For those who are still stumped, I've been able to revive drives by cleaning and oiling the drive motor spindle. Underneath the motor is two small holes, and I pour isopropyl alcohol into the roles, rotate the spindle a bit, then give it time to completely dry. Then I add mechanical oil (lighter than the lithium grease used on the sled) into the holes to lubricate the motor. After many years the disc drives will spin fast, but not always at the perfect speed needed to read discs without stuttering.
After seeing the wear pattern on the rails up close, its easy to see why that would work. Its only ever so slightly out of alignment, but that's all it takes to stop readings discs.
You made a good point about the 'forgotten' repair manuals that are on old websites. I said it before and again, some on or people should make a central console repair/mod website with clear and simple understand tutrorial in one place. Any way, great repair and another PSX saved.
It was such a weird thing to even come up with as a kid. Nobody told me to do it. I must have thought it was something with the laser not "reaching" the disc or something silly like that which made me flip the console upside and - and it worked. Eventually I sold the console but I did the console flipping for quite a while. I'm sure eventually it would have stopped working or maybe not.
Wow, awesome repair. Every cause I've heard about the FMV's skipping on original launch model PS1's were all about the laser being heated and cooked from being placed on the left side of the unit close to the power supply. Apparently it was the plastic sled assembly being worn down instead. This explains why turning the console upside-down would alleviate the problem by allowing gravity to drop the laser sled closer to the disc.
Yeah it's a little out there. My question is, how did the first person who tried this think to try it? There are some clever and resourceful folks out there.
Mind blown, would never think of something like that. So glad I found this channel. Also convinced me to give repairs on broken systems a try. Since I already do the maintenance and the occasional minor repair on my own systems.
Wow! Great mod/repair! Also I've read somewhere that an additional design flaw was the placement of the optical unit next to the PSU, causing a damage to the laser, so on the next models the optical unit was placed on the right side of the console.
@@BorderlineOCD yep. But without one metal or tear anything like yours. Mine fine. Had just put gear oil thing. Doesnt work Ill adjust power laser. It worked so no need metal thing on final.
Wow, I can't believe something as small as that fixed it and was able to solve the read errors! Thank you for bringing this information into the light and for sharing it, it gives me hope that I may be able to fix a PS1 I got with reading errors without buying a new laser (at least for the time being).
Seeing this video three years after it was posted, but glad I found it. I've got an SCPH-1001 that developed a skipping problem a long time ago. I always wondered if it was fixable.
i just love seeing PS1s being saved/fixed. i know theres tons & tons of them but i just think they deserve this sort of care- fun design, classic console & historic in a sense... so yeah :) thank you for the detailed video and also for saving a classic PS1 (its a very early date one)
@@BorderlineOCD I use some generic "3 in 1" oil for mine and it works great. Supposedly sewing machine oil and oil for RC cars or model trains is the best :)
I had the same model and same issue, though it would be more evident with some particular games. Way to go, the repair seems too complicated for a layperson, but I enjoyed it all the way. Thanks for sharing!
Unbelievable! I have a similar model (scph1002) with same issues. You reveal me this amazing way of fixing and after 25 years I'd really like to try it with mine ;)
Nice fix. One thing to note from back when I repaired quite a few is to also check the motor spindle under the disc platter for hair and debris and add a little lubrication. This may help where the fix you demonstrated doesn't apply.
i remember that sled fix about 15 years ago, i had the same problem at the time, that's why i looked it up, but when i tried it, nope, never worked for me, but i just did it the "all the gear, no idea" kind of way (bodged) glad to see someone succeeding, You did Great.
Thanks for the info, this will really help me out. I'm restoring an SCPH-1002 I got today which I'm going to use as a CD player. It does work but the audio occasionally skips (which a drive re-lube didn't fix) and it has the same symptoms of plastic flecks in the laser drive. Now I know where to focus my efforts from here.
Good luck with those reproduction lasers. In my experience, they are garbage, more often than not. I tossed one of these 1001 models out of frustration about a year ago. The original laser was junk, and even after resorting to using a 101 laser with the ACM cover (to properly fit inside of the 1001), I often had to prop it on its side or upside down, which was no better than the tricks people usually employ with one of these consoles anyway. That comment about those pots being finicky is NO JOKE. 😒 Anyway, great video, and I hope it saves other 1001 models. At least I have two 7501's in really good shape that have proven to be pretty reliable.
I've heard similar things about those lasers, but figured it was worth a shot. I bought them from two different sellers just to get a different supply (although I'm sure they're all made by the same factory). I'm curious about how well calibrated those drives are, and if perhaps a bit of fine tuning and some quality lube would improve the odds of them lasting any longer. I guess I'll find out.
IKR? The real reason why i also threw these 1001 models out of frustration is because not only do the cutscenes skip, sometimes you’ll hear really unpleasant noises coming from the CD drive and starts spinning the disc abnoramlly fast to the point where it just hangs on the ps1 logo. So yeah, These 1001 models so are ridiculously annoying!
I might just be lucky, but I’ve always got the aftermarket lasers working OK with some combination of the new laser and original sled/motor including in my 100x
@@boydsterling3193 Well, in these last two years, I’ve really learned a lot more about why these original drives failed, and seeing the difference in design for the PS2 easily explains why those drives tend to make for a more successful laser replacement/repair.
Nice video :) ! But, I'll give you some tips about the SCPH-100x and ABM/AAM/ACM laser class. First of all, check F.BIAS/GAIN voltages from CL708 is useless. All you need is a oscilloscope and check the RF SIGNAL. The main reason of F.BIAS pot presence on the motherboard is to facilitate the servo on the reading (focus operation). Move forward or back and obtain the best RF signal possibile (no jitter and with a stable RF envelope). After that, move the laser pot forward to obtain 1.2v p-p with an original disc (music disc work too). The GAIN is impossible to adjust :). Is used to trace and seek the sequential data pits on the disc. F.GAIN HIGH = Laser coil very noisy and sensible to shock movement. F.GAIN LOW= no reading. Try to find the best position when hitting GENTLY the console (I'm not kidding). If the laser doesnt' skip, that' a decent F.GAIN calibration. Also, you have to lubrifcate motor spindle and motor sled. -From an huge PS1 lover! P.S That metal rail is very nice!!
Back when I was a child, my cousin had a Ps1, and used to lend it to me to play some old games she still had from her childhood, thanks to her I knew Resident Evil 3 (altough I learned it was the third game once I became a teen, the first game I played on my own was 4), sadly she sold it many years ago because it had this exact same issue... seeing this brought some nice memories.
Good job. Again my 3 cents :) 1)Sometimes problem is not in worn plastic parts, but in the laser coils. It is good practice to check laser coils first. Left and right coils should have the same resistance from 5 Ohms in used lasers to 6.2 Ohms in new lasers (higher value is better). I gave those numbres from my memory, about 20 years passed since I worked with PSX consoles, so values may not be exact and may vary depending on laser model. 2)I would use less grease, like 1/3 or even 1/4 of what you used. 3)Before you make any changes to resistor pots check their resistance value with multimeter and write it down. Check resistors when console is unplugged from power. Avoid touching to moving part of the variable resistor or you can change resistance. Check resistance between two pins of the variable resistor. Only make changes to resistor pot on the laser (when console is not powered on and change resistance very little). Setting wrong value for variable resistor on laser means that you can deliver too much power to emiter and you will destory it, so make very small changes to check the difference.
Amazing refurbishment & another stellar DIY repair ... Both thumbs-up, man ... A question, if i may: Do Series 7500 & 9000 of OG PS1s need their laser calibrated, after replacement? Best regards ...
11.4 mV for yours? Cool and I love the fix here. Great stuff. Mine seems to have a much easier time at 10.7 mV with a brand new drive and also reads backups quite well for the most part. My model has auto gain + bias so no pots for that, just laser power on the drive. There is one pot on the MB for a push-pull adjustment but I can't see any affect at all when I tweak that one.
Love your vids, man, keep it up! Wanted to ask. Is it necessary to use isopropyl alcohol to clean electronic circuits, contacts, plastic, etc. or is regular 95% ethyl alcohol okay?
I'm not sure bud I haven't used it personally so don't want to comment, but a quick search suggested ethyl alcohol may leave an oily residue which can impact sensitive circuitry? Perhaps someone else has tried it and can chime in.
@@BorderlineOCD I see. Better not to risk it and buy a bottle of IPA. I just have a large supply of ethanol, so I decided to clarify this. Thanks for the reply!
Had the same console and I also had to lay the console upside down to fix the skipping issue. I was lucky enough to acquired several new lens later on to fix any issue when trouble came to last me some time. Those were the best times, then ps2 arrived and I forgot about the ps1 console since I can piggy back on the ps2. Thanks for sharing. Very nice detail video.
this is pretty wild lol i had always heard from people that the lasers would fail due to them being "Cooked" by being so close to the psu but no, its the drive assembly being crappy plastic so the laser falls out of alignment haha that makes a lot of sense and i'm honestly glad i found this out. may prove to be helpful if i ever get a early ps1 model :D
This was amazing! I think I also came across this repair site cuz recently I got a first model ps1, thank you for making a full video out of it! I will follow this one to a tee On another note, can you work with Chinese optical pick-ups and show on video your experience? I've gotten real poor quality optical pickups that are supposed to be new and find I need to do adjusting to get them to work, frustrating cuz they're supposed to be new Your channel is one of my top favorite console repair channels!
Wow. I've read about this method, but thought that you will use a thinner metal, like a foil. It's shocking how much height of the rail was "eaten" by the head assembly. I have PS1 4 drives with the same lagging issue. I definitely will try to revive them this way.
This trick is common knowledge among the brazilian retro collector community. We used to use those KODAK film strips to add the extra space missing on the other side of the piece, the slots on the film align with the dents on the piece.
Nice fix. The only thing I'd be worried about is using metal as a shim. Metal on plastic versus originally plastic on plastic. Using metal could end up grinding down what's left quicker than before.
Wow.... Thank you so much for this video... You put the shim on the laser side. Perhaps a shim on both sides would have been better so the aluminum doesn't just wear through the plastic..... Then again where do you find a 0.1MM piece of aluminum.... I tried doing this once and ruined a Namco Tales disk.... A stray wire pushed up against the disk from the underside and dug a slight groove into the disk... Double fail .... Basically I got to the point of adjusting the Pots and gave up out of frustration in ruining the disk. I probably still have it in storage.... Anyway something about seeing it from a source you trust makes it so much more real, if that makes any sense. Thanks for making this more real. I really need to find that thing and give it another go.
@@BorderlineOCD thanks! This is actually available at a nearby store from me. I had bought lithium grease in a spray can, but it's too funny and annoying to use.
I tried everything you did, including the leveling. My system would only read discs on it's side. After exhausting all of these options, I sprayed contact cleaner into the spindle motor and manually spun it around for a few seconds, then sprayed again. Now the PSX works perfectly. So, not only does the angle of the console affect a worn sled, it can also affect a worn spindle.
new subscriber here i do prefer LBRY over youtube but i like your content as a fellow tinkering nerd myself so here i am first vid i watched was your og xbox modding one those damn dirty caps!
Seems sony likes to make consoles with cheap/fragile parts. For sure they made a lot of money with the repairs. Awesome work btw, this requires lot's of time and research and patience!
I usually give up fixing the pick up block after some adjustments.I never realized that the wear out material on the plastic due to the movement of the lens would be an issue
Wow wish I knew this as a kid, my ps1 was the same model and had the exact same issue. The only way I knew how to get past it back then was flipping the console upside down, that way the games worked. Eventually I sold the console in a game store and was happy they didn't test it. I can't remember what I got after that but I was pretty done with console gaming and was hooked on PC gaming.
the power supply was the issue where heat would warp the laser lens. in other revisions of the PlayStation, Sony moved the position of the laser to the right side to reduce heat
Wow nice job I would have never thought to do something like that and never actually new that model has a laser design flaw! Good to know because I own 2 of that model I would have thought that it was just a bad laser and would have replaced it with a new one
For calibrating these properly you need to achieve a coherent eye pattern using an oscilloscope on the laser test point. Arbitrary voltage values might get you close but not quite. The shim likely moved the laser and improved the eye pattern. The pots do the same thing but you can't see the result because you're not using an oscilloscope to verify that there's a solid eye pattern. Pretty cool workaround though.
I'm keen to get my hands on a proper oscilloscope at some point. I bought one of those cheap handheld ones on Amazon that you can get for $30-50 and I ended up returning it.
This ones that you buy from China you may have to fix them also, i've bought one that i've had to adjust the height of the spindle, and clean even the mirror of the laser and the lens above and underneath and also the glass of the diode, it was very dirty, but it was of great built quality, actually a much better unit than the previous one that i've bought from China, that the spindle hat came of just from regular usage and the plastic detachable rail came very loose from design it seems, and it's clearly very inferior in built quality. So, i really think you should try to fix the original ones. Congratulations from the great work made on this one, very cool!
I am curious. Would later model optical drives (like say from a SCPH-7501, or a SCPH-9xxx), be compatible in one of these launch models, or even a 1994 japanese launch model? I'm asking because, I was wanting to get me either of the two region's launch models, but if I'm not even going to be able to replace the drive from a later model, then I don't know if I should even bother... I'm not sure if I like the idea of aftermarket chinese ones, and the only other idea I had was taking a drive from one of the very later PSOne consoles if I can ever get one, even for the SCPH-7501 that I already own.
I had a similar issue with my JPN Sega Saturn with shuddering FMVs however dialing in the potentiometer didn't help. I ended up replacing laser pick-up to fix shuddering FMVs. (OPTIMA-6S)
Hey Borderline OCD for the PS1 you repaired using the original drive if it starts to have skipping issues again after a while use a KSM 440 BAM laser instead the laser used for a slim Ps One just you will need to swap out the top covers for the case top case to fit correctly or else it will not fit properly and a tip is use like a teflon grease not spray but grease will work better in keeping it lubbed better in the long term
If my mom kept the first PlayStation that we had that an old friend broke by pulling it off the shelf while it was playing, I may see if it can be diagnosed as lens misalignment and fixed similarly. From a viewer in 2023, thanks for the video! :)
For those who are still stumped, I've been able to revive drives by cleaning and oiling the drive motor spindle. Underneath the motor is two small holes, and I pour isopropyl alcohol into the roles, rotate the spindle a bit, then give it time to completely dry. Then I add mechanical oil (lighter than the lithium grease used on the sled) into the holes to lubricate the motor. After many years the disc drives will spin fast, but not always at the perfect speed needed to read discs without stuttering.
Back in the day we used to "fix" this problem by turning the console upside down.
Lol, yup.!!
After seeing the wear pattern on the rails up close, its easy to see why that would work. Its only ever so slightly out of alignment, but that's all it takes to stop readings discs.
used to do that with my PS3 back in the early days, before I went digital.
@@RanaRandom traitor!
@@Alexander_l322 XDXDXD
Did not realize I was holding my breath until I exhaled at 11:35.
Great video, thanks for taking us along on the journey.
You and me both.
You made a good point about the 'forgotten' repair manuals that are on old websites. I said it before and again, some on or people should make a central console repair/mod website with clear and simple understand tutrorial in one place.
Any way, great repair and another PSX saved.
That's a cool idea particularly for older generation systems, especially if it was maintained by the community.
Ifixit is one of those sites I believe
@@JesseFleming1990 yeah they got some but i think they do common stuff
This is so… I can't even come up with another compliment right now. Each second of your videos is a blessing
Ha, I'm glad you enjoyed it to the point of practically losing the vocabulary to speak!
Little over the top dude
The leveling makes so much sense considering people would "level" their systems by putting it upside down. It was an alignment issue
It was such a weird thing to even come up with as a kid. Nobody told me to do it. I must have thought it was something with the laser not "reaching" the disc or something silly like that which made me flip the console upside and - and it worked. Eventually I sold the console but I did the console flipping for quite a while. I'm sure eventually it would have stopped working or maybe not.
I literally just found your channel today and i love every single of your videos. I adore your attention to detail.
Thank you so much.
Nicely done there. I'd done something similar to my 1001 a few years back. Still working fine today. Always nice to see a 1001 brought back to life.
Thank you. Good to know your system is still working. They're getting harder and harder to come by.
Wow, awesome repair. Every cause I've heard about the FMV's skipping on original launch model PS1's were all about the laser being heated and cooked from being placed on the left side of the unit close to the power supply. Apparently it was the plastic sled assembly being worn down instead. This explains why turning the console upside-down would alleviate the problem by allowing gravity to drop the laser sled closer to the disc.
Wow, that's pretty cool. I thought "No way a strip of metal fixes this" but there you go, working perfectly again.
Yeah it's a little out there. My question is, how did the first person who tried this think to try it? There are some clever and resourceful folks out there.
Mind blown, would never think of something like that.
So glad I found this channel. Also convinced me to give repairs on broken systems a try.
Since I already do the maintenance and the occasional minor repair on my own systems.
Wow! Great mod/repair! Also I've read somewhere that an additional design flaw was the placement of the optical unit next to the PSU, causing a damage to the laser, so on the next models the optical unit was placed on the right side of the console.
ah yes that i needed similiar happened my childhood ps1 . i tried fix from yours. and worked flawlessly . thank you ! amen
Glad it worked for you. Was your wear pattern similar to mine? I imagine each drive will wear down a little differently.
@@BorderlineOCD yep. But without one metal or tear anything like yours. Mine fine. Had just put gear oil thing.
Doesnt work
Ill adjust power laser.
It worked so no need metal thing on final.
That sled repair was impressive,excellent work
Wow, I can't believe something as small as that fixed it and was able to solve the read errors! Thank you for bringing this information into the light and for sharing it, it gives me hope that I may be able to fix a PS1 I got with reading errors without buying a new laser (at least for the time being).
Seeing this video three years after it was posted, but glad I found it. I've got an SCPH-1001 that developed a skipping problem a long time ago. I always wondered if it was fixable.
i just love seeing PS1s being saved/fixed. i know theres tons & tons of them but i just think they deserve this sort of care- fun design, classic console & historic in a sense... so yeah :) thank you for the detailed video and also for saving a classic PS1 (its a very early date one)
This is a high quality repair. I am truly impressed. Thanks!
literally was thinking, "that's incredible" then you said it. It truly is. Just wow.
You fixed this pro. Admire the way you fixed it up.
That was a beautiful clean and repair. Awesome explanation. Thank you for bringing it back to life if only temporary!!
Dude, that was a sick repair. I'll try it before buying a new one for my PS1
Great video! :) I also recommend oiling the spindle motor. That fixed two of my PS1 drives that were skipping.
Do you oil with penetrating oil them or use contact cleaner?
@@BorderlineOCD I use some generic "3 in 1" oil for mine and it works great. Supposedly sewing machine oil and oil for RC cars or model trains is the best :)
Nice job for saving that original Sony PlayStation
I had the same model and same issue, though it would be more evident with some particular games. Way to go, the repair seems too complicated for a layperson, but I enjoyed it all the way. Thanks for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed it.
Unbelievable! I have a similar model (scph1002) with same issues. You reveal me this amazing way of fixing and after 25 years I'd really like to try it with mine ;)
Nice fix. One thing to note from back when I repaired quite a few is to also check the motor spindle under the disc platter for hair and debris and add a little lubrication. This may help where the fix you demonstrated doesn't apply.
Thanks for the tip!
These are all great. Just subscribed. Thanks man.
Thanks for the sub!
I really didn't think that would work. Good repair!
Thank you.
i remember that sled fix about 15 years ago, i had the same problem at the time, that's why i looked it up, but when i tried it, nope, never worked for me, but i just did it the "all the gear, no idea" kind of way (bodged) glad to see someone succeeding, You did Great.
Amazing! I had a psx as a kid with this exact issue. I used to turn it upside to get it to play FMVs, which I guess also levelled it. Brilliant video!
Thanks very much! Adjusting the voltage to match your specs fixed mine!
Very cool bro! One of the most fascinating repair videos I ever watched!! And I watched a lot…
Glad you enjoyed it bud.
Thanks for the info, this will really help me out. I'm restoring an SCPH-1002 I got today which I'm going to use as a CD player. It does work but the audio occasionally skips (which a drive re-lube didn't fix) and it has the same symptoms of plastic flecks in the laser drive. Now I know where to focus my efforts from here.
Amazing video! Followed your advice to calibrate the laser, now it's working perfectly!
Daaamn. I wish I had the knowledge of how this problem happened back in the late 90s!!
Good luck with those reproduction lasers. In my experience, they are garbage, more often than not. I tossed one of these 1001 models out of frustration about a year ago. The original laser was junk, and even after resorting to using a 101 laser with the ACM cover (to properly fit inside of the 1001), I often had to prop it on its side or upside down, which was no better than the tricks people usually employ with one of these consoles anyway. That comment about those pots being finicky is NO JOKE. 😒
Anyway, great video, and I hope it saves other 1001 models. At least I have two 7501's in really good shape that have proven to be pretty reliable.
I've heard similar things about those lasers, but figured it was worth a shot. I bought them from two different sellers just to get a different supply (although I'm sure they're all made by the same factory). I'm curious about how well calibrated those drives are, and if perhaps a bit of fine tuning and some quality lube would improve the odds of them lasting any longer. I guess I'll find out.
IKR? The real reason why i also threw these 1001 models out of frustration is because not only do the cutscenes skip, sometimes you’ll hear really unpleasant noises coming from the CD drive and starts spinning the disc abnoramlly fast to the point where it just hangs on the ps1 logo. So yeah, These 1001 models so are ridiculously annoying!
I might just be lucky, but I’ve always got the aftermarket lasers working OK with some combination of the new laser and original sled/motor including in my 100x
@@boydsterling3193 Well, in these last two years, I’ve really learned a lot more about why these original drives failed, and seeing the difference in design for the PS2 easily explains why those drives tend to make for a more successful laser replacement/repair.
Nice video :) !
But, I'll give you some tips about the SCPH-100x and ABM/AAM/ACM laser class.
First of all, check F.BIAS/GAIN voltages from CL708 is useless. All you need is a oscilloscope and check the RF SIGNAL.
The main reason of F.BIAS pot presence on the motherboard is to facilitate the servo on the reading (focus operation). Move forward or back and obtain the best RF signal possibile (no jitter and with a stable RF envelope).
After that, move the laser pot forward to obtain 1.2v p-p with an original disc (music disc work too).
The GAIN is impossible to adjust :). Is used to trace and seek the sequential data pits on the disc. F.GAIN HIGH = Laser coil very noisy and sensible to shock movement. F.GAIN LOW= no reading. Try to find the best position when hitting GENTLY the console (I'm not kidding). If the laser doesnt' skip, that' a decent F.GAIN calibration.
Also, you have to lubrifcate motor spindle and motor sled.
-From an huge PS1 lover!
P.S That metal rail is very nice!!
Hi, what do you recommend to lubricate the spindle motor?
@@Doors4299 Clock oil or 3 in one oil
Holy crap! I never would have thought to do this!
Back when I was a child, my cousin had a Ps1, and used to lend it to me to play some old games she still had from her childhood, thanks to her I knew Resident Evil 3 (altough I learned it was the third game once I became a teen, the first game I played on my own was 4), sadly she sold it many years ago because it had this exact same issue... seeing this brought some nice memories.
EPIC.!!
Very kool video.!!!! 👍👍
And, I really hope that you continue to upload more videos of your epic skills like in this one 💯😎
Haha I will try my best!
Good job. Again my 3 cents :)
1)Sometimes problem is not in worn plastic parts, but in the laser coils. It is good practice to check laser coils first. Left and right coils should have the same resistance from 5 Ohms in used lasers to 6.2 Ohms in new lasers (higher value is better). I gave those numbres from my memory, about 20 years passed since I worked with PSX consoles, so values may not be exact and may vary depending on laser model.
2)I would use less grease, like 1/3 or even 1/4 of what you used.
3)Before you make any changes to resistor pots check their resistance value with multimeter and write it down. Check resistors when console is unplugged from power. Avoid touching to moving part of the variable resistor or you can change resistance. Check resistance between two pins of the variable resistor. Only make changes to resistor pot on the laser (when console is not powered on and change resistance very little). Setting wrong value for variable resistor on laser means that you can deliver too much power to emiter and you will destory it, so make very small changes to check the difference.
Thanks for the tips!
Excelente trabajo
Thank you
Amazing refurbishment & another stellar DIY repair ... Both thumbs-up, man ... A question, if i may: Do Series 7500 & 9000 of OG PS1s need their laser calibrated, after replacement? Best regards ...
They still have a laser intensity screw but no manual bias and gain adjustment needed (they adjust bias and gain automatically).
11.4 mV for yours? Cool and I love the fix here. Great stuff. Mine seems to have a much easier time at 10.7 mV with a brand new drive and also reads backups quite well for the most part. My model has auto gain + bias so no pots for that, just laser power on the drive. There is one pot on the MB for a push-pull adjustment but I can't see any affect at all when I tweak that one.
Love your vids, man, keep it up! Wanted to ask. Is it necessary to use isopropyl alcohol to clean electronic circuits, contacts, plastic, etc. or is regular 95% ethyl alcohol okay?
I'm not sure bud I haven't used it personally so don't want to comment, but a quick search suggested ethyl alcohol may leave an oily residue which can impact sensitive circuitry? Perhaps someone else has tried it and can chime in.
@@BorderlineOCD I see. Better not to risk it and buy a bottle of IPA. I just have a large supply of ethanol, so I decided to clarify this. Thanks for the reply!
outstandind video mate.....all perfect down to the T
Thanks very much.
Sei stato un drago! Complimenti!
Ah the memories... I had the first model psx and the intro vids skipped all the time. Had to put the psx upside down to reduce the skipping.
same same but i fixed after this video now it flawlessly
Had the same console and I also had to lay the console upside down to fix the skipping issue. I was lucky enough to acquired several new lens later on to fix any issue when trouble came to last me some time. Those were the best times, then ps2 arrived and I forgot about the ps1 console since I can piggy back on the ps2. Thanks for sharing. Very nice detail video.
this is pretty wild lol i had always heard from people that the lasers would fail due to them being "Cooked" by being so close to the psu but no, its the drive assembly being crappy plastic so the laser falls out of alignment haha that makes a lot of sense and i'm honestly glad i found this out. may prove to be helpful if i ever get a early ps1 model :D
This was amazing! I think I also came across this repair site cuz recently I got a first model ps1, thank you for making a full video out of it! I will follow this one to a tee
On another note, can you work with Chinese optical pick-ups and show on video your experience? I've gotten real poor quality optical pickups that are supposed to be new and find I need to do adjusting to get them to work, frustrating cuz they're supposed to be new
Your channel is one of my top favorite console repair channels!
Awesome work, just awesome.
Incredible result... Now to do this to mine
Wow, a shim! That's amazing, good work man!
Great job. Even the shim looked like a oem part haha
What a brilliant repair!
This seems like a nice alternative to the common repair of using a PSOne style laser to fix the issue (which does work very well)
This is brilliant.
Wow. I've read about this method, but thought that you will use a thinner metal, like a foil. It's shocking how much height of the rail was "eaten" by the head assembly. I have PS1 4 drives with the same lagging issue. I definitely will try to revive them this way.
This trick is common knowledge among the brazilian retro collector community. We used to use those KODAK film strips to add the extra space missing on the other side of the piece, the slots on the film align with the dents on the piece.
Fascinating. Brazil has a rich video game culture, I'm not surprised for the creative approach.
Nice fix. The only thing I'd be worried about is using metal as a shim. Metal on plastic versus originally plastic on plastic. Using metal could end up grinding down what's left quicker than before.
From Russia with love! Thanks bro for this info! i will try do the same with my ps1
Greetings to you and Mother Russia. Good luck with your repair. Let me know how it goes.
@@BorderlineOCD ok! Now i need to decide where take this steel plastine....
Wow.... Thank you so much for this video... You put the shim on the laser side. Perhaps a shim on both sides would have been better so the aluminum doesn't just wear through the plastic..... Then again where do you find a 0.1MM piece of aluminum.... I tried doing this once and ruined a Namco Tales disk.... A stray wire pushed up against the disk from the underside and dug a slight groove into the disk... Double fail .... Basically I got to the point of adjusting the Pots and gave up out of frustration in ruining the disk. I probably still have it in storage.... Anyway something about seeing it from a source you trust makes it so much more real, if that makes any sense. Thanks for making this more real. I really need to find that thing and give it another go.
Amazing work
Thank you
Thanks for the awesome video!
What did you use to clean the sled rails?
Man I could use your help cleaning my Sega Saturn. I hope in the future you make a Saturn video Please
Another awesome repair! Can you share what lithium grease you use? I bought one from the hardware store, but it's too liquidy.
Nothing fancy, its Permatex White Lithium Grease.
@@BorderlineOCD thanks! This is actually available at a nearby store from me. I had bought lithium grease in a spray can, but it's too funny and annoying to use.
I have a link in the description for your reference.
I tried everything you did, including the leveling. My system would only read discs on it's side. After exhausting all of these options, I sprayed contact cleaner into the spindle motor and manually spun it around for a few seconds, then sprayed again. Now the PSX works perfectly. So, not only does the angle of the console affect a worn sled, it can also affect a worn spindle.
new subscriber here i do prefer LBRY over youtube but i like your content as a fellow tinkering nerd myself so here i am
first vid i watched was your og xbox modding one
those damn dirty caps!
Appreciate you watching my other videos, and glad you're enjoying the content!
amazing video plz do more , i love retro consoles
wow this is so much fun to watch!
very helpful and informative video!
Seems sony likes to make consoles with cheap/fragile parts. For sure they made a lot of money with the repairs. Awesome work btw, this requires lot's of time and research and patience!
I usually give up fixing the pick up block after some adjustments.I never realized that the wear out material on the plastic due to the movement of the lens would be an issue
Wow wish I knew this as a kid, my ps1 was the same model and had the exact same issue. The only way I knew how to get past it back then was flipping the console upside down, that way the games worked. Eventually I sold the console in a game store and was happy they didn't test it. I can't remember what I got after that but I was pretty done with console gaming and was hooked on PC gaming.
I swaped a PS one newer drive (slim model) and it works.
the power supply was the issue where heat would warp the laser lens. in other revisions of the PlayStation, Sony moved the position of the laser to the right side to reduce heat
That was a fantastic fix!
Great video man, thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it.
Very good job guys !!
The setting of 1.80 to 1.85 is valid for all other models above ? example SCPH 5XXX to SCPH102 ?
Thanks
Holly crap this one is awesome :)
this guy rules
Great video! Thank you to all the info that you've provided, but could you also tell me the link on where to buy replacement optical drives?
For this particular unit just search for KSM-440ACM on eBay or AliExpress. They're about $15 to $20 as of this writing.
@@BorderlineOCD thanks for the hint, I'll check it out
Is there a company who makes a metal replacement for this model? Feel like that would be a cool upgrade for people with this model.
love the videos!! does he sell any of the consoles he fixed?
Glad you are enjoying the content. I haven't sold anything yet but I may consider it to fund future projects.
Wow nice job I would have never thought to do something like that and never actually new that model has a laser design flaw! Good to know because I own 2 of that model I would have thought that it was just a bad laser and would have replaced it with a new one
Hang on to those two units. Although it's still feasible to source them, they are quite sought after.
For calibrating these properly you need to achieve a coherent eye pattern using an oscilloscope on the laser test point. Arbitrary voltage values might get you close but not quite. The shim likely moved the laser and improved the eye pattern. The pots do the same thing but you can't see the result because you're not using an oscilloscope to verify that there's a solid eye pattern.
Pretty cool workaround though.
I'm keen to get my hands on a proper oscilloscope at some point. I bought one of those cheap handheld ones on Amazon that you can get for $30-50 and I ended up returning it.
@@BorderlineOCD Ah yeah, those just don't have the bandwidth you need for stuff like laser calibration sadly.
This ones that you buy from China you may have to fix them also, i've bought one that i've had to adjust the height of the spindle, and clean even the mirror of the laser and the lens above and underneath and also the glass of the diode, it was very dirty, but it was of great built quality, actually a much better unit than the previous one that i've bought from China, that the spindle hat came of just from regular usage and the plastic detachable rail came very loose from design it seems, and it's clearly very inferior in built quality. So, i really think you should try to fix the original ones. Congratulations from the great work made on this one, very cool!
I'm a newbie to this I hope I can fix it this video helps alot
Good luck!
I am curious. Would later model optical drives (like say from a SCPH-7501, or a SCPH-9xxx), be compatible in one of these launch models, or even a 1994 japanese launch model?
I'm asking because, I was wanting to get me either of the two region's launch models, but if I'm not even going to be able to replace the drive from a later model, then I don't know if I should even bother... I'm not sure if I like the idea of aftermarket chinese ones, and the only other idea I had was taking a drive from one of the very later PSOne consoles if I can ever get one, even for the SCPH-7501 that I already own.
I had a similar issue with my JPN Sega Saturn with shuddering FMVs however dialing in the potentiometer didn't help. I ended up replacing laser pick-up to fix shuddering FMVs. (OPTIMA-6S)
That was fascinating. I recommend just getting the 9000 series, it doesn't have any of these issues
Damn bro! You’re the best!
Thank you!
Verry nice i have a question what was the name of the first game you played cuz i like aviation
It's AceCombat 2 as you can see in 1:12
@@JCmeister9 thank you so much have a nice day
I used to have one of these. To get it to run you would have to flip it upside down. The Playstation worked like that for several years.
FYi that potentiometer on tthe PSU adjusts the System wide voltage. Someone might have tweaked that too causing the bias voltage to be slightly off
What is the secret to getting the ribbon connector back in
Hey Borderline OCD for the PS1 you repaired using the original drive if it starts to have skipping issues again after a while use a KSM 440 BAM laser instead the laser used for a slim Ps One just you will need to swap out the top covers for the case top case to fit correctly or else it will not fit properly and a tip is use like a teflon grease not spray but grease will work better in keeping it lubbed better in the long term
My game is brand new and the sound barely heard do I need to do the lens speed like you did?
If my mom kept the first PlayStation that we had that an old friend broke by pulling it off the shelf while it was playing, I may see if it can be diagnosed as lens misalignment and fixed similarly. From a viewer in 2023, thanks for the video! :)