When your PS4 Blu-ray disc drive starts to fail, it could be a simple fix. However, in severe cases—whether due to water damage or physical damage to the drive and board—we are equipped to perform a complete Blu-ray Drive replacement. This means replacing the drive and re-marrying the chips on the board.

Troubleshooting a Bad Blu-Ray Drive

1. With your PS4 powered off, insert a CD/DVD/Blu-ray disc into the drive. The system should power up – a good sign.
2. The motor should start spinning to take your disc in. Wait for the drive to finish loading the disc – another good sign.
3. The drive should make sudden movements, and the disc should spin inside – indicating that it is nearly reading your disc.
4. On your TV, a spinning or flashing CD logo should appear. Wait for it.
5. A game icon should load. Then, press start to launch the game.
6. If your game runs after a few seconds, your drive likely doesn’t need a full replacement.

How Do We Replace a Blu-Ray Drive on a PS4?

There are several steps in preparing a replacement Blu-ray drive. For models like the 1215A, replacements do not require re-marrying the chip since the drivers and chips are on the motherboard. However, if you encounter hardware issues, the repair process will differ.

You will need a donor board or the driver chips for replacements on the daughter board. The process involves:

1. Disassemble the PlayStation.
2. Remove the original drive and replace it.
3. Remove both Blu-ray boards.
4. Desolder the Main Chip (encrypted) (main step).
5. Clean the host board and solder the Main Chip to the new daughter board.
6. Test the system to ensure proper functionality.

If these steps seem cumbersome, don’t worry—they’re considered level 8/10 in difficulty for an experienced professional. We can help you. Check out the video below to see how we repair it:

Watch Repair Video

Do All PS4 Drives That Are Broken Have to Be Replaced?

Not all drives need to be replaced. If you encounter Error CE-35888-2 and try to remarry the drive without the original chip, the error will persist. Many drives with repairable daughter boards can be fixed without a full replacement. Only in extreme cases do we have to remarry drives.

PlayStation 4 Blu-ray Repair Blog