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Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2014 6:37 pm
by Bob Dobbs
As always, you rock! Really miss our chats...

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2014 10:27 pm
by Radkin
What Dobbs said. :( Keep up the good work.

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Thu Sep 11, 2014 12:12 am
by SMiTH
Bob Dobbs wrote:As always, you rock! Really miss our chats...

We had quite a few epic chats a few years back for sure.
Maybe I'll finally get back to being active here again?

Radkin wrote:What Dobbs said. :( Keep up the good work.

Thanks Radkin :)

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 2:53 am
by alvin777
Hi. The ribbon is easy (if usually one has damaged it cause you were transferring parts to revive one more Dreamcast). In an electronics shop, I just aligned the ribbon contacts when I was buying and found a wider and longer and aligns with the distance of the ribbon's teeth. The one I found is printed: Sony Chemicals AWM 20696 80C VW-1. It needs to be cut to length- width wise (the longer length I believe won't be a problem, it's only a centimeter longer and centimeter wider), maybe tape things down and careful cute with cutter or craft knife with the original cable on it (taped) and a steel ruler over that.

Also I think if one is going to revive a DC by reviving the GD-ROM lens, it's best to just buy a new lens (although that diminishes the all original factor of a collection, coz' if it's just to make things work, play games without regard for the holistic all original experience, its just better to emulate but nothing's perfect), instead of hunting for a defective one with hopes it's got a good GD-ROM which from the start may look 4 to 8 times cheaper but defective DCs (coz' most are unit only, no power cable to test) would sometimes have a bad GD-ROM but power on or a laser that moves (you can see the light) , rotator that spins but somehow doesn't read).

The only difficulty was bearing with sometimes impatient staff while you align the ribbons and do a trial and error, though.

God bless, Rev. 21:4

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 3:02 am
by krssn
If you're talking about the cable that connects to the lens, it's a 16pin Type A FFC (flexible flat cable) with a 1mm pitch...

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2017 12:08 pm
by itsthinkingstill
Found another guide that list some more possible pc drives that work
"SAMSUNG SC-152 (also called CD Master 52x, you get anywhere in EU and mostly for 1 €)
CREATIVE CD3228 (less common in us, more US, normal price)
LG GCR-8521B (later model to 2002, expensive)
MITSUMI CRMC-FX4830T (almost only available in Japan, very expensive)"

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2017 10:51 am
by BaffleBlend
Hey, CoCoOo, if you're still around here, or if anyone else knows how to contact him, Photobucket went hostile. The pics in the OP are gone. Could you please migrate them to Imgur?

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Fri Jun 21, 2019 12:57 pm
by boye
How do you tell you have a Samsung drive?

Re: GUIDE: Use a PC-CDROM lens in your Dreamcast

Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2020 4:39 pm
by srilanka888
I haven't really seen any drive replacements for the Dreamcast. I know i have one laser that isn't really moving or hear it moving. If compatible drives are still around i might try this on one of my dreamcasts.