What should I use to clean my Xbox?

[inkcil]

I keep getting dirty disk errors on various games: Burnout 3, Forza.

Other games play and freeze during the game: ESPN College Hoops, etc.

Can anyone suggest something to clean the xbox lens? Thanks!

[RoyalBoyle78]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

A maid.............................lol Nah I don't really know..

[inkcil]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

A maid.............................lol Nah I don't really know..

well, I guess I should at least thank you for bothering to reply.

[The C]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

I have this little cd that has a really small brush thing on it. I put it there and it spins and cleans it.

[3bitz]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

I have this little cd that has a really small brush thing on it. I put it there and it spins and cleans it.

CD and dvd lense cleaner only. By the way can a xbox drive be replaced with a regular dvd drive and still play games? If anyone knows I'de appreciate a reply sometime this week please.....

[SteelerForLife]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

CD and dvd lense cleaner only. By the way can a xbox drive be replaced with a regular dvd drive and still play games? If anyone knows I'de appreciate a reply sometime this week please.....

I would NOT suggest using a CD/DVD cleaner disc (with the little brushes) with the XBOX. I had just recently gotten an XBOX on eBay cheap. I have College Hoops 2K5, NFL 2K5, and MVP 2005. MVP would not load and CH would freeze mid-play. I tried using a cleaner disc, and the problem actually got worse (none of the games would even load).

So I ordered a replacement DVD drive off of eBay (a Thomson drive, which was what was originally in my XBox), Googled "xbox DVD drive repair" which took me to "llamas.com" (or something like that) which had detailed instructions (with pictures) on how to open the console and remove the drive. I did it in about 45 minutes and haven't had any DDE problems since.

To answer your question, no, you can't use any DVD drive in the XBox. People have had success modding PC drives to work with the Box (and some are actually sold that way on eBay) but I just personally have a problem trusting that.

There are 3 Microsoft-approved drives made by Thomson, Phillips, and Samsung (again, this is all on that llamas.com site). Thomson's are the least expensive (around $30-$35) because they were/are the 1st generation drives (launch, 2001 Xboxes thru 2003) and because they seem to have the shortest operating life spans of the three. But experiences with these drives vary wildly: some people have problems with them after 6 months, some still have launch Xboxes that have never had drive problems. The Phillips and Samsung drives are considered better by most because they seem to handle the most recent dual layer XBox DVD games the best. As a result, they usually sell for at least twice the price of Thomson's. However, neither of these "better" drives are completely foolproof and can have DDE's as well.

My advice? If you're comfortable with replacing the drive yourself (and really, it's no different than replacing/upgrading PC components other than the smaller console case), get a replacement drive and install it rather than trying to get your existing one clean. Which drive? If you're looking to get one of the next-gen consoles anytime within the next 2 years or so, save some money and get a Thomson. It should last you until you get your next console (especially if it's a new, never-used one). Hope all of this helps!

[inkcil]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

I would NOT suggest using a CD/DVD cleaner disc (with the little brushes) with the XBOX. I had just recently gotten an XBOX on eBay cheap. I have College Hoops 2K5, NFL 2K5, and MVP 2005. MVP would not load and CH would freeze mid-play. I tried using a cleaner disc, and the problem actually got worse (none of the games would even load).

So I ordered a replacement DVD drive off of eBay (a Thomson drive, which was what was originally in my XBox), Googled "xbox DVD drive repair" which took me to "llamas.com" (or something like that) which had detailed instructions (with pictures) on how to open the console and remove the drive. I did it in about 45 minutes and haven't had any DDE problems since.

To answer your question, no, you can't use any DVD drive in the XBox. People have had success modding PC drives to work with the Box (and some are actually sold that way on eBay) but I just personally have a problem trusting that.

There are 3 Microsoft-approved drives made by Thomson, Phillips, and Samsung (again, this is all on that llamas.com site). Thomson's are the least expensive (around $30-$35) because they were/are the 1st generation drives (launch, 2001 Xboxes thru 2003) and because they seem to have the shortest operating life spans of the three. But experiences with these drives vary wildly: some people have problems with them after 6 months, some still have launch Xboxes that have never had drive problems. The Phillips and Samsung drives are considered better by most because they seem to handle the most recent dual layer XBox DVD games the best. As a result, they usually sell for at least twice the price of Thomson's. However, neither of these "better" drives are completely foolproof and can have DDE's as well.

My advice? If you're comfortable with replacing the drive yourself (and really, it's no different than replacing/upgrading PC components other than the smaller console case), get a replacement drive and install it rather than trying to get your existing one clean. Which drive? If you're looking to get one of the next-gen consoles anytime within the next 2 years or so, save some money and get a Thomson. It should last you until you get your next console (especially if it's a new, never-used one). Hope all of this helps!

Thanks man! I actually bought one of the lens cleaners (disk w/ little brushes) last night and it did NOTHING to solve the problem. Oh well, for 10 bucks, at least I can use it to clean other drives and it came with a CD/DVD cleaner system to clean actual games. I got it from Gamestop and the box even had a picture of the Xbox (as well as the GB and PS2) on the cover, so I was hopeful it would work.

Anyway, I was also wondering, if I get another drive besides Thompson, do those other drives play burned Cds? The Thompson that I have doesn't.

Also, is there a way to tell which drive you are getting before you open the box (of a new xbox console)?

[SteelerForLife]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

Thanks man! I actually bought one of the lens cleaners (disk w/ little brushes) last night and it did NOTHING to solve the problem. Oh well, for 10 bucks, at least I can use it to clean other drives and it came with a CD/DVD cleaner system to clean actual games. I got it from Gamestop and the box even had a picture of the Xbox (as well as the GB and PS2) on the cover, so I was hopeful it would work.

Anyway, I was also wondering, if I get another drive besides Thompson, do those other drives play burned Cds? The Thompson that I have doesn't.

Also, is there a way to tell which drive you are getting before you open the box (of a new xbox console)?

Glad to help! Believe me, I know how frustrating this can be.

Anyway, the name of the site I was talking about is llamma.com/xbox. You can find pretty much anything you need on that site.

Both the Phillips and the Samsung drives are said to play burned CDs.

There's no way that I know of to tell drive type without opening the box of the console. You at least have to see the mfg. date on the back of the console to even guess. Pretty much any XBox made from 2004 on is going to have the Samsung drive.

Here's another way to tell for sure, after plugging an XBox in.

[inkcil]

Re: What should I use to clean my Xbox?

Thanks Steeler! You almost making a Steeler fan out of me. A family I lived with back in '02 (while traveling the Coast in search of myself) were BIG steeler fans. They let me rent their downstairs mini-apartment for 50 bucks a month!

So the Steeler kindness continues...