HIFIDIY CD Transport Kit

[ackcheng]

first picture: LED positive on the left side, jumper
2nd picture: +ve
3rd picture: for push switch
4th picture: I have no idea!

[kkchunghk]

Hi,

The QC problem is that the led unit did not light up as intended. When changed everything works ok.

Here are the answers to the picture quiz:
1a) led + on the left
1b) jumper position
2) led + on the long lead
3) 4) same as 1)
5) socket for sliding lid switch. There is a lever switch on the bottom side of the lid which tells the motor to start or stop.
6) leave C128, C141 and R124 un-populated.

Cheers,

KK

[kkchunghk]

Hi,
The lastest development to this motor unit is that the VAM1202 will be replaced by CD pro:

http://www.hifidiy.net/zxbd/200708/t20070822_1268.htm

Since I already have a working cdm12, I would wait for the full blown CD pro motor unit which is in development. But for someone who is shopping around, this hybrid version can be on the list. No indication of the price since it is still in beta stage.

Cheers,

KK

[anatech]

Yes, definitely wait.

VAM1202 is very, very poor quality. Complete junk for a transport from what I have seen in the field. These are extremely variable in HF level and quality. The eye pattern is very noisy.

Avoid these transports!

-Chris

[el_mariachi]

Originally posted by anatech
Yes, definitely wait.

VAM1202 is very, very poor quality. Complete junk for a transport from what I have seen in the field. These are extremely variable in HF level and quality. The eye pattern is very noisy.

Avoid these transports!

-Chris

Thanks for the warning, i have done a little research and it turns out that Naim are fitted with theese transports.

Naim cd5i, cd5x og cdx2 that is.

These players cost up to $6600 in Norway.

Can the VAM1202 be so poor if they are used in the metioned players?

I also like to say thank's to all who replied to my questions.

[rabbitz]

A high cost player does not mean a top transport is used. I think that transport was used in some of the budget Marantz models.

I'd take notice of anatech's advice.

[pooge]

Is this transport strictly Redbook?

[anatech]

Hi pooge,

Is this transport strictly Redbook?

I don't see where "redbook" has anything to do with it. It is cheap with wide variances on quality and signal levels. The signal is so noisy that I can't imagine getting clean data off the disc - any disc.

The quality of a transport is evident from two things. The quality of the build (does it last and is one very much like the next?) and the quality of the RF signal that can be processed further. The VAM1202 only has price to recommend it. It is almost the worst thing I've seen. I'm thinking the HOP-M3 head, but I'm rethinking that. They could be tied.

Hi rabbitz,
I take it you've seen these as well?

-Chris

[stephensank]

The really sad thing is that EVERY CDM-12-series transport, as far as I've seen, and I have seen a lot of them, mostly failing, uses the same basic laser pickup. VAM1202, CDM-12.4, CDM-12Pro(there's an oxymoron!), CDM-Pro2(guess they left out the 12 on this one to make it a less obvious oxymoron), etc. If you carefully transplant the ribbon cable from one's laser to another, you can use any CDM-12 version to replace the laser in any other version.
As I have ranted here before, I can't see why anyone in their right mind would base anything more ambitious than a discman on these horrible, cheap, ultra-high-failure-rate pieces of junk. I mean, a Sony KSS-210 or KSS-213-based transport, at even small production quanities, can't more than a few dollars higher cost for vastly superior reliability, consistency & performance. I consider any manufacturer who uses the Philips junk to be too penny-pinching to be trusted.

[anatech]

Hi stephensank,
A manufacturer I spoke with is attempting to get away from Philips as well. They hate them! However, they are forced to buy those if they wish to sell any CD players or DVD machines. The average person has been told that Philips CD transports are the best and have been for many years. They can't win because "we" force them to use junk.

As I have ranted here before, I can't see why anyone in their right mind would base anything more ambitious than a discman on these horrible, cheap, ultra-high-failure-rate pieces of junk.

I can. If you think they work badly in a home, just wait until you see their lack of performance in an unstable environment.

I mean, a Sony KSS-210 or KSS-213-based transport, at even small production quanities, can't more than a few dollars higher cost for vastly superior reliability, consistency & performance.

You are talking about Sony - remember? These people have a long honourable history of pricing themselves out of the market. They have a strong will to fail.

When the KSS-150A first appeared we thought it was complete garbage. They replaced that iffy head with the KSS-210A which made the transport more reliable. The KSS-240 was introduced to eliminate some adjustments due to the poor quality of service. The new current heads run on a servo to automatically "tune" the adjustments to the CD in play. This assures good average performance. Never great but never really bad. 'Till it breaks.

The best transports were the early NEC units. Lovely things. They were always higher quality than Philips stuff. These days I am happy when I see a KSS-210A/240A/151A based unit. This I can set up well.

-Chris