How To Clean Video Game Consoles Hardware And Accessories

Aside from lag, having to clean your gaming equipment is one of the worst things that can happen to a gamer. Seriously, who cleans their things, anyway? Gaming is for fun, not doing chores. But in those rare occasions when you decide that your console can't really take much more, then you have no choice but to clean it, especially as far as dust is concerned. Dust is the biggest enemy your gaming set-up can possibly have. It can not only make your hardware run worse than it usually does, but it can also damage it beyond repair. And in the light of the holidays and the oncoming Christmas celebrations, when I assume many people get the new generation of consoles as presents, I decided to do a guide on how to properly clean and maintain and clean your console hardware and accessories. This will not only increase the longevity of your console,but it will also ensure that it runs great for as long as possible. It's not going to be pleasant, let me tell you that much, but it's worth doing if you are a true enthusiast and plan utilizing your new (or old console) in the best way possible.

Unplug everything

This is possibly the most important step in the process. You need to unplug everything, otherwise you risk damaging the platform. Not only that, but you can also get hurt so it's a good idea to apply extra caution. After all, you are working with sensitive equipment. Carefully unplug everything that can be plugged and make sure you don't forget anything.

If some of the accessories aren't plugged (like your controllers or headset) and are powered by batteries, instead, remove the batteries. You want to discontinue all power supply to both the console and its components.

Cleaning the exterior

There are several things that you will need here in order to accomplish this fairly simple task. First of all, buying a microfiber towel would yield better results in the cleaning process, even though this part is optional. You can use any lint-free old rag you can get your hands on. You will need two of them – one for the processing and one for the drying out. Also purchase an electronics spray (the kind of spray you can use to clean all sorts of electronics, like laptops, consoles, monitors and more). Spray some of the solution on the cloth and wipe off all the surfaces of your hardware. Dry out with the other cloth immediately so you make sure that everything works well afterwards. Never spray directly on the surface of the console or any of the periphery. This may very well damage the devices so be careful.

Cleaning the interior

Cleaning the interior is a bit trickier. You should open the console because odds are you don't know what you're doing (otherwise why would you be reading this?) so you might damage it. Spraying compressed air into the air vents of your device would be enough to remove a large portion of the dust outside the console. This way you don't need to open it but you will still be able to clean most of it. Something to keep in mind is that compressed air comes out rather cold so you shouldn't be keeping the device too close to the source. Otherwise the air will condensate inside and damage the console.

Cleaning peripheral devices

Use a cotton swab and some rubbing alcohol to clean the peripheral devices such as controllers, microphones, headsets, etc. Just make sure to dry it out immediately. If you're not confident in your abilities to clean the console properly, seek the help of a specialist.

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How To Download and Play Sony PlayStation 1 (PSX) Games on your PC

Play all of your favorite PS 1 games on your computer using ePSXe Emulator.

Remember Final Fantasy VIII? Remember Eden, Bahamuth, Shiva?? Or Suikoden II, Parasite Eve, Lunar, Rayman, Hercules, Xenogears?? Those were old, good times. Ever wish to play those games all over again or maybe finish them for the first time? You can install and run the necessary software to turn your PC into a virtual PlayStation. Today there are a lot of tutorials on the net about how to download and play PlayStation 1 games on your computer, but only few of the tutorials are really working and the others are not completely finished or aren't explained good and you can't understand them. Here i'll write a full tutorial to run PSX games on your computer. I will be posting links where to get emulator, ISOs and more!

Lets start:

1. Download ePSXe (PS1 emulator)

First of all you need to Download ePSXe. It's available for Linux and Windows. I recommend you to download version v.1.6.0 or lower (don't download any beta version).


2. Download plugins

Plugins will be necessary. You can download plugins for both OS, Windows and Linux. There are three plugins you basically need to run the program.
Go to http://www.ngemu.com/psx/epsxe.php?action=plugins and then press Ctrl+F and download the following plugins:

Graphic Plugins:

P.E.Op.S. Soft GPU (v1.18b)
Pete's GPU Plugins (v1.77)

Sound Plugins:

Eternal SPU (v1.41)
P.E.Op.S. DSound (v1.9)

CD Plugins (To make Game Rips such as ISOs and CDs run on ePSXe):

CDR Mooby (v2.8)
P.E.Op.S. CDR (v1.4)

You can also download Misc Plugins which allows you to play over the net, but those aren't necessary.

Extract the files into the "plugins" folder in the ePSXe. (It's NOT in C://Program Files...! Remember the path when you download the ePSXe program in the first place? And you double click on it to run it? Go there and you will find the "plugins" folder)

3. Download BIOS

Now it's time to get the BIOS in order to play the games. You'll need a file called scph1001.dll. Here is a website where you can download your BIOS http://dragonballarena.gamesurf.it/english/media/giochi/psx.php.


After the download is complete, place it on the "bios" folder in the ePSXe.

4. Download your game!!

You can type your game on google and search for it, or get torrent on isohunt, mininova or anything... Here are some good sites to download your PSX ISOs:
http://www.emuparadise.org/roms/psx/
http://www.romulation.net/PSX/
http://romhustler.net/roms/psx
http://nitroroms.com/roms/Sony_PSX
http://www.rom-freaks.net/psx-isos-0-asc-name-.html

5. Configuration

Before you start using ePSXe you need to configure some settings. Select the icon that looks like a PSX controller ( that's the emulator itself ) and a window that says ePSXe should pop up. Now choose the Config tab and you are ready to configure the plugins and the bios that you've downloaded.


Config - Video

• Choose the plugin that you want to use. I use Pete's DX6 D3D Driver. Now choose Configure

• Choose the resolution, or whether you want to play it in a window. If you are wondering if the resolution depends on your computer performance... I personally choose window. Now on Default Settings (bottom-left) click Nice and OK.

Config - Sound

• Choose the plugin. I use P.E.Op.S. DSound Audio Driver -> Configure

• Choose following options:

Mode : 2
Volume : 1
Reverb : 2
Interpolation: 3

Leave the rest as default and OK.


Config - Cdrom

• Choose the plugin. I use P.E.Op.S. CDR Driver

• Don't need to configure anything there.. leave it as default.

Config - Bios

• Locate the scph1001.dll and click OK

Config - Game Pad - Pad 1

• Adjust it at your convenience...

Now your all set and you can start playing some PSX Games!!!

File - Run ISO and Locate the PS1 game you want to play. If in the folder that you've downloaded there are more than one file, choose the one with the bigger size.


Enjoy Gaming!


If you can't find some of the plugins or if you don't want to spend much of your precious time searching for bios and all other necessary stuff, you can download my ePSXe with all these stuff in it. Now all you have to do is just to configure the settings and you are ready to play.

Download ePSXe with All Plugins and BIOS for it

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