CD3 skipping
Posted by: Greedo on 30 December 2015
I have a NAIT 3 which I bought around 1996/97. It's been in storage for a while and now it skips on pretty much every CD once it gets to around track 4 or 5. Is this fatal? Or is there anything I can do? I've been told that the laser has aged but seems a shame to throw it on the scrapheap! Any help much appreciated!
If you mean a CD3 - I assume you do (I'll change the thread title for you) - then it could well be a number of things, the most likely being that the clamp rubbers have become squashed and flattened (replace with new clamp) or there's something wrong in the Philips CDM9/44 transport. This is actually one of the longest lasting mechs that Philips made, however failure is inevitable at some point. Most common fault with this mech is that the plastic platter drops on the drive spindle. Many a working mech has been discarded as broken with this fault, but it's actually relatively easy to fix. You do need a bit of luck though to get the height of the platter just right and there's a bit of a knack to fix. Be careful as you can do more damage than good when attempting the fix. Google search is your friend here, but I take no responsibility hereon...
Thanks Richard,
Yes, sorry - I meant CD3. Sounds like it's worth investigating before throwing in the bin, then. That line about the laser - is that plausible? Was told that by a reputable hi-fi shop specializing in Naim, Linn, etc. Also, is skipping after a few tracks symptomatic of the fault you mention (rather than just skipping from track 1)?
Many thanks!
John
Saying the laser has aged is probably just the shop's way of describing the possibility of the mech being a bit dodgy. It's worth sorting out the clamp first, as Richard suggested. If it's the clamp with the three little rubber rings, you could try rotating them using some tweezers, and giving them a squeeze to get them nice and round. It's likely to be a short term fix, but if it works you'll know that the mech is ok and you only need to spend a few pounds on a new clamp.
As HH says, try the clamp first.
Oh, and the CD3 is well worth saving. It's one of my favourite relatively affordable high quality CD players - not neutral by any means (it uses selected examples of the rather characterful TDA1541A S1 "crown" DAC chips), but always huge fun to listen to.
Thanks! Tried tweaking the rubber bits on the clamp. Certainly improved matters but still skipping occasionally. So I'll invest in a new clamp - presumably easy enough to find one online - and see how it goes. The existing clamp is probably 15+ years old now...
Your dealer can get hold of one very easily. Hopefully the new clamp will fix things - you've certainly had your money's worth from the old one.