Topic: PS2 error help

[Pikkcuber]

My portly freind needs some help.  He wasnt to smart and bought a PS2.  But now he has a problem.  Some of the games he trys to play works and some dont.  He looked and there were no scratches on the disks or smudges. When he puts the game in that doesnt work the system does not recognize the disk in the system.  It acts like there is no game in there at all.  Do you guys know what the hecks going on?  any recommendations?  Should he call the sony people and ask whats up?

[Grey Ninja]

The PS2 frequently stops reading either DVDs or CDs.  Some games come on CD (blue bottom), and some come on DVDs (gold bottom).  Most likely the PS2 has stopped reading one or the other.

I rented a PS2 for 3 days, and it stopped reading DVDs on the second.  It's not at all uncommon.

[mouse_clicker]

If the warranty for his PS2 is still in effect, Sony will probably replace it. But the warranty is very short (90 days), and I doubt Sony will do anything if it's expired. If it has expired, it would probably be easier (and cheaper) to just get a whole new PS2 rather than having it repaired. My own PS2 hasn't had any problems, but like Ninja said, it's not an uncommon problem at all. A friend of mine is on his 3rd.

[manunited4eva22]

Try telling him to hold circle when it boots, or to go to into the function that does memory cards and press x on the disc.

[Majexto]

Thats not odd at all, is it just me or do all the new PS2's do this?  I use to have one and i bought it around 1-2 months after it was released and i never had a problem.  Everyone i know who gets one usually has trouble reading the blue backed disks.  Did sony put cheaper parts in the PS2 then at the launch?  

[Grey Ninja]

Nope.  I have actually heard that the launch ones were the worst of the bunch.  But it's entirely possible that you lucked out and got a good one.  

[Pikkcuber]

well thanks for the info though you had to be the bearer of bad news its nice to have a place where you can get help. (Its quite Ironic that im listening to a Beatles CD and it just started playing the song "Help".

[Cap]

Quote
Originally posted by: mouse_clicker
A friend of mine is on his 3rd.

i like nintendo a lot, but as much as i do if i had two gamecubes break down on me there is no way i would be buying another. while i havent had any problems with my cube, i'm glad nintendo had the intelligence to include a one year warranty. a three month warranty is a joke in my opinion.

[mouse_clicker]

What's good about Nintendo is they'll probably replace your Gamecube even if the warranty has expired, although that's rarely necessary, since Nintendo makes some rock solid products.  

[Majexto]

Wow, I never had a problem with my PS2 when it launched, it was always the new ones that sucked.  I know, 3 people that bought newer ps2's and they wont play the blue disks.  Does anyone know why they break?  Also, youc an pick up a new laser on ebay for pretty cheap.  Id suggest that, its probably cheaper than sending it to sony.

[KDR_11k]

I guess Sony used weak parts to hold the lasers, which break easily. That way the corresponding laser (DVD-drives use two lasers, one for DVD and one for CD) becomes unusable. It seems like Sony managed to sell quite a lot PS2s to people needing to replace their defective ones.

[ruby_onix]

Quote
Does anyone know why they break?

Here's how I've always heard it.

A DVD drive is technically supposed to be able to read CD media, but it's not very good at it. It can play a normal audio CD, but that's about it. When you see a DVD player that advertises that it plays CDR, CDRW, MP3, VCD, and all that kind of stuff, it typically means that the hardware makers sprung for the extra cash to add a second laser to the DVD unit, one designed solely as a CD player.

Right before the PS2 came out, Sony thought they had fixed that problem. They came up with a way to refocus the lens on the laser, so it can "switch" between being a DVD laser, or a CD laser.

They wanted the PS2 to play DVD-based games, but they also wanted it to play those black-bottomed PSOne CDs, which are an "abnormal" variant of CDs, and not readily played by a DVD drive. And, they didn't want to pay the extra $1 (or however much it costs) per-unit for the CD laser, times the tens of millions of units they intended to sell, so they used their almost-untested new "refocusing" laser in the PS2.

It's turned out that it's way too delicate, so the focusing mechanisim is almost always the first thing to break in a PS2, leaving you without the ability to play CD based games, DVD based games, or both.

If you get a "disk read error" (DRE), you should probably call a customer service phone number at Sony, and ask them about it. Tell then that you've heard about DRE's, and that you've heard that they're a "factory defect", and weren't caused by anything you did.

Sony's official policy is that the PS2 is "good enough", and that they won't do a thing about DRE's, but a lot of people have reported that customer service will often just waive the repair charges, just because they can. Actually, since Sony came out with the newer 50001 model (with progressive scan support, a much quieter fan, and full piracy support through DVDR's), a lot of people have reported success in getting a free 50001 model from customer service, by simply claiming that their PS2 was starting to suffer from DRE's. However, if Sony refuses to give you a new PS2 (because the guy on the phone is having a bad day or something), nothing you can say will change their mind. Because Sony's official policy just says "Screw you! Sure, we get yet another unit added to our 'installed base' if we give you a free replacement, but we'll get that if you PAY US too!"

By the way, if you send in your PS2 for repair (because they ask you or something), make sure you clarify that they're fixing it for free, because some people have reported sending in their PS2's, and then getting it back with a surprise $100-200 repair bill from Sony.

[Infernal Monkey]

Quote
Originally posted by: Grey Ninja


I rented a PS2 for 3 days, and it stopped reading DVDs on the second.  It's not at all uncommon.

Could you expect any less from a rented out unit? Some people seem to wipe their arse with the movies they hire out, God knows how they'd treat a PlayStation 2.

"Oh it's okay, we're only renting it!"
*Puts heavy case of beer on it and breaks wind in the controller ports*

I guess I was very lucky with my PS2. I got it day one, and the only problem I've had was that it started skipping whilst reading DVD movies early this year. But we've now got two dedicated DVD players in the house, so the PS2's crap movie playing feature has no use. My unit's over three years old now, and considering all the stress its been through over these years, it's quite amazing it's not a melted heap of plastic.

[Grey Ninja]

Infernal, it worked fine when I got it.  It worked fine for the first day.  

[Pikkcuber]

Hey guys look at this monthes game pro in the section where people write in it has a thing where you put two pieces of tape and the disk just before the whole in the middel and its suppose to play the disks better I will tell my freind to try it game pro says it works so.

[Jdub03]

Yeah I read this in the last gamepro mag.   I think you put 1 inch tape on the top side of the cd(where the label is).  It should be as close to the  circle as possible without covering it up.  Supposedly it works pretty good.  

[mouse_clicker]

If your warranty has expired, or you don't mind voiding it, TechTV has a VERY good method of fixing your disc read errors. It's not as bad as it sounds- you just have to open your PS2 up and twist a small gear, and I guarantee you will never have this problem again. I tried it on a friend's PS2 tonight that wasn't reading anything in the disc drive (we have some basic knowledge of electronic components, but nothing deep) and it worked beautifully.

[S-U-P-E-R]

The latest gamepro details the same gear-tweaking process, along with plenty of extra advice and pictures.