CD-PRO2M Builder's questions and comments

ks-JPN · « **Reply #140 on:** 8 Mar 2005, 01:26 pm »

Quote from: ken_diyzone.net

Hi Ks-Jpn,

Having some issues getting the kits out the door in taiwan. If I can't reslove by this weekend, I'll send your kit from US via airmail at no extra charge.

Again, very sorry for the delay.

Regards,
Ken

Hi Ken

Can you get kit from Taiwan for me?

Or ship from US already

ken_diyzone.net · « **Reply #141 on:** 8 Mar 2005, 03:24 pm »

Hi Ks-Jpn,

Our kits are still stuck in custom in Taiwan.

I will be shipping your kit (and a few other international ones) from NY today; will take about 4 days flying to Japan. Will get you a tracking number later today.

Again, usually we are pretty good at sending stuff out, very sorry for the delay this time.

Regards,
Ken

westiebj · « **Reply #142 on:** 9 Mar 2005, 01:13 pm »

Hi

I've just added some (slightly blurred) pictures of my built CDPRO2M.

They show the relocated drive and display, in particular the replacement pillars I fabricated out of aluminium rod. This allowed the display to be positioned between them without any problems, although drilling and tapping the ends wasn't the easiest thing I've done.
I also placed the mounting brackets for the display board on the front facing forward as this fitted nicely, allowed the board to be flush with the base plate and avoided the fixing hole for one of the feet.

Other changes made were non-ferrous screws to locate the 3 large transformers (2 of the 3 supplied bolts were too short) along with large rubber pads and washers top and bottom, and the standby switched fitted upside down, i.e. push down to trigger as I thought this looked/felt better.

Next job is to shorten the push buttons and spray the front panel silver to match the rest of my kit (maybe).

More (better?) pictures to follow.

JoshK · « **Reply #143 on:** 9 Mar 2005, 10:17 pm »

nice work! I especially like the pillars. How does one tap? What tool do you need?

westiebj · « **Reply #144 on:** 10 Mar 2005, 10:27 am »

Hi

What you need is a tap and die set which lets you cut threads in holes (tap) and cut threads onto shafts etc (die).

They are available quite cheaply for a range of thread sizes. Mine was aprox £19 in UK so I guess that will be $19 if you are in the US

Cheers

JoshK · « **Reply #145 on:** 10 Mar 2005, 03:14 pm »

I think I am going to have to invest in a tapping set, got enough cases to build to make it worthwhile. Thanks for the info.

ks-JPN · « **Reply #146 on:** 13 Mar 2005, 02:32 am »

Quote from: ken_diyzone.net

Hi Ks-Jpn,

Our kits are still stuck in custom in Taiwan.

I will be shipping your kit (and a few other international ones) from NY today; will take about 4 days flying to Japan. Will get you a tracking number later today.

Again, usually we are pretty good at sending stuff out, very sorry for the delay this time.

Regards,
Ken

Hello Ken

The CDP kit was delivered this morning.
However, neither inner-tray nor clamp are in the box.

I paid the charge of inner-tray and clamp in pursuance of your　instructions.
Send them immediately.

regards

K.Sugano

ken_diyzone.net · « **Reply #147 on:** 13 Mar 2005, 03:07 am »

hi ks-jpn,

No worry, I promise the tray and the clamp will be there when you need them.

They are already in the mail, should be there shortly.

Have fun building. Please go through the part list, let me know if there are any missing parts, I will send them quickly also.

Regards,
Ken

ks-JPN · « **Reply #148 on:** 13 Mar 2005, 12:57 pm »

Hi Ken

Thanks!

Ks-JPN

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #149 on:** 14 Mar 2005, 06:54 pm »

JustaNote:

Because I have installed an Ack! dAck! v2.0 into my CDPro2M unit, I had to use the threaded hole for the Standby switch in the CDP front plate for the (rather complex) dAck! power switch. As a consequence, a second, symmetrical located, hole was drilled for the CDPro2M Standby switch on the other side. The dAck! also has LED indicators, and I felt is necessary to locate the LED’s for each circuit on the same respective side as the switches inside the smoked screen plate; CDP on the left side and dAck! on the right side.

When refitting the LED’s (mounted on fabricated circuit boards attached to the middle 2 front aluminum pillars), they are oriented sideways (90 deg) to the normal viewed orientation. As a consequence of this, and the Note of intent here, is that while the LED is easily visible, it is much less bright in the off-axis viewing. Subjectively, I find the reduced LED brightness to be desirable for dark room listening.

ken_diyzone.net · « **Reply #150 on:** 14 Mar 2005, 07:19 pm »

Noobybadoo,

That is great! How does it sound, comparing the CD-PRO2 internal DAC vs the Ack! DAC? Do you add in another Power Supply?

Thanks
Ken

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #151 on:** 14 Mar 2005, 08:33 pm »

Ken, Steve:
Just a thought toward making your life and the life of the kit builder a bit easier: Do a revision of the Construction Manual, call it Rev. 2.0, date it, and put in it all the current revisions and corrections. Number each of the paragraphs according to some relevant hierarchical scheme [ i.e.: 1, 1.1, 1.1.1, etc. ].
Once this is in place for access, experienced kit builders could then post/submit proposed revisions to the manual using the paragraph number scheme to conveniently show text location and text hierarchy. There could be periodic revision to manual to be reflected in the Rev. series number and date. A dated addendum sheet for interim revision intervals could be utilized. Just this would be updated with associated paragraph numbers to indicate where the particular revision text would be inserted into the manual.
This general approach would provide a means to incrementally improve the Manual content, help keep all recent information in one place (the forum thread, and the accessible manual), and would provide the clearest and most complete information at that time. I think this would help capture descriptive improvements, reduce ambiguity for the builder, and reduce correspondence frequency and redundancy for yourself.

Also, for a kit of this complexity, a full and accurate schematic with clear test point values [i.e. circuit on, circuit off, -V, +V, DC, AC, etc.] seems essential. Aside from troubleshooting mis-wires, this would be useful for diagnosis in the event of a failed components or IC’s.

Thanks for your time, and thanks for a great kit.

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #152 on:** 14 Mar 2005, 08:46 pm »

Quote from: ken_diyzone.net

Noobybadoo,

That is great! How does it sound, comparing the CD-PRO2 internal DAC vs the Ack! DAC? Do you add in another Power Supply?

Thanks
Ken

I am not yet done with my post construction start-up verification. I may yet today actually listen to it for the first time to verify that the combined unit is working normally. After that short listen, I will take the unit off-line for and extended 2-week 24/7 break-in cycle. I purchased the "High Resolution" upgrade to the dAck!, but the downside to this that an extended break-in interval is needed.

Thus, I will not have any comparative evaluation of the dAck! or DAC anytime soon.

The dAck! has a battery driven power supply. I have mounted the battery into the CDP chassis box, and the large wall-wort PS remains external. According to the dAck! manufacturer, none of the CDP's power supplies output the correct voltage for the dAck1. I will use a fabricated PS during the break-in period only, because the battery is inconvenient for this. Normal dAck! operation is battery only.

Cheers and beers.

ken_diyzone.net · « **Reply #153 on:** 14 Mar 2005, 10:27 pm »

Hi NoobyBaboo,

Thanks for the suggestions. I have contracted a web designer in an effort to put this project into a more manageable world.

Do let us know how CD-PRO2M plus Ack! DAC work together, and if you can, post some pictures so other CD-PRO2 builders can try.

Regards,
Ken

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #154 on:** 16 Mar 2005, 09:07 pm »

Using the remote or front panel buttons, is it possible to program the CDPro2M repeat-play an entire disc, rather than an inidvidual song. If so, can you detail what the sequence of keystrokes is?

Thanks.

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #155 on:** 17 Mar 2005, 03:44 am »

Well, Dodo, the answer is:

Using the remote, push the repeat button once and the whole disk repeats, push it twice and the current song repeats. For the first case the display shows "repeat", for the second case, the display shows "repeat l".

BRN · « **Reply #156 on:** 19 Mar 2005, 01:58 am »

What scews do I need to use to attach the heat sinks and the U1, U2 and U3 on the VFD power supply?

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #157 on:** 19 Mar 2005, 03:04 pm »

Quote from: BRN

What scews do I need to use to attach the heat sinks and the U1, U2 and U3 on the VFD power supply?

The screw inventory for the kit is ....... inconsistent in some respects. At least mine was. You have a selection of sizes: Use the shortes length that will fit through the board, any insulation, the heat sink, the IC and the fixing nut. Double check any [electical] insulation details for the specific IC package.

The small heat sink attaches as per the picture on P 14 of the manual. The monster heat sinks are actually attached by soldering the large pins that fin into the waiting holes on the circuit board (a large heat capacity iron, or long time needed). Bolt the IC to the [large] heat sinks before fitting and soldering to the chassis (i.e.; install them as a unit).

BRN · « **Reply #158 on:** 19 Mar 2005, 05:55 pm »

I found the same thing when doing the inventor of the screws, but everything else was dead on if not a part or two extra. I have found the kit to be an enjoyable build so far. I just hope that the rest goes as smoothly.
Thanks for the advice.

Brad

NoobyBaboo · « **Reply #159 on:** 20 Mar 2005, 03:36 pm »

As of last night, my kit is completed and working normally. With the install of an aftermarket DAC and moving the VFD board and transport forward, this was not a standard build, but the final fit and finish turned out very well. There will be pictures in the distant future. The first listen was very satisfying in that the sound field was noticeably larger and the harmonic detail of instruments better with their discrimination in space improved. The system is now running a 2-week 24/7 break-in cycle.

Prospective builders are advised that this is not a simple kit, and while no particular step is hard per se, the quality of execution and attention to detail for each step needs to be very high in order to ensure single-cycle success. There are a number of seemingly inconsequential component orientation details that must be correct for the system to work. I assume that, as for myself, most builders will not have extensive tooling and trouble shooting skills for figuring out problems with complex circuits. Trust me, but when you get done with the assembly of this kit, the last thing you want is problem. If there is any excitement to build the kit fast: Kill It. It goes with territory that one should double and triple check each singe step of the process, which is the practice of patience. My build time was probably 80-90 hours, but this was enjoyable progress and is nothing compared to the black hole of time for troubleshooting dysfunction.

Suggested tools are:
A 7-10 power loupe. Being first on the list should be an indication of my value of its importance. I inspected every-single-solder-joint with this, and thus removed any ambiguity about the quality of a solder joint. Inspecting those tight little IC socket terminal joints? Nooo problem. The loupe is essential for re-work. I soldered one of the 10K x # resistor networks in wrong and had to remove it. Being able to exactly see the state of the terminal was essential to successfully removing the resistor intact and leaving the board terminal intact. Just 2 of many uses for the loupe.

Along with the loupe is the need for a very bright pen light. The recent LED lights are great for this.

The oft suggested sharp pointy tip for the soldering iron.

Before each soldering session, I use large gauge 60/40 solder (0.060 in. dia. or larger) to thoroughly clean and tin the tip. What is needed with the large gauge solder is the relatively large amount of rosin in the core. This helps to clean the tip quickly, thoroughly and economically, so you can save your good solder for the board work. I mention this in part because the diameter of solder needed for the board work is 0.03. in. dia. or less, and using this to clean a tip requires a whoooole lot. The solder used for board work neeeeeds to be thin.

A solder dispenser from Michael Percy. This thing has a spool of solder on one end and finger wheels are used to feed the solder from the tool tip. This is very convenient for fine work and minimizing finger contact with lead.

RadoShak soldering tools. These are three pointy implements, double ended with a tool on each end and a handle shaft in the middle. These are very useful for board work, but RS’s idiot and progressively degenerating web site does not show them, so you’ll have to hit the store and hope the trip was worth it.

A cheap analog VOM, (12$ from Velleman) this helps to characterize the function of capacitors and circuits with capacitors. That value requires at least one known good component or one functioning circuit of a stereo pair to use for comparison. I check all caps and dyodees before install because they come to you as picked-out-of-a-bin.