NW-A805, NW-A806, NW-A808, NWZ-A815, NWZ-A816, NWZ-A818 - Sony Audio Service Manual (repair manual)

Photo: NW-A808

2008D05-1
© 2008.04

• SonicStage and the SonicStage logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony 

Corporation.

• OpenMG, ATRAC, ATRAC3, ATRAC3plus, ATRAC Advanced Lossless and their logos are 

trademarks of Sony Corporation.

• “WALKMAN”and “WALKMAN” logo are registered trademarks of Sony Corporation.

 

 is a trademark of Sony Corporation.

• Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and Windows Media are trademarks or registered 

trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

• Adobe and Adobe Reader are trademarks or registered trademarks of Adobe Systems 

Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.

• MPEG Layer-3 audio coding technology and patents licensed from Fraunhofer IIS and 

Thomson.

• IBM and PC/AT are registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation.

• Macintosh is a trademark of Apple Inc.

• QuickTime is a trademark or registered trademark of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other 

countries.

• Pentium is a trademark or a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.

• This software is based in part on the work of the Independent JPEG Group.

• THIS PRODUCT IS LICENSED UNDER THE MPEG-4 VISUAL PATENT PORTFOLIO 

LICENSE FOR THE PERSONAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL USE OF A CONSUMER FOR
(i) ENCODING VIDEO IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE MPEG-4 VISUAL STANDARD 

(“MPEG-4 VIDEO”) AND/OR

(ii) DECODING MPEG-4 VIDEO THAT WAS ENCODED BY A CONSUMER ENGAGED 

IN A PERSONAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY AND/OR WAS OBTAINED 
FROM A VIDEO PROVIDER LICENSED BY MPEG LA TO PROVIDE MPEG-4 VIDEO.

NO LICENSE IS GRANTED OR SHALL BE IMPLIED FOR ANY OTHER USE. 
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDING THAT RELATING TO PROMOTIONAL, 
INTERNAL AND COMMERCIAL USES AND LICENSING MAY BE OBTAINED FROM 
FROM MPEG LA, LLC. SEE HTTP://WWW.MPEGLA.COM

• THIS PRODUCT IS LICENSED UNDER THE AVC PATENT PORTFOLIO LICENSE FOR 

THE PERSONAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL USE OF A CONSUMER TO
(i) ENCODE VIDEO IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AVC STANDARD (“AVC VIDEO”) 

AND/OR

(ii) DECODE AVC VIDEO THAT WAS ENCODED BY A CONSUMER ENGAGED IN A 

PERSONAL AND

NON-COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY AND/OR WAS OBTAINED FROM A VIDEO PROVIDER 
LICENSED TO PROVIDE AVC VIDEO. NO LICENSE IS GRANTED OR SHALL BE 
IMPLIED FOR ANY OTHER USE. 
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM MPEG LA, L.L.C. SEE 
HTTP://MPEGLA.COM 

• US and foreign patents licensed from Dolby Laboratories. 

• All other trademarks and registered trademarks are trademarks or registered trademarks of their 

respective holders. In this manual, 

TM

 and 

®

 marks are not specified.

This product is protected by certain intellectual property rights of Microsoft Corporation. 
Use or distribution of such technology outside of this product is prohibited without a license from 
from Microsoft or an authorized Microsoft subsidiary.

Program ©2007 Sony Corporation
Documentation ©2007 Sony Corporation

Codec

MP3

Bit rate: 32 to 320 kbps, variable bit rate-compliant (VBR)
Sampling frequency

*

1

: 32, 44.1, 48 kHz

WMA

*

2

Bit rate: 32 to 192 kbps, variable bit rate-compliant (VBR)
Sampling frequency

*

1

: 44.1 kHz

ATRAC

Bit rate: 48 to 352 kbps (66

*

3

, 105

*

3

, 132 kbps for ATRAC3)

Sampling frequency

*

1

: 44.1 kHz

ATRAC
Advanced
Lossless

*

4

Bit rate: 64 to 352 kbps (132 kbps for ATRAC3 base layer)
Sampling frequency

*

1

: 44.1 kHz

AAC

*

2

Bit rate: 16 to 320 kbps, variable bit rate-compliant (VBR)

*

5

Sampling frequency

*

1

: 8, 11.025, 12, 16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1, 48 kHz

The number of songsMax. 65,535

File format

MP3(MPEG1 Layer3) file format, ASF file format, MP4 file format, Wave-Riff file
format

File extension

File extension MP3 (.mp3), WMA (.wma), AAC-LC

*

1

 (.mp4, .m4a, .3gp), Linear PCM

 (.wav)

Codec

MP3

Bit rate: 32 to 320 kbps (Supports variable bit rate (VBR))
Sampling frequency

*

2

: 32, 44.1, 48 kHz

WMA

*

2

Bit rate: 32 to 192 kbps (Supports variable bit rate (VBR))
Sampling frequency

*

2

: 44.1 kHz

Bit rate: 16 to 320 kbps (Supports variable bit rate (VBR))

*

3

Sampling frequency

*

2

: 8, 11.025, 12, 16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1, 48 kHz

AAC-LC

*

2

Linear PCM

Bit rate: 1,411 kbps
Sampling frequency

*

2

: 44.1 kHz

File format

MP4 file format, “Memory Stick” video format

File extension

.mp4, .m4v

Codec

MP3

MPEG-4
(NW-A805/A806/A808)

Profile: Simple Profile
Bit rate: Max. 2,500 kbps

AVC
(H.264/AVC)

Profile: Baseline Profile
Level: 1.2, 1.3
Bit rate: Max. 768 kbps

Frame rate: Max. 30 fps
Resolution: Max. QVGA (320 

× 240)

Audio

AAC-LC

Channel number: Max. 2 channels
Sampling frequency: 24, 32, 44.1, 48 kHz
Bit rate: Max. 288 kbps per 1 channel

File size

Max. 2 GB

The number of files

Max. 1,000

US Model

NWZ-A815/A816/A818

Canadian Model

AEP Model

UK Model

Australian Model

New Zealand Model

Hong Kong Model

Singapore Model

NW-A805/A806/A808/NWZ-A815/A816/A818

E Model

Chinese Model

Tourist Model

NW-A805/A806/A808

– Continued on next page –

2

The approximate times are based on the case in which you transfer or record only 4 
minutes songs (not including videos and photos) in the ATRAC

*

1

 or the MP3 format. 

Other playable audio file format song numbers and times may differ from ATRAC or MP3 
format.

*

1

 Except ATRAC Advanced Lossless. Compression rate of ATRAC Advanced Lossless 

varies depending on songs. 
For example, one CD (containing 15 4-minute songs) is approximately 200 to 500 MB.

Bit rate

Songs

Time

Songs

Time

48 kbps

1,300

86 hr. 40 min.

2,700

180 hr. 00 min.

64 kbps

980

65 hr. 20 min.

2,000

133 hr. 20 min.

128 kbps

495

33 hr. 00 min.

1,000

66 hr. 40 min.

256 kbps

250

16 hr. 40 min.

515

34 hr. 20 min.

320 kbps

200

13 hr. 20 min.

410

27 hr. 20 min.

Bit rate

Songs

Time

48 kbps

5,500

366 hr. 40 min.

64 kbps

4,100

273 hr. 20 min.

128 kbps

2,050

136 hr. 40 min.

256 kbps

1,050

70 hr. 00 min.

320 kbps

840

56 hr. 00 min.

The approximate recordable times is estimated in the case where only videos are 
transferred. The time may differ, depending on the conditions under which the player is 
used.

Bit rate

Time

Time

Time

384 kbps

7 hr. 40 min.

15 hr. 40 min.

32 hr. 40 min.

768 kbps

4 hr. 20 min.

9 hr. 20 min.

19 hr. 00 min.

Max. 10,000
Recordable number of photos may be less depending on file sizes.

*

NW-A805: 2 GB (Approx. 1.81 GB = 1,948,622,848 bytes)
NW-A806: 4 GB (Approx. 3.73 GB = 4,008,198,144 bytes)
NW-A808: 8 GB (Approx. 7.56 GB = 8,127,348,736 bytes)

*

1

 Available storage capacity of the player may vary.

A portion of the memory is used for data management functions.

Headphone: Stereo mini-jack
WM-PORT (multiple connecting terminal): 22 pins
Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0 compliant)

5

°C to 35°C (41°F to 95°F)

• Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery

• USB power (from a computer via the supplied USB cable)

USB-based charging
Approx.3 hours (full charge), Approx.1.5 hours (approx. 80%)

The time below is approximated when “New Song Pop Up”, “Clear Stereo”, “DSEE” and 
and “Dynamic Normalizer” are set to “Off,” “Display Time” is set to other than “Always 
On”, and screensaver, “Equalizer” and “VPT” are set to “None.” 
Furthermore, for videos, the time is approximated when the brightness of the screen is set 
to “3.”
The time below may differ depending on ambient temperature or the status of use.

Music

Playback at ATRAC 132 kbps

Approximately 30 hours

Playback at ATRAC 128 kbps

Approximately 27 hours

Playback at ATRAC 48 kbps

Approximately 28 hours

Playback at ATRAC Advanced 
Lossless 64 kbps

Approximately 27 hours

Playback at MP3 128 kbps

Approximately 33 hours

Playback at WMA 128 kbps

Approximately 33 hours

Playback at AAC 128 kbps

Approximately 32 hours

Video

Playback at MPEG-4 384 kbps

Approximately 8 hours

Playback at MPEG-4 768 kbps

Approximately 7 hours

Playback at AVC 384 kbps

Approximately 6.5 hours

Playback at AVC 768 kbps

Approximately 6.5 hours

2.0-inch, low-temperature poly-silicon TFT color display with white LED-backlight, 
QVGA (240 

× 320 dots), 0.1275 mm dot pitch, 262,144 colors

43.8 

× 88.0 × 9.1 (Thinnest part 8.3) mm (1 3/4 × 3 1/2 × 3/8 (Thinnest part 11/32) inches) 

44.5 

× 88.0 × 9.6 mm (1 13/16 × 3 1/2 × 13/32 inches) 

Approx. 53 g (Approx. 1.9 oz)

Headphones (1) 
Headphone extension cord (1) 
Earbuds (Size S, L) (1) 
USB cable

*

1

 (1) 

Attachment (1) 
Use when connecting the player to the optional cradle, etc.
CD-ROM

*

2

 (1) (NW-A805/A806/A808)

− SonicStage software 
− Image Converter software

*

3 

− Operation Guide (PDF file)
CD-ROM

*

4

 (1) (NWZ-A815/A816/A818)

− MP3 Coversion Tool
− Windows Media Player 11
− Operation Guide (PDF file)
Quick Start Guide (1)

*

1

Do not use any USB cable other than the supplied USB cable or the specified 
optional dedicated cables.

*

2

Do not attempt to play this CD-ROM in an audio CD player.

*

3

Use this player together with the supplied Image Converter software (version 

*

4

Depending on the country/region in which you have purchased the player, 
the supplied software may be different.

3.0 or later). This software is referred as Image Converter in this manual.

Design and specifications are subject to change without notice.

File format

Compatible with DCF 2.0/Exif 2.21file format

File extension

.jpg

Codec

JPEG (Baseline)
Number of pixels: Max. 4,000 

× 4,000 pixels (16,000,000 pixels)

The number of files

Max. 10,000

*

1

 Sampling frequency may not correspond to all encoders.

*

2

 Copyright protected WMA/AAC/AAC-LC files cannot be played back.

*

3

 You cannot record songs on CDs in the ATRAC3 66/105 kbps format using SonicStage.

*

4

 The bit rate description of ATRAC Advanced Lossless shows the bit rate for the contents 

which enables fast transfer to ATRAC compatible devices or media.

*

5

 Non-standard bit rates or non-guaranteed bit rates are included depending on the 

sampling frequency.

*

6

 Some video files cannot be played back, depending on their file formats.

Bit rate

Songs

Time

Songs

Time

48 kbps

1,150

76 hr. 40 min.

2,450

163 hr. 20 min.

64 kbps

885

59 hr. 00 min.

1,850

123 hr. 20 min.

128 kbps

440

29 hr. 20 min.

925

61 hr. 40 min.

256 kbps

220

14 hr. 40 min.

460

30 hr. 40 min.

320 kbps

175

11 hr. 40 min.

370

24 hr. 40 min.

Bit rate

Songs

Time

48 kbps

5,050

336 hr. 40 min.

64 kbps

3,750

250 hr. 00 min.

128 kbps

1,850

123 hr. 20 min.

256 kbps

945

63 hr. 00 min.

320 kbps

840

56 hr. 00 min.

Bit rate

Time

Time

Time

Video Format: 384 kbps

7 hr. 10 min.

15 hr. 00 min.

30 hr. 40 min.

Audio Format: 128 kbps

Video Format: 768 kbps

4 hr. 00 min.

8 hr. 30 min.

17 hr. 30 min.

Audio Format: 128 kbps

NWZ-A815: 2 GB (Approx. 1.71 GB = 1,840,775,168 bytes)
NWZ-A816: 4 GB (Approx. 3.57 GB = 3,840,638,976 bytes)
NWZ-A818: 8 GB (Approx. 7.30 GB = 7,840,956,416 bytes)

Music

Playback at MP3 128 kbps

Approximately 33 hours

Playback at WMA 128 kbps

Approximately 33 hours

Playback at AAC-LC 128 kbps

Approximately 32 hours

Playback at Linear PCM 1,411 kbps

Approximately 35 hours

Video

Playback at MPEG-4 768 kbps

Approximately 7 hours

Playback at MPEG-4 384 kbps

Approximately 8 hours

Playback at AVC 768 kbps

Approximately 6.5 hours

Playback at AVC 384 kbps

Approximately 6.5 hours

• Output 

5 mW + 5 mW (16 

Ω)

• Frequency response 

20 to 20,000 Hz (when playing data file, single signal measurement)

3

...............................................

3

...................................................................

6

3-1.

Disassembly Flow ...........................................................

7

3-2.

Rear Cabinet Assy ...........................................................

7

3-3.

MAIN Board ....................................................................

8

3-4.

Holder Connector ............................................................

8

3-5.

NAND Board, SVX Switch Flexible (PWB Assy) ..........

9

3-6.

Note When Installing The SVX Switch Flexible
(PWB Assy) .....................................................................

9

3-7.

Front Button .................................................................... 10

3-8.

SVX LCD Assy (LCD801), Battery Assy ....................... 10

3-9.

Front Cabinet Assy .......................................................... 11

.............................................................. 12

5-1.

Block Diagram ................................................................ 18

5-2.

Printed Wiring Boards – MAIN Section (1/2) – .............. 20

5-3.

Printed Wiring Boards – MAIN Section (2/2) – .............. 21

5-4.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (1/6) – .................. 22

5-5.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (2/6) – .................. 23

5-6.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (3/6) – .................. 24

5-7.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (4/6) – .................. 25

5-8.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (5/6) – .................. 26

5-9.

Schematic Diagram – MAIN Section (6/6) – .................. 27

6-1.

Rear Cabinet Section (NW-A805/A806/A808) ............... 41

6-2.

Rear Cabinet Section (NWZ-A815/A816/A818) ............ 42

6-3.

MAIN Board, NAND Board Section
(NW-A805/A806/A808) .................................................. 43

6-4.

MAIN Board, NAND Board Section
(NWZ-A815/A816/A818) ............................................... 44

6-5.

Front Cabinet Section ...................................................... 45

................................ 46

• Never reuse a disconnected chip component.

• Notice that the minus side of a tantalum capacitor may be

damaged by heat.

• Keep the temperature of the soldering iron around 270 ˚C

during repairing.

• Do not touch the soldering iron on the same conductor of the

circuit board (within 3 times).

• Be careful not to apply force on the conductor when soldering

or unsoldering.

Danger of explosion if battery is incorrectly replaced.
Replace only with the same or equivalent type.

When IC301, IC302, IC501, IC503, IC505, IC506, IC509, IC601,
IC602, IC701, IC802, IC803, IC901 and IC903 on the MAIN board
is damaged, exchange the new MAIN board for the MAIN board
which IC damaged.

When CN601 on the MAIN board is damaged, exchange the new
MAIN board for the MAIN board which connector damaged.

Boards requiring use of unleaded solder are printed with the lead-
free mark (LF) indicating the solder contains no lead.
(Caution: Some printed circuit boards may not come printed with

the lead free mark due to their particular size)

Unleaded solder has the following characteristics.

• Unleaded solder melts at a temperature about 40 ˚C higher

than ordinary solder.

Ordinary soldering irons can be used but the iron tip has to be

applied to the solder joint for a slightly longer time.

Soldering irons using a temperature regulator should be set to

about 350 ˚C.
Caution: The printed pattern (copper foil) may peel away if

the heated tip is applied for too long, so be careful!

• Strong viscosity

Unleaded solder is more viscou-s (sticky, less prone to flow)

than ordinary solder so use caution not to let solder bridges
occur such as on IC pins, etc.

• Usable with ordinary solder

It is best to use only unleaded solder but unleaded solder may

also be added to ordinary solder.

• Computer  

IBM PC/AT or compatible computer preinstalled with the following Windows operating 
systems: 
Windows 2000 Professional (Service Pack 4 or later)/Windows XP Home Edition (Service 
Pack 2 or later)/Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or later)/Windows XP Media 
Center Edition (Service Pack 2 or later)/Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004 (Service 
Pack 2 or later)/Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 (Service Pack 2 or later)/Windows
Vista Home Basic/Windows Vista Home Premium/Windows Vista Business/Windows Vista 
Ultimate
Not supported by 64 bit version OS.
Not supported by OSs other than above.

• CPU: Pentium III 733 MHz or higher (For Windows Vista, Pentium III 800 MHz or higher)

• RAM: 128 MB or more (For Windows XP, 256 MB or more; for Windows Vista, 512 MB 

or more)

• Hard Disk drive: 240 MB or more of available space (1.5 GB or more is recommended)

More space may be required, depending on the version of the operating system. 
Additional space is required for storing music, video and photo data.

• Display: 

−  Screen Resolution: 800 × 600 pixels (or higher) (recommended 1,024 × 768 or higher)

−  Colors: High Color (16 bit) (or higher) (SonicStage and Image Converter may not operate 

properly at color settings at or below 256 colors.)

• CD-ROM drive (supporting Digital Music CD playback capabilities using WDM) 

To create original CDs or to back up audio CDs, a CD-R/RW drive is required.

• Sound board

• USB port (Hi-Speed USB is recommended)

• Internet Explorer 6.0 or later and DirectX version 9.0b or later need to be installed.

• Internet connection is required to use the CD Data Base (CDDB) or Electronic Music 

Distribution (EMD) or to restore the backup data with SonicStage.

• When converting Windows Media format videos, it is required to have installed the latest 

Windows Media Player.

• When converting QuickTime or M4V format videos, it is required to have installed the latest 

QuickTime.

We do not guarantee operation for all computers even if they meet the above System 
Requirements.

Not supported by the following environments:
−  Personally constructed computers or operating systems

−  An environment that is an upgrade of the original manufacturer-installed operating system

−  Multi-boot environment

−  Multi-monitor environment

−  Macintosh

4

When the NAND board is replaced, format it according to the
following.

You can format the built-in flash memory of the player.
If the memory is formatted, all music, video and photo data, etc., will be 
erased. 
Be sure to verify the data stored in memory prior to formatting and export 
any important data to SonicStage or the hard disk of your computer.

5-way button

BACK/HOME 
button

Settings

• This function is only available in the pause mode.

1

2

  Press the f/F/g/G button to select 

the 7 button to conrm.

3

  Press the f/F/g/G button to select “Common Settings,” and then 

press the 7 button to conrm.
The list of Common Settings options appears.

4

  Press the f/F/g/G button to select “Format,” and then press the 

7

“All data including songs will be deleted. Proceed?” appears.

5

  Press the f/F button to select “Yes,” and then press the 7 button 

to conrm.
“All data will be deleted. Proceed?” appears.

6

  Press the f/F button to select “Yes,” and then press the 7 button 

to conrm.
While the memory is being formatted, an animated display appears.
When initialization finishes, “Memory formatted.” appears.

Select “No” in step 

5

 or 

6

 and press the 7 button to confirm.

Press the BACK/HOME button.

• Do not format the built-in flash memory using Windows Explorer.

Blue color type of NWZ-A816 US model is using parts of violet
color type.