Hardware My 360 slim has a weard problem reading discs

[Deleted User]

So I pretty much had this 360 slim since late 2011.Before then it's been working fine for quite awhile,untill around 2017 I think of course since its a damn xbox,so it's always somthing that happens to it.Anyways it started to have issues reading discs for some reason that I can't seem to understand.It seems like if I shake the console around a few times (makes a rattle noise when i shake it) and constantly keep putting the disc inside,it eventually reads it.When it doesn't want to read a disc it either gives me the error to clean the disc with a cloth or the drive speeds up then slows down in the middle of loading the disc,which causes freezing or it makes graphical artifacts while loading a game.Any theorys on what it could be?

 

[brickmii82]

Laser is most likely beginning to go out. New ones can be bought on eBay for 5$ or so. They have a anti-static solder blob on them that has to be removed before installation, so keep this in mind.

 

[Deleted User]

Laser is most likely beginning to go out. New ones can be bought on eBay for 5$ or so. They have a anti-static solder blob on them that has to be removed before installation, so keep this in mind.

Ah,then I'm going to have to open it up after all then.I got a few questions

1.Do I need a t10 screw driver or does it open without a torx screw

2.does the model of the replacement drive matter? I got two xbox 360's (one that's a arcade and the other is a red resident evil elite) that died from rrod,mabe I could just use the disc drives from one of them,or does it have to be one specificly from a slim?

 

[Anunnymous]

Ah,then I'm going to have to open it up after all then.I got a few questions

1.Do I need a t10 screw driver or does it open without a torx screw

2.does the model of the replacement drive matter? I got two xbox 360's (one that's a arcade and the other is a red resident evil elite) that died from rrod,mabe I could just use the disc drives from one of them,or does it habe to be one specificly from a slim?

You can't just use the disc drive. You can but it requires spoofing firmware and you need hardware that I'm guessing you don't have. You can use the laser from one though.

 

[Deleted User]

You can't just use the disc drive. You can but it requires spoofing firmware and you need hardware that I'm guessing you don't have. You can use the laser from one though.

I see....So i could just grab the laser.Im pretty sure it spins but from some reason the noise the drive makes starts to slow down while reading most of the time.

 

[Anunnymous]

I see....So i could just grab the laser.Im pretty sure it spins but from some reason the noise the drive makes starts to slow down while reading most of the time.

It could just need a pot tweak. If you've never done a pot tweak before, watch a video first. You want to mark your starting position and gradually turn it, then try it. Gradually, meaning a degree or two. What it's doing is increasing the voltage to the laser so you don't want to crank it. This will more than likely cause it to work correctly again but it could only be temporary. It could go out again in a day, but I've heard of them lasting for years after a pot tweak also (optical drives in general, not necessarily the 360.)

Edit: The best way to pot tweak is find the operating voltage of the laser, which you should be able to find on the circuit board manufacturer's website and tweak it with a multimeter. But, if you just try minimal tweaks, you should be ok. If you go above the laser's operating voltage threshold though, it'll fry it.

 

[brickmii82]

The torx screws are t10 and t15. No you wont be able to use that RE drive laser. Thats gonna be a 16D2S drive and the one in your slim is at least a 16D4S.

 

[Deleted User]

So from further testing since i wanted to play some games on it recently,it gets to a point where it wants to read discs all the time after leaving it on and puting the disc in and out of the drive multiple times.

Then when i turn it off and wait till the next day to play it,the console goes through the disc reading errors all over again.