BAT VK-D5SE Mistracking

If you still have the Philips laser assembly there are YouTube videos showing how to install it. You can do it yourself!

I still have it. I’ve been searching YouTube and have looked at a few videos but I haven’t found one for the Philips yet. I’m sure I can do it if I find one for the Philips that shows me how to do it. Doesn't it have to be realigned if it's replaced?

I don’t think it needs realignment. I read a post here about a member who replaced his Marantz player’s laser assembly. I expect the Philips assembly is similar or the same. I have to buy and replace the assembly in my Marantz CD67SE. It will no longer read discs.

A company like BAT selling expensive gear should stand behind their products and offer servicing! Shame on them for telling you they won't repair it!

I found the Philips videos on YouTube finally and it doesn't look too complicated. I'm going to try cleaning and regreasing the rails first then see if that fixes it before I try changing out the laser.
It took two weeks to get a reply back from BAT. I heard back from someone at Music Direct first, who now owns BAT, who told me that they wouldn't service it and forwarded my email to Victor Khomenko. I heard back from him a few days later and he told me that the player would longer be serviced and couldn't/wouldn't recommend me to a tech that would service it. I realize the player's around ten years old but it was a top of the line very expensive unit when they built it. I'd hoped they would at least have tried to help me with it more than they did which amounted to nothing. Khomenko just couldn't be bothered.

Shame on Music Direct too for "passing the buck"! They bought BAT from Victor K. - and paid him a pretty penny! - obviously to make a profit. So owners of BAT gear that needs repair will be screwed - in the bad sense!

All of those small companies they have life exactly of the on site life of the owner. VK is now almost 80 and definitely doesn't want to be bothered.

On MOST CD-players if not all, re-greasing the tracking gears and cleaning laser lenses will do the trick no matter how expensive they are(were).

I still have CD-changer from 90's that I do that every once in a while as a routine surgery.

Getting to the tracking mechanisms can be sophisticated on some units, but after doing proper homework, you quit being helpless.

I have replaced laser mechanisms myself in cd players, but I am a retired electrical technician. It's easy on some players and a little more complicated on others. If you have any experience repairing or modifying any electronics it is easy. If you don't you might know someone who can do it for you. It's sad that no one wants to help you with this problem. Maybe someone on Audiogon will recommend someone, Good luck. 

slovell

Sam, did you replace the Chip set in your VK-5SE ?

Happy Listening!

No, not yet. I wasn't aware they were replacable.

Got it out, cleaned and lubed as much of the rail as I could get to without disassembling everything. I was able to get to about 80% of it. Cleaned the laser lens. I cycled it from the first to the last track several times and have a cd playing through right now. I'll listen to one when this first one finishes up. I hope I did some good. The rail wasn't really dirty but it was dry with no trace of lube.

Check belt drive if there’s one as well if it’s any stretched or lose to replace.

Usually would look like an o-ring you can get from Ace Hardware

slovell

Re-read your posts over on Audio Asylum.

Happy Listening!

slovell

And Audio Aficionado.  Happy Listening!

AH, you’re asking about the DF-PMD100 upgrade chip that replaces the HDCD chip. Well. I couldn’t figure out which chip it’s supposed to replace. The instructions that came with it has a photo of the chip it replaces but it doesn’t match any chip that I can see on the board. The photo shows a chip with HDCD printed on it but mine doesn’t have one that matches it. I emailed the seller in Germany and Lampizator a couple of times and never got a reply from either of them. I have a spot with an HDCD light on the face of the player but when I loaded an HDCD it didn’t light up. I’m not sure if the VK-D5SE even decodes HDCD as I haven’t found any info on it. I just left things alone until I could maybe find any info about it. Until your post about it I’d forgotten I still had it. lol

I've played two discs and haven't had any mistracking so far. One of them was mistracking quite a bit before but played perfectly this time. Fingers crossed.