don’t forget to remove your ridiculously expensive CD from the transport before you power down as I did.
To remove the transport unit you must flip over the player and locate the 3 screws on the bottom that hold it in. Undo the three screws while supporting the transport with your hand. You do not want it to drop out. After the screws have been removed slide the transport towards the back and it will come clear of the case. Be careful of the hookup wires as they are kind of flimsy. Set the case aside and set the transport unit upside down on something soft.
Remove the three screws visible on the bottom of the circuit board holding the transport to the DAC board. These have insulated washers and a plastic spacer. Do not lose them.
The ribbon laser connector needs to be unclipped by pushing the white plastic top part forward towards the cable. This is easily done with a small flat head screwdriver on each side.
Carefully remove all the hook up wires from the clips holding them to the transport chassis. At this point it’s a good idea to take a picture as you will want them to go back the same way.
The laser unit is held in by four squishy rubber supports of which I do not know the name of. I used a very small screw driver to push the side ones out to side and the back ones near the drive motor through their holes. Be extremely delicate! If you break any of these its game over as I would have no idea how to get a replacement part. Slide the tray open and pull the laser assembly out through the bottom and set next to the new unit.
One at a time unsolder the wires and switch them over to the new unit. The tracking motor is quite a bit smaller in the new unit I noticed.
Now comes the hard part, getting it back in the transport. Slide the tray open again and put it in through the bottom. Do not touch the lenses by accident. If you have a small child or a mate with freakishly ET like hands this is their time to shine. I had neither so it was a lot of needle nose pliers and small screw drivers to get the squishy rubber clips back in their spots. The back two next to the drive motor I left in the laser assembly and pushed through the anchor holes in the transport assembly. The two side ones I attached to the transport and pushed into the clips on the side of laser assembly. After much cramping of the fingers I got it in there.
Redo the wiring as it was before the transplant. Make sure the tray opens and closes without pulling or binding any wires.
Now for something really tricky. The VAM1201 has a bit shorter ribbon laser hookup and the contacts are on the reverse side. Remove the silver clip covering the contacts. When hooking it up its imperative that the contacts face up. This means the ribbon will have a twist in it. It’s a bit tricky to set the transport on the DAC board, get your fingers in there and solidly seat the ribbon. I used a pair of very long skinny pliers to seat it then my fingers to set the clip.
Bolt the transport to the DAC board remembering to put the plastic spacers and insulators back on. Bolt the DAC board to the case, hook up all of the wiring plugs and your good to test. Turn the unit on, the cd should spin a couple of times and the laser assembly should track to the inside edge. If you get a NO DISK error, check your ribbon hookup.
Copyright © by Shane's Site All Right Reserved.
