Sony Discman -- skiips on upper tracks

[Dan Dubosky]

I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the
upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on track
15 and gets worse on 16 and 17. I've already cleaned the lens with some
alcohol. Any suggestions?

I've never had this thing apart and today I tried getting it apart by
attempting to take out the small Phillips head screws on the bottom, each of
which has an arrow next to it. Seeing the arrows, makes one think that
these screws are removable, but I cannot remove them. Are they glued in?

Thanks,
Dan

 

[Meat Plow]

I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the
upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on track
15 and gets worse on 16 and 17. I've already cleaned the lens with some
alcohol. Any suggestions?

I've never had this thing apart and today I tried getting it apart by
attempting to take out the small Phillips head screws on the bottom, each of
which has an arrow next to it. Seeing the arrows, makes one think that
these screws are removable, but I cannot remove them. Are they glued in?

Thanks,
Dan

Why are you taking it apart?

 

[Adrian C]

I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the
upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on track
15 and gets worse on 16 and 17. I've already cleaned the lens with some
alcohol. Any suggestions?

Goto http://www.repairfaq.org/REPAIR/F_Repair.html and find the pages
for Compact Disc Players and CDROM Drives. There is a section on skipping.

I've never had this thing apart and today I tried getting it apart by
attempting to take out the small Phillips head screws on the bottom, each of
which has an arrow next to it. Seeing the arrows, makes one think that
these screws are removable, but I cannot remove them. Are they glued in?

Unlikely. Does the screw heads turn or are you missing it with your
oversized screwdriver, and gouging into plastic instead?

 

[Arfa Daily]

I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the
upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on
track 15 and gets worse on 16 and 17. I've already cleaned the lens with
some alcohol. Any suggestions?

I've never had this thing apart and today I tried getting it apart by
attempting to take out the small Phillips head screws on the bottom, each
of which has an arrow next to it. Seeing the arrows, makes one think that
these screws are removable, but I cannot remove them. Are they glued in?

Thanks,
Dan

This usually indicates one of two problems. First, the sled drive worm or
slides are dry and sticky. This usually shows up on a long disc, as the area
where the laser has to go to, right at the outer edge of the disc, is
somewhere that it doesn't usually go on average length discs, so the
lubrication never gets 'circulated' and distributed around the moving parts,
so has a tendency to collect dust, dry out and go sticky.

The other problem that can show up on long discs, is spindle motor or
spindle servo troubles. This is because the further the track is towards the
end of the disc, the slower the disc rotates, so any tendency for the motor
speed to be erratic, shows up worse, to the point where data loss is beyond
the level that the auto-correction can cope with, so the servos start to
lose lock, skipping being the result.

Occasionally, you can get similar problems with a weak laser, but this more
usually results in poor playability and shock resistance, throughout the
whole disc.

The first move would definitely be to clean and relube the laser slides and
drive. The screws marked with arrows are the right ones, and I don't know
why you should be having any problem getting them out. They certainly aren't
glued, but you will need a good quality jeweller's philips to not damage
their heads. Many of the Sonys are also clipped together, so even with the
screws out, you might need to insert a thin scalpel blade between the case
halves, to seperate them. The deck is usually not secured once you are
inside. It just lifts off the plastic pegs, but be *very* careful of the
flexiprint connections to the deck. They are quite delicate, and can easily
tear.

Arfa

 

[Homer J Simpson]

I have a Sony Discman CD Compact Player, model D-E301, which skips on the
upper tracks. On a disc with 17 tracks, it starts to skip a little on
track 15 and gets worse on 16 and 17.

Commercial CDs or burns?

 

[Dan Dubosky]

Since cleaning the head and lubricating the track had no beneficial result,
I thought that a small adjustment of the pot relating to head alignment
would.

 

[Dan Dubosky]

The screwdriver is a jewelers screwdriver of good quality and even trying to
turn the screw with a pliers attached to the screwdriver does not permit
turning. I have not damaged the heads of the screws, but they certainly are
not yielding.

 

[Dan Dubosky]

Thanks.
I did try lubricating the worm drive, but that didn't seem to have any
effect. I thought that by taking it apart, I could lubricate the slides a
little better, but even though I am using a jeweler's screwdriver with a
pliers attached, I just can't budge them. They do have normal clockwise
threads, don't they?

 

[Dan Dubosky]

Commercial.

 

[Dan Dubosky]

To say that it skips on the upper tracks may be inaccurate. What happens is
that the time display disappears along with the sound, but the track number
remains displayed. After a few seconds the time display reappears with the
sound only to have the whole process repeat.

 

[Homer J Simpson]

The screwdriver is a jewelers screwdriver of good quality and even trying
to turn the screw with a pliers attached to the screwdriver does not
permit turning. I have not damaged the heads of the screws, but they
certainly are not yielding.

If they are screwed into plastic, sometimes you need to apply a hot iron to
the head for a second. But you need to be brave an knowledgeable or be
prepared to lose the device. And you need a screwdriver that won't slip.
Some have a hole so you can apply more torque.

 

[Meat Plow]

Since cleaning the head and lubricating the track had no beneficial result,
I thought that a small adjustment of the pot relating to head alignment
would.

Oh ok. I assumed incorrectly that you were an end user and not a service
tech.

 

[Arfa Daily]

To say that it skips on the upper tracks may be inaccurate. What happens
is that the time display disappears along with the sound, but the track
number remains displayed. After a few seconds the time display reappears
with the sound only to have the whole process repeat.

My analysis of the problem stands, and I still feel that the first place to
go, is to a proper and thorough clean and relube of the slides and drive.
The time display disappearing tells you that the servo has lost lock, and
valid data is no longer being recovered from the disc. Under no
circumstances should you adjust the pot on the laser. It is not a valid
adjustment, and even a small misadjustment can result in permanent laser
damage. The screws are standard counter-clockwise undo, and I can't remember
ever having had a problem getting them out on any of the many Discman models
that I've worked on, so I'm at a bit of a loss as to why yours won't undo.
You could try going clockwise first. Might break any kind of seal that has
formed for whatever reason ?? Sometimes also, a shock will get a screw on
the move. Locate the screwdriver tip in the screw head, then give it a firm
clout with a pair of heavy pliers or whatever comes to hand on the bench,
then try rotating the screw again in either direction.

Arfa

 

[jango2]

Try looking for an opening in the spindle motor and send in a tiny
blast of wd40.Treat the spindle shaft/motor bush similarly. These
motors are fairly cheap and easy to find.

 

[Morse]

Try looking for an opening in the spindle motor and send in a tiny
blast of wd40.Treat the spindle shaft/motor bush similarly. These
motors are fairly cheap and easy to find.

WD40 is about the worst thing you can use on motor bearings. It is
essentially to release seized parts, and makes a very poor bearing lubricant
as it is too thin and strips any existing lubrication away. Any benefits are
very short term and wear will be accelerated in the longer term.

Far better is a light oil designed for electronic servicing. Even DIY shop
light oil like 3 in 1 is better than WD40, and that's rubbish as it tends to
gum up tiny bearings. WD40 tends to migrate as well- it will end up in
places it can do more harm than good.

Morse

 

[Homer J Simpson]

Far better is a light oil designed for electronic servicing. Even DIY shop
light oil like 3 in 1 is better than WD40, and that's rubbish as it tends
to gum up tiny bearings. WD40 tends to migrate as well- it will end up in
places it can do more harm than good.

If you are saying that 3-in-1 oil is bad you are correct. Try a TV parts
jobber for a proper lubrication kit.

 

[Arfa Daily]

If you are saying that 3-in-1 oil is bad you are correct. Try a TV parts
jobber for a proper lubrication kit.

Agreed. Please please PLEASE do not go near it with WD40. As the old saying
goes, " If I had a quid for every bit of kit I've seen wrecked by WD40 ... "

Arfa

 

[Morse]

If you are saying that 3-in-1 oil is bad you are correct.

Yes, I wouldn't use it for anything worth more than a PC case fan, and even
then it gums up fairly quickly. It's still better than WD40 though!

Off topic slightly, I've had great results restoring PC fans by lubricating
them with MolySlip, a car oil treatment compound. They seem to go on for
years!

Morse

 

[Homer J Simpson]

Yes, I wouldn't use it for anything worth more than a PC case fan, and
even then it gums up fairly quickly. It's still better than WD40 though!

Off topic slightly, I've had great results restoring PC fans by
lubricating them with MolySlip, a car oil treatment compound. They seem to
go on for years!

One good choice if no better information is available is oil for self
lubricating bearings. It is clean, thin, and doesn't gum up.

 

[Dan Dubosky]

Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread especially to you, Arfa
Daily, for your very detailed analysis. I finally did manage to remove the
screws after rapping each one as Arfa suggested. I am always reluctant to
administer that kind of treatment to delicate electronic apparatus, but in
this case it was necessary. I've never encountered screws this tight in
electronic apparatus before.

Another cleaning of the lens and a very thorough cleaning and lubrication of
the screw drive and tracks seems to have solved my problems.

Again, thanks to all.

Dan