cdx problem... please help.

[hogfishmaster]

My sega cdx has problems. The genesis part works perfectly. The cd part seems to work on certain games. Mortal kombat cd works perfectly every time. On some other games, the disc starts spinning, then a clicking noise starts and I get a no disc message. Other times the disc keeps spinning and I get a "searching for disc", or "please wait." Any advice would be helpful. Thanks alot.

EDIT: Local gamestore said they fixed, but when I went to pick it up, the problem was there still. At least they didn't charge me. Any other advice? Please help. Anyone know a reputable repair place?
Steve

hogfishmaster

[JLukas]

Are you using the correct power supply, MK-4122, 1.5A? Using an incorrect power supply, like the Genesis Model 2 MK-2103, .85A, can give the symptoms you describe as the CDX isn't getting enough power.

You can also try cleaning the laser lens, there's probably a FAQ on the best way to do that if you search around on the boards here.

[MrSparkle]

the sega cd's laser is pretty weak in comparison to todays high powered cd lasers so if its even a little bit dirty it can have a hard time reading. Give that thing a bit of a cleaning and see if that doesnt fix the problem. If it plays some cds fine you can be pretty sure its not a physical problem like a stuck gear as that would prevent it from playing any games. That clicking sound is most likely the laser being moved back and forth trying to read the same sector over and over again its pretty common in all optical drives when they cant read a sector the first time.

[hogfishmaster]

I just checked the power supply and it is #2103. So I have been using the wrong one. Apparently that is the problem. Does anybody know where I can get the correct power supply for my cdx?

[InsaneDavid]

I just checked the power supply and it is #2103. So I have been using the wrong one. Apparently that is the problem. Does anybody know where I can get the correct power supply for my cdx?

eBay more than likely. I know CDX power supplies aren't as abundant as they were about a year ago (don't get me wrong, they were still hard to find) once people put two and two together and realized the power rating was the same for the JVC X'Eye. For some reason CDX power supplies are easier to find than X'Eye power supplies so you end up having two markets going after one power supply.

While most of the time the CDX and X'Eye will run off a Genesis 2 power supply (although it is NOT recommended as the power supply is underrated by 0.65A if I remember correctly) it is possible that's your problem. If anything it's the first step to properly diagnose what's going wrong. Alternatively you can buy a universal power supply as long as it meets the following specs...

Output: 9.5V DC 1.5A
Positive Tip

If you go that route you want your voltage to be around 9V - 10V and the power supply to output at least 1.5A.

[hogfishmaster]

Any other suggestions of where I can locate a cdx power supply? Does anybody have an extra one they would sell or trade to me?

[hogfishmaster]

Got a correct power supply, and now the cds don't load at all. They start spinning and I get a clicking noise and a "no disc" message. Tried and audio cd also and the same problem occurs. Any advice. Any reputable repair people here want a project? Thanks in advance.

hogfishmaster

[MrSparkle]

Whenever i lose a power supply i tend to try to find a variable power supply as my first recourse as they are cheap and abundant. Just a matter of making sure it can do what you need it to.

[MrSparkle]

Got a correct power supply, and now the cds don't load at all. They start spinning and I get a clicking noise and a "no disc" message. Tried and audio cd also and the same problem occurs. Any advice. Any reputable repair people here want a project? Thanks in advance.

hogfishmaster

first thing to try for this would be to clean the laser. That clicking noise is probably the lens rapidly going back and forth trying to read a section of the disc. Take some isopropyl alcohol, 90% or higher is recommended and a q-tip dab the q-tib into the alcohol and ever so lightly (ie DO NOT PUSH THE LASER LENS) clean the laser lens off. you can use the other side of the q-tip to dry it off just make sure to take a look that there are no fibers left on the lens. Do that give it an additional minute to dry and fire that sucker up.

[hogfishmaster]

Heres the update. I first used the wrong power cord #2103. Mortal kombat cd played fine, but the others resulted in either searching for disc, or NO DISC message with a clicking sound. Now i have the correct official power cord and used it. Now when i load any cd game i get the clicking sound and no disc message. I have used alcohol and qtip to clean the laser and nothing changes. Any advice?

[SnowKitty]

the sega cd's laser is pretty weak in comparison to todays high powered cd lasers so if its even a little bit dirty it can have a hard time reading. Give that thing a bit of a cleaning and see if that doesnt fix the problem. If it plays some cds fine you can be pretty sure its not a physical problem like a stuck gear as that would prevent it from playing any games. That clicking sound is most likely the laser being moved back and forth trying to read the same sector over and over again its pretty common in all optical drives when they cant read a sector the first time.

the clicking is not the laser being moved back and forth, it's the lens trying to focus. i work on alot of PS1s that have these issues. you can fix it by adjusting the drive's laser pots. there's usually anywhere from 1 to 4 or so pots, 1 on the laser itself, one for focus bias, one for focus gain, and one for tracking gain (do NOT mess with this one, you need some kinda test equipment to get that one properly calibrated) try decreasing resistance a bit on the pot thats on the laser itself first, just go lower little by little until it reads better. you could also just buy a new laser but it's cheaper and probably better if you readjust the old one

[Cornelius]

I don't remember what console it was for sure, I think PS2, but there are actually 2 lenses. The one you can see, and then another larger one lower down. That lower one was filthy, and cleaning it fixed a similar problem I had. So, you might keep an eye out for that. Hopefully someone else knows for sure about this on the CDX and can comment.

[ooXxXoo]

I don't remember what console it was for sure, I think PS2, but there are actually 2 lenses. The one you can see, and then another larger one lower down. That lower one was filthy, and cleaning it fixed a similar problem I had. So, you might keep an eye out for that. Hopefully someone else knows for sure about this on the CDX and can comment.

Yes, right under the actual laser lens, there is the the laser lens mirror, any filth or dirt in their will cause issues....Ploblem is, is a bit hard to get to it....

[hogfishmaster]

snowkitty: how can i adjust the drive's laser pots? This is very irritating!Thanks.

[SnowKitty]

snowkitty: how can i adjust the drive's laser pots? This is very irritating!Thanks.

you should clean the mirror thingy in it first, try lightly blowing at it with a can of compressed air. if that does not work then there should be a small variable resistor on the laser pickup, you usually urn it clockwise to lower resistance, just do it a little at a time untill it reads better. its alot of trial and error

[hogfishmaster]

Anybody else had this problem with a cdx? Any other suggestions out there? Please advise.

[hogfishmaster]

update: I took it in for repair at alocal game store. He said he took it apart and cleaned it, and it worked perfectly. However, when I went to pick it, it had the problem same as ever. The clicking noise, no disc, etc. Any other suggestions. Anyone know a repair place?

[c0ldb33r]

Contact osg.ca and ask them how much it would cost to fix it.