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Forums - Microsoft - Halo: Reach disc read errors

yo_john117 said:
slowmo said:
yo_john117 said:
slowmo said:
yo_john117 said:
slowmo said:
Bullet100000 said:

Maybe it was a bad batch of DVD's I don't think it is a hardware issue. Even though the article say it is.


Actually I'm more inclined to say it is a hardware issue.  This is just the usual big seller that people associate their hardware failures with rather than a fault of the game.  It happens as you get people who haven't played much for a while suddenly ramping up the usage of their console when a game like Reach comes along.  A failing laser exhibits exactly these sort of faults before eventually going the "open tray" error route.

It doesn't matter how clean the disk is, if the laser is weak and/or not focusing properly then it will not read certain disks.  I've seen failing lasers read extremely scratched disks, yet fail to read new disks hundreds of times.

This is exactly what was happening to my 360 a couple of months ago...its a really easy fix though, just have to rip your 360 open and turn a screw a few millimeters (i think its called the DVD pot) and now my 360 reads just perfectly.


Well pot tweaking does indeed get lasers working again usually, the downside is you shorten the lifespan, then again if its dead whats to lose I guess lol.

I haven't heard anything about that.  What does it shorten?  The disc tray lifespan? or just the general lifespan of the console itself?


Has another user posted, it shorens the lifespan of the laser.  By twisting that screw a few millimeters you're actually increasing the power the laser uses, this actually bruns the laser out quicker.  Quite often manufacturers err on the side of caution and lasers are calibrated so they have a long life so a small adjustment is usually fine.  It will not affect the consoles lifespan or any other part of the DVD drive, should the worst happen and you kill the laser a replacement is only around £10 so no big loss.

Ok yeah thats not too bad.

It doesn't shorten the lifespan by a lot if done properly, all those planning on doing this, MAKE SURE you use a voltmeter, a few mm in many cases is too much. 3.4K ohms seems to be the sweet spot.



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