Playstation 1 repair project - part 2

The four untested PS1 consoles I ordered a week ago arrived yesterday. They are a bunch of filthy consoles full of dust and goo. The looks can be misleading however.

It took me a few hours to go through the units, testing what worked and what didn't and I also opened them up to see the condition of the PCBs and the modchips, if any.

Testing process:

• Power
• AV
• Bios
• Controller Ports
• Memory card slots
• Audio CD
• PS1 original disc
• Backup disc PAL/NTSC if a modchip is present

Initial assertion

SCPH-5502
motherboard: PU-18
optical drive: KSM-440ADM

This is the oldest model of the lot, it has the old BIOS with a different look than the others. Powers on, video and audio output works but it stops the discs right after spinup. It is probably a laser issue, it cannot detect a disc so it doesn't even try to read it. I do not have a replacement KSM-440ADM drive for this one and the 440AEM drives have a short ribbon cable that doesn't reach the connector. It can however be used to test if the unit works with a different optical drive. Modchip is installed on the bottom side. Needs cleaning, modchip install, there are some missing screws and the eject button is sticky. Oh and the RF shield has rust.

BIOS

Modchip installed on the back

SCPH-7502 (1)
motherboard: PU-22
optical drive: KSM-440AEM

This is an original model without any mod. The shell has a broken screw hole that needs to be glued. Works fine with PS1 original discs and audio CDs. It needs cleaning and probably a modchip.

SCPH-7502 (2)
motherboard: PU-22
optical drive: KSM-440AEM

This is the same model as the previous one but it has a modchip. Loads original and backup discs. It has a lot of dirt and dust in the inside but this is probably the best console in the lot.

SCPH-9002
motherboard: PU-23
optical drive: KSM-440AEM

Modchip is installed (with very long cables that I will replace) in this one but I cannot manage to boot any backup games, probably due to the laser's condition. I have a replacement drive for it so it only needs a swap. Of course heavy cleaning is needed here too. RF shielding is rusty.

 Taking apart all the consoles for cleaning is easy but very time consuming. The plastic parts and the shielding took a nice bubble bath.

Since I haven't marked the parts I'll have to match them by color. The rust still needs to be removed from some of the metal parts. I'll try fine sandpaper first, see how that works out.

Motherboards and power supply PCBs are full of dust and cobweb so they need to be cleaned as well.