pioneer cld 3090 - all test discs missing red channel, audio is static on one channel, or static on digital but not analog sound - is this alignment? and how would I fix this, thanks

Possibly alignment, or a failing laser. Dunno why one color would fail, since LD is composite color.

The 3090 was a problematic model I hear... krbahr and/or grasshopper will likely be more helpful than me!

With red channel, do you mean right audio channel or red color in general in the picture?

The red channel in the picture. And I notice static on one of the stereo channels. I would guess both are connected to the same issue?

Not knowing anything, my guess would be that the laser is out of alignment?

Thanks

No one else has any knowledge of this? I was thinking maybe the part of the board that process the red signal of the image could be at fault, too.

You have not told us the model number for the player you are asking about.

If it is a newer model with an AC-3 RF output then if you play a LD encoded with AC-3 or Dolby Digital 5.1 then try to listen to the analog sound track it will mute the right or red channel. If the signal is too weak to read the digital sound track it will default to analog. I'd say you have a weak laser output.

It's a Pioneer CLD-3090 according to the main post.

Nobody has an idea because that's not even possible (is it?) on the majority of players. Red is lumped in with all the other colors on the disc and all the way through the player. It seems almost certainly a fault somewhere else in the display chain.

It could be a glitched-out comb filter. But I don't have a 3090<->702 SM - none of the places that have SM's for free download have that manual and it's not a series I've been curious enough in to buy one...

Definitely do try a non-AC3 disk, if there's still analog audio garbling and/or no digital it's quite likely a weak laser pickup, and/or bad alignment.

Thanks, that helps. Is there any good articles or other sources of information on how to align a laser disc laser? I am doing my own search, but sometimes people here have already travelled down these roads.

Are you using a scaler? I have an input on my DVDO-30 that does this exact thing, strips red completely out, always figured something was wrong as the other inputs work fine.

Okay, this is embarrassing, but in the interest of finishing issues, I solved the color problem. Testing a blu-ray hooked up to the same tv inputs, and got the same color issue. Bad cable? Nope. Somehow, the tv had the red channel turned off for those inputs in the menu. Something like 2, 128,128. Easy fix.

Now, audio is still static. Apollo 13, digital sound - static city, both channels. Analog sound - fine, no static. I may open it up and clean the optics with a q-tip.

Just to clear that out, it's not the DTS version of Apollo 13, right?

Julien

Don't think so. It's has stereo digital sound with THX, but no sign of DTS on the jacket.

If I play Mission:Impossible with Dolby Digital surround sound I can only choose analog sound. I get complete static on the right channel. Left channel is clean audio. Again, just analog. I can't switch it to digital for M:I.

Update - reading the fine print on the M:I disc, the audio on channel R is AC-3, so we're only supposed to use left channel.

Let's break things down:

• You have connected the "digital out" of the player to some "digital in" on your A/V Amp
• You have connected the "analog out" of the player to some "analog/line in" on your A/V Amp
• Your A/V Amp can be manually switched to either inputs, hopefully in "auto-detect" mode

Now I you get static when playing digital, it would appear that your A/V Amp believes it's not expecting digital signal there.

A/V Amp settings need update?

Julien

Not quite. I have the composite, L and R channels (there are no other output audio connectors on the 3090) connected to a flatscreen. That simple. On the M:I disk, it says it has digital, but switching the player audio from analog to digital using the LD remote, it only gives me the analog choice. On the Apollo 13 disc, I can switch between analog and digital using the LD remote. Thanks

As the laser outputs weakens the digital audio is the first thing to go out, starting with static then totally gone. If cleaning the lens doesn't help then all you can do is try turning the RF adjustment up to see if you get enough signal to get digital audio.

Then you're not setup to listen to the digital if your player is not able to convert Digital->Analog internally.

You will need a toslink cable from your player to screen/amp to listen to the digital audio soundtrack.

http://www.laserdiscarchive.co.uk/laserdisc_archive/pioneer/pioneer_cld-3090/pioneer_cld-3090.htm



Julien

Thanks, I wanted to grab an a/v receiver with a good rgb comb, so I'll update once I check it.