Laser pick-up upgrade?

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Like many others, it is now my time to replace the laser pick-up in the Denon DVD-2930CI. It started to refuse to play burned CD's and on SACD occasionally won't fast forward. I will read the laser current later tonight (if it is over 150% of the original inscripted value, Denon says it needs to be replaced).
I knew that is the weak point of a superbe player. I even have bought a replacemet on eBay for 13$ long time ago... Have no clue if it is even the original Sanyo SF-HD65G (looks like it but doesn't have written on it Sanyo).
I wonder if there is another one, with better life span, that will be compatible.
XBOX360 has the same laser and I don't think it fails so soon...

PS: I have another older Denon DVD-2910 with HOP-1200R laser and that laser keeps on "crunching" with no problems...
 
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OK, I did replace it.
New model supposedly is "Sanyo SF-HD65" (didn't find one with G at the end and it is not marked anyway).
The diode curent was 34mA instead of 33mA originaly, but wasn't working right.
The new laser "jumped" to 40mA. I didn't try to adjust it lower because... it is working on everything. I set the new value in EEPROM and zero the timer "laser ON".

I am curious how long will last.
 
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Hello guyes,
This is a very usefull forum. Some real techies here.

I just bought a DVD-2910 second hand. Fortunately this one plays CD/DVD OK have not tested SACD yet but is not very important to me.

Going to upgrade the opamps to National LME49725 opamps. I could get those opamps for a reasonable price here in the netherlands so i bought 10 pieces. Those should be much like the LM4265.
Also here in Germany I can get a laserpickup for just 46€ incl shipping. So looks to me I have a player that wil play fine for years to come.

I have had several DVD-players and the cheap ones often after a year already have problems reading disks.
I bought a Denon 1930 new in 2007 back and it still playes fine. Maybe I am going to put some better opamps in that one too.

I got the idea for upgrade from this forum 😉

Greetings from the Netherlands!
 
OK, I did replace it.
New model supposedly is "Sanyo SF-HD65" (didn't find one with G at the end and it is not marked anyway).
The diode curent was 34mA instead of 33mA originaly, but wasn't working right.
The new laser "jumped" to 40mA. I didn't try to adjust it lower because... it is working on everything. I set the new value in EEPROM and zero the timer "laser ON".

I am curious how long will last.

So... how long did it last? 🙂 Happy new year! I'm facing the same problem - my Denon 2930 has some serious issues in playing some DVDs, sometimes takes up to two minutes in finding back to the menu or freezes when switching to the next chapter. I think it's time to swap the laser unit. I have found Sanyo SF-HD65 on ebay, as well as "laser unit for Denon 2930" for about 5x the money. I can change the unity by myself, but I don't have the possibility to burn some EEPROM and edit values. How important is that?
 
Don't know what country you write from, but here in USA, dalbani.com has the SF-HD65 for a pitifully cheap $10.47.
But WHY does anyone want to bother upgrading or even keeping one of these Denon players where you're EXTREMELY LUCKY to get six months out of these horrible garbage Hitachi HOP1200 & Sanyo lasers they inexcusably keep using? I'd think all you Denon owners would sooner get together to file a class action suit against the company for deliberate negligence and/or planned obsolesence. There are other sacd/dvda players out there that can be upgraded just as well into even better sounding units that have excellent reliability. Specifically thinking of the Pioneer generation of USA models DV563/578as/45a/47ai/59avi/79avi(but not the later DV-58 generation, which have bad platter motors). The DV79avi even has a lovely linear power supply for the audio & OPA2134 opamps in stock form, so way less upgrade work to do than any Denon.
 
Don't know what country you write from, but here in USA, dalbani.com has the SF-HD65 for a pitifully cheap $10.47.
But WHY does anyone want to bother upgrading or even keeping one of these Denon players where you're EXTREMELY LUCKY to get six months out of these horrible garbage Hitachi HOP1200 & Sanyo lasers they inexcusably keep using? I'd think all you Denon owners would sooner get together to file a class action suit against the company for deliberate negligence and/or planned obsolesence. There are other sacd/dvda players out there that can be upgraded just as well into even better sounding units that have excellent reliability. Specifically thinking of the Pioneer generation of USA models DV563/578as/45a/47ai/59avi/79avi(but not the later DV-58 generation, which have bad platter motors). The DV79avi even has a lovely linear power supply for the audio & OPA2134 opamps in stock form, so way less upgrade work to do than any Denon.

Some guys from service departments tell me, the HOP1200 is one of those optical DVD pickup, which have the lowest reliability.

I know from "only PCM-Audio" compact disc player, that this is by Sony's pick up devices from KSS series the case. And the highest reliability here had have optical pick up from JVC (Optima, own part) and Pioneer (also own optical part).
Which optical pick up suited for DVD are there with highest reliability? Also Pioneer?
 
So... how long did it last? 🙂 Happy new year! I'm facing the same problem - my Denon 2930 has some serious issues in playing some DVDs, sometimes takes up to two minutes in finding back to the menu or freezes when switching to the next chapter. I think it's time to swap the laser unit. I have found Sanyo SF-HD65 on ebay, as well as "laser unit for Denon 2930" for about 5x the money. I can change the unity by myself, but I don't have the possibility to burn some EEPROM and edit values. How important is that?

It still works! And it is used almost daily (CD, DVD or SACD). I wasn't expecting 🙂
And no, you don't need to "burn" any EEPROMS, the programming of them is done via the remote and front panel.
 
Some guys from service departments tell me, the HOP1200 is one of those optical DVD pickup, which have the lowest reliability.

I know from "only PCM-Audio" compact disc player, that this is by Sony's pick up devices from KSS series the case. And the highest reliability here had have optical pick up from JVC (Optima, own part) and Pioneer (also own optical part).
Which optical pick up suited for DVD are there with highest reliability? Also Pioneer?

The ONLY dvd laser LESS reliable than the HOP1200 is the VED0378 Panasonic from their first generation players, which, of course, Denon chose for their first, the DVD-5000, of which I doubt more than a dozen worldwide made it through warranty period without failure. As I intimated, the very BEST reliability in a dvd/sacd laser I've yet seen is that used in the DV-79avi generation Pioneers, namely OXX8005, for whom I do not know the manufacturer. But it is also the brushless platter motor used with this laser in this model series that really makes them excellent.

My experience with Sony redbook cd lasers is opposite yours. Considering the utterly enormous millions of KSS150/210/213/240 units in use, I have to say they are among the most reliable cd lasers out there, short of the lovely CDM-0 through CDM-4 Philips lasers. I have not even seen more than two or three KSS-151/190/270/272 units fail, and I've worked on many, many dozens of players using them. Worst reliability in cd lasers, in my shop, has been, no contest, the horrid CDM12 series junk, although the Toshiba version of the KSS152, which we've discussed recently, would probably beat the CDM12 for worst if they hadn't been used in such a small number of Luxman players & few others.
 
denon 3800bdci

I own this player which will recognize and play regular dvds and cds but not blurays. I sent it to the repair center in NJ and they wanted 750 bucks to replace the laser pickup. I have seen 'refurbished' units on the net of this player that were less then their repair quote. Anyone here know the laser pickup used in this player? At this point I have nothing to lose then to try to repair it myself.

Thanks!
 
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