…and with it finally some time to continue working on improvements for the machine. Am planning another video to show and introduce modifications that should help to increase the sustainability of the machine. I also got another one for spare parts. It got also “modified” with a MP3 player, but, unfortunately, in a way that it cannot be undone. Furthermore, […]
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CDM2 – the final boss fight
Repairing a CDM2 is like the final boss fight of a 80s arcade shoot’em up for me. There are basically hundreds of things that might fail. Currently I am trying to repair a least one CDM2 for Sanders CD555 because his device failed again. The issues are not easy to fix when not having the official Test-CDs and a special […]
New Power Supply finished
It took a while but finally, the new power supply is finished. Well, already finished a couple of weeks ago but I have been way too busy in my job for any further hobbies. The least, the prototype is running fine without any troubles so I am confident the final release will also work. I just need to find some […]
Merry Christmas to everyone
Have yourself a merry Christmas. I wish you a wonderful time with your beloved. Good news for me is that the new power supply is basically working… more or less. First, I was too motivated to add another microcontroller unit (MCU) to measure the voltages and to trace other ongoing things. As a result, all those components drained too much […]
Working on a new power supply panel
The parts of electronic that probably fails most often seems to be the power panel. I cannot explain how sick I am of searching for broken parts at this panel. Recently another machine of mine failed to deliver -20V required for the CD-Drive. It takes hours to search through a complicated circuit which also includes other panels to work accordingly. […]
An unusual patient and busy times
During the last weeks I got confronted with an unusual patient from a colleague. A NAD amplifier where the left channel failed after some hours of playback. Well, I have to admit I hate issues like that, it is easier if something is not working rather than waiting hours for it to fail. Well, and as soon as you want […]
What a year – the fourth CD555 on sale this year…
Whilst I was searching for decades for a single CD555 some machines showed up at second hand shops this year. “Relatively” of course, speaking in numbers – the fourth. Two weeks ago a good one showed up at eBay and got sold for about 115€ in UK. Well, not so interesting for Europeans, considering the high transportation costs of 46€ […]
A new tool and other news
Well, I had enough problem with soldering tinny SMD parts, especially when removing them. Sometimes I damaged the PCB when trying to remove SMD components or was unable to remove simple components like resistors from multiple layer PCBs. When I learned something during my 35 years work experience, then it saves time and nerves when you use the right tools. […]
Finally… a brand new, boxed and never used Philips CD555 in perfekt condition
My search has finally come to an end! I am probably the happiest person alive. After years of searching I finally found a brand new Philips CD555 in absolute perfect condition. According to the seller, his father bought it end of the 80s and forgot it in a cupboard. Lucky me. I was pretty sure that there might be some […]
Another CDM2 failed
Well it has been a while since my last post, but currently I am busy with some career changes. Starting a new job after 28 years at SMC is quite tough, many new impressions, people, processes and not to forget a different business language (abbreviations). However, another CDM2 failed during the last weeks. It failed to navigate between tracks with […]