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CD player laser replacement/repair CD2/CDX

Nye Samuel

Nye Samuel

Herr Katze
Hi…This is not a current problem but a question to guide my choices.

I intend to get an Olive CD player and the 3 models in the frame are the CDi, CD2 and CDX.

I have been authoritively told by WHA that for the CDi, if I get one with a CDM4 laser mechanism can be repaired but the later models with a CDM9 laser mechanism can’t be repaired.

What is the situation regarding the CD2 or CDX players regarding repair or replacement of their laser mechanisms if they stop working.

Any advice would be appreciated.
 
Nye, I believe Avondale bought a quantity of cdm9 mech for the CD3 players years back, got to be worth a call to Les to confirm if he still has them and if they’ll fit.
 
CD2 also used the CDM9. Unfortunately i nabbed the last mech from Avondale for my CD2 last year, so there you go. Sorry:confused:
 
the heretic said:
CD2 also used the CDM9. Unfortunately i nabbed the last mech from Avondale for my CD2 last year, so there you go. Sorry:confused:
Click to expand...

You have saved me the bother of contacting Avondale...so thanks for the information.

So...Looks likes getting a CD2 would be riskier than getting a CDi...what's the situation with the CDX's laser drive? It uses CDM12.5 / VAM1205 laser mech according to link kindly supplied by W&F above :)
 
Witch Hat Audio replaced the laser mechanism in my CDX. That was about four or five years ago though, and I can't speak for the state of play now. Wasn't cheap, I recall!
ML
 
According to Naim HQ. they can supply and fit a new laser to the vam1205 but have no new mechanisms are available.

I have a cdx2 and cd5 and enjoy the sound of them immensely.
 
monstrous lie said:
Witch Hat Audio replaced the laser mechanism in my CDX. That was about four or five years ago though, and I can't speak for the state of play now. Wasn't cheap, I recall!
ML
Click to expand...

You must clearly like the sound of your CDX if were prepared to pay a substantial amount of money to have the laser mechanism replaced; I await WHA reply to my email about their ability to do the same today.
 
I thought it wasn't expensive to have my tech fixing my CDX last year.
New cdm12 mech w/puck & wages + shipment came in total around €300

He did my Saturn too a couple of years earlier, so guess its basic knowledge for a qualified technician
 
Olsen said:
I thought it wasn't expensive to have my tech fixing my CDX last year.
New cdm12 mech w/puck & wages + shipment came in total around €300

He did my Saturn too a couple of years earlier, so guess its basic knowledge for a qualified technician
Click to expand...

Hi..Who repaired your CDX? WHA?
 
Nye Samuel said:
I used to have a CDi and liked it very much...I have not heard a CD2 or CDX.
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The only one of the three I have heard is the CDX, which I had with an XPS. My understanding is that the CDi is cut from the same cloth as the original CDS, which I've heard many times. There is no guarantee that if you liked the CDi you'll like the CDX. I thought the CDS was the best player I'd heard, one of the very few CD players I thought actually played music, but I couldn't get on with the CDX. Even with the XPS.

I also had a CD5XS, which was said to be closer to the top players than the budget ones it shared a case with. I really wanted to like that player but it was laughably behind the machine I was trying to beat.

The Rega Saturn-R. I'd like to hear this player against an original CDS because I think it would be very similar and might beat it. It's certainly the best CD player I've ever owned. Not because none of the others did anything better but because it gets nothing dramatically wrong. It sounds more like a turntable than any CD player I've heard and gets music out of absolutely any CD. Even the ones you thought were terrible productions. It makes you forget about the machine and just love the music. I prefer it to my RP10 turntable. In some ways the turntable is technically better but it's not as rounded and can't make every LP sound nice.

I'm not trying to hate on Naim CD players here. I like them, I've had three and I love the looks and ergonomics. The Saturn-R has flaky control software and the tight disk tray is a pain but I can't argue with the sound. It's just gorgeous, but not in the lush, soft way of some players. The fact that it has a full suite of digital inputs as well is icing on the cake!

Manufacturers have not been twiddling their thumbs in the intervening years and there is some pretty good stuff out there. A newer player would also remove the question of serviceability. Rega used a really cheap transport on the Saturn-R, the same one they use in the Isis and Apollo-R, and my understanding is that they have tons of them. All I'm saying is that the machines you're looking at are very old and if you widen your net a bit you might get something that sounds better and doesn't have any back-up worries.
 
Mr Pig said:
The only one of the three I have heard is the CDX, which I had with an XPS. My understanding is that the CDi is cut from the same cloth as the original CDS, which I've heard many times. There is no guarantee that if you liked the CDi you'll like the CDX. I thought the CDS was the best player I'd heard, one of the very few CD players I thought actually played music, but I couldn't get on with the CDX. Even with the XPS.

I also had a CD5XS, which was said to be closer to the top players than the budget ones it shared a case with. I really wanted to like that player but it was laughably behind the machine I was trying to beat.

The Rega Saturn-R. I'd like to hear this player against an original CDS because I think it would be very similar and might beat it. It's certainly the best CD player I've ever owned. Not because none of the others did anything better but because it gets nothing dramatically wrong. It sounds more like a turntable than any CD player I've heard and gets music out of absolutely any CD. Even the ones you thought were terrible productions. It makes you forget about the machine and just love the music. I prefer it to my RP10 turntable. In some ways the turntable is technically better but it's not as rounded and can't make every LP sound nice.

I'm not trying to hate on Naim CD players here. I like them, I've had three and I love the looks and ergonomics. The Saturn-R has flaky control software and the tight disk tray is a pain but I can't argue with the sound. It's just gorgeous, but not in the lush, soft way of some players. The fact that it has a full suite of digital inputs as well is icing on the cake!

Manufacturers have not been twiddling their thumbs in the intervening years and there is some pretty good stuff out there. A newer player would also remove the question of serviceability. Rega used a really cheap transport on the Saturn-R, the same one they use in the Isis and Apollo-R, and my understanding is that they have tons of them. All I'm saying is that the machines you're looking at are very old and if you widen your net a bit you might get something that sounds better and doesn't have any back-up worries.
Click to expand...

Mr P...I take your point and I hope you don't take my first reply to you as being rude..but if you did I whole heartedly apologize.

I have a Rega Apollo R (current spec,) and it is ok but not a patch on my memory (dangerous concept) of my CDI...or a Micromega Duo that I briefly had....perhaps I am being illogical (sorry Mr Spock) but musical adventures are not always logical or totally rational. So despite you being 100% right...I still fancy a CDI or CDX...As the Americans would say 'go figure?' :)
 
I fully understand people not getting on with a cdx/cdx2 as I have found the cdx2 to be mechanical sounding as times. The cdx2 is very fussy regarding what it is placed on as it has metal feet that need to couple with glass ect. that then needs to decouple from room/floor vibration. Thinking about it Naim voiced it on Fraim, possibly hampering its universality, the cd5 on the other hand has rubber feet and is easy to place.
All of this is volume and system dependant and everyone will find differing opinions on the varied range of cd players be it Naim or other.

After a few speaker swaps later I now have my cdx2 sounding musical in a turntable kind of way but I am still hanging on to the cd5.
 
Nye Samuel said:
I have a Rega Apollo R (current spec,) and it is ok but not a patch on my memory (dangerous concept) of my CDI..
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No offence taken. Unfortunately you are right. Aural memory can be flawed. I have gone back and listened to things I lived with perfectly happily previously and been shocked by how poor they sound.

I'm not saying the CDi sounds poor, not at all. It's still a well loved player and if it sounds like the CDS I can see why. Be cautious though as not all Naim CD players sound like that. I found the CDX very impressive at first. Huge sound, great dynamics and detail. Very intolerant of poor CDs though and I found the music wasn't hanging together properly. The artists were all individuals but not jelling together into a band. In hi-fi terms, there was no air between them. Things didn't flow together as a cohesive whole. Like the loudest parts of the performance were in technicolor but the quieter parts were absent. The XPS helped a bit but much less than I hoped it would and not enough to justify the cost.

Of course if you buy one of these players and don't like it you can just sell it again. Which is exactly what I did. Lost no money thankfully.
 
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