Getting the laser unit out of the Saturn

[spiritplx]

OK, so after finally messing with my cart slot and getting that working, it seems my laser might be wearing out. I can boot up 'backups' (all have been tested previously, and work for at least 5 minutes of gameplay). However, after playing for a while, when the Saturn goes to load, it sometimes will just hang up, and not continue loading. This is not happening in the same spot each time, so it seems more or less that the laser is just having troubles reading the discs.

I came across this video and I would like to be able to do this with my Saturn's laser. Are there any videos/guides out there that help with getting the actual laser unit out of the Saturn so it can be properly cleaned? Or do most people just clean the outer lens, instead of the outer and inner lenses?

If I clean the lens, and I still get the intermittent loading issues, I think I will try to calibrate the laser. Unless someone else has any other suggestions.

Some important facts to consider:
-originals seem to play just fine, with no loading issues
-backups will sometimes require a few retries before booting up
-after a successful bootup, the backups will occasionally fail to load, at different points in the game (and varying lengths)
-I have backups on a few different types of CDR media, all with the same results
-all of the backups have previously been tested, and a few have had several hours of play in the past (with only a few loading issues, mainly on cut scenes)

[loganm187]

I am having the same problem with my saturn at the moment. it has been modded for many years and just starting last month i am having trouble getting games to boot sometimes and my panzer dragoon saga disk 4 just stopped working during a cut scene the other day then it worked perfect upon rebooting for hours. do i need a new saturn?

[presicion25]

if youre looking for one ive got a modded one coming up for sale for $100. even then im only making about $30 on the whole deal

As far as the laser is concerned, id imagine since its 15 years old its dying, but, you could buy a parts Saturn and replace the lens unit.

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

[quote="spiritplx"]I came across this video

This isn't how the Saturn's laser works, the diode you see when you open up the system is the actual laser itself. Take a Q-Tip dip it in rubbing alcohol, dab it so that it's only mildly moist and swipe it GENTLY over and on the lens a few times then repeat with the dry end in an even gentler motion and let your Saturn sit for a minute or two then try booting a game.

If you're still having issues try doing some common fixes for non-loading systems such as burning your games at 1X which is what you were supposed to be doing from the start, using quality burnable CD-R media such as Sony, Verbatim and JVC (formerly known as Taiyo Yuden) and see if that helps. Using crappy media and burning at high speeds strains your laser to read the disc as it has to refocus and repeat readings far more often.

[spiritplx]

This isn't how the Saturn's laser works, the diode you see when you open up the system is the actual laser itself. Take a Q-Tip dip it in rubbing alcohol, dab it so that it's only mildly moist and swipe it GENTLY over and on the lens a few times then repeat with the dry end in an even gentler motion and let your Saturn sit for a minute or two then try booting a game.

If you're still having issues try doing some common fixes for non-loading systems such as burning your games at 1X which is what you were supposed to be doing from the start, using quality burnable CD-R media such as Sony, Verbatim and JVC (formerly known as Taiyo Yuden) and see if that helps. Using crappy media and burning at high speeds strains your laser to read the disc as it has to refocus and repeat readings far more often.

Well, I burned the games at 4X (the slowest my burner would burn at) and I burned on various media (Sony and Verbatim being two of the brands), and it seems I still get the same issue despite the media.

I didn't realize that about the laser. I will give that a shot and see if it helps at all. I can try some different media again, but I am about to give up hope on that.

Thanks for the tips.