This PS2 was sent in for a refurbishment/upgrade to address two primary issues – the DVD drive was not operating smoothly/properly and the fan was horrendously loud, especially since they were using a GameStar SATA adapter which causes the fan to always run at full speed when it’s plugged in.
Luckily ‘ThePeacefulOutcome’ makes a fantastic kit that includes a Noctua silent fan and external cage/bracket to replace the entire back panel and works with the stock PSU. It’s a huge upgrade for any model fat PS2 but especially the 3XXX series like this which are known to be very loud.
Customer had ordered the kit and sent it in along with the PS2 and I provided the drive belt as always, they figured while it was in the shop let’s get a recap and all the cleaning done!
Cleaning is up first so I took apart the shell and let it soak for a bit then scrubbed and set to dry. While washing I noticed the front vent mesh was peeling off because of dried up adhesive. Once the plastic was fully dry I ended up fixing this by cutting some 3M double sided tape and making strips along all 4 edges then re-applying the mesh and securing it, like new now!
While the shell was apart it was time to get to work on the internal cleaning! I thoroughly blasted out the heatsink fins and remove the old thermal pad material from all surfaces then deep cleaned the board underside and of the mainboard and PSU. Lastly, I wiped down all the metal shielding pieces and took the stock fan and rear plate no longer needed (and customer didn’t want back) and tossed them in my spare parts bin for now.
For the recap, I did the PSU first and removed all the OEM caps, cleaned the topside of the board then soldered in the new ones from the Console5 kit. The mainboard takes way more time and like always there are no silkscreen markings for cap numbers or polarity so 4 pictures were taken covering all sections of the electrolytics so the new ones could be installed properly.
After the OEM caps were removed I prepped the pads and deep cleaned the topside while I had easy access to more of the surface area. Then all the new electrolytics went on from the Console5 kit, I cleaned up any residual flux and the recap process was done!
At this point the mainboard can be reinstalled/sandwiched between the two metal shields but first new thermal pads! I pulled out the 1.5mm sheet of Arctic MX and marked and cut the 4 needed sections. Unlike the stock pad that is one larger piece, there is no benefit to all that wasted thermal material so I cut them to fit directly on the exact surface area of each chip.
Now to tackle the second issue: the DVD drive. Once the top panel was taken off and tray fully removed I deep cleaned the entire assembly including the tray rail, contact points and gear teeth. A brand-new drive belt from Console5 was installed and I added very light grease to some contact points and manually operated the tray open and closed a few dozen times to make sure it felt smooth and the belt had correct tension (even if brand new, some can come slightly too loose so always good to check!)
Since it was accessible I also gently cleaned the laser lens itself then closed the drive back up and wiped down the outer shell of the drive. This revision is one that has the CR2032 battery mounted to the side (not on the mainboard directly) so I popped the old battery out and seated a brand new, confirmed good battery which should last the customer a long time for keeping date/time settings 👍
I got the wires and flex ribbons hooked back up between the DVD drive and mainboard and connected the new Noctua fan, while assembling the PS2 enough to be able to test but still have it mostly apart. The PS2 fired right up, accepted date/time and tray ejected and closed perfectly.
The new fan was SO quiet I literally thought it was broken and not working, could only tell it was ok by putting my hand and ear right up to it. Shocking improvement so I’m confident the customer will be very happy with the purchase of that kit!
I then got my sticker filled out and applied under the PSU, finished the full reassembly and put 2 coats of UV protectant on the shell and staged it for the final shot.
Another PS2 in the books for 2026 🎉