BAT VK-D5 CD Player Needed New Transport Assembly

You've got a problem ... the BAT uses the Phillips 12.4 transport which is one of the most troublesome, unreliable transports on the planet. I had a Cary 303/100 AND a 303/200 which both had Phillips 12.4 transport problems. I finally junked 'em. When looking for a new CD player I purposely chose one that did not use the Phillips transport (I bought a MF Nu-Vista 3D CD which uses a Sony CDM14 transport). I looked at the VK-D5SE and thought it was pretty good, but passed 'cuz of the transport.

I have both BATs (Vkd5 & SE) and Meridian 508.24 that use Philips. I never had any trouble with any. The 508 is discontinued because they don't make the deck any more.

Friend got his 303/200 in the other day. Nice sounding unit. But had it shipped 2x's back to Cary for problems, trans?

Don't let the "doom and gloom" folks bring you down.
Anything with moving parts breaks. I had a VKD5 for 3 years, no problems. Sold it and bought a D5SE. Had that about a year now, no problems. If I were you I'd enjoy the music on your fine CD player. Don't sweat the small stuff.

beemer

My VK-D5 has been problem free for 4 years. Soundwise I picked it over several more $$ competitors. Enjoy!

Thanks for the above info on the BAT VK-D5. It helps..

Every CD player, no matter who makes it, will be prone to problems. The advice on Philips being worse than Sony is not thought out. Most every high end player from every manufacturer uses the Philips. My guess is 80% of the "hot" high end players made use Philips.

So with that, you will hear more problems. I sell all of them, and every CD player can (and does) break. That's it.

If there was a drive that was immune to service...when it is a minor part cost-wise in the big picture of a $5000 CD player, don't you think companies like Krell, Meridian, Naim, BAT, Cary, and everyone else would just use it? Silly.

It would be like saying "Four wheel cars are not good. They break" Well...most all cars have four wheels, so that's what you will hear about.

Sony makes a fine mechanism. So does Philips. I have sold tons of Sony machines since the invention of the Compact Disc, including Sony, Sony ES, Musical Fidelity, and Rega. All of them have broken. Is this a bad design? No. It's a CD player. The fact that they work at all is amazing to me at times. Especially with the CD's I pop into them.

The only stinker in my opinion is JVC as a drive (at least in previous years). But I don't care for them as a company, and hope there is a special place for them in Audio Hell.

Now...has any of these companies made a stinker? Yes! But that is no different than any other business.

So buy a player with a warranty!

Upscale is right about mechanical things breaking down ... they all do at some point. HOWEVER, the Phillips 12.4 transport DOES have a reputation of being unreliable and for having problems early on in the ownership cycle. It's THAT simple. I believe the only Phillips transport worth its salt is the PRO2 top loader. A good warranty is wonderful and essential, but having to pack, schlep and send back equipment (plus shipping) to the manufacturer in the early stages of ownership is disappointing and frustrating.

I would still stay away from the 12.4 transport.

I received my repaired BAT VK-D5 last Friday (May 10) and the new transport is working okay (to fix the error problem). I have been using it daily and every single CD played perfectly. Special thanks to BAT for the fast turn around with my repair.

From a BAT Product enhancement viewpoint (moving forward), I recommended that their transport assembly should hold the CD in a locked position (like my Meridian 508.20) and that it should be stronger. It is my opinion that a $4,500+ priced CD player should have a higher quality transport assembly. thanks...