~PS2 CLEANING~
~What you need~
Before attempting the fix described below, read through this guide completely
in order to familiarize yourself with the steps involved. Once that is done,
gather the following items.
» Standard Phillips screwdriver
» #0 Phillips screwdriver (or eyeglass-sized)
» Cotton swabs
» Isopropyl rubbing alcohol
» Felt-tip pen or marker
Optional cleaning tools.
» Vacuum
» Can of compressed air
PS2 Tip No. 1: It's best to use a vacuum for cleaning the dust from electronic devices. Wiping the surface or dusting with compressed air may force contaminants inside of the device, making things worse.
~Open Up Your PS2~
Before you do anything, disconnect the PS2's power and video connections.
On the bottom of the PS2 are 10 square-shaped screw covers. Four of these
double as rubber feet for the PS2 (when the device is laying flat.) Remove
these covers to access and remove the screws. Some of the screws will be longer/shorter
than the others so keep track of what goes where.
~Removing the case~
Once you've removed the screws, it's time to break the seal and completely
void whatever warranty you may have had. Seriously, there is a "warranty
seal" sticker near the PS2's power connector that must be removed in
order to gain entrance to the innards of the beast.
With the screws removed and the warranty sticker "void," gently
turn the PS2 right side up. Carefully remove the top cover by lifting the
back edge and pulling it toward the front of the unit until it clears the
controller jacks as well as the front of the disc tray.
You'll notice a metallic ribbon or white wires (depending on your PS2's age)
connecting the main base to the eject/play buttons on the top cover. Remove
the tape that normally holds this wire in place and set the top cover off
to the side. Don't try to disconnect the ribbon/wires. There should be enough
slack for the cover to lie off to the side.
Before moving on to the disc tray cover, now is a good time to blow out the
dust that has collected around the fan and main circuit board. A can of compressed
air will do the job nicely.
PS2 Tip No. 2: Always operate a PS2 in its prone position. Standing a PS2 vertically looks cool, but it seems to cause more problems than it's worth.
~Make the Adjustment~
With the PS2 splayed open, the disc tray cover removed, and the unit plugged
in, eject the disc tray.
Toward the back of the PS2, behind the laser, is a white gear about 0.75-inches in diameter. This gear adjusts the distance between the disc surface and the laser's eye. It's also the key to fixing a PS2 that frequently suffers from disc read errors (DREs.) On the left side of the white gear will be a notched metal tab or a smaller brass-colored gear.
Use a felt-tip pen to mark the white gear at the point it contacts the tab/smaller
gear. This provides a reference point for the original position of the gear
as we prepare to make our adjustment(s). Now would be a good time to gently
clean the laser's eye using a cotton swab dampened with a bit of rubbing alcohol.
Adjusting the gear position in order to fix DREs involves the following steps.
Turn the white gear a notch or two (clockwise
or counterclockwise)
Replace disc cover (holding it in place with your hand)
Insert a DVD
If it works, insert a purple game disc
If it works, insert an audio CD
If all three work, you are finished.
If any of the disc types fail to be read follow these steps.
Eject the disc
Remove the disc tray cover
Move the gear a notch or two (perhaps in the other direction)
Replace disc cover (holding it in place with your hand)
Retest until all three disc types are properly detected
Once you have correctly positioned the gear and all disc types are reading properly, reassemble your PS2 and get gaming!
This guide describes how to adjust the distance between the disc surface and
laser pickup. I have read reports of DREs being caused by improper laser voltage
levels, and this fix will do nothing for that type of problem. DREs caused
by an incorrect gap between the laser and disc appear more common with early
PS2 units, as they used a small spinning gear as the stop rather than the
notched tab found in later models.
Also, this fix will not remedy a disc-specific playback problem. If your PS2
was among the first batch released in the United States, you should "upgraded"
it with Sony's PlayStation 2 DVD remote that includes the V2.10 DVD software.
Numerous playback issues have disappeared since applying this software upgrade.
courtesy of xplay
