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m4oH
02-16-2004, 07:24 PM
Okay this is a queston/ statement. My Xbox comes up alot with "the disc you are using is eithier scratched etc etc" I recently bought PGR2 (like amonth ago) and like the 2nd time playing it it came up with this. While racing on LIVE, I told a couple of people about this problem, one guy said he had the same prob and he thought it was because they were the older xboxes. If this is true can this be fixed?? Also a random fact he told me was that the first 11 boxes had metal "x'es" on em.

Max33
02-16-2004, 07:29 PM
Thw first version XBOX has the Thompsin DVD drive,which are known to suck.(Im stuck with one)You could try to find a compataible drive on E-Bay

m4oH
02-16-2004, 07:46 PM
Don't you think Microsoft would "renew" it if I sent it in.

Max33
02-16-2004, 08:03 PM
What do ya mean by renew?Microsoft will do something if you send it to em but what I don't know.What I do know is that they'll charge ya over a hundred bucks in service charges, and they'll insist thats the only way.They dont want any body opening THEIR box and mucking around in there.I was having the same problems and tried a lens cleaner, which only screwed it up worse. enevitably I had to open it up & manually clean the lense which helped,but idealy I would like stick in a newer drive.

Slap A Pope
02-16-2004, 08:41 PM
More and more, I see these "My Thompson XBOX is broken," posts. So far I've been lucky that my Thompson hasn't had any problems in the 2+ years Ive had it, but I have a bad feeling its gonna give me a clusterfu*k of problems one of these days

Maxgeek
02-16-2004, 08:49 PM
Yeah try getting a Phillips drive off ebay, should run you about $45.

# 1 Stunner
02-16-2004, 09:00 PM
if u dont have a warranty on it then u will have t o buy a new xbox or fix it urself

l Maximus l
02-17-2004, 01:11 AM
I have a new XBox...in fact, I just got it today. It's my third one...man, this thing purs like a kitten :D

It has a Phillips Drive in it

Brutus
02-17-2004, 08:47 AM
A what drive? I just cleaned mine the other day with a Games cleaner and their was so much crap in their! hahahaha!

Ford Mustang
02-17-2004, 09:01 AM
Like was said already, it's because of the Thomson drive. I have the same thing, but I never really have any problems with it. I do have a feeling it's going to **** the bed some day though, at the worst possible moment.

Spaztic
02-17-2004, 09:14 AM
My Thompson drive began to take a big steamy dump on me about a couple months ago. I was getting all sorts of DDE's when watching DVD's or playing games. I got a lens cleaner and haven't had any problems but the occasional skip while watching a dvd.

m4oH
03-28-2004, 07:55 PM
Mine also doesnt read CD-RW's, can the other drives read em??

LiquidX
03-28-2004, 08:05 PM
Yep. The Philips drives can read 99.9% of all CD-RW's. The new Samsungs can read all CD-R's and CD-RW's.

BTW: Why the ressurection of a month and a half old thread?

Shorezy
03-28-2004, 08:27 PM
Yeah good question...Anyway, I had a first gen. too and it went NUTTY. I just got a new box and she's soundin' and actin' great! Hope she stays quiet for a while though! Either way, DD's on new games generally spells out new DRIVE or new BOX. Good luck!

m4oH
03-28-2004, 08:37 PM
Yep. The Philips drives can read 99.9% of all CD-RW's. The new Samsungs can read all CD-R's and CD-RW's.

BTW: Why the ressurection of a month and a half old thread?
Cause I wanted to ask the CD-RW question and I remembered me making a thread a while ago about my thompson drive

BananaMan
03-28-2004, 09:17 PM
Well i picked up my xbox the first day it come out, and here lately it sounds so loud and the games i play sometime go really slow, freeze, the game starts back at the main menu, or it goes to a black screen. And the occasional DDE. BUT do you think all those freezings/ game goin slow stuff is because of the drive? And if it is i think i will get me a new box cuz this bugs the hell outa me... then another question: If i did get a new xbox how could i get ALL my old game saves/xbl account over to the new one? thanks in advance.

TheWheelMan
03-28-2004, 09:36 PM
I believe i have a newer model im guessing the xbox'es that are having problems also come with the "duke" the older bulker controllers in which i have a model with the controller S which is very nice but ya i was just playing splinter cell today and i noticed that it was looking kinda off (not the same graphically) but im guessing it was because the box was running for awhile and maybe it was just a little overheated and it wasnt that big of a deal but it kinda dimmed down the gameplay for me a bit :rolleyes:

BlindSniper
03-28-2004, 10:09 PM
Hmmm, I have had my xbox since launch. I play it all the time! I occasionally get the old dirty disk stuff but just blowing on the disk and xbox fixes that.......I'm thinking I should be getting a new box. I've also noticed newer games will give more dirty disk things then old......I HAVE NEVER got a dirty disk on my halo, had it forever. But I got dirty on tenchu and ninja g...

Chaotic
03-29-2004, 08:42 AM
I also have a launch xbox with the thomson drive and i haven't had 1 problem EVER!!

I guess it's the luck of the draw.

Cryogenic Pyro
03-29-2004, 08:47 AM
I bought my Xbox in early 2003 I believe, and I have a Thompson. I've only had about 3 DDEs. My buddy has a Thompson in his too, and it's working fine too. I only know of one person who has something other than a Thompson, and I know 5 or more people with Xboxes. The lucky person with a Samsung just bought his Xbox a few weeks ago.

SoundX
03-29-2004, 09:18 AM
It's amazing how many people have got this problem suddenly (me included).

MS wanted alot of money for a repair, so I told them to screw it and I got a Crystal Xbox, just sell the old one (without the thompson drive) (or with it, heh) and you shouldn't be far off a Disc/Dirty/Error free Xbox :)

Shadow20002
03-29-2004, 02:51 PM
Clean it first then see what happen before sending to MS.

m4oH
03-29-2004, 05:40 PM
Well i picked up my xbox the first day it come out, and here lately it sounds so loud and the games i play sometime go really slow, freeze, the game starts back at the main menu, or it goes to a black screen. And the occasional DDE. BUT do you think all those freezings/ game goin slow stuff is because of the drive? And if it is i think i will get me a new box cuz this bugs the hell outa me... then another question: If i did get a new xbox how could i get ALL my old game saves/xbl account over to the new one? thanks in advance.
Memory card :cheers: :cheers: Copy one, dlelte it then copy another

BinaryXtreme
03-29-2004, 05:42 PM
I also have a launch xbox with the thomson drive and i haven't had 1 problem EVER!!

I guess it's the luck of the draw.

Me too and it's very quiet. Strange..... :cool:

BlindSniper
03-29-2004, 07:59 PM
Me too and it's very quiet. Strange..... :cool:

Hmmm very quiet eh? You mean, You can never hear your xbox pur :yikes: hmm.....strange indeed.

pvsurfer03
03-30-2004, 12:32 AM
I had a Thompson drive and i called microsoft and said i had 2 pay 100 not including shipping 2 get it fixed. I always got the dirty disc error even with a new game. I kept arguing with the tech support person and she wouldnt budge. So I bought a new xbox and works fine. I sold my broken one for 100 so I only lost 80 bucks. I was trying to explain 2 them that i shouldnt have to pay for something thats their fault, but it didnt work. The guy I sold my broken xbox to actually replaced the drive and said hes havin no problems so I guess that works.

BinaryXtreme
03-30-2004, 12:37 AM
Hmmm very quiet eh? You mean, You can never hear your xbox pur :yikes: hmm.....strange indeed.

Oh it purs, but oh so softly.........

SoundX
03-30-2004, 09:28 AM
I had a Thompson drive and i called microsoft and said i had 2 pay 100 not including shipping 2 get it fixed. I always got the dirty disc error even with a new game. I kept arguing with the tech support person and she wouldnt budge. So I bought a new xbox and works fine. I sold my broken one for 100 so I only lost 80 bucks. I was trying to explain 2 them that i shouldnt have to pay for something thats their fault, but it didnt work. The guy I sold my broken xbox to actually replaced the drive and said hes havin no problems so I guess that works.

That's what I'm doing, I saw a guy sell a Faulty Xbox on ebay for 90 pounds! Hopefuly if I throw in a few crappy games I can hit 100 too.

Spaztic
03-30-2004, 01:47 PM
UPDATE: My thompson is getting worse. I am replacing the laser tomorrow night. I will let you know if it worked.

Brutus
04-01-2004, 09:06 AM
That's what I'm doing, I saw a guy sell a Faulty Xbox on ebay for 90 pounds! Hopefuly if I throw in a few crappy games I can hit 100 too.
I'd like to know what kind of drive I can replace it with. ANyone got any part numbers of some DVD drives that are compatible?
How about one that's black and has the XBOX logo on it?
Will I have to peel the XBOX cover off of the old drive and glue it on the new white one! hahaha!
No Seriously... Anyone know?

SnoochyBoochy
04-01-2004, 10:31 AM
7 months and my sammy's still kickin. that things invincible!

Brutus
04-02-2004, 08:16 AM
I called MS and they told me to free some space on my Hard Drive. I'll keep you informed. It seemed to work last night alright.

SoundX
04-02-2004, 08:59 AM
None of that stuff worked for me, ah well my brand spanking new Crystal Xbox has arrived. And it's not a thompson drive because (presumily they stopped making those) and it will play copied music. (Which means I have alot of music to burn ^^)

Now that I think about it, freeing up space did work, but after a while it just came right back.

Ninjermy
04-02-2004, 10:09 AM
i have an older xbox or so i think... so how can i find out what type of drive i have?

SoundX
04-02-2004, 02:34 PM
See if it'll play copied cd's for a start I guess, and erm, if you get loads of error crap then it's a thompson.

EvilTed
04-02-2004, 05:11 PM
The $25 I spent on a replacement plan didn't seem so bad when my first box's drive went in the crapper after 11 months. I had problems the entire time I had that one though, they just got worse over time, until one day it would not play any disks. The guy I talked to at best buy said it was a known problem with the first xboxes. I got a new one, haven't had one problem since.

SoundX
04-03-2004, 05:53 AM
This is a real helpful pic that easily helps you identify the drive.

http://img38.photobucket.com/albums/v118/mmichael0/161103-drives.jpg

Damn those Samsung drives are ugly :rofl:

Max33
04-03-2004, 12:55 PM
Yeah, my thompson startin to screw up again.Freezes every time I get close to Vivic in morrowind.If anybody finds a good deal on a beter compataible drive post a link & help out the unfortunate.

TrueBelieverUK*
04-03-2004, 01:09 PM
after reading these posts i live in fear of mine ****ing up, it did it one with fifa and thats it. i've bin safe with live and gta.

chris

SoundX
04-04-2004, 02:03 PM
Yes, Fear the Thompsons! lol

Nothing to worry about really, I could work perfectly and still be a thompson as people have pointed out..

*cough* FEAR IT!

Highlite23
04-04-2004, 02:17 PM
While the Thompson drives have been known to have some issues, you do have a few options...


Buy a new Xbox...........$149.99
Replace the drive with a Philips or Samsung drive...............$50-$100
Replace the laser in the Thompson drive...............$30.00


Obvioulsy, the simplist solution is just buying a new box, but I gotta tell ya, after replacing the lens in one of my Thompson drives, I'm convinced it's the way to go. Simple procedure, took me a total of half an hour. From opening the case (Do so at your own risk, and this will void any warranty) to loading a disc, it took a half hour. So far it plays all cd-r's i've tried, and it runs smooth as silk.

Just my contribution tothe discussion. :)

Max33
04-04-2004, 02:50 PM
Hey man good lookin out.I'm gonna try that.

I gotta ask though how long ago did you operate? (Just wanna make sure it's a solid remedy before I go and do it)

Soundscape
04-04-2004, 04:50 PM
i have a few questions if you don't mind?

where can you get a new lens for a thomson drive? what's this disk you mention, and where can you find instructions on replacing the lense?

thanks

Xbox4all
04-04-2004, 06:15 PM
One of my friends says his Launch Box isnt working well(I checked and its Thomson) But then again he has had it for 3 years so...

Highlite23
04-04-2004, 09:46 PM
I gotta ask though how long ago did you operate? (Just wanna make sure it's a solid remedy before I go and do it)

It's been about 5 or 6 months since "Surgery", all systems A.O.K :)


where can you get a new lens for a thomson drive? what's this disk you mention, and where can you find instructions on replacing the lense?

thanks

You can actually find them on ebay, you can also do a google search for other sources, most sellers have some instructions available on line. The disk I refered to...any game. My point was from when I started to when I placed a game in the system and fired it up. :)

Rochey69r
04-05-2004, 05:19 AM
Well i picked up my xbox the first day it come out, and here lately it sounds so loud and the games i play sometime go really slow, freeze, the game starts back at the main menu, or it goes to a black screen. And the occasional DDE. BUT do you think all those freezings/ game goin slow stuff is because of the drive? And if it is i think i will get me a new box cuz this bugs the hell outa me... then another question: If i did get a new xbox how could i get ALL my old game saves/xbl account over to the new one? thanks in advance.

Yeh Gday Mate!

What you will need to do is take the old xbox to a computer repair shop or xbox modder and have them put the old hardrive from it in your new xbox. i think that would work. but taking it to an xbox modder and asking him what to do would be a good idea. sorry i cant be of much help mate but i hope to steer you in the right direction.

cheers :cheers:

Highlite23
04-05-2004, 07:44 AM
Yeh Gday Mate!

What you will need to do is take the old xbox to a computer repair shop or xbox modder and have them put the old hardrive from it in your new xbox. i think that would work. but taking it to an xbox modder and asking him what to do would be a good idea. sorry i cant be of much help mate but i hope to steer you in the right direction.

cheers :cheers:

Well, you could invest in an Actioj Replay and just transfer the saves to your PC and then to your box. :hump:

SoundX
04-05-2004, 12:13 PM
Well, you could invest in an Actioj Replay and just transfer the saves to your PC and then to your box. :hump:

Yeah I should have done that, 10 pounds less than a memory card at some places. :mad:

MikeMan91389
04-05-2004, 08:14 PM
whoa, thats pretty sneaky... i might buy an AR after all! no wait, no i wont :(


well gl with all the box problems,

i have 2 phillips, startin too sound a lil tired out

GuiltySpark
04-05-2004, 09:39 PM
Yeah, Im on my fourth box. Thank you God for the Best Buy Warranty! My first two had some problems with DRE's so i took em back. My third i had for a while and would get a DRE prolly once a week. I consider that a "good" thompson drive. It was workin fine but my warranty was gonna expire and i didn't wanna press my luck, so i just got a new one last week. Lost all my gamesaves but i noticed how much faster games load now and i smiled :cheers:

xboxman_1
04-05-2004, 09:48 PM
::: stares at his launch day Thompson :::

no problems on my end yet....

Rochey69r
04-06-2004, 03:07 AM
Yeah, Im on my fourth box. Thank you God for the Best Buy Warranty! My first two had some problems with DRE's so i took em back. My third i had for a while and would get a DRE prolly once a week. I consider that a "good" thompson drive. It was workin fine but my warranty was gonna expire and i didn't wanna press my luck, so i just got a new one last week. Lost all my gamesaves but i noticed how much faster games load now and i smiled :cheers:

My friend has a modded xbox, and has 30 or so games on it. he never gets DDE and the load times are insanely fast compared to my xbox.

Brutus
04-06-2004, 10:23 AM
You know. I just got a cleaner and it seemed to work exponentially better. Maybe that was my problem. You know!?
I mean, heck... My Xbox was 2.5 years old, going through the same rigorous multiple hours upon multiple hours of gaming test.
I wonder if theres a way to get it maintained. You know, like a tune-up. Anyone know?
Or how about some directions on the web!?!