Potential Xbox Newbie Here

[Retrodude]

Okay, so I ran the lens cleaner disc several times and it still won't run games without knocking on the top of it. Fortunately, once it does read the game and allow me to play it, it runs flawlessly. What should my next step be? I assume that all this banging on it can't be good for the drive and I'm afraid if I keep doing that, it'll eventually quit working altogether. Does the drive need to be adjusted or would there be some other reason it's giving me trouble?

Also, what's the range on the wireless adapters? The router's in the living room and my console is downstairs in the basement (that's where my gaming tv is). Would a wireless adapter be able to talk to the router upstairs or does it have to be in the same room?

[Ghegs]

Also, what's the range on the wireless adapters? The router's in the living room and my console is downstairs in the basement (that's where my gaming tv is). Would a wireless adapter be able to talk to the router upstairs or does it have to be in the same room?

It's difficult to say exactly as it depends on the adapter as well as the surroundings. Walls, building materials, etc. all affect it. Make sure to get a wireless adapter that supports 802.11n, that's currently the best protocol with the longest range. Here's a comparison table with approximate ranges if you're curious.

[Retrodude]

Okay, I think I figured out what the problem is. After taking the system apart and cleaning it thoroughly (which I would've needed to do anyway as it was filthy on the inside), I left the top off of the cd drive and plugged it back in. As it turns out, rather than moving back and forth as it should, the laser is bumping against the cd spinner. I manually moved the laser back a bit to see if that helped, but nope, it still does that. At least now I know what kind of fix I'm looking for.

[Retrodude]

Success! I carefully (very carefully) tweaked the pot calibration since it looked like that was the issue and now it works! Now I just have to hope it stays fixed.