PS3 blu-ray drive dead

I noticed that they removed it from their playstation 3 parts page, but I actually had the exact page with the kem-400AAA assembly bookmarked, and It was in stock even though It wasn't on the main PSXboy page. I received it and now am waiting on my new blu-ray drive to test it out.

here is the link..
http://www.psxboy.com/348_PS3-Lens-with-Mechanism-KEM-400AAA.html

Its back out of stock again as of the time of this post.
I kept that bookmarked for a while and kept checking every few days until it came back into stock. (which took about 2 weeks of waiting for me, but hopefully it will be shorter for you) You are right about the other prices being too high, and when you factor in shipping on those sites you might as well just pay the $150 to ship it to sony.

 

hey ballagrl, just curious to see how it works out with psxboy... I bought the same part a couple of weeks ago and they totally screwed me. sent me a corroded pos that had the ribbon header broke off. He tried to say it was damaged during shipping (the part had rust and corrosion) and would refund me if I sent it back... $25 shipping to get $50 back (maybe) F that.

 

I am also a victim of Sony. Once, playing a game, my 60GB PS3 just froze. I had no other way to power it off other than using the switch in the back. When I turned it back on, the damn drive refused to read any kinds of disks. When inserting a disk, the bubble in the top right of the screen appeared, but that was all that happened. My luck turned out to be even worse when I realized that I misplaced my receipt. Calling up SONY didn't help me much. Due to the lost receipt, they want $150. So, I went online hoping to find an alternative solution. Some sites stated that the lens was dirty. So, following guides, I operated on the BR drive trying to clean the lens. Didn't help.

Judging by this thread, the BR drive has many various complications. I just wanted to know how similar this problem is/was to yours. Honestly I'm not even sure if the 'motor' spins or not. Will buying a replacement help? Thanks in advance.

 

Hey man,

What media formats (CD, DVD, SACD, Blu-ray) have you tried reading?

Regardless, from what I've read so far, and based on how I solved my problem, consoles that freeze during gameplay and refuse to read discs afterwards need a laser replacement. Check if you have a KES-400A or KES-410ACA (the ACA has two lenses), and then purchase a replacement. Should work for you; it did for me.

You can find a thread about my experience and findings here.

 

a quick way to tell if your drive is spinning the disc is to power on and insert the disc, wait a few seconds and eject it. try this a few times. If the graphics on the cd are still in the exact same spot, then the drive is not spinning it.

The other way to tell is to unscrew to blu-ray drive until you are able to take off the top metal cover revealing the little white plastic washer shaped thing with a magnet in the middle that spins the disc, and then make sure the control board is still connected on the bottom of the drive, and check to make sure all of the ribbons and connections are plugged in, then try the same thing. You should be able to see the disc and if its spinning.

Also check to make sure the 2 white plastic pieces on either side of the magnet disc are moving to mount this disc into place. Mine never attempted to mount the disc, hence it never spun.

but based on everything i've been reading so far in this and other forum, more than likely its the laser that needs changing.

 

Yea thats the main thing about dealing with overseas sellers, its hardly worth the hassle to send back defective merchandise. I got ripped once through ebay a while back with a memory card that didn't work as expected (supposed to be 64mb, only ended up being 8).

But anyways, the assembly i received from psxboy seems like it would work ok, I couldn't see any defects. But I guess only time will tell. my new drive should be here in a couple of days for me to test it in, so ill keep you posted. until then, i guess ill just set in on folding at home and at least try to help advance science i guess lol.

 

I never heard of your problem in which you couldn't turn off the machine unless you turned off the switch in the back.

I believe trying to clean the lense is a complete waste of time and money.

 

Surfaced: It refused to read ANY kind of disk. DVDs, BR, regular CDs. All it did was a show the loading bubble when I inserted a disk, but that was all. And yeah, I'd rather spend 50$ for a replacement laser, than pay a 150 bucks more to SONY. Just hope it will help. And is it easy to replace the laser with the old one? I mean I didn't have any complications taking the BR Drive apart, so it shouldn't be a problem I guess.

ballagrl: I tried what you told me, and now I see the disk isn't spinning at all... (inserted it and took it out, and it was in the same position.) So the issues is in the motor? or in the lens? What should I replace?? I'm a bit confused.

rwoo1: I seen this issue all over the official PS3 forums. So much about SONY's talks on "small failure rates".
Cleaning the lens didn't waste any of my time, nor money. Took me about half an hour to take it apart and see what's what. All I used was a q-tip and isopropyl alcohol.

 

Ok Vektr,

Definitely try replacing the KES-400A (or KES-400ACA). Sounds exactly like the problem I had.

 

Thanks alot, I guess. I'll be ordering it as soon as they're in stock. Just wanted to ask: Did you have the exact same situation? I mean, the "game freezing and turning it off with the back switch" situation.

 

Sorry for the double post.
Where could I get this part cheapest? Looking around, I noticed they range from 50 to 90 dollars... If I just pay little bit more, SONY will repair it 100%.

Edit: Wow, just found one for 110$.

 

Yeah thats how mine got that way. The ones that need new controller boards usually got mixed up during a firmware update, but alternatively, the IC chip that controls the motors can be fried. Since your discs mount though, and because (Im assuming) you tested the spindle motor (spins the disc) and corkscrew motor (moves the laser carriage), thats not your problem.

 

NOT TRUE!!!!!!!

mine stopped during GTA4 about 2 or 3 times the first week i got the game. and i dont remember what the firmware was that was out. i dont tink it was 2.40 yet. but if there are cases of sony taking it back, why would you even bother to try yourself... i did and when i was done with the new lense, all i got was the ability to play blu-ray media. what i say is see if sony will take it back. if all else fails, do not give them your serial number name or address and keep calling until they do take it back. there are people in this thread that claimed to have it repaired. i have yet to call and see if they will take mine without a warrenty sticker. and also i was a duma ss and i broke the connector that hold the ribbon in for the media card reader. but i will call them eventually. BUT SEE IF SONY WILL TAKE IT BACK FOR FREE BEFORE YOU TRY ANYTHING YOURSELF!!!

 

He's right, you could try that. Sounding really angry (or sad??) might make your chances better too lol.

If they don't repair it for free though, don't pay them either....

 

I've seen different replacement lasers. KES-400AAA & KEM-400AAA... How do I know which one is compatible with my drive? I'm also sure it's not the 2 laser one. And what's a good place to purchase one?

I've seen some on e-bay. I'm wondering is it safe to buy from there? The user has almost 100% positive feedback...

 

eBay should be safe, I bought mine there.


Here's the info. KES units are only the laser carriage. KEM units are both the laser carriage and its frame that it mounts on, including the corkscrew motor. Thus there are four parts you might find:

KES-400A
KES-410ACA
KEM-400AAA
KEM-410ACA

If your carriage only has one lens, and you don't want the full frame replacement also (usually $20 extra), the part you seek is KES-400A.

 

Well replacing the lens might fix your problem, it might not. Ive heard of people with drives not spinning that still didn't spin after the laser was replaced. some of them worked too. If changing the laser doesn't work, most likely its an alignment issue causing the disk not to mount, or more often then not there is an issue with the control board, which is much more costly to fix because it is supposedly married to the motherboard. so you would have to replace the entire motherboard along with it.

I'm still looking for a good tutorial about changing out the controller board, possibly without changing the motherboard? but it seems like from what other people say, its definitely a firmware issue despite what sony claims. I'm sure someone will figure the answer out soon, just keep looking around different message boards.

 

Mine is still running strong, I'm beginning to think I'm the only long lasting success story out of this thread. I also upgraded to 2.42 last week, and everything is still working perfectly. Hang in there guys, we'll get it all figured out.

 

The thing is, my disk mounts, but isn't being read. Anyways, I ordered my replacement and it should be coming today or tomorrow. I'll keep you updated.

 

Yeah I kinda suspect that my issue is the BD board/IC chip. I called Sony and let them know it happened after the update to 2.42. They said they would replace it even though I didn't have the receipt... I didn't tell them I opened up my unit. I'm expecting the coffin inna couple of days. We'll see how it goes with the sticker having been removed. Seems like they know there's an issue with the 2.42 update though... sucks I wasted my money with psxboy (they're thieves)... and that I opened my case.