CD Player reliability

[admin_exported]

Not so long ago I got into terrible trouble on another forum for pointing out that CD mechs were no longer made and that the ones we'd (AVI) been buying for the last few years had been troublesome. Lots of people have very old machines that are still working and found what I'd said difficult to believe. I don't blame them, older and more expensive (relatively) machines did last longer. For the last few months as demand has eroded we've been selling off our remaining stock at heavily discounted prices and with a spare mech and sadly many have given trouble simply because they've not been used since test.

All the problems revolve around sticking laser sleds. If they aren't used regularly they get sticky and won't read discs or can't find the last tracks, if they are used regularly, they last a couple of years upwards, if they get too hot, they last rather less and any static discharges near them can cause failure too.

I tackled Philips about it, they admitted unreliability but explained that all modern mechs are designed for use in Computers where they run at much higher speeds. In these they give little or no trouble, presumably they get less use too.

I mention this because it's something anyone considering a new CD player needs to think about. Regardless of the price you're paying, it's likely that the mech will have been intended for something much cheaper and probably a "throw away", it may not last very long and spares may be difficult.

This was one of many factors that gave us the idea of ADM9s, or anything without a CD transport in it!

Ash

 

[Big Chris]

Ooops...........Duplicate post.

 

[Big Chris]

I've had my Arcam for 6 years. Never once missed a beat, skipped, stopped or stalled in all that time. I do use it regularly, at least once every day or two. I think you're right about the use issue. Nothing buggers something up more than it sitting for months not being used.

 

[Anonymous]

Ashley James:That's what gave us idea of ADM9 James, What is ADM9? Heavy-duty CD transport instead of Sony or Philips mech units?

 

[Anonymous]

lucky Rega makes them top-loading disc spinners otherwise all the cd players currently available would just be a waste of money and we would all be much better off buying AVI ADM9s... :-/

 

[Andy Clough]

ADM9s are active speakers as reviewed here.

 

[Anonymous]

Andy Clough:ADM9s are active speakers as reviewed here.
Wow Lucas.

They get very good writing up.

Let me ask questions though. You say they better doing their own conversion than Primare cd that costs you 1500 UK pounds. But the speakers only cost 1000 and include amplifier and speaker. So you say a conversion in 1000 active speakers is better than Primare award winner CD?

If I read correctly above that makes "ADM9" the best value ever speaker?

Another thing I think maybe you misunderstand you say they sound lean but in my experience use of active speakers by colleague does music recording in studio at home. You say lean but maybe you mean more control because the active have a much high factor of damping the speaker cones - "damping factor".

So maybe they are instead of "lean" it is correct to say "not colored sound"?

 

[Anonymous]

And also/

Does Primare DAC compare to my Cyrus DAC X convertor?

 

[drummerman]

santino.b.it:

Andy Clough:ADM9s are active speakers as reviewed here.
Wow Lucas.

They get very good writing up.

Let me ask questions though. You say they better doing their own conversion than Primare cd that costs you 1500 UK pounds. But the speakers only cost 1000 and include amplifier and speaker. So you say a conversion in 1000 active speakers is better than Primare award winner CD?

If I read correctly above that makes "ADM9" the best value ever speaker?

Another thing I think maybe you misunderstand you say they sound lean but in my experience use of active speakers by colleague does music recording in studio at home. You say lean but maybe you mean more control because the active have a much high factor of damping the speaker cones - "damping factor".

So maybe they are instead of "lean" it is correct to say "not colored sound"?

Na, they are definitively crisp and could do with a bit more colour. The upshot is transparency and lightning fast response. I dont know where you call home but i'd definitively recommend an audition mate.

 

[matthewpiano]

Cynics would suggest that this is subtle advertising....

 

[drummerman]

matthewpiano:Cynics would suggest that this is subtle advertising....

... what is?

 

[matthewpiano]

The original post by Ashley James. I've not really come across much in the way of reliability problems with CD players and I've had quite a lot of different machines of various ages and brands. Even an old Technics player I've still got works fine.

 

[Anonymous]

yes i agree, ashley is allways promoting. i was on some other forums the other day and he is all over those too with his bold claims

 

[drummerman]

matthewpiano:The original post by Ashley James. I've not really come across much in the way of reliability problems with CD players and I've had quite a lot of different machines of various ages and brands. Even an old Technics player I've still got works fine.

Got to agree with you there. You hear about the odd problem but its hardly an epidemic. Having said that, I think cdp's will become rare though when that will happen is questionable and even when they go there will be a die hard circle of users that will create some demand for the medium, similar to vinyl but probably more for the upmarket stuff. There are a lot of manufacturers still making the things so they'll live side by side with servers/streamers pc/Mac based systems for a little while yet me thinks.

 

[evo6tme]

Well my rega has a lifetime parts warrenty, so no issues

 

[Anonymous]

matthewpiano:Cynics would suggest that this is subtle advertising....
ya think?

seriously though, ashley keeps banging on about this whilst promoting a solution to a probmlem he is trying to convince us exists? surely enough is enough!
in my own experience , and the experience of other hi-fi enthusiasts i know, i have NEVER known of a failure with a transport mech. and i am talking about high end CDP, budget CDP, new CDP, and some CDP that date back nearly 20 years!
sure there are bound to be some transports that have gone bad over the years but this is a perfectly acceptable fault tolerance that occurs within any manufacturing of consumer products - im sure if you asked ashley if any of his customers had had problems with their AVI products the answer would be yes!

 

[drummerman]

evo6tme:Well my rega has a lifetime parts warrenty, so no issues

Good to hear. Lovely company that (Rega) and with Roy Gandy they live and breed music, quite evident in their products and I am in no way associated with the company!

They are doing great and riding on the success of their players and some innovative thinking at the moment but I hope they too will diversify into servers etc. It is the present and future though perhaps not exclusively it will surely form the 'bread and butter' part of most manufacturers source portfolios. I am no market expert but I'd hate to see a company like Rega going the same way as say castle. You can move with the times and still be true to your origins and company philosophy.

 

[Anonymous]

ashley makes such bold claims and talks about them as if they are absolute facts when they are really just his opinion. it is the same on his website.

As it is i like the look of his stuff including the adm9 which are a really forward thinking and innovative but he needs to mellow with his sales pitch.

 

[Anonymous]

I cant honestly believe that low quality mechanisms were any form of insperation for the adm9

 

[JoelSim]

I agree, AVI speakers speak for themselves, leave them to it

 

[bigblue235]

matt444_2000:

ashley makes such bold claims and talks about them as if they are absolute facts when they are really just his opinion. it is the same on his website.

As it is i like the look of his stuff including the adm9 which are a really forward thinking and innovative but he needs to mellow with his sales pitch.

Yup, fully agree. I rambled on at length in another post about Ashleys comments, to which he never replied. I said in that post that I admire his enthusiasm and his products, but I think he's doing more harm than good with his preaching.

It'd be fair enough if he was genuinely enlightening us with facts, but it's just his thoughts, posted as if they were facts. Some of these "facts" are miles off, and although I guess they're the way AVI is currently thinking, and the way a portion of the market is thinking, they're far from universally accepted.

I've worked in sales for many years, and if you try and tell the customer what to buy, in most cases they'll buy nothing. The customer is far from always right, but telling them bluntly they're wrong will have them walking out the door rather quickly.

 

[JoelSim]

bigblue235:matt444_2000:

ashley makes such bold claims and talks about them as if they are absolute facts when they are really just his opinion. it is the same on his website.

As it is i like the look of his stuff including the adm9 which are a really forward thinking and innovative but he needs to mellow with his sales pitch.

Yup, fully agree. I rambled on at length in another post about Ashleys comments, to which he never replied. I said in that post that I admire his enthusiasm and his products, but I think he's doing more harm than good with his preaching.

It'd be fair enough if he was genuinely enlightening us with facts, but it's just his thoughts, posted as if they were facts. Some of these "facts" are miles off, and although I guess they're the way AVI is currently thinking, and the way a portion of the market is thinking, they're far from universally accepted.

I've worked in sales for many years, and if you try and tell the customer what to buy, in most cases they'll buy nothing. The customer is far from always right, but telling them bluntly they're wrong will have them walking out the door rather quickly.

I couldn't agree more. I work in advertising, and the more you preach to your audience, the less they listen, and the more desperate you sound. Retail is where I'm at, at the moment and some of my clients just want to push far too hard and it's counterproductive. I hope they learn, the clever ones will.

You only have to look at the most successful companies, they let the product do the talking and support it with some good observations and insights. They don't force anything. Think Innocent, Naim, VW, Porsche, M&S food etc

It's interesting because there's an Avid mag ad with a pretty chick in it. I'm not suggesting for one moment that hi-end hifi nerds aren't interested in chicks, but actually if you need a blonde to sell your product then heh, it's not the right product for me. Leave the blondes to Stringfellows after a few lagers and the hifi to good PR/reviews in the mags and a little support by way of paid-for ad space with some concrete proof of why the product is good

Zzzzzzzzzzz

 

[bigblue235]

JoelSim: I couldn't agree more. I work in advertising, and the more you preach to your audience, the less they listen, and the more desperate you sound. Retail is where I'm at, at the moment and some of my clients just want to push far too hard and it's counterproductive. I hope they learn, the clever ones will.

Yeah, that's it, in a nutshell. To me, good selling is all about making the customer think they want something. That they've chosen it, they think it's good, that it's their decision to bite. Aren't they clever? They've picked the best thing in the shop, all by themselves. Good selling isn't even noticeable.

Bad selling is telling someone they should choose something, because you think so, and you know better, so they should believe you. In other words, you're more clever than them. And if they don't agree you're more clever? B'bye then.

You only have to look at the most successful companies, they let the product do the talking and support it with some good observations and insights. They don't force anything. Think Innocent, Naim, VW, Porsche, M&S food etc

Precisely. Emotive stuff, stuff that causes desire, ads that target your heart as well as your head. We had an ad in one of our stores, for a fairly average golf ball, and all it featured was things that were powerful. Sports cars, powerboats, trains etc, with a thumping soundtrack. ****** all about golf, other than one shot of someone lashing one right at the end. Sold more of that ball than anything else, ever!

It's interesting because there's an Avid mag ad with a pretty chick in it. I'm not suggesting for one moment that hi-end hifi nerds aren't interested in chicks, but actually if you need a blonde to sell your product then heh, it's not the right product for me. Leave the blondes to Stringfellows after a few lagers and the hifi to good PR/reviews in the mags and a little support by way of paid-for ad space with some concrete proof of why the product is good

Yeah, targetting one part of the market, possibly alienating many others. Imagine showing the missus an ad for such a company? It'd be scratched off the list straight away!

Sorry to go a wee bit O/T, CD player reliability? Never had one break myself

 

[JoelSim]

50% off and double discount bonus.

Really, is your product that sh*te?

 

[Anonymous]

I too have noticed that many modern, even so called high end, CD players use cheap computer type mechanisms. This should theoretically make repairs cheaper and more worthwhile but I bet it doesn't.