[DarkTrance]

Hiya,

I have a PS2 that had a bad cd drive... it wouldn't open at all... I replaced it with one from a broken PS2, and the broken didn't have a model number. Once I got the CD drive installed, it looked like it was gonna be smooth sailing.. heh... yeah.

So my drive will read Blue PS2, PS1 but not Silver PS2. It has a white dial, like mentioned in your guide that has teeth at the end with a little metal arrow to keep it set one ach one. There appears to be nothing that automatically resets it as it hasn't turned from the original mark. I have been on every tooth of this white wheel and cannot get it to read silver disc ps2's. I'm using FF12 demo disc because it's the cleanest silver disc I have <not one scratch, smudge, etc>.

I started by going clockwise, as instructed, but as I did I got more cd "grunts" one early, and two late when it gave up. It also got noisier as if the cd was rubbing the lense. Going the opposite direction I didn't get that early "grunt" just the two at the end. If you go full circle, the alignment clicks and goes back to it's lowest setting.

I am not sure what else to do to fix this unit, it will boot the Ps1 disc regardless of where the alignment is, but will never boot the silver PS2, reading disc error.

Any suggestions? I'm going through the teeth as second time <seems like their are hundreds of notches.. been doing it for hours :P>

(I also found a tiny screw that can be adjusted and since i've tried every notch, I'm now adjusting it. It seems to tilt the laser from side to side instead of front to back, but I'm at a loss as to what combination to use, just that if I tighten too much, it makes a rigid sound and I'm not sure if the "grunts" are good noises or bad? Any info at all would be great)

Thanks! Jeremy

[tweakmonkey]

When it has problems reading one specific type of media, the laser may need to be calibrated.

Here are a couple links that may help:
http://digidownload.libero.it/greenwinter/laser.pdf
http://ps2repairs.amenet.co.uk/laser.htm
http://arstechnica.com/articles/paedia/hardware/ps2.ars


Have you tried the quick fix with tape (just to test)?
http://www.tweak3d.net/articles/ps2repair/3.shtml

[DarkTrance]

Well... I have multiple units that will only read blue discs. I have tried cleaning the bottom laser and it hasn't made any different, Tried every setting on the wheel, I've adjusted the dvd voltage adjustement to if it makes a difference <on one of them>. Basically it's like I have a bunch of cd players. I'm tempted to by a new laser and try it out to see if that's the problem, but they range from $40-60 new, and haven't found any cheaper. I really don't know where to find an oscilliscope, even Radio Shack gave me a blank look when I asked about it, and I'm afraid I don't think I could figure things out anyhow. I have a working PS2, though with my lack of success fixing these broken ones, I don't know that I'm ready to steal it's working laser to see how it works for others. Anyhoo... I guess I have two questions. The White Gear that adjusts the lense <the 50001 have two of them) is it really so sensitive that only ONE position would work, or is it more like you said in your articile that turning it 1/16 at a time should find it... it makes the difference between 16 positions to try and 72+ <one for each tooth on the cog>, knowing this would save alot of time. Also when cleaning one of the lasers the bottom lens pushed up from it's setting... But it didn't fall off the laser <the laser was the 400c, the one your familiar with is the 400b I think, which is a little different design> It used to play cd's only and now nothing... It sounds scrap now, but if you have any suggestions I'd be thrilled to hear them.

Thanks again for all the help!