CD Player Lens Cleaning help

[CaymanCroc]

Hi,

Im using a NAD C541 cd player, and off late its starting giving a lot of error messages (ie while reading CDs) I think the cd players lens may need cleaning...

In the past i have opened up DVD Players n old LD Players for lens cleaning with a bit of scotch on a cue tip ... do u think its a good idea with the NAD or should i just send the unit to the shop for servicing? Only problem is that itll be out for 3 to 4 days!!

Any ideas?

Cheers,
Cayman

[trollgirl]

Take the top off the CDP. Undo the springs which hold down the stabilizer which clamps to the top of the CD. Lift up the stabilizer so to have access to the lens. With the little bottle of liquid lens cleaner (buy at camera store), CAREFULLY drop one drop of cleaner onto the lens, without letting it run down and without touching the lens. After it has soaked for a few minutes, blot the liquid off of the lens with the edge of a piece of lens paper (buy at camera store) - again,. do not touch the lens with the paper. Put everything back together. Play CD. Enjoy!

Laz

[Mash]

keep your CD player ???

I bought a Hitachi CD player in 1984, and although is deep bass was a little indistinct, I used that Hitachi until last year when it failed to open its door at turn-on. Its last 5 years of duty were in the kitchen, and NEVER in those 19 years of use did I ever have to "clean its lens". So why do you have to "clean the lens" of your CD player?? Are you blowing cigar smoke into it??

Error correction means a tempory disruption to the data stream has ocurred, i.e. a local flaw on the disc. If the lens were the problem, the error would be "continuous", i.e. the player would not play. Think about this.

How often do you inspect your CD's and DVD's for finger prints and scratches ?? I wash my discs with liquid hand soap as needed, sometimes with Go-Jo for stubborn marks, and I have used fine rubing paste to polish out a few scratches.

"Cleaning the lens" of your CD player should, in my mind, be an absolutely unnecessary task that could actually cause harm to the player.

[FLZapped]

Take the top off the CDP. Undo the springs which hold down the stabilizer which clamps to the top of the CD. Lift up the stabilizer so to have access to the lens. With the little bottle of liquid lens cleaner (buy at camera store), CAREFULLY drop one drop of cleaner onto the lens,

Laz


One should never put the liquid directly onto the lens, instead it should be applied to the applicator and then the lens cleaned.

There is always the possibility that the lens isn't sealed which would allow the cleaner to weep into the assembly.

-Bruce

[poneal]

Just use 600 grit sandpaper then smooth it out with some steel wool. That always works for me! For all you Beavis and Buttheads out there don't take this seriously....

[ciscokid1970]

The only CD lens I have ever cleaned is the one on my portable player, since it is visible and comes in contact with dust and dirt.

But a home unit should never need cleaning unless you live in a very humid / salty air area? I agree that it is more likely that your CD has become scratched or is in need of a good cleaning.

This is one of the reasons that my original cd's never leave the safety of my cd changers.

If you must clean your cd lens use eyeglass cleaner and eyeglass paper...and be gentle.

[pelly3s]

But a home unit should never need cleaning unless you live in a very humid / salty air area? I agree that it is more likely that your CD has become scratched or is in need of a good cleaning.


your home cd player should be cleaned at least once a year along with the rest of your gear. dust can get in anywhere, and can be an awful thing.

the easiest way to clean the lens is to buy a high quality lens cleaning kit. then you won't have any worries. it's just a cd with very small brushes on them.

[Mash]

A cd with very small brushes will load the disc drive when the brushes strike the lens and a CD drive was never designed to bear a drive load. All a CD drive is designed to do is spin a disc which nothing is supposed to be touching... unlike a phonograph which must have a strong-enough drive to withstand the drag torque introduced by the stylus. The brushes can and will scratch the lens. Dust grit is everywhere.

I bought an almost-brand-new Fanfare tuner cheap and its problem was that the display lens was not really clear. Someone probably cleaned it with a paper towel. A good careful polish job made the lens nice and clear again. Heck, a paper towel will scratch plastic eyeglasses which is why people who dry their just-washed eyeglasses with paper towels must trash their eyeglasses every year or so. I wash my glasses with liquid soap and water and then blot dry with clean cotton toweling, so my 5-year-old glasses look like they are less than 3 months old. Glass and plastic are easier to scratch than most people know.

Bottom line: skip the cleaning except for dusting your equipment when required so that you will not break what isn't broken. Don't let your overactive imagination cause you unneeded problems....