I got a PM a month ago from a local audiophile. He was trying to get rid of a vintage NEC-CD730 player because he was moving across state and didn't want to move it. He didn't want to ship it, so it had to go to a local and fast. He called Moon Audio for ideas how to find a quick buyer, Drew led him to AC's Carolina Circle, where I am the circle moderator. So he PMed me if I knew anybody that would want it. After he told me that it was NEC, Modded by Rick Schultz many years ago, once owned and further by my friend Joe Cohen, and full of exotic parts I figured what the hell. He wanted $25, and I could use a better CDP since I am using an old Oppo with a bad attitude
He said the digital output puts out white noise, and the CDP hasn't been run in 10 years, but it sounded great last time he heard it. He handed it off to me at RDU, with the remote in his pocket. A little chat, he was surprised I knew Joe Cohen. e talked about ripping LP to CDs, then off he went, moving to the mountains, probably not see him again.
I opened up the box today, a few weeks later. I found some other personal effects that were packed away with it during the last move. I opened up the CDP to inspect for obvious trouble before plugging it in. There is a ton (almost literallY) of lead stick ons all through it, on every available surface, some have two layers. That explains why this player weighs about 25 pounds! Some rubber antivibe stick on sheet here and there, and lots of window glazing white goo that people stick inside plastic consumer turntables to damp vibrations. A few lead sticks had come loose so I picked them out with tweezers. The power transformer is large, mounted on rubber and weighted down with goo and lead, but one of the mounting screws came loose. Good thing he didn't ship it.
The headphone connections are disconnected. The main power switch is bypassed, so plugging it in is the switch. The internal PS runs the CD mechanism and digital side. The modder removed the fuses that led power to the output stage, and connected an external power supply unit to the fuse tabs. But the external PS is dead, so the player spins discs but no analog output.
Now for the good part, it has a Sony KSS150 CD mechanism. The "analog section" has two TDA1541A DACs followed by original Signetics 5532 opamps. The modder put film storage caps on the opamps, replaced electro coupling caps with relcaps, and installed some nice heavy solid brass output RCAs.
I intend to clean it up, undo some of the "mods" that are too cloogey, and maybe add some more modern mods like Belleson regulators.
The TDA 1541A DAC is a resistor-ladder-type, non-oversampling DAC, same DAC used in Lampizator. My friend Sol claims the original Signetics version of the popular 5532 opamp is very musical. He has a stash of them.
Not bad for $25, if I can get it to work....
