EastSound CD

EastSound CD-E5 removal of existing transport
(detailed instructions)

Assuming the face plate is not sticking, failure to read a CD (NO DISC message when a CD is inserted) is most likely fixed with a transport replacement or at least a laser unit replacement, per the instructions below. If it is only a face plate sticking problem then skip these instructions to below for the solution.

Remove top cover sliding backward and upward - may need to pry open at back with a small screwdriver. May fit tightly, even with screws removed.

Carefully unplug 3 cables from the transport to circuit board. Two have a plastic tip and simply pull out by grasping this tip at the top of it and pulling outward. One is a 16 conductor ribbon cable. This one does not have a plastic tip on its end but is inserted into a plastic socket fixed to the circuit board (that looks like it is a tip of the cable itself, but is not). Gently grasp the ribbon itself and pull upward from the white plastic tip of the circuit board (don't try to pull out the plastic part).

At this point the Transport is free of the circuit board but still mounted at the base by 3 screws, each with a metal washer, and some rubber washers. The screws and one metal washer per screw will go in from the top of the transport while the rubber washers will go between the bottom of the transport and the base of the CD player. One screw is at the rear and two at each side of the front of the transport. Take a piece of paper with three positions marked on the paper labeled: Front near on/off switch, Front near open/close switch, and Center Rear. This will serve to identify and locate 3 sets of rubber washers you will remove from the transport. Each of the three screws has one metal washer but multiple rubber washers, where the rubber washer numbers may vary from screw to screw, and serve as spacers and dampeners. You need to note how many washers were used with each screw, to maintain the transport's height adjustment.

Now, push the transport tray out, if you have not yet done so, with your hand on the back of the tray, so that it is fully extended out of the player, ready to accept a CD. Next, pull out the aluminum face plate at the end of the tray - push upward from its bottom with your index fingers while pushing down from the top of the tray with your thumbs, and it comes out. Save it in a container with the 8 cover hex screws.

Keeping the tray out, you can now look down the well on each side of the front of the transport (in the CD player and not at the end of the extended tray) and see the 2 screws at the bottom of the well on each side of the front of the transport. These come out with a small-head Philips screwdriver (since it is a Philips transport), but first, look at the center rear of the transport mount for the third screw. This will come out too.

Unscrew (fully) all three screws but leave the screws in their wells, and the transport in place. Now fully push the tray inside the transport all the way in. Carefully lift the transport out - up and slightly to the rear. Then hold in place just above the CD player. Some rubber washers will fall out on the transport in this process and land on the CD player base. Let them fall in place, but note how many and in what screw position.

Carefully turn the transport on one of its sides, hold the center rear screw in place with the screwdriver and remove all rubber washers and the metal washer from the screw in the center rear. Put these on the CD player base close to the center rear screw position. Now look inside the transport for any rubber washers that might have dropped off of the center rear screw when you unscrewed it from the transport base. Total the number and enter this on the piece of paper under Center rear. Do the same for the left front and right front screws. What you want to do here is to identify how many rubber washers were used with each screw so you can use the same number with each screw as it came from the factory. The rubber washers are spacers that adjust the height the transport at the rear, left front, and right front. This is so the transport will fit the opening port without friction drag when the tray slides in and out. Here is what your notation of rubber washers used with each screw might look like:

3 in rear

2 nearest power on/off button side of front

2 nearest tray open/close button in front

Put the three screws and metal washers, and the multiple rubber washers, in a container - after you have identified the number of rubber washers used with each screw and noted as above. Put the transport mounting screws and all rubber/metal washers in a container and save your note. Keep with the face plate and 8 cover screws.

When you put in the new transport, you will use 1 metal washer and 3 rubber washers with the rear screw, and 2 rubber washers with both front screws. The screws and one metal washer per screw will go in from the top of the transport while the rubber washers will go between the bottom of the transport and the base of the CD player.

The new transport will come with the laser unit enclosed and the ribbon connector attached to the transport that connects the transport to the main circuit board, and two plastic tipped connectors. When the transport is mounted, these connectors will be connected to the main circuit board (on the same side of the player where the player control buttons are located).

EastSound CD-E5 installation of replacement transport
(detailed instructions)

The hardest part is to put the screws into the transport.

Put the front screws in first since the rear screw is easy. Prepare new transport mounting by extending the tray fully out and looking down from the top. You can thread the washer onto the screw then drop it through hole in the extended transport tray, and it might fall true and seat, but it has along travel and might not fall true. Work on a table top to capture any parts that fall. Sometimes the screws do not go in the bottom hole of the transport, or they might even rest upside down. Here you have to carefully turn the whole transport and its tray upside down to let the screw and washer fall out, then try again.

It is easier to insert the two front screws and their metal washers if you first remove the tray (instead of just extending it out).

You extend the tray fully out and look down on the transport and see a half moon opening on the top left front of the transport, and down inside this you see a plastic V-shaped wedge. You insert a small flat screwdriver down in the wedge on its outer surface (to the side of the on/of power button, or left side as you face the unit from the front of it), and push the screwdriver down to close the V wedge (outside in) while pulling the tray out. The tray pops out once the V wedge is closed from the outside in.

Now put a screw with one metal washer on it and drop in either of the front positions through the well of the tray, or lower in slowly with small tweezers, so that the screw is seated and its tip appears underneath the transport. If it misses the hole and fails to seat, turn the transport upside down (holding an edge of the laser unit in place to keep it from sliding around (won't really hurt it though) and let the screw fall out, and try again. Work on a table so you can catch parts on the table.

After the first screw is seated, support the rear of the transport on a table, keep the screwdriver down on the Philips screw head, and twist (don't push) the rubber washers on the screw tip's screw threads, in the amount of washers in your removal note. These rubber washers should stay in position on the screw tip without falling off, and should hold the screws in place in the transport well, even if the transport is turned upside down. If you failed to originally take note of how many rubber washers were on each screw, then go by the total number of rubber washers used in the original transport. If you have 8 total rubber washers, you could put three each on the front screws and two on the rear screw. If you have 7 total rubber washers then two would go on each front screw and three would go on the rear screw. If you have 5 total rubber washers then two each would go on the front screws and one on the rear screw.

You might also just put 2 on each screw, regardless of the original number, or one on the two front screws and two on the rear screw if you don't have many rubber washers. These washers should stay in position on the screw tip without falling off, and should hold the screws in place in the transport well, even if the transport is turned upside down.

Do the other front screw, then do the rear screw, per above. The rubber washers sometimes slip off as you lower the transport into position, which is why you gently thread them on and not just push them on the screws. Sometimes some Vaseline dabbed onto the rubber washers and screw tip will keep the washers on.

Keep in mind that all transports vary slightly in their dimensions and a new one may not perfectly be the same height as a previous one. So some adjustment in the number of rubber washers used, or the degree of their tightening, is not unusual. Even some face plate sanding may be required for fine tuning. The port and face plate fitting is precise, to keep dust out.

Before putting the transport in, check the travel of the laser unit nested inside the transport to be sure it moves in its tracks, with the tray removed or fully extended, sliding up and down where its posts are nested in the side grooves of the transport body.

Note, near the rear screw, a protrusion that matches with a hole in the transport base. You want to put this protrusion in the base hole. Now, lower the transport into the player, keeping the three connectors on the right side. As you do this, note a ribbon connector running from side to side at the bottom, on the floor of the CD player - this remains to run under the transport, to connect the power supply circuit board to the main circuit board, and leave this as it is.

Lower the transport into the player, keeping the three connectors from the transport on the right side to lay on the main circuit board.

Position the transport so that the rear screw matches with the rear screw hole. Without moving the transport around, screw the rear screw in until it is threading in its hole, but not until it is firmly seated. Now, do the same for the two front screws, again without fully tightening - move the transport very slightly, from one side to another, to get the front two screws to seat into the screw hole at the base of the CD player.

Now, tighten each screw until it is firm - but not real tightly seated at this point.

Mount the face plate on the outside end of the extended tray pushing down until it firmly seats. Now push the tray into the transport body until it locks in.

Extend the tray fully in and out repeatedly, and see if the face plate slides into the port without friction against the side of the port - gently sliding pressure should enable the face plate to clear the port without any friction. Strong resistance indicates the laser unit in the transport body is "off track" and not sliding freely in its tracks. If the tray does slide in and out but sticks or squeals some, determine on which edge the face plate is rubbing, as follows.

Push the transport in while applying slight pressure on the top of the tray. If the sticking/rubbing/squealing stops then you know the top of the faceplate is rubbing the top of the port opening. Tighten all three screws some, by degrees, to lower the transport relative to the port opening and see if this can eliminate the sticking. If not, remove the face plate and sand the top of the face plate, by degrees, until the sticking goes away.

If the sticking is on one side of the face plate, as determined by eliminating it by applying slight lateral pressure to the tray as it slides in and out of the transport body, that sticking side of the face plate will have to be sanded. Remove the face plate - push upward with your index fingers pushing its bottom while your thumbs push down on the top of the tray, and it comes out. Sand the end of the face plate until the sticking or rubbing stops.

This sticking face plate be also be corrected by adding or subtracting the number of rubber washers used between the three mounting screws and the player base, but it is easier to correct by sanding the edge of the face plate that seems to be rubbing in the port opening. You can remove the face plate to obtain proper functioning but this will allow dust to enter the inside of the player.

Getting the face plate to easily slide in and out of the port, without any sticking, is a must for proper CD operation. Once the tray slides in and out properly and freely, connect the three connectors to the main circuit board - each are different so there is no danger of a misconnection. Connect the ribbon connector with care - it easily slides into the white plastic base with little pressure but should be seated there.

Put the cover on (without screws at this point) and slide the tray in, then turn on and test. If all is well after trying several CDs, screw the hex screws into the top cover.

Once the tray slides in and out properly, connect the three connectors to the main circuit board - each are different so there is no danger of a misconnection. Connect the ribbon connector with care - it easily slides into the white plastic base with little pressure but should be seated there.

Correcting a rubbing tray slide

Extend the tray out with the remote, as if putting in a CD in the tray. If it does not come out you have a face plate sticking problem. If it does come out, note the aluminum face plate at the end of the tray. Now close the tray with the remote. Feel the front edge of the face-plate at the port opening to see if the tray is fully seated in the CD player. The face plate edge should be flush with the port opening when the tray is in. If the face plate protrudes outside slightly (does not fully recess into the CD player port) then the face plate is sticking or rubbing at the port opening, and can cause laser read problems.

Some slight transport change in height may occur with use, and cause face plate problems. Here you can feel or see the face plate protruding out slightly from the port, and if it protrudes, the new CD will not be locked up properly to get a laser read. You can remove the face plate and see it was the cause of laser reading problems. Open the tray fully out, so that it is fully extended out of the player, ready to accept a CD, and turn the CD player off. Next, pull out the aluminum face plate at the end of the tray - push upward with your index fingers pushing its bottom while your thumbs push down on the top of the tray, and it comes out. Try CD player function now, and if it is OK, all you need is a transport height or face plate sanding repair.

The first step is to find out where it is sticking - top, bottom, or one side of the faceplate.

Disconnect power plug from E5. Remove 8 top cover hex screws (you need a small metric hex wrench), and save in a container. Remove top cover sliding backward and upward - may need to pry open at back with a small screwdriver. May fit tightly, even with screws removed.

Pull out then push the transport in while applying slight pressure on the top of the tray. If the sticking/rubbing/squealing stops then you know the top of the faceplate is rubbing the top of the port opening. In this case, pull the tray fully out and with a Philips head screwdriver, tighten all three transport screws some, by degrees, to lower the transport relative to the port opening and see if this can eliminate the sticking. The two front screws are deeply seated in holes on each side of the transport, visible only when the tray is fully extended out.

If tightening these screws does not stop the rubbing, remove the face plate - push upward with your index fingers pushing its bottom while your thumbs push down on the top of the tray, and it comes out. Then sand the top of the face plate, by degrees, putting the face plate in and checking its clearance between sandings, until the sticking goes away.

Removing the laser unit for replacement
(without replacing the transport)

To remove the laser unit from the removed transport you first remove the tray from the transport. You have to unlock it.

You extend the tray and look down on the transport and see a half moon opening on the top left front of the transport, and down inside this you see a plastic V-shaped wedge. You insert a small flat screwdriver down in the wedge on its outer surface (to the side of the on/of power button, or left side as you face the unit from the front of it), and push down to close the V wedge (outside in) while pulling the tray out.

The tray being separate from the transport allows the laser unit to slides out, but only after you first remove the optical preamp circuit board and slide the ribbon connector out of the laser connection to this circuit board.

Only remove the laser when you have a new one ready to go in so you will know exactly how to slide the new one in to reverse the process of sliding the old one out.

The laser will now slide out in a grooved track of the transport. Immediately put the new laser in, sliding it in the grooves of the transport and orienting the ribbon connector strap as it was before in the old laser. Now slide the ribbon connector into the optical preamp board until it seats, and attach this board with the three screws affixing it.

The tray then can be slid back into the transport body (overcome the resistance as the tray slides past the internal tray lock), and the transport attached as above.

-Detailed instructions by Arthur Wells-