Here we have another original Xbox with a misbehaving DVD drive. This particular console is serial 206315452705, a revision 1.6B machine, and the disc tray doesn’t want to eject properly. Give the console a bump and sometimes it’ll open, but that’s hardly the most reliable method of getting a disc out!

I’ve already been experimenting with another Xbox DVD drive that had a similar problem, so I thought I’d try the same trick here. After pulling the drive out, I discovered that this one is a Hitachi-LG GDR-8050L rather than the Samsung drive I’d worked on previously.

The internal arrangement is a little different, but the idea is much the same. There’s a magnetic clamp that holds the disc against the spindle while it’s spinning. On this particular mechanism, it appeared that the clamp wasn’t releasing quickly enough when the drive tried to eject.

My sophisticated repair equipment for today? Another 25%-off sticker! I placed it inside the clamp assembly to act as a thin spacer, reducing the grip between the magnet and the metal plate. Perhaps I should start collecting these stickers. They’re turning out to be rather useful!

With the drive partially reassembled, I gave the tray a quick test. It opened! The gears sounded as though they could use a little attention, but the mechanism was finally moving instead of remaining stubbornly shut.

After putting everything back together, I tested it again in the Xbox. The tray was opening and closing as expected, and I was able to load MX Superfly without having to give the console a whack. That’s more like it!

So far I’ve had success with this approach on three troublesome drives across different Xbox revisions and two DVD-ROM models. It doesn’t mean every stuck tray has the same problem, of course. Worn belts, dirty rails, old grease and other mechanical faults are still worth checking.

With this one working, I’ve now got three functioning Xbox consoles out of four. The remaining machine has a damaged case and a faulty optical drive, but at least it’ll provide some useful spare parts.

Not bad considering these consoles were only about ten dollars each. Shipping them was another matter entirely. Those things are heavy!

Sources