Tips for cleaning/repairing an Xbox (2001)?

[Greatguardian]

Hi guys,

I've been having a bit of trouble with my original Xbox lately. I generally take good care of my consoles, so I've never had to send this in for repairs in the 10 years I've owned it. Unfortunately, now that it starts acting up, I notice that Xbox lost support from Microsoft in July 2009.

I'm thinking right now that I'm having either hard drive or disk drive issues. Whenever I try to insert *any* game into the drive, it gives me the generic "Your Xbox can't recognize this disc." error. Xbox.com as well as pretty much every other support site I've google'd has either taken down all of their original Xbox info or just recommends buying a 360 and calling it a day. In this case, it isn't really an option for me. The only half decent information I've been able to come across was from Microsoft.com, saying that corrupted save files may prevent a game from starting up and would read like a disk read error. With this in mind, I deleted everything off of my Xbox hard drive, including songs and xbox live account information. While this met with initial success (I got Robotech: Battlecry to start up, run, play, save, etc), when I turned off the console it started the same shit all over again. I have not been able to replicate my success with any other game, and only one other time with Battlecry after erasing the save data again.

If this is a case of a dirty lens or dust in the console (very possible, the unit has accumulated 10 years of wear and tear without cleaning), how would I go about cleaning it? Is there anything else I can do to repair it? I'm tech savvy enough to follow instructions, I just don't want to go in poking around on my own and mess something up that I can't fix. If it comes down to it I suppose I could just buy one for $50 used on Amazon (new ones are more expensive than 360s...), but should I really expect much from a 10 year old used console?

I'd look into playing Xbox games on a 360, but honestly I don't own one nor am I really looking to spend that much money on a new console. I'm a PC gamer primarily. I simply use my Wii and Xbox for playing co-op games with my girlfriend whenever she feels like playing. The disrepair of my Xbox has put a rather severe cramp on our co-op library, and it's bumming me out .

[jmc]

Probably is just a dusty dvd lens, follow this guide http://www.llamma.com/xbox/Repairs/c..._dvd_drive.htm and clean off the lens and try again.

[xerodok]

I fixed my original XBOX by throwing it on the ground then I tried again it worked.

But, I would try first to vacuum out the entire system. Use a vacuum hose on the fan and suck out the dust/dirt by directing the fan counterclockwise. Then perform the lens cleaning.

I would recommend not taking it apart if you don't have to. Just go to any retailer that sells computer stuff and buy a lens cleaner. It's essentially a disc with a little bristle built into it that brushes over your lens while it spins. They aren't more than $10.