HELP!, I got a pioneer elite CLD-99 laserdisc player making some bad noises (1 Viewer)

[joseph f]

I got a pioneer elite cld-99 laserdisc player making some bad noises. when you power it up it makes a clicking sound. When the clicking noise stops the code E4 is in the display. When you press the open/close button the error code L1 is in the display.

I just got this player shipped to me and believe that it was not alway kept right side up by the shippers. Is there anything I can do myself to do further diagnosis on this?

 

[Rachael B]

It sounds like the drawer has been knocked out of alignment...? I had that happen with one and it had that clicking noise. Take a look at the shipping box and see if the corners are all crushed. That's a sign of shipper abuse.

 

[greg_t]

Joseph,

Contact Duncan Hunter at www.laserdiscservice.com You can call or email him. He can help you out and if the player does require service (which sounds likely) he is highly recommended. Not only can he fix the player he can get it into peak condition for you.

In the meantime just take the cover off and see if you can see what's happening.

 

[Grant B]

My 79 was left on my doorstep upside down and had a similiar problem. I had insurance and got them to pay for repairs I needed.
I had it fixed locally since I did not want it shipped again.
FYI
I opened it up at the time and could not see the problem and was amazed by the complex mechanisism inside and I'm usually pretty good at fixing things.
Good Luck
Grant

 

[joseph f]

the seller on this says she will take it back and give me my money back(she didn't want to use insurance but I insisted). I offered to open it up and take a look if she gives me permission and it does not void her offer of me returning it for a refund. I am not sure though what I would be looking for either here. I would think I would be able to see where the noise is coming from but at that point I would not know what to do with it.

I would like to keep it if possible since it looks like a nice machine otherwise but at the same time I don't want to dump a bunch of money into it. I would be better off returning it, eating the shipping again, and looking for a different one.

 

[Rachael B]

Joeseph, how did you come to choose the 99? Can you really make use of the comb filter on board? Besides the comb, the only other thing it's got that the CLD-79/D704 don't have is the Strobe Effect. I have a 99 and it's S-video output ain't what it used to be. I have a 24" Sony set that it's S-video output is useful on. The other sets all have better combs that the 99's.

I'm suggesting that you'll proably be just as well off with a 79/704 for less $. It depends on your display device...

 

[greg_t]

Maybe ask the seller if they will pay for the repair. If you haven't already, get ahold of someone knowledgable about laserdisc repair such as Duncan and see if he can point you in the right direction or give you a repair quote. It may be something simple. The seller isn't going to be able to sell it broke, so they may be willing to go in on it's repair, and Duncan is the best.

 

[joseph f]

the price was not too bad on it, I had been watching the 704s for a while but anything real nice was going for not too much less than what I paid for this 99. The 99 I got is really nice cosmetically and she swears it worked a couple weeks ago, I think she just did a not so good job on packaging and labelling. no where on the box did it say this side up or fragile.

I have a toshiba 57" HD theaterwide 57H94 for a monitor. I am using a cld-505 that I am relatively happy with, but I wanted a digital out for my DTS discs. I was planning on moving the 505 to our other family room. I do have about 300 discs and a yamaha ddp-1 sound processor for the dolby digital discs so I didn't think it was a terrible investment.

I have seen some say the 704s are as good as the 99s and other say not.

 

[Rachael B]

Joseph, as a composite player, the 99, 704, and 79 are pretty much the same thing. I've had the 99, 79, and D703 which is the same as the 704 minus the AC-3 plug. They all use the same laser diode, spindle motor, disc clamp, ect. If you want better composite performance, sniff around for a CLD-97 or it's older version CLD-95. If you ever get a 95, don't even hook up it's S-video and even see how poor it is, yeah, had one. I wish I hadn't sold it.

I been there and done it all with LD since the mid 80's. If I was gonna spend extra over what a 79 or 704 costs, I'd aim for a 97 and alot of 'em have been mod'ed for AC-3. My local dealer stille had plenty of 97's in stock back in '95 when the 99 came out. They mod'ed the lot. I would'a bought one at the time if finances would of allowed...

Good luck on our quest for a new player!

 

[joseph f]

Thank you everyone for your input and advice. I contacted Duncan as suggested and have already heard back from him with an estimate. The seller offered to help pay to fix the player. I am going to pursue this and have Duncan do whatever else needs to be done to get it in tip top condition. I figure this way I will know exactly what I have versus starting over. I did call a couple of local shops, they each said they thought they could fix it but would need to see it. Even with all the extra shipping I believe I am better off skipping the local guys and going to someone who knows his stuff.
By the way, I am laserboy300 on the laserdisc database. I want to list links here to my CD and LD collections as well as my HT setup but have not quite figured it out yet. Thanks again.

 

[greg_t]

Very wise decision. the 99 is a great player and if you have Duncan service it, align it, maybe give it a new laser, spindle motor, belts, etc, it should provide you with years of trouble free service and you will know you're player is in top operating condition.

I had my Pioneer HLD-X9 fixed by someone very knowlegeable in ld repair, it still had bad problems when returned, so I found Duncan and sent it to him. Duncan found two problems the previous tech had missed that were causing the issues. He is the best.

 

[Rachael B]

Joseph, when the 99 gets back, hook it up with both composite and S-video. Then find an LD with a dark scene next to a well-lit scene. Set up an A-B Repeat segment and compare both signals. The dark scene should reveal a good bit of noise. See if one connection minimizes it. In the light scene, look for colour detail. Red is the hardst colour to display as it tends to wanna be a bit run-y. Red Star Trek uniform shirts work well for me. See if the reds seem to run less with either connection.

Myself, I'm betting on composite...