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Troubleshooting help needed with my RCA SFT 100 W

 
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lynx



Joined: 30 Jun 2018
Posts: 100

PostPosted: Sun Feb 11, 2024 11:14 am    Post subject: Troubleshooting help needed with my RCA SFT 100 W Reply with quote

My CED player, RCA model SFT 100 W, has recently developed a problem that I need help with trying to repair. I don't believe it's a mechanical issue, but rather something electronic.



It's playing discs normally, but the problem is that it has a lot of static, both in the video and the audio. The video has a lot of horizontal lines and interference in the picture, and the audio crackles and also makes a sound like a whistle throughout the entire playback. More specifically, the picture is always grainy and snowy, and the sound will crackle during a quiet scene in a disc, and when there is sound, it will whistle or hiss along with the soundtrack. It does these two things all the time, and it started doing it just a few months ago.



I've already done all of the routine maintenance on the player (lubricated the turntable, servo motor, and function lever, replaced the turntable drive belt, and sprayed the channel 3/4 switch with aerosol contact cleaner) approximately one year ago. The old servo motor drive belt still works, so I didn't replace it, although I have another belt stretching on a dowel that I ordered from Tom, so it will be ready when I need it. My player was working perfectly for quite a while until this static problem came up.



I tried cleaning the tip of my RCA 149000 needle with a paintbrush dipped in rubbing alcohol, and I also tried playing a disc with my extra needle from my broken RCA SFT 100 W player that I'm saving in storage as a parts donor, but it didn't help. I also disassembled the player to spray the channel 3/4 switch with my Deoxit D5 spray again, but unfortunately, the problem still persists.



When the problems started, I tried to research them, but I couldn't find any reference to these symptoms in either the service manual or anywhere online. The closest symptom I could find to it is a washed-out picture which can occur on a different model of RCA CED player that I'm unfamiliar with, which is listed in the repair solutions here, but since I don't own that particular player, it's not applicable to my player.



All I can fathom is that maybe I missed something while I was servicing my player or that an internal part inside of it has just recently started malfunctioning or gone bad. If I need to replace a part, then I have a parts unit that I can use.



If any one can assist me on troubleshooting the problem and then going about repairing it, then I would really appreciate it.



Thanks!
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TGM



Joined: 04 Jun 2023
Posts: 26

PostPosted: Mon Feb 12, 2024 9:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Do you have a way confirm that both stylus’s are good?
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Glitchy Mario

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jsdspif



Joined: 16 Jan 2016
Posts: 276

PostPosted: Mon Feb 12, 2024 10:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

i was thinking there are test points before the rf converter deal whatever it's called module i would test those and see how audio and video is before the rf conversion. As far as a different player/you don't have service manual any g series is the same electronics except stereo models have an extra board for the stereo and i think some video is on stereo board but you don't have that but it seems like everything is pretty much the same .I'd start with test points before the rf converter module and see what it's like.I also second the "are both sylus good" . I was once working on a player and the cart went bad while I worked on the player.don't remember now what the problem was but John Stephens fixed it.
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lynx



Joined: 30 Jun 2018
Posts: 100

PostPosted: Fri Feb 16, 2024 8:52 am    Post subject: Question about testing styli, posting photos and videos Reply with quote

TGM wrote:
Do you have a way confirm that both stylus’s are good?




Thank you both for your responses; they were very helpful.



I have a few more questions:



Is there a way that I can test either of my RCA 149000 stylus cartridges?



I would like to post some photos & a video on here that I took with my mobile, but I can't find the instructions or figure out how to do it, so how do I post them on here? I'm sorry for the dumb question, but I'm computer illiterate.



Before I take my CED player apart & test the parts, I think it's sensible to start with the easy task, so I'm planning to start by testing my two cartridges. Any suggestions are appreciated.



Thanks again!
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TGM



Joined: 04 Jun 2023
Posts: 26

PostPosted: Fri Feb 16, 2024 9:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The only way I know how to MAYBE test the stylus without a working player is to look at the tip under a microscope or a magnifying glass. Make sure the tip looks nice and pointy. Note however, I don’t believe this is super accurate, but it may give an idea about how worn it is.

As for uploading photos and video, since this site is based on really old forum code, it predates uploading directly on the site, so you need a 3rd party image storage site like Imgur or YouTube. You can upload video to YouTube, and just put the link in your message. For pictures, put the link to the image itself (not the page for the photo. The url usually says “.(file type)” at the end.) You can put that link in between a “[img]” and an “[/img]” and it should show up.
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jsdspif



Joined: 16 Jan 2016
Posts: 276

PostPosted: Fri Feb 16, 2024 2:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

the onjly thing I've ever noticed on my non working carts is one had a pretty hard black substance on the stylus and it was on there.I tried picking at it with a needle under a cheap microscope and that did nothing.However,when I got it back from john it was spotless and worked.I believe he said it just needed cleaning. As far as testing,the only sure test I know of would be put it in a working player and see if it works. Some things like the little copper fly lead or whatever,if that's broke /not even there you could see that but I had one that looked fine but didn't work and i believe john said it needed aligning? The tip should pretty much be spotless,no fuzz no residue nothing. A thought on cleaning them.I bought a little ultrasonic thing for record needles because my needle had residue on it so I put one drop of solution,which they claim is alcohol free,drop the needle on it and it buzzes for about 15 seconds and it was spotless after that. I was looking at it thru a usb microscope I have set up with my record player.My immediate thought was I wonder how this would work on ced carts,but I'm not sure i could use it i think the cart itself may be in the way.
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TGM



Joined: 04 Jun 2023
Posts: 26

PostPosted: Sun Feb 18, 2024 11:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

jsdspif wrote:
A thought on cleaning them.I bought a little ultrasonic thing for record needles because my needle had residue on it so I put one drop of solution,which they claim is alcohol free,drop the needle on it and it buzzes for about 15 seconds and it was spotless after that. I was looking at it thru a usb microscope I have set up with my record player.My immediate thought was I wonder how this would work on ced carts,but I'm not sure i could use it i think the cart itself may be in the way.


I was thinking about this, I’m not quite sure about it. Of course, I’m just a hobbyist with no super deep knowledge of this, so feel free to take what I say here with a grain of salt. Ultrasonic cleaners work by vibrating the liquid to break off debris. My thought is “when cleaning, could it weaken or break the bond between the electrode and the diamond or weaken the flylead?” Assuming just the stylus tip is in the solution, it would break off the debris, yes, but would anything else be affected? I don’t know how strongly or weakly the stylus cartrige is constructed. It may cause metal fatigue on the flylead, and cause that to break, or cause something to break in the stylus tip.

Or I may just be overthinking all of this and it'll be just fine.

We wont know for sure unless we test it. We may irreparably kill one or two stylus for science, but that would at least rule out one way of cleaning, and would get us closer to a nearly perfect solution. But if it works, it may be the best way to clean them.
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