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General => Technical Help => Topic started by: copperbeech5 on Wednesday 02 September 20 18:42 BST (UK)
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Hi all,
In need of a bit of help here please, my audio CD has started skipping on occasions, (I have had it a while) but then realised the lens has never been cleaned and wonder if this might be worth looking at before I give up on it.
I just wonder if any of you can suggest what actually works and what product I should look for?
Many thanks
Copperbeech5
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I would get one of the liquid ones from amazon, round about £3, with free delivery.
Music cds seem to be almost obsolete these days, all our favourites are put on the iPad and play on the tv sound bar via Bluetooth.
Mike
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Thanks Mike, yes I am a bit of a creature of habit!!
Appreciate your help.
Cb5
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Because they are well hidden from the outside world, the lenses on CD and DVD players don't normally get dirty. If you have/had a smoker in the house, bets are off on that.
If the lens cleaner doesn't return proper operation, it is most likely to be caused by the lubrication of the mechanism drying out. Sorting that out would involve opening the player. This is not normally difficult; the case screws are likely to be obvious. I don't think the unit will still be under warranty. Unplug the unit first!
The lens moves on a motor-driven sliding carriage, and the sliding part will be what needs treating. Specialists will use lithium grease, but WD40 or 3-in-1 are more readily available and work perfectly well. Don't use thick oil; the thinner the better.
Clean off anything "crusty", and then apply a LITTLE lubricant. A cotton bud is the ideal applicator, and they would be excellent for cleaning the mechanism too.
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Wow, above and beyond the call of duty!!
Thank you so much for your comprehensive care plan and explanation, it is much appreciated!
I shall give it a go.
Thank you,
Cb5
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Don't forget that CD's ( I am not talking DRIVES ) get dirty.
MILD WARM washin-up liquid, gently applied, well rinsed.
When "they" first issued CDs, the expected life span was "10 years".
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"Music cds seem to be almost obsolete these days, all our favourites are put on the iPad and play on the tv sound bar via Bluetooth."
Try a Brennan Player . . . . .
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Glasses cleaner.
It will not leave any oil residue.
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The hard part may be gaining access to the lens. It is quite easy with most laptop optical drives; press the eject button and it is there on the tray.
With many household players and those in desktop computers and game consoles, there is no access to the lens without dismantling.
Many years ago I came across a lens cleaner consisting of a CD platter with a line of short bristles running radially. You wet the bristles with lens cleaning solution and put it in the drive. The drive spins it up attempting to play it, then gives up, hopefully having washed the lens.
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I would get one of the liquid ones from amazon, round about £3, with free delivery.
Music cds seem to be almost obsolete these days, all our favourites are put on the iPad and play on the tv sound bar via Bluetooth.
Mike
One of these ;D ;D
Problem is the isopropyl alcohol evaporated very quickly
Mike
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To clean the internal lens another solution is something like this
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Thank you all for your helpful suggestions, I shall have a go this weekend..... all being well!!
Cb5
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I suspect that most CD lens cleaning products/devices are more of a solution looking for a problem. I’ve never cleaned (or come across anyone who needed to clean) one. Perhaps it’s because my CD player is only in its youth - 30 odd years old.
How many people have had to clean their computer CD/DVD drives? They’re all the same mechanism. If your drive is giving problems and the same happens with more than one CD, it’s probably time to change it.
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Yes you have a good point, and normally I wouldn't bother, mine is of a similar age, but it is now skipping on all CD's!
Cheers Cb5
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Having used both CD and DVD lens cleaners over the last 15yrs no problems using the said cleaner.
[Search CD lens cleaner], costs from @2pounds for basic disc to 5pounds for cleaner inc solution.
Brian
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There’s probably nothing wrong with cleaning such a lens but is it really necessary and will it improve things? Trouble is that the hi-fi fratenity have a long standing reputation for selleng, apparently/allegedly essential/better, equipment to gullible people.
They’ll sell you a pair of wizz bang interconnecting phono leads for £100 upwards but I’ve never seen them used in a recording studio. The most expensive you can buy at Studiospares (a well known UK supplier) are less than £23. You’ll also find that hi-fi buffs are sold on “special” speaker leads which claim to preserve all sorts of “original” features in the music which, given that no studio uses them, can’t logically exist in the original recording.
This myth was de-bunked in an article in Studio Sound magazine back in the 1980s when the legendary Hugh Ford anylised the technical effects of different sorts of wire. Yes, he said, these expensive cables are better but any effect is unlikely to be heard in speaker leads less than a quarter of a mile long. But still they sell them!
Clean your lenses by all means and let us know the results but beware of the King’s new clothes.
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Thanks chaps again for your extra suggestion!
Cheers Cb5
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Music cds seem to be almost obsolete these days,
I'm still playing wax cylinders on my phonograph :o :o :o :o ;D ;D ;D ;D
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Still using an expensive multi CD player from the 80's good today as when purchased, feeding into a 50w/channel amp makes the windows rattle.
Brian