Three Red Lights -_-

[Boom]

Ok so this afternoon after playing 360 a bit the screen froze with several greyish lines going down the screen, restarted the 360 and got the three red lights. I tried wrapping it up in a towel which got it working for around 3-4 minutes but then it froze again. So after a quick internet search i found many ebooks for sale that would fix it but i would rather send it to ms, so has anyone got any ideas how to fix the three red lights as i don't really want to fork out quite a bit of cash to get it repaired, thanks. =/

[Martinus]

Is it out of warranty?

[Boom]

Yeah unfortunately.

[White Tiger]

Open up console, re-bend circuit board back to normal.

Since supposedly the main reason of getting the three red lights is when the console has been under heat for a long time the circuit board bends which leads to it breaking. Supposedly.

[Joe G]

You know your ment to put it in in the oven for a while when you wrap it in towels, then stick it in the freezer. But thats a purely short term fix. The fact is none of those e-books will ever work. Whats happened is your CPU/GPU/both have come away from the motherboardish thing. I don't think there's any way you'll be able to fix it unless your extremely handy and know the xbox inside out so I should think it's off to M$ for your pwetty xbox. :(

EDIT: WhiteTiger it's hardly that simple, yes the circutboards bent but in the process parts have come away from it; preventing it starting, and I doubt poor Salami has the means to re-attach them. Plus, even without the warranty I don't know if they'd repair an previously opened xbox.

[Ozzylator]

XBox 360 used Overheat!

XBox 360 must be replaced...

[Boom]

Well my dad has taken it all apart and when he removed the x shaped heatsink thing there was a white substance that looked like glue left around the circuit board thing, so what i was thinking is that some of the connections have been stuck to keep it in place? Anyways i'll be trying it out later so will get back to you all, thanks for the help by the way.

edit: Hmm when i turned the 360 on the processor went up to a much higher sound, like when you start it up it makes a deep sound then gets higher, it went really high pitched like it was going to explode or something. So the 360 logo comes on and then it gives 2 red lights instead of 3... =/

[Bail]

Well my dad has taken it all apart and when he removed the x shaped heatsink thing there was a white substance that looked like glue left around the circuit board thing, so what i was thinking is that some of the connections have been stuck to keep it in place? Anyways i'll be trying it out later so will get back to you all, thanks for the help by the way.

edit: Hmm when i turned the 360 on the processor went up to a much higher sound, like when you start it up it makes a deep sound then gets higher, it went really high pitched like it was going to explode or something. So the 360 logo comes on and then it gives 2 red lights instead of 3... =/
The "white stuff" is most probably a thermal compound which aids the transfer of heat from the CPU/GPU to the heatsync, you should make sure you clean it and put new stuff on if you've taken it off and mess it about...

And the "loudness" you now get will the intenral fans saying "AGH VERY HOT SPIN FAST MAKE COLD" which means heat is really building up inside. Try doing the above (look on ebay for arctic silver) or leave the side off the case and point a normal fan at it and see if it starts...

Edit: Does your xbox still turn on to some degree, dashboard etc, the TV/Screen does something yes? If so you *may* be able to save it, after some googling it seems that it could be bad TIM (thermal compound that I mentioned above) not helping matters... Is the "white stuff" you mention like this...

http://media.arstechnica.com/journals/thumbs.media/360%20cpu.jpg if so I suggest you buy something like this: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ARCTIC-SILVER-5-ARCTICLEAN-CPU-THERMAL-PASTE-artic_W0QQitemZ150138310579QQihZ005QQcategoryZ4632 2QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Follow the instructions on how to remove the old stuff clean the heat spreader and apply the new compound. If may help, but as always you do this at your own risk so if you kill/break yourself/xbox/anything don't blame me.

Edit Edit: Also have a look here: http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=484726


See, Helpful I am.

[Boom]

Ahh man yeah thanks alot dude, i mentioned this to my dad and after a quick search it appears the white substance is indeed Arctic Silver 5, so if this loudness is the fan 'coz its too hot applying the Arctic Silver should cool it down, thus reducing it to normal speed and getting it working again? Also the xbox turns on, goes to the x thing that spins around then just as its going to dashboard the fan starts going real loud and it's like it cant take it anymore so shuts off, hopefully this Arctic Silver 5 will solve it ^_^.

[Martinus]

Arctic silver doesn't actually cool anything, it's a paste that makes heat transfer from the chip to the heat-sink more efficient. Make sure you give the CPU and heat-sink a good cleaning with alcohol or something similar and try not to scratch the surface of the 'sink, it lowers its effectiveness.

[Youlikeyams?]

What tends to happen is that the solders on the graphics chip melts due to the extreme heat and a lack of a decent fan or heatsink for the chip, which causes a meltdown and the 3 lights of doom. Best thing to do is just phone up MS and see how much it will cost to repair.

If you send it off to MS, they appear to repair the machine and bolt on an extra GPU heatsink - which should really be there in the first place. But phoning MS is the best way to go, in my opinion.

[Boom]

OK thanks for your help everyone, once the Arctic Silver 5 is on i'll get back to you, should Arctic Silver also go under the cpu / where the cpu was as there's the same dried up stuff there i think or should it just go where the heatsink was?

[The Grim Reaper]

Problem is, as soon as you try and fix it yourself, Microsoft want absolutely nothing to do with it as far as i know. Sending it off would be best - apparently like 1 in 10 360's fail or some figure like that due to overheating.
If you can, perhaps get one of those cooler fans for the back if it ends up working so it doesnt happen again, though make sure its not one of the pass through power supply ones, apparently they damage the power supply. I think USB ones are available.

[Bail]

I must say, and please don't take this personally, but you don't sound to "techy" in your posts which leads me to believe you may go very wrong if you do do it yourself. I would suggest you do the above also, send to to MS.

[JonathanEx]

Send it to MS. Chances are the replacement will break too, but don't worry, almost every Xbox 360 will eventually break until Microsoft stop it happening. Surveys have only put the failure rate at 20-30%, Watchdog investigated it, and it's not rare to be on a third console. It's part of the Xbox 360 experience.

[Boom]

Okay, and Bail no problem - I don't know what the hell i'm talking about, only what i've seen in a guide and properly inside it ^_^. Anyways first i'll put thermal paste stuff under where the heatsink is only and see if it works, if it doesn't work then the cpu/gpu whatever aswell, and if it still doesn't work ill send it to ms ^^. Thanks a lot for all your help everyone, dunno what i would have done otherwise.

[JonathanEx]

If you open it, there's a 0% chance MS will accept it.

[Joe G]

If you open it, there's a 0% chance MS will accept it.
Yep, because even though you don't have a warranty, you fiddlin' with it isn't going to make them think it's a technical error and they easily say it's you fault. It's probably bad enough you've got rid of the MS sticker.

[Splush]

I'd definitely leave the case closed and bite the bullet and pay the repair cost. I can't remember the price MS originally quoted to repair mine, but it wasn't too painful. Much less painful than buying a whole new system when your own tinkering turns out to be a short-term fix at best.

And then when I phoned back that evening to arrange the pickup the guy told me my console is in warranty even though I'd had it well over a year, so that was pretty cool. Maybe that will happen to you too!

edit: I hope you haven't opened up your 360 already, because it appears warranties are being retroactively extended (http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/05/microsoft-expands-xbox-360-warranty-for-red-ring-sufferers/).

[Scuffles]

surprisingly often when companies release this sort of goods they don't perform adequate testing, and retrospectively decide to install an extra heat seat, or LCD shielding foam. If ever you get a strange fault with electrical goods (that isn't along the lines of "I was trying to make toast whilst having a bath") it's always worth rechecking the warranty for an extension.

However, when you removed the back on yours, I expect the locking compound will have been removed with it. Tsk.

And at the risk of reposting: http://arstechnica.com/journals/thumbs.ars/2006/6/16/4353

[The Grim Reaper]

From what it seems to be happening his dad has already opened it? he mentioned thermal paste on the circuit board etc and arctic silver. I said previously they would want nothing to do with it, because they will deny all responsibility as soon as theres someone else to blame.

[ray]

warranties are being retroactively extended (http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/05/microsoft-expands-xbox-360-warranty-for-red-ring-sufferers/).
that article has the worst possible headline

"Microsoft expands Xbox 360 warranty for red ring sufferers"

[Youlikeyams?]

Shame it's costing them a billion dollars, but ah well.

:)

[Boom]

Ok so the guy on the phone says send it and we will repair (throw in bin probably) and send it back for free because of the previously mentioned extended warranty, but i just hope they don't look inside it... (4 huge bolts on the X X case lol) If they do i hope they'd accept a: we tried to get it repaired at a shop which is now out of business excuse. ^_^

edit: Oh yeah i got a new 360 so no worries really, just hope ms send me a repaired/new one back aswell.

[The Grim Reaper]

Can i have your old/broken one? :P (i'll pay shipping)

[Boom]

Lol, why you want a broken one? Anyways if ms says no you can't have a new one I'll send it to you.

[beefs... lol]

Unfortunately it's the ring of death for your 360 might as well get a replacement if you the warrentys still valid but theres no way you can give it too shop 'cos the hardrives broke.

[Badg3r]

apparently microsoft has desided that there is something wrong with some 360's so theres now a 3 year warenty, so you might be able to take it back.

[edit] asumeing they don't blame its not workingness on you opening the console

tip: when something dosn't work, takeing it apart and fiddleing with it rarly helps

[The Grim Reaper]

Lol, why you want a broken one? Anyways if ms says no you can't have a new one I'll send it to you.
Sweet!

Though i don't know what i'd do with a broken 360 actually, would be a lot more useful if it worked. I really hope the solder hasn't melted. Hmmmm.

[Martinus]

tip: when something dosn't work, takeing it apart and fiddleing with it rarly helps

I have two xboxes, the first I repaired by replacing destroyed PCB tracks using a photo of the PCB and some filaments from the shielding of a coaxial TV cable. The second one was much simpler.

What you're saying is somewhat true if you're not technically adept, on the other hand if you are... ;)

[The Mna]

I have two xboxes, the first I repaired by replacing destroyed PCB tracks using a photo of the PCB and some filaments from the shielding of a coaxial TV cable. The second one was much simpler.

What you're saying is somewhat true if you're not technically adept, on the other hand if you are... ;)

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.

[da-geezer]

What you're saying is somewhat true if you're not technically adept, on the other hand if you are... ;)

Indeed, if you know your shit about PCB's and circuit tracks and the like, it's pretty cool what you can achieve with nothing but a soldering iron and a steady hand.

That said, I do wonder how half of this forum dress themselves in the morning, so maybe it's not the best tool for them :D

(hello I've effectively duplicated Martinus's post in a sarcastic way)

[Martinus]

Ah, found the thread describing my modifications:

Linkie (http://forums.weebls-stuff.com/showthread.php?t=47440)

[Jimmy]

This whole thread has really put my off XBox.

I was seriously considering getting one, as XBox Live looks like lots of fun, but then this thread turned up and it seemed like everyone knows about the inner workings of an XBox 360 and how to fix overheating problems... I doesn't give me much confidence.

[Martinus]

It's the cost of buying effectively untested hardware designs. The Wii at least relies on silicon that's been around a bit and has been proven. As for the PS3; who knows what interesting issues it'll have.

That being said, I think that MS have improved a lot on their earlier design, the newest 360 pack appears to have an optimised PCB design to reduce heat buildup and they fixed the tray mechanism IIRC.

[White Tiger]

I got mine in early November of last year so will that have the fancy new PCB deign to reduce heat buildup or not?

Either way I'm tempted to buy one of those fans for the back but which one is best?

[Thomp]

This whole thread has really put my off XBox.

I was seriously considering getting one, as XBox Live looks like lots of fun, but then this thread turned up and it seemed like everyone knows about the inner workings of an XBox 360 and how to fix overheating problems... I doesn't give me much confidence.

I've had mine for 7 months now, and haven't had a single problem with it *touches wood*

It shouldn't put you off whatsoever, because you can now have a 3 year warranty on your 360 if anything buggers up, so you're fine :)

[White Tiger]

I think the elite will be less likely to over heat, yes its a bit more expensive but Microsoft have had a chance to see what they've done wrong, and will hopefully fix it with the elite so go for that if your going to get one. It isn't out yet but worth the wait.

[The Grim Reaper]

I got mine in early November of last year so will that have the fancy new PCB deign to reduce heat buildup or not?
Not sure, i think they only revised it at the start of this year?

Either way I'm tempted to buy one of those fans for the back but which one is best?
Not the one where the power cord passes through it to give it power, then into the 360. MS will void your warranty if you use one of these apparently, because they take some volts that the power supply needs or something(i think this is the nyko one).
Get a USB one, if you can find it, theres one called a pelican something.
This whole thread has really put my off XBox.

I was seriously considering getting one, as XBox Live looks like lots of fun, but then this thread turned up and it seemed like everyone knows about the inner workings of an XBox 360 and how to fix overheating problems... I doesn't give me much confidence.
They should have fixed the heating problem by adding another heatsink to the gpu in the latest versions i would think, the elite should definitely have it, though i don't know at what point they started fixing the heat issues.

[Martinus]

Not the one where the power cord passes through it to give it power, then into the 360. MS will void your warranty if you use one of these apparently, because they take some volts that the power supply needs or something(i think this is the nyko one).
Get a USB one, if you can find it, theres one called a pelican something.

They probably draw power in series; likely that the thing acts like a sizable load connected across the PSU input terminals. Silly really as they get rid of one extra power line (a stand-alone lead for the cooler) and turn the thing into a liability. You'd probably be better off cutting a hole in the side of the bloody console, it'd be less likely to kill it. :rolleyes:

[pieeater]

Some Brazilians have found a fix for the three red lights.

Clicky (http://www.1pstart.com/red-ring-of-death-fix/)

Violence the answer to all life's problems.

[piemastermike]

i read that some guy just cleared the dust out of his and it worked fine.