PS1 laser finickiness and lens cleaning

[cave hermit]

I recently got a PSIO modded PS1, a SCPH-1001 in extremely good condition with a drive transplanted from a PS-One.

However while it read my copies of Final Fantasy tactics and 7 fine (at least playing the opening FMVs fine), it is having trouble reading Symphony of the Night. At first it wouldn't even boot up SOTN at all until I wiped down the disc with some isopropyl alcohol, but even then the Konami logo FMV would skip heavily. Thing is, SOTN worked fine on my beat up PS2, so I didn't think it was the disc.

I then tried cleaning the lens with the isopropyl and a q-tip, which seemed to allow the Konami Logo FMV and the opening castle FMV to play normally, but on consecutive attempts the Konami Logo FMV would return to heavy skipping and even freezing.

I tried calling the technician who worked on my PS1, and he said that based on what I said above it is likely the PS1 laser is being finicky and doesn't like the way the SOTN disc is scratched, meaning it just needs to be resurfaced. However he also stated that by cleaning the lens, I likely eroded a coating on the lens which could result in problems down the road.

Anybody here have any opinions on this? The lens coating being eroded or ruined by my attempt to clean the lens is particularly concerning if true. Of course the legitimate purpose of the PSIO is to avoid having to use finicky PS1 disc drives, but given the system is in such good condition otherwise it would be a shame if the disc drive wasn't just as pristine, and since PSIO exists in conjunction with the disc drive, I'd like to still use the option to play disc games. Not to mention try playing soundtracks on it, since it is one of those so called "audiophile" revisions.

[Konsolkongen]

I actually have pretty much the exact same issue with SotN as you do weirdly enough

I bought a US copy of SotN Greatest Hits a few years back on eBay. The disc was in very good condition (always a concern when buying from US sellers), but when it arrived it would not play in my PS1 at all. I tried several different lasers and consoles, all of which play my other games just fine. I then noticed that the disc had been resurfaced, something the seller never mentioned. While it does look almost like new you can see from the side that it's been grinded down a little bit.

Seller was great and I managed to get a full refund so no worries there. Some time passes and I decide to try it out on my PS2, and to my surprise the game actually works on that system? :O
Really weird, so I decide to get myself a PSone as I have heard that these systems have better lasers, but it didn't read the disc either. I also tried burning a copy of the game (which all PS1s read fine) and then swapping it with the original disc in game, but that just results in terrible stuttering music and not loading new areas. Obviously it's not just booting the disc that's an issue.
Very weird that the game seemingly works just fine on the PS2, no load issues or music skipping. I've even made it all the way to the inverted castle IIRC. Still, I paid for this game to play it on my PS1 and I can't so obviously there IS something wrong with the disc. It's also a hassle to boot US games on a PAL PS2 and have them run at the correct refresh rate.

Never heard of coating on the laser before. I always thought it was just a piece of transparent plastic. Sure, if you use strong enough alcohol and rub hard enough you could damage the texture of any plastics, but I personally have never had issues doing this with regular isopropyl alcohol. Would like to hear some thoughts on this

Of course you would want to play your original discs PSIO or not. It's just a lot more satisfying to play an original game rather than a lame .iso file. I would never get to play anything to completion if I had the entire library of a console on a flashcart/ODE as I would feel no obligation in doing so had I just pirated the game. I absolutely think there is value in these devices as some games are just priced too high for me to justify buying :/, and then there's all the kewl stuff like fan translations and unreleased games.

[maxtherabbit]

Cleaning the lens with alchohol and a qtip is not going to damage anything unless you press too hard and jack up the suspension

[cave hermit]

Well I took SOTN to be resurfaced, the shop owner even commented it looked like it was in decent shape to begin with.

After taking it home, letting my overzealous parents shower it in isopropyl to kill off any coronavirus, and letting it dry for a few minutes, I popped it in the PS1 for another attempt, and results were pretty much the same as last time. 20 second boot times, mild skipping first boot, failed to boot altogether on a consecutive boot attempt. For comparison I tried my copy of Final Fantasy Tactics immediately afterwards, which had 7 second boot times with no skipping of the opening FMV. I guess there's just something wrong with my SOTN disc.

The shop owner also mentioned that I shouldn't have touched the lens with alcohol, as with the technician, but I can't find any information on the internet to support this.

[Seraphic]

Funny you bring this up as just the other day I opened a 7001 to check the PU version (it's a 20) and decided to clean up laser with a Qtip and alchohol.
Tried to be very careful but definitely noticed the little plastic bubble over the laser and thought I might have seen the plastic bubble move a little when using the Qtip.
Hope I did not damage the laser....

[maxtherabbit]

It moved because it's suspended. Unless you poked it hard as hell you didn't damage anything

[ldeveraux]

You all should be careful with the grade of IPA you use, as lower grades will leave a film. A film of what? Well water, oil, whatever was on the lens in the first place, whatever else they use to cut the IPA, etc.

[maxtherabbit]

You all should be careful with the grade of IPA you use, as lower grades will leave a film. A film of what? Well water, oil, whatever was on the lens in the first place, whatever else they use to cut the IPA, etc.

The only thing I've ever seen used to cut any grade of isopropyl alcohol was distilled water

[cave hermit]

I used 70% something Isopropyl. Is that too little? Too much?

[ldeveraux]

You all should be careful with the grade of IPA you use, as lower grades will leave a film. A film of what? Well water, oil, whatever was on the lens in the first place, whatever else they use to cut the IPA, etc.

The only thing I've ever seen used to cut any grade of isopropyl alcohol was distilled water

It could be distilled water, could be tap water, could be methanol, likely not but possibly ethanol, 3-propanol, etc. Who knows? It's only as pure as the company that made it is reputable.

I used 70% something Isopropyl. Is that too little? Too much?

That's more medical grade, for cleaning cuts, initiating injections, etc. You don't have to, but I recommend >= 99% IPA for electronics. Much less likely to leave film and really not much more expensive (on Amazon at least) than the lesser variety.

I've been an analytical chemist for 20 years, so that's why I mention it. Much like in electronics, often to get quality you need to spend a bit more.