[TUTORIAL] Replacing SCPH-1001 ACM Laser with BAM

General PSX CD Troubleshooting, PSX CD-ROM Mastering and Disc Creation
Post Reply
User avatar
Sirrico
Curious PSXDEV User
Curious PSXDEV User
Posts: 27
Joined: Sep 05, 2014
PlayStation Model: SCPH-1001

[TUTORIAL] Replacing SCPH-1001 ACM Laser with BAM

Post by Sirrico » October 5th, 2014, 6:04 am

Many people prefer the SCPH-1001 model Playstation due to the extra input/output ports on the back, but this first model Playstation wasn't without its problems. The SCPH-1001 dies a lot quicker than other models because the slide the laser reader moves upon is made out of plastic. As the laser moves back and forth to read a disk, it wears down the plastic, causing the laser to point in different directions, rendering the Playstation unusable.

This tutorial is made for people with very little knowledge of their SCPH-1001 who want to give their broken model new life. We will be replacing the 1001 ACM laser with the much more sturdy BAM laser, which is found in the PSone SCPH-101. The BAM laser has a metal slide, and will not wear out. I made this tutorial because this procedure was mentioned in passing on another site, and I wanted to make a tutorial for the layman.

Materials Needed:
-SCPH-1001 Playstation
-BAM Laser (can be taken from a broken PSone or bought on the internet)
-Phillips screwdriver
-Razorblade

To start, we will be taking our new BAM laser from an old, broken PSone (one may skip these steps if they already have their BAM laser). Flip your PSone over and remove the 5 screws.
Image
Then, carefully flip the device back to its upright position and remove the cover. The laser is not screwed in by anything, but you will have to remove the 2 connections it has to the device.
Image
One is the small ribbon on the left, which can be removed by pinching the cable as close to the board as possible and lifting. The same can be done to the connection on the right. Carefully remove these, and then lift the BAM laser out of the device. Set it aside, and be careful to not touch the lens. As you can see by the image below, it is the correct laser type we need.
Image

You may not reassemble or put aside the PSone, and take out your SCPH-1001. Flip it over, and remove the 5 screws.
Flip the device over again, and carefully pull off the top part of the case. You will note that this laser assembly is almost identical, but the connections are in different places. Remove the connections, and put the SCPH-1001's original laser aside. Take the replacement laser's connections, and hook them up! Let the laser sit in the proper place, and Very gently place the top cover back upon the Playstation. Do not push down.
Image
As you will see, there are two trouble spots on the top casing that prevent the case from going around the laser assembly. Take the top case off again, and get out your razor.

Cut along the trouble spots, carving out the two tiny nooks so the laser can fit properly in. The nooks don't have to be large, and please be careful with a razor in that small space! My carving was very crude (too much coffee!), but you can get an idea of what it should look like here.
ImageImageImage

Reassemble the Playstation and everything should work fine! Here is me testing out the new laser with an audio disk.
Image

That's all. Incredibly simple procedure, but once again, this tutorial was written so absolutely anybody could perform it. Good luck, I hope this revives a few original model systems. :D
-Sirrico

larrikin
What is PSXDEV?
What is PSXDEV?
Posts: 1
Joined: Jan 16, 2015

Post by larrikin » January 25th, 2015, 10:22 pm

Nice tutorial, it's a great feeling being able to play games on the SCPH-1002 without needing to flip it upside down haha.

I must say though that I prefer removing the grey cover of the BAM assembly and fitting it with the black cover from the ACM assembly. This saves me from needing to cut the console.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 9 guests