Dealing with PlayStation 2 disc read errors

[Lwek]

Ever gotten those annoying Disc Read Error messages on your Playstation 2? If you have, I'll bet the first time you saw one was on the 31st day you've had it, after the Sony 30-day warranty expired. If you're real lucky, your PS2 might last two or even three years; eventually this error will hunt down your PS2 and settle down there. If it only affects you some of the time — you might be able to play some DVD movies, but your favorite one never loads, or you can only play PSone games and not silver-colored PS2 games — then chances are it's not a serious error and only requires minor adjustments to your PS2. Since it is out of warranty, there's little risk in opening it up and trying to fix it yourself before paying to send it back to Sony's repair center. The following guide shows you how to get the PS2 open, clean it out, make your adjustments, and put it back together without any hassles.

Guide - http://arstechnica.com/articles/paed...ware/ps2.ars/1


My experience, Well even though it got boring to read through all of that, I'd have to say it's worth it. I kind of improvised a little bit towards the end when the instructions told me to move the gear clockwise. I can now play dvd's when before I could only, and ONLY play CD's. I don't know if I can play any PS2 games because I sold all mine due to the fact I lost all hope on working my PS2. All my hopes are back on getting Starcraft: Ghost.

[Andrew]

my ps2 has been fine. i've had it since it like came out. the same one. it's old and still works.

[Raccoon]

I had my PlayStation 2 for 2 years before I got the dreaded disc read error. You know what I did? I called Sony's PlayStation department up and told them what was going on. I gave them the serial and model number and they told me to send it away to get it either fixed or replaced free of charge. I sent my PlayStation in without the backing (where the netword adapter goes in) and they sent it back with a new network adapter (their mistake). Now I have two..

[Nearby-Stalker]

lol raccoon, they probally thought they lost it cause they bundled it in the past couple years with the network adapter, not like they really lose out in much,lol. My friend had the DDE and sent it to me to clean it, i cleaned it, it worked, he got home, broke it, brought it back saying i broke it, and my mom bought him a new one and i kept the broken one X| I modded my buddies xbox, he gave me a ps2 , 9 games, and a controller (no network adapter ), and it had the DDE, so instead of bothering with it, i knew that the other eye was perfectly fine, open'd both ps2's, replaced the eye, bam-o, works perfect. <3 me

[Guest]

Rofl, all's you gotta do is clean it instead of all that crap....I cleaned mine, got the dust out, and it works well.

[Raccoon]

Originally Posted by Sword Tip

Rofl, all's you gotta do is clean it instead of all that crap....I cleaned mine, got the dust out, and it works well.

To clean it that thoroughly you would have to take the casing off. This would void the warranty. Even after cleaning it, it might not work. Why risk it when you can wait about 3 weeks to get it fixed guaranteed?

[Lwek]

That's what I thought before, but I've had this PS2 for probably a year or two. Common sense that my warranty had already expired. SO I peeled off the sticker and fixed it.

[Guest]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

To clean it that thoroughly you would have to take the casing off.

I only did the outside.

[Renzokuken]

I'm a newb and i did this for my PS2 which was making grinding noises (Read discs fine) so i just altered the lens height (Which is the aim of the tutorial) and it fixed it.

You saved me $200+ :heart

[dice5_5]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

I had my PlayStation 2 for 2 years before I got the dreaded disc read error. You know what I did? I called Sony's PlayStation department up and told them what was going on. I gave them the serial and model number and they told me to send it away to get it either fixed or replaced free of charge. I sent my PlayStation in without the backing (where the netword adapter goes in) and they sent it back with a new network adapter (their mistake). Now I have two..

They replaced mine also free of charge. :dance

[Onmyoji the Hidden]

As much as I stand by my PS2 in the face of a heartless Micropoop onslaught, Sony has had a serious drop in quality as of late. It is disappointing when a name that was synonymous with quality is now a name synonymous with my morning bowel movement (and believe me, that is nothing nice).

[coRtALoS]

Common Nel. Play an hour of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and you'll slip into a state of euphoria. You'll totally forget you're supporting a global conglomoration, and just enjoy the sheer brilliance of the gameplay and plot.

You close-minded (when it comes to Microsoft) ****.

[dice5_5]

Lately my PS2 won't auto-load the games. I have to go into the Browser and load it from there. It doesn't do it on a particular game and just occasionally happens.

[phaseblade69]

Hi Im thinking of getting a ps2 from this kid i kno with disc read error. I can prolly get it out of him for around 35 bucks, is it worth it and what are the chances of me fixing it?

[Lwek]

Originally Posted by phaseblade69

Hi Im thinking of getting a ps2 from this kid i kno with disc read error. I can prolly get it out of him for around 35 bucks, is it worth it and what are the chances of me fixing it?

I'd have to say take the PS2 for a 'test run' before buying it.

[[Koolaid]]

Ya, I get when I play GTA3... all I do is take the disc out , clean it, pop it back in and it works...

A simplae remedy

[TrOiK]

Ive had my PS2 for so long I even made Custom Cords for it beacuse I lost the regular ones it works Fine the only time i get a DRE is when the disc is really ****ered up.

[ArtOfProtoss]

I've never had it... It's like 2 years old too.

[Shadow1psc2k]

My PS2 succumbed to the dreaded DRE last summer. I sent it in and it took a total of 1 week to get it there and back, haven't had a problem since.

[Walter Bernhard]

It's very easy to fix the DRE in 10 minutes, 20 minutes tops. You need a couple of items, an air can, (optional) a q-tip, some alchohol and several small sizes of screwdrivers. First take out all of the things that cover up the screws, peel off the sticker and take the screws out. Next, take off the case gently and get and make sure the reset/eject buttons stay where they are and the metallic tape isn't ripped. Now if you have it, use the air can to clear out the dust all in it and unscrew the laser case protection with a very small screwdriver. After you get it all off and you can see the laser directly put some alchohol on the q-tip and GENTLY brush it across. If done correctly the laser will work as good as new. I did this and after I finished putting the screws back in the DRE never happened again.