Philips AX3200

The AX3200 was a portable CD player manufactured in 2001 by the Philips Corporation in China. It was one in a series of similar units consisting of AX3201, AX3202, AX3203, AX3204, AX3205, AX3210, AX3211, AX3212, AX3213, AX3214, and AX3215. They were all based on the Sanyo DA23Z optical laser pickup mechanism. These models are virtually identical except for the accessories supplied with them. Here are some of the features and specifications of the unit shown in this article.

• Compatible for playing CD, CDR, and CDRW discs
• 45-second electronic skip protection (ESP)
• 20-hour playback on two alkaline AA batteries
• Digital dynamic bass boost (DBB)
• Automatic power OFF
• Heat resistant body
• DC input socket
• Headphone/Line Out socket
• Off/Resume/Hold switch
• LCD readout
• Rotary manual volume control

Review

Philips design and engineering is always one of the most interesting because it tends to be very different from other designs. This CD player has one of the most interesting chipsets I have ever seen, and the circuitry has a plethora of discrete transistors and components. One interesting feature is the headphone amplifier design based on the TDA1308T integrated circuit by the Philips/NXP Corporation. It is a Class-AB headphone driver based on CMOS technology and sounds different from the Sanyo and Toshiba headphone drivers usually found on Sony Walkmans. The discrete component bass boost circuitry around this IC is also a very interesting feature I have not seen often. It’s also a wonderful little IC that many hobbyists use, which is why you can get ready-made project boards based on this IC for as little as a few pounds on the auction site.

Value/eBay

It’s a basic portable CD player that sometimes comes up for sale. It would be very difficult to get parts for it as well as an engineer to repair it; hence a broken unit would not be worth anything. However a new unit in mint condition together with its accessories could be desirable to someone who still uses CDs. The rest of this multi-page article shows photographs of the inside electronic engineering.

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