Philips CDI 450 Troubleshooting Guide

CDI 450 main panel, component side, with Philips's grid index (service manual section 6.4.2)

The Philips CDI 450 has two diagnostic tools built into its system ROM: the Service Shell, which tests the video output and the CD drive, and the Low Level Test, which runs from a terminal and tests the processor, memory, NVRAM and the custom chips. Philips's service manual adds supply voltages and clock frequencies for every key IC. Start with the checks below, then use the tools to narrow the fault down. Routine work on the mechanism, the timekeeper and the power supply is on Philips CDI 450 General Maintenance.

First checks

First checks

Symptom	Probable cause	Action
No power, LED off	Supply not connected or not switched on; RJ45 plug loose; fuse blown in the 20PS301	Check the ON/OFF button and both plugs of the supply. Check the plug's locking tab. Check the supply's fuses (below).
Controller does nothing	Player needs a reset; controller fault	Switch the player off and on again. See controller faults.
No picture	Wrong TV input or channel; video lead	Select the player's channel or input on the TV and check the video connection.
Picture interference, white dots on RF	Video, audio or RF cables near the power supply	Move the supply and the RF modulator cables apart.
Disc does not start, screen does not change	Lid not closed; disc upside down or dirty; bad disc	Close the lid, check the label faces up, clean the disc and try another.
Light blue screen, "memory full" error, or nothing at start-up	Failed NVRAM timekeeper	See start-up faults.

Diagnostic tools

Service Shell

The Service Shell tests the video circuits with a colour bar pattern and the CD mechanism and servo with an audio CD. It cannot test the servo with a CD-i disc. To start it:

1. Switch the player off.
2. Link pins 2 and 3 (RXD2 and TXD1) of the front input port, or fit Philips test plug 4822 264 50263.
3. Switch on and wait for the menu on the television.
4. Remove the link or the plug and connect a mouse-type pointing device: the Tracker Ball (4822 691 30298), Mouse (4822 691 30297) or Roller Controller (4822 691 30293). On top-loading players retrostuff found that gamepads do not work in the Service Shell.
5. Switch off to leave the Service Shell.

The main menu has TEST IMAGE, which outputs a 75 % colour bar with a 750 mV white bar, CD DRIVE and EXIT. The CD drive test first checks communication with the CD part and shows the IKAT version, then steps through these modes with NEXT MODE:

Service Shell CD drive test modes (service manual section 5.3.3)

Mode	What happens	Pass	Fail
0	ARM IN and ARM OUT move the sledge between the centre and the outside of the disc	Sledge moves	-
1	The IKAT tries to focus (a disc must be in place)	IN FOCUS	NO FOCUS after three tries; back to mode 0
2	Turntable motor runs under control of the rough HF signal	MOTOR OK	MOTOR ERROR; back to mode 0
3	Radial servo on; the pick-up follows the tracks with the sound muted	RADIAL TEST OK	Error message; back to mode 0
Next	Normal play	Disc plays	"CD error x" at the bottom of the screen

Press ARM IN or ARM OUT only once at a time in mode 0. Pressed repeatedly, the sledge tries to run past its end stops, which retrostuff warns can damage the gear rack.

CD error codes

Code	Meaning	Code	Meaning
0	No error	5	Search time error
1	Focus found	6	Subcode error
2	Focus error	7	TOC error
3	Radial error	8	Fatal sledge error
4	Turntable motor error

Low Level Test

The Low Level Test is part of the CD-RTOS boot software and needs little working hardware. Connect a VT100 or equivalent terminal to the input port through the 22ER9208 splitter (Philips also lists a terminal cable, 4822 321 61677), and press the space bar on the terminal while switching the player on. The manual gives the terminal settings as 9600 baud, 8 data bits, no parity and no handshake. Use it when neither the player shell nor the Service Shell starts.

Low Level Test steps (service manual section 5.1.1)

Item	Test	Notes
0	Exit	Continues the boot into the player shell
1	Write to a default RAM address	Writes powers of 2 to a word address and reads them back. Writing to an unused address hangs the system without an error.
2	ROM parity check	Shows the ROM ID, release number and checksum; a bad checksum gives an error
3	NVRAM test (8K)	Non-destructive test, and two destructive tests
4	DRAM test	Destructive; both chips as one block, then each bank
5	CIAP test	Reads the ID register (CD01 = CIAP 1.0, CD02 = CIAP 1.5) and runs the built-in self-test
6	IKAT-CD60-DSIC2 test	Tests eight data lines and reports a failed line as 0 to 7; shows the IKAT software version
7	Clock calibration	Not a test; needs a frequency counter (see General Maintenance)
8	Chip select test	For use with an oscilloscope; a device that gives no DTACK hangs the test
9	VDSC test	Writes the display decoder registers and reads the control status register continuously

CIAP built-in self-test signatures

Device	Long BIST	Short BIST
CIAP 1.0	-	F286
CIAP 1.5 (ES2)	75B0	BBCD
CIAP 1.5 (MOT)	1F5C	1BF4

Philips's procedure was to replace the whole main board when the Low Level Test found a fault in the microprocessor, CIAP or digital video section. If the test will not start, check the supplies and the main clocks on the microprocessor section first.

Power faults

The 20PS301 supply gives +5 V at 3.3 A and -5 V at 0.25 A through the RJ45 plug (+5 V on pins 1, 3 and 5, sense on pin 2, ground on pins 4 and 6, -5 V on pin 7). Pin 8 is the ON/OFF line: the supply runs when the player pulls it to ground.

• If nothing works, check the mains fuse 1101 (T500 mA L 250 V) and then the output fuses: 1201 and 1203 (MP400) on +5 V, 1202 (MP400) on the -5 V side. Unplug the supply first; mains is present inside it and the 100 µF 400 V capacitor 2103 holds a charge.
• Retrostuff warns against running a CD-i supply without a load. Measure the rails with the player connected.
• The Roboco main board has no fuse on its -5 V rail, unlike the Mono III and Mono IV boards. If -5 V is missing on a CDI 450, check fuse 1202 in the supply and the cable.
• A self-resetting PTC fuse, 3277 (grid D6), protects the +5 V feed to the controller and serial ports and to the RF modulator socket. Philips lists it as "PTC 60V 0R80"; retrostuff identifies the part fitted to Roboco boards as an RXE040 (60 V, 400 mA). It looks like a ceramic capacitor with a shiny coating.

Supply voltages at the key ICs

Measure on the measuring pads; Philips provides them so that probe tips do not short IC pins.

+5 V supply checks (service manual section 7.3.1)

Position	IC	Supply pins	Expected
7210	68070	1, 43	+5 V ± 10 %
7201	IKAT (MC68HC05I8)	59	+5 V ± 10 %
7240	System ROM (27C400)	22	+5 V ± 10 %
7241	NVRAM	28	+5 V ± 10 %
7125	VDSC	3, 9, 27, 36, 41, 61, 80, 95, 100, 112, 119, 124, 130, 140, 148	+5 V ± 10 %
7160	CALVIN	16, 22, 51, 57, 61, 65, 66	+5 V ± 10 %
7310	CIAP	6, 20, 27, 35, 45, 58, 66, 76	+5 V ± 10 %
7401	DSIC2	12, 20, 28	+5 V ± 5 %
7510	CD60	11, 15, 17, 29, 31, 42, 44	+5 V ± 5 %

Start-up faults

A failed timekeeper (7241) loses the player's data and date, and can stop it at a light blue screen, a "memory full" error with garbage at the bottom of the screen, or a blank screen. Check the date in the player shell's settings: a year of 1989 indicates a broken timekeeper. Item 3 of the Low Level Test checks the NVRAM. Replacement is described on General Maintenance.

Some discs depend on the clock. Retrostuff found that Earth Command went to a black screen after its intro on a CDI 450 with a dead timekeeper, while a CDI 550 with a good one ran it. The same CDI 450 started the game after the clock had been restarted by setting the date; the fix lasts only until the player loses power.

Disc reading faults

The CD part of the CDI 450 works like a CD audio player, and Philips says the usual CD player techniques apply. If a disc is recognised, the servo and CD decoder are working.

Disc faults

Symptom	Probable cause	Action
"No disc", dirty-disc messages, discs read only sometimes	Dirty lens; worn laser; dried grease in the sledge drive	Clean the lens. Run the Service Shell drive test. Regrease the mechanism or replace the laser sledge.
MOTOR ERROR in mode 2; spindle slow to reach speed	Turntable pushed down on its spindle	Lift the turntable back to height.
NO FOCUS in mode 1	No disc in place; dirty lens; worn laser	Fit a disc (the focus test needs one), clean the lens and repeat; suspect the laser sledge if it still fails.
Mechanism does not start at all	Supply, clock or reset missing on the IKAT, DSIC2 or CD60; communication fault	Measure them; if there is a communication failure, run the Low Level Test (item 6).
Servo passes but no data	CD decoder	Look for activity on SDATA, SWCLK and SCLK and on DOBM; if there is none, check the decoder's supply (Vdd) and its HF and AUDIO_CLK inputs.

Retrostuff replaced the laser sledges of two CDI 450s that had unreliable or no disc recognition. It changed only the sledge, because the top-loading CDM 12.1T has an ornamental plate and shorter wires that replacement mechanisms lack.

Video faults

Philips's three examples:

• The player shell appears and the disc is recognised, but the disc's video does not. The digital video, servo and analogue video circuits work; suspect the CD interface section that carries the video data from the disc.
• No video, but the audio works. The fault is in the digital video part or the analogue video circuit; voltage and signal measurements separate them.
• No colour. Most likely the CALVIN encoder. Check the composite (CVBS) output on pin 2 of IC 7160.

The CDI 450 has only a composite video output and RF through the external modulator. RGB output needs a modification; retrostuff lists boards from Mobius Strip Technologies and 8Bitplus for Roboco players.

Audio faults

If a CD-i disc gives a picture but no sound, the servo and decoding circuits work, and the fault is in the audio decoding circuits. Check the leads first, and that the amplifier input is not a phono input, which distorts the sound. Check the I²S signals at the CD60 (IC 7510) with an audio CD playing:

• Pin 21, SDATA: a block wave.
• Pin 22, SWCLK: 44.1 kHz.
• Pin 23, SCLK: 2.8224 MHz.

Controller and port faults

• The Service Shell will not start with the test plug: Philips names a bad connection between the input port and the IKAT, a wrong test plug, or a faulty IKAT.
• If no pointing device works, check the +5 V on pin 8 of the input port, which is rated at 150 mA maximum, and the PTC fuse 3277 that feeds it.
• The single input port takes two devices only through the 22ER9208 splitter.

Clock and processor checks

Measure clocks just after a reset, which happens at power-on and each time the lid is opened, and use a FET probe so that the probe does not load the oscillators.

Clock frequencies (service manual section 7.3.2)

Signal	Where	Frequency
System clock	IC 7210 pin 30, IC 7125 pin 115, IC 7302 pin 1	30.0000 MHz ± 50 ppm (PAL); 30.2098 MHz ± 20 ppm (NTSC)
System clock divided by two	IC 7210 pin 29	15.0000 MHz ± 50 ppm (PAL); 15.1049 MHz ± 20 ppm (NTSC)
UART clock	IC 7210 pin 69	4.9152 MHz ± 50 ppm
68HC05I8 clock	IC 7201	4.000 MHz ± 55 ppm
XT2N clock	Connector 1096 pin C3	15.0000 MHz ± 50 ppm (PAL); 15.1049 MHz ± 20 ppm (NTSC)
CIAP clock	IC 7310 pin 22	33.8688 MHz ± 50 ppm
DSIC2 clock	IC 7401 pin 19	8.4672 MHz ± 50 ppm
AUDIO_CLK	IC 7510 pin 13	16.9344 MHz ± 50 ppm

With the player on and RESET at +5 V, the 68070 (IC 7210) should show HALTN (pin 27) at +5 V, RESETN (pin 28) at +5 V, BERRN (pin 26) at +5 V and DTACKN (pin 24) changing between +5 V and 0 V.

Related pages

• Philips CDI 450
• Philips CDI 450 General Maintenance
• Philips CDI 450 Capacitor Replacement Guide
• Philips CDI 450 Documentation
• Capacitor Failure Symptoms