XBOX 360 Red rings

[spanishfly]

It´s finally happened, the 3 dreaded red rings! Last night i was playing Gears Of War and after finally completing the last level the end cut scene played and then crashed. I turned it back on and had the red rings showing. I then turned the console off to let it cool down. After about two hours i turned it back on again, it loaded the game and then it crashed again but with no red rings. I then made a repair order to microsoft.

Today though i tried it and all is fine. Here´s the dilemma, do i send it back and be without it for a month (it is out of warranty but if it is a red ring failure it is still covered) or do not send it back and hope all is fine?

Any advice would be helpful, Cheers

[toastboy]

Mine did that for a few days before the 3 rings came up for good. Either way, you're going to need to get it fixed soon.

[Negative Creep]

Mine did the same thing before packing up for good. Get in contact with Microsoft and they'll sort it, you don't even need to pay postage

[crossle]

Negative Creep said:

Mine did the same thing before packing up for good. Get in contact with Microsoft and they'll sort it, you don't even need to pay postage

What he said. Got a nice new 'Box and a fresh 12 month warranty.

[Rob P]

Took 5 days for mine to be returned. It was refurnished but with a new motherboard, CD drive and graphics card....so essentially a new console

[spanishfly]

Thanks for all the replies. I have gotten in touch with microsoft and they are sorting it out now. I just hope it dosen´t take long. Living in Spain does have its down sides (ste postal service). Do they send a pre printed address label or do they send a whole box?

[:J:]

crossle said:

Negative Creep said:

Mine did the same thing before packing up for good. Get in contact with Microsoft and they'll sort it, you don't even need to pay postage

What he said. Got a nice new 'Box and a fresh 12 month warranty.

You don't get a new Xbox, just a reconditioned one.

My 2nd replacement (3rd Xbox), has a manufactured date on the back of the month/year it was launched.

It also sounds like it is going to take off, but after calling to complain, this is apparantly something I have to put up with

You also don't get any new warranty at all

Also, IIRC, you only get a 3 year warranty on the 3 RROD, anything else is a year. So if it is over a year old, and you/they cannot recreate the RROD issue, don't even hold out on a repair being free

Edited by :J: on Thursday 2nd October 16:46

[downthepub]

Rob P said:

Took 5 days for mine to be returned. It was refurnished but with a new motherboard, CD drive and graphics card....so essentially a new console

+1

I compared serial numbers and it's the same casing. According to the repair docket included all new internals. Worked perfectly since.

[madrob6]

My OH just called me to tell me that my xbox has suffered the RROD

She's taking it back to the shop tomorrow for yet another replacement, lucky having her working there n all.

[Silverbullet767]

Hopefully I've just been lucky, but I keep my Xbox upright, with tons of space between it and anything else, the power brick is well ventilated, and I clean dust out of it once a month or so.

[tim2100]

Silverbullet767 said:

Hopefully I've just been lucky, but I keep my Xbox upright, with tons of space between it and anything else, the power brick is well ventilated, and I clean dust out of it once a month or so.

+1

When I striped mine down it was full of dust etc, the fans where clutted so were the heat sinks.

Give the outside of the case a vacuum every month or so.

[madrob6]

Mine has hardly any dust in it, has never gotten too hot and I've had it for a little under a year yet still the red ring.

Just gave it a blow out with a can of compressed air and hardly any dust came out of it so I have no idea why it decided to commit suicide. I blame the fact I was playing Oblivion last night and it crashed on me.

[Digby]

Luck of the draw chaps I'm afraid.How you look after it has little to do with how long it will last.
My experimental 360 (used outside of the case, fans on heatsinks, better thermal compound, x-clamp mod) still died after a year.It's a combination of lead free solder, heat and the pressure the motherboard is put under by the heatsink clamps that kills most of them. This is why you can often heat up the 360, re-flow the solder and get it working again.You would not believe how hot it gets inside a 360, the heatsinks can still get hot even with no case on the machine, the mobo just sitting on a desk and a couple of fans blowing on it.

As it happens, I 'fixed' another dead machine a short while ago, this time I used a heat gun on the motherboard to get the solder flowing.It's been working for a few weeks now, but it will die again and I shall then give it a blast with the heat gun again when it does.It will wind up in the spares pile though before long no doubt

[tim2100]

Digby said:

Luck of the draw chaps I'm afraid.How you look after it has little to do with how long it will last.
My experimental 360 (used outside of the case, fans on heatsinks, better thermal compound, x-clamp mod) still died after a year.It's a combination of lead free solder, heat and the pressure the motherboard is put under by the heatsink clamps that kills most of them. This is why you can often heat up the 360, re-flow the solder and get it working again.You would not believe how hot it gets inside a 360, the heatsinks can still get hot even with no case on the machine, the mobo just sitting on a desk and a couple of fans blowing on it.

As it happens, I 'fixed' another dead machine a short while ago, this time I used a heat gun on the motherboard to get the solder flowing.It's been working for a few weeks now, but it will die again and I shall then give it a blast with the heat gun again when it does.It will wind up in the spares pile though before long no doubt

I did similar to get mine working again, 1st time we used a heat gun, the second time a BGA machine designed to reflow BGA devices. Just just it through on a lead free profile and job done, works perfect since then.

Runs quieter than the unmolested machine sat next to it.

[madrob6]

Yay got my new Xbox now!

Replaced the power brick too just incase and the new one has more vents in the casing and feels significantly lighter.

[maix27]

Digby said:

Luck of the draw chaps I'm afraid.How you look after it has little to do with how long it will last.
My experimental 360 (used outside of the case, fans on heatsinks, better thermal compound, x-clamp mod) still died after a year.It's a combination of lead free solder, heat and the pressure the motherboard is put under by the heatsink clamps that kills most of them. This is why you can often heat up the 360, re-flow the solder and get it working again.You would not believe how hot it gets inside a 360, the heatsinks can still get hot even with no case on the machine, the mobo just sitting on a desk and a couple of fans blowing on it.

As it happens, I 'fixed' another dead machine a short while ago, this time I used a heat gun on the motherboard to get the solder flowing.It's been working for a few weeks now, but it will die again and I shall then give it a blast with the heat gun again when it does.It will wind up in the spares pile though before long no doubt

If i'm going to open my Xbox up and take a solder iron to it, is there anything i need to be wary of damaging?

[V6]

:J: said:

You also don't get any new warranty at all

Are you saying once you get a replacement box you no longer have any of the remaining 3 year warranty from original box/purchase date? surely that is not right? one replacement, and if it is fked, you're fked!?

[Digby]

maix27 said:

If i'm going to open my Xbox up and take a solder iron to it, is there anything i need to be wary of damaging?

I couldn't tell you I'm afraid, I have never soldered anything on the 360.You are supposed to protect areas of the motherboard if you use a heat gun etc though (mind you I didn't).What I have done is pretty basic stuff, x-clamp mods and heating up motherboards is a long way from soldering or using BGA machines as Tim2100 has done!

Edited by Digby on Thursday 9th October 13:00

[Bobby_Mac]

V6 said:

:J: said:

You also don't get any new warranty at all

Are you saying once you get a replacement box you no longer have any of the remaining 3 year warranty from original box/purchase date? surely that is not right? one replacement, and if it is fked, you're fked!?

I dont think thats true. When mine died, the guy from Microsoft said when it came back, the 3 year gaurantee would restart from that date.

[V6]

Bobby_Mac said:

V6 said:

:J: said:

You also don't get any new warranty at all

Are you saying once you get a replacement box you no longer have any of the remaining 3 year warranty from original box/purchase date? surely that is not right? one replacement, and if it is fked, you're fked!?

I dont think thats true. When mine died, the guy from Microsoft said when it came back, the 3 year gaurantee would restart from that date.

whoop! because mine was replaced last year after the 3 rings of death. i intend to make the fault occur again before the warranty ends to make sure i get a reliable as possible xbox out of warranty!