Some SACD titles not being read by my players.

I have some Telarc SACDs that my players have stopped reading the SACD layer. Anyone else experience this? This happens in all three of my Sony DVP-NS 755V players and my Yamaha S-1800.

 

I had the same problem. Do the following search: calibrating SACD. You should find a discussion on Audiogon with a simple solution that worked for me. Good luck. Jean

 

Though my Denon model is known for having issues with hybrids regardless, I'm finding recent pressings are far more finicky than older ones.
Makes me wonder if disc manufacturing tolerances have slipped

 

This symptom is what made me upgrade to an Oppo blu-ray player about three years ago, particularly when I discovered that my Denon 2910 would no longer play the SACD layer of the Audio Fidelity Donovan "Storyteller" disc.

 

My Marantz won't play the SACD layer of Jackie McLean's Lights Out. I tried a 2nd disc, same problem. Replaced the lens, same problem. Disc plays fine on my Oppo. Otherwise, no problems.

 

Yes, to the max. I spent a good year going back and forth with McIntosh Tech Support regarding one of their MVP-871 SACD/CD Players. My original player would not track any SACD layer on a hybrid SACD, only the Redbook CD layer. However, it would play single layer SHM-SACDs without failure. Sent that player back to McIntosh 4 to 5 times. The laser assembly, the transport, and other sundry components were replaced. It still failed consistently. I finally persuaded them to swap it out with a different unit. Guess what? The new one is exhibiting the very same behavior. I am so disgusted I plan on selling the MVP-871. It has been temporarily replaced by a Sony XA5400ES, that has never failed to properly track any one of my SACDs...

 

I don't know if it is okay to copy this from sfstereo of Audiogon:
I have the same problem with my 9000ES and I was able to fix it tonight by recalibrating the laser. I bought a service CDROM and it provides instruction for recalibarating.

When the unit is in power off status with the power button push in, press the following buttons on the remote in this order:
title, clear, power

This will bring you to the service menu on your tv display.
select item 1 - auto adjustment

Then select 0 - ALL and it be prepare to follow the displayed instructions. You will need the following kinds of disks:

DVD - Single layer
Cd
DVD - Dual layer
SACD - not hybrid

I had to use a couple of each kind of disk. It kept aborting the test until I found SACD disk that it would play but once it plays the disk, it will store the calibrated value in an EPROM.
It takes about 15-20 minutes and now all my hybird SACD work just fine.

 

I wonder if I can do that with my Marantz?

 

Were you having a problem with many hybrids, if not all?

 

Sorry to hear about the Mc871, I had the same problem with a Marantz SA11S1 & S2....

 

All these problems, including with some higher end players, makes me doubt hybrid SACDs in general.
Is the technology prone it issues in general?

 

When I first got my Ayre SACD player, it was set in the service menu for Redbook CDs for some reason, they told me on the phone how to reset it and it hasn't been a problem since. The fact that all of your players have done this says it would be the discs though.

- Buck

 

That's a good point about the discs.
The player usually gets blamed but maybe we're all sitting on piles of bad discs.

 

Both my Denon 5910 and 2910(in a second 2 ch system) have problems with the occasional SACD and also the occasional regular CD. Seeing how they're both 10yrs + old my guess is the lasers are getting kinda funky (supported by numerous discussions about others who're having similar issues).

 

I did the exact same thing after my Denon had the same issue. After I got the Oppo no problems.

 

Jim time to play taps for those laser drives. It only goes downhill from here.

 

Yeah, I had to replace my Pioneer 676-A because the laser wouldn't read the SACD layer on discs any longer. I managed to find another unit of the same model and it works fine, but eventually the laser will die on that one too.

 

With a RCA Living Stereo hybrid. Never had problems with my Denon 3910 or Marantz SA 8004. Only the Sony

 

There's a reason I bought a used PS3 with out of date firmware several years ago . . .

 

It would appear from the posts that the issue is surrounding the laser assembly. I'm curious though about the SACD themselves. A few labels had been mentioned but I wondered about the manufacturing plant used and if there might be some link there also.

 

I never thought that hybrids were a good idea. A laser shines on a semi-transmissive layer which apparently only needs a 20% reflection to work - it's an awesome thing, but it requires a very accurateky calibrated optical system. Everyone who has had trouble with a laser assembly going south always has the same story - the hybrids start to go first, then much later the non-hybrids. I have never played the CD layer of any hybrid SACD I own - and I have quite a few. I would have been totally happy if they had all been non-hybrids.

 

My Oppo 105D would only play the CD layer of 2 discs from this set of Bach's Complete Organ Works:- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Or...5833899&sr=1-7&keywords=Bach+Organ+works+sacd
I contacted Oppo support and they suggested cleaning the discs in question. This seems to have done the trick. Otherwise, I've never had any problems.

 

Always clean any disc that will not play. Always. No matter how clean it may seem to be, the most pristine-looking disc may skip or refuse to play properly due to a very small amount of dirt, dust, grease or a tiny scratch. That said, getting an Oppo 103D solved any problems I have had reading any type of commercial or burned disc, including the ones with kid's fingerprints and rough handling.

 

Flags at half-staff. Yesterday I even pulled 2 of the discs and had my son take them to his gaming store and they ran them through their pro buffer twice and still did the same thing. CD layers are all that will start playing.

 

It's been my experience that most of the time it's the optical pick up that needs cleaning, but other times it's the pick up failing. Yet, other times it's the disc and of the discs I've had problems with all were pressed in Germany.

I'm with Metralla, give me single layer SACD's.