Recently I've bought a v4 PS2 system which had problems reading discs. It took a realy long time for it to detect a disc and sometimes it didn't detect them at all. The interesting thing is that when the actual game started everything was completely fine. So I took it apart and fiddled with a white cog allegedly responsible for distance between a lens and a disc. To my surprise it worked! Now this unit reads all kind of original discs (scratched and clean discs, single and double layered DVDs, etc.) without any problem. The next thing I tried was playing some backups with ESR. Unfortunately it didn't go very well. The discs were detected just fine, but there were all sorts of other problems - long loading times, skipping FMVs and sounds... I tried to play the same exact discs an my almost new v18 PS2 and it did it without a hitch. I'm not really interested in playing burned media, but this problem is still bugging me. Is it normal for such an old unit (v4) to play all kind of original DVDs but be this picky to burned media? What are my options now? Should I try to tweak white cog again? Or maybe I should by a replacement laser from China?
Simple anwser, Yes. You could try a different DVD-R brand like JVC. You can but at the same time you are shortening the life of the laser. Sure give it shot. Maybe some other members here know of a good source ps2 lasers.[/QUOTE]
A new laser from China has always worked for me. It saves a load of frustration by just replacing the laser and not trying to salvage the old one. If it's a simple fix, I obviously prefer the original laser, but I'm not not a patient guy, so If it's a complex fix, I just buy a new laser.
The earlie consoles were generally not very great for reading recordable discs. You should try to use better quality discs like Verbatim DVD-R discs that were manufactured by Taiyo Yuden or Mitsubishi. The cogs are to adjust the parallex of the laser. Since it's a dying laser, you might need to adjust the potentiometers under it, so that it has more power... although that would really be at the expense of the laser's remaining lifespan. Getting a replacement laser is the only real fix. You can't really fix what is dying, if it is dying. But first, you should confirm whether your discs are good or not, as these old consoles will likely struggle with cheap discs. Even with lasers in a reasonable condition. On a side note, adjustment of the parallex should be done with some tools.
