CD192/CD73 CD Tray Question

[TimHiFi]

Hi All

I have just purchased a CD192, and I must say that I am very impressed with the sound quality.

I however have a question regarding the CD Tray of the 192 (and the 73, as its uses the same mechanism).

It looks to me that the tray (when retracted back into the machine) is ever so slightly sloping in the apperture.

Its not so bad as to be a problem I think, but in effect it looks like its at a very slight angle.

I've looked at the Arcam literature, and all the ones they show are spot on. I guess they are probably mock ups anyway.

I think after spending this much cash on a CD192 I expected a more strudy CD loading mechanism.

Other manufacturers tend to have a little flap that the tray comes out of, so tray alignment is never noticed. Arcam have this coming straight out. Is this just manufacturing variability ?

Am I unique in this 'feature', or am I perhaps just being a little too much of a perfectionist ?

[LPspinner]

Hi TimHiFi

Yes my CD192 is like that as well. It doesn’t look nice and I was a bit miffed when I noticed it but id doesn’t affect the sound and the otherwise the draw mechanism operates OK, so I live with it. You get a two year warranty with the Diva stuff so if something dies go belly up in the first two years you are covered anyway.

LPSpinner

[TimHiFi]

Hi LPspinner

At least I know I am not alone in noticing the Tray misalignment then :0(

Perhaps one day Arcam might offer a 'CD Tray' upgrade ?

I am coupling the CD192 with an AVR300, and it is such an improvement over my last CD Player.
Its brought new life to my CD collection.

I am still interested to hear from other CD192./CD73 owners about their CD trays ?

[ChrisM]

Hi guys.

Had my CD192 since October and agree with the comments about its sound quality. I upgraded from a CD72T and the difference is significant. As for the CD tray, mine is absolutely square in the slot.

[thorny]

Hi TimHiFi,

I just upgraded from CD73 to CD192 three weeks ago. Both old and new tray fitted/fits perfect in the slot.


Probably the following won´t solve your problem, but maybe it´s worth to check.

What about your players buttons on the front panel, are they centered or do they touch the panel somehow ? I mean, maybe it´s the frame which doesn´t fit perfect.

Here´s my strange but true story: when I got my CD73 three years ago, I had problems with opening the tray with a CD in it. The CD touched s.th. of the draw mechanism on the upper side and the tray opened only half way. When I carefully loosened one or two screws of the frame a little bit, some tension in the frame vanished audible and I had no longer problems with the tray.

The same with my A90, the speaker-buttons were almost not to push, they touched the panel so hard on one side. Again I loosened two screws a bit on the frame´s side and that helped. Now, the buttons are not perfectly centered, but here we talk about fractions of a millimeter. I can live with it and everything works.

Best regards

[TimHiFi]

Hi Everyone

Looks like its a 'live with it' or 'get it fixed/replaced' problem :0(

I think I'll photograph the tray and send it in to Arcam technical support for comments.

Not that happy with this .... but the sound is good !

[webhammer]

It would be very difficult for the actual transport to be out of line, but the drawer face may very well have a slant. Not to suggest trying to fix this yourself, BUT, the FACE of the drawer actually clicks into place onto the transport. I would think that anybody could at least check to see that the face was seated properly - with the drawer out and power off, grab the face both left and right, thumbs on top of each side of the drawer face and index and third fingers under tray on each side to stabilize it (DO NOT PUSH DOWN WITHOUT CONTROL OF THE DRAWER FROM BENEATH!!!). Then push down with your thumbs to see if the high side may be clicked into place. This is also part of the 73 to 192 upgrade, replacing that face with one with the new number on it, so dealers and service centers merely push up on the old 73 face to remove it, then push down on the new 192 face to reinstall. IF YOU FEEL AT ALL UNCOMFORTABLE ABOUT PUSHING ON THE TRAY, DON'T DO IT!!!!

Originally Posted by TimHiFi

Hi All

I have just purchased a CD192, and I must say that I am very impressed with the sound quality.

I however have a question regarding the CD Tray of the 192 (and the 73, as its uses the same mechanism).

It looks to me that the tray (when retracted back into the machine) is ever so slightly sloping in the apperture.

Its not so bad as to be a problem I think, but in effect it looks like its at a very slight angle.

I've looked at the Arcam literature, and all the ones they show are spot on. I guess they are probably mock ups anyway.

I think after spending this much cash on a CD192 I expected a more strudy CD loading mechanism.

Other manufacturers tend to have a little flap that the tray comes out of, so tray alignment is never noticed. Arcam have this coming straight out. Is this just manufacturing variability ?

Am I unique in this 'feature', or am I perhaps just being a little too much of a perfectionist ?

[chrisor]

TimHiFi, can you place a photo of the misaligned tray as a post? I would like to see the misalignment.

[TimHiFi]

How do you post pictures ? I assume you can't just include them here ?

[TimHiFi]

OK ... I've figured out how to post images to the Forum, and the rules associated with them.

As I said in my first post to this thread, the misalignment is small, but still very annoying.

[TimHiFi]

UPDATE:

I have contacted the Dealer I purchased the CD192 from, and they are going to sort it out for me.

[proux]

Great, another example of shoddy external parts in expensive stuff by Arcam... like my DV79 buttons which they refused to fix! DV79 front panel buttons: are yours dodgy?

[TimHiFi]

Sorry to hear that :0(

I must admit, I was expecting the tray mechansim to feel a bit more expensive than it is. Feels a bit like a PC CD-ROM drive .... except they usually fit.

I am beginning to wonder whether the Japanese with their mass production actually do the mechanics better :0(

[proux]

Hope your dealer has more sway / luck with Arcam! Mine insisted on sending the unit back to them, but still to no avail. Oh well... I guess they want to make us all buy FMJ !

[TimHiFi]

Hi All

My Dealer recitified my concerns with the CD192 CD Tray Draw on saturday.

I now have a horizontal draw, albeit a little closer to the top of the slot, than the bottom (about 0.5mm here so I am being a bit picky).

Looking at other CD192's CD73S and the DVD Players too, they all vary a bit it seems (perhaps build quality needs to improve Arcam!)

For those interested, it appears that the metal logo panel on the front of the draw tray is fixed to the tray mechanism with a single screw in the middle, accessed from behind with the tray extended.

This single point of fixing means that the panel can pivot slightly in the slot, and hence look angled. Loosening and tightenening the screw with a small screwdriver, with the panel aligned can fix the problem.

Please note, my Dealer did this with Arcam's approval!