Playstation 3 Won't read Games, Blu-Rays, or DVDs

[Sendai-Horatio]

I was playing Nier and the game froze at the main menu, caused the system to reset and reboot and when it loaded back up the disc wasn't being read, however the disc was spinning in the system.

 

I tried a factory reset but since I don't have any official ps3 controllers I can't get past the screen asking me to press the PS button on the controller(I'm using a hori FPS pro). So I had to turn it off again and then on again and got the HDMI settings screen and was able to get the system back on that way.

 

It spins the discs perfectly fine and this is the original fat model that I got refurbished from amazon a few years ago, but now getting a replacement seems to be closer to the MSRP of a PS4 or a PS5.

 

Does sony still do repairs themselves or should I look for some place that specializes? I'm not sure if I could do it myself.

[Sendai-Horatio]

4 minutes ago, NERVergoproxy said:

Does other games not work either?

I know you said "Playstation 3 Won't read Games, Blu-Rays, or DVDs" in title but your post didn't really say you tried other games. 

yeah I tried about 3-4 other types of games and none of the discs work

[Helyx]

Sony only repairs Super Slim PS3 models.

 

Sounds like the disc track is misaligned/needs calibrating, which isn't hard but requires lots of fiddling. Get a replacement drive and install it yourself on the cheap.

Edited July 12, 2021 by Helyx

[Sendai-Horatio]

So if I need to transplant my Hard drive to a new system what does that entail? Will it need to format it?

 

 

I've already uploaded all my save data to PS+ storage and I've synced my trophies. Is there any other account related stuff I'll need to do?

[HuntingFever]

22 minutes ago, Sendai-Horatio said:

So if I need to transplant my Hard drive to a new system what does that entail? Will it need to format it?

 

 

I've already uploaded all my save data to PS+ storage and I've synced my trophies. Is there any other account related stuff I'll need to do?

Replacing the Bluray drive just entails replacing the disc drive itself but replacing the Hard Drive means starting entirely from scratch with a fresh Hard Drive that has to be formatted to Fat32 and the latest PS3 Firmware reinstalling. Once the Hard Drive is installed and working, you then have to recreate and re-sync your profile after getting the internet working again on your console but re-syncing all your trophies will take either a few minutes or a few hours, depending on how many trophies you have on your account (it took me 5hrs back in the day to re-sync everything) and that was when I had just a fraction of the trophies I do now). After getting your profile sorted out, it's time to reinstall all your games and recover the saves.

[Sendai-Horatio]

22 minutes ago, HuntingFever said:

Replacing the Bluray drive just entails replacing the disc drive itself but replacing the Hard Drive means starting entirely from scratch with a fresh Hard Drive that has to be formatted to Fat32 and the latest PS3 Firmware reinstalling. Once the Hard Drive is installed and working, you then have to recreate and re-sync your profile after getting the internet working again on your console but re-syncing all your trophies will take either a few minutes or a few hours, depending on how many trophies you have on your account (it took me 5hrs back in the day to re-sync everything) and that was when I had just a fraction of the trophies I do now). After getting your profile sorted out, it's time to reinstall all your games and recover the saves.

Alright so I don't need to unlink my account from the system or anything? I could just format the HD put it into a new system and then sign in with my account?

 

I don't feel all that confident with opening up the system and repairing it at this point.

Edited July 8, 2021 by Sendai-Horatio

[SnowxSakura]

10 hours ago, Helyx said:

Sony doesn't repair PS3 models any more.

 

Sounds like the disc track is misaligned/needs calibrating, which isn't hard but requires lots of fiddling. Get a replacement drive and install it yourself on the cheap.

Sony still repairs PS3s in the US and Canada, but only the super slim

 

3 minutes ago, Sendai-Horatio said:

Alright so I don't need to unlink my account from the system or anything? I could just format the HD put it into a new system and then sign in with my account?

 

I don't feel all that confident with opening up the system and repairing it at this point.

You likely just need a new laser if it's not reading discs at all now

[FocusDR]

My PS3 started to do this so I bought a fully reconditioned one for £65 with a new Lens Laser Module and new Thermal Paste to keep things from getting too hot. You can do this yourself if you know how to and have tools for about £20. 

[SnowxSakura]

12 minutes ago, FocusDR said:

My PS3 started to do this so I bought a fully reconditioned one for £65 with a new Lens Laser Module and new Thermal Paste to keep things from getting too hot. You can do this yourself if you know how to and have tools for about £20. 

Fortunately the fat ps3 is the easiest to replace the laser on, replacement ones only cost around 9 bucks as well. Had to replace the laser on a 60gig one 2 months ago

[HuntingFever]

2 hours ago, SnowxSakura said:

Sony still repairs PS3s in the US and Canada, but only the super slim

 

You likely just need a new laser if it's not reading discs at all now

This^

 

Just replace the laser and you'll be fine - there are tons of videos on Youtube that give step-by-step walkthroughs on how to replace pretty much any part of a PS3/4 .

[golfstar59]

Mine did the same thing about a month ago. I used this step by step video to take apart the ps3 and clean the lens it was not hard at all. One tip i would give was the small hex screws with the pin in the middle if you use a small enough flathead screwdriver to fit on one side of the pin you can unscrew it normally. Hope this helps.

 

Here is the link: