Red Ring of Death, how did it happen to you???

[TrueVillan]

I was just wondering how many Xbox 360 owners have gone through the RROD and how it happened to you. I'm pretty sure I just got it.

I was playing and out of no where the thing shuts off and the ring comes on. I turn the 360 back on and it signs me online and it reloads the game, and then before I can start a race it shuts off again.

P.S. No I will not buy a PS3. (intended for the PS3 guys)

[Axel Grungy]

thats why i got a ps3 also, cuz sooner or later i know that my 360 is gonna take a shyt.

[schanne]

which rings are blinking? they will fix it for certain things, but not everything.it's on there website if you haven't seen it already.

[AZ89two4Tsx]

Ha! I don't know what happend to my 360 when it broke. It just wouldn't work one day. I don't really even remember seeing any red lights. I just sent it off to Microsoft to get it fixed. Paid $140 for it at the time! Then, a few months later I got rembursed for it. Must have been a common problem if they gave me the money back. The turn around time was pretty good too. Only a week. I think they gave me a new system but I'm not positive. Hasn't really given me a prob since.

[TrueVillan]

I guess mine over heated but I only had it on for like 4-5 hours max. But after letting it cool for like 4 hours it went back to normal for 30 minutes then I just turned off because I just wanted to see if it kept happening. I'll recheck tomorrow though.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Here's a good question to go along with "how":

For those who have had it happen, how and where is your 360 located? Is it vertical or horizontal? Decent airflow around it?

I suspect that a good number of RROD sufferers have their 360 in a place where it either gets poor airflow or the air that it does get is already hot from other nearby electronics.

[redtop91]

I had RROD when I would put my 360 horizontal. Since then I've switched to vertical and while my room is hotter (No joke), my 360 hasn't had anymore troubles.

[AZ89two4Tsx]

I always have had mine horizontal. It was on a shelf not that high though but the ends were in the open. If you don't know what I mean kinda like this.______ <---------------

It was around some other electronics, but it still is now. Haven't had a prob since. Must have been a defect. Btw, I got mine right when it came out and it took about 6 months before it puked.

[s13jus10]

I suspect that a good number of RROD sufferers have their 360 in a place where it either gets poor airflow or the air that it does get is already hot from other nearby electronics.

ahh, the "overheating" theory again.. if "overheating" is the reason why 360s get the RROD, how would you explain the whole "towel trick cure"?

to the op:sorry to be the bearer of bad news bro, but you've got the case of the Rings. there's no escaping it once you've caught a glimpse of it on your system. just call 1-800-4MY-XBOX and send that bish back asap.

there is nothing you can do to ENSURE that you won't get the RROD. if you own the system, then you run the chance of falling into that 30% Red Ring category. if you invested $350+ into the sytem, you should flat-out know the risks you are taking. but hey, if you're part of that lucky 70% that hasn't gotten it yet, then all the power to yah.. keep on gaming. only reason I haven't gotten it on my system yet is well...because I don't play it

basically, if you don't wanna risk getting AIDS, then don't have sex. not that playing an xbox360 is the equivalent of sex, but uhh.. you know what I mean

[xekushnr]

ahh, the "overheating" theory again.. if "overheating" is the reason why 360s get the RROD, how would you explain the whole "towel trick cure"?

The CPU uses a heat activated solder to keep the chip attached to the board. The system overheats, the solder liquefies, the CPU moves, and then its not making a good connection. The towel trick overheats the console again to [hopefully] reset the CPU in the socket, and then letting it cool for 20-30 minutes re-hardens the solder. So keeping the system cool goes a LONG way.

You really need to read about **** before you talk about it.

[s13jus10]

okay.. think about this:

your 360 is sitting in your entertainment center while you play it for 5-6 hours. all of a sudden, Red Rings. according to what you said, the system must have gotten to a temerature hot enough to liquefy the solder on the CPU, causing it to physically move. let's say that were true.. the system overheated, the solder melted, and the CPU moved.

so theoretically, couldn't you just repeat the process to get the CPU back in socket? wouldn't you be able to just turn the system off.. let it cool for 20-30min.. turn it back on for 5-6 hours (to re-melt the solder).. and [hopefully] get the CPU back in it's socket?

the 360 was obviously in a location where it could overheat, melt the solder and move the CPU... so why the hell would you need to wrap it up in towels to "get it to a certain temperature" when it was obviously ALREADY in a location to begin with for it to "overheat" and melt the solder? why would you risk overheating your memory, frying the CPU/GPU/etc by wrapping it in a damn towel?

also, if the 360 puts out so much heat that it can literally heat an entire room (like Ryon said above), then keeping it "cool" would NOT be an easy task. you can't blame "other electronics" for emitting heat towards your 360.. IT'S BREATHING IN IT'S OWN DAMN HEAT. so even if you keep it away from other electronics, out in the open, vertically..... YOU'RE STILL SCREWED.

maybe if MS didn't release such a poorly-put-together system, nobody would be sweating over this.

stupid. just plain stupid.

EDIT: had to clean up some of my language.
Modified by s13jus10 at 4:43 AM 6/6/2008

[MinisterofDOOM]

also, if the 360 puts out so much heat that it can literally heat an entire room (like Ryon said above), then keeping it "cool" would NOT be an easy task. you can't blame "other electronics" for emitting heat towards your 360.. IT'S BREATHING IN IT'S OWN DAMN HEAT. so even if you keep it away from other electronics, out in the open, vertically..... YOU'RE STILL SCREWED.

Not quite. Remember heat dissipates (fluid thermodynamics). As long as there's a sufficient volume of air to dissipate the heat, the air around the console itself maintains a large enough differential in heat from the components being cooled to still be effective. And of course the system has a fan to help circulate air. But air will naturally circulate, even in a closed room, when there are temperature differences. So unless you cram it into a tiny space where air can't circulate and it's basically soaking in just a few cubic feet of air, you're okay.

And actually, vertical vs horizontal does make a difference. For a couple reasons. The main reason is that the case's passages allow for better airflow in the vertical position. But you also get less contact with the surface the system is on, so RADIANT cooling is more effective, too. You get more surface area exposed to the air and less soaking heat back and forth between the surface beneath it.Why do you think laptop cooling trays are so effective? The the airflow difference and lack of contact with a heat-imbued surface from lifting the computer just a small amount are enough to make a significant difference. Same goes for standing your 360 up vertically.

My PC makes a NOTICABLE difference in my room's temperature. When I lived with my parents (and didn't pay the power bill) I never turned the thing off. On the couple occasions I had to wait for a new power supply install (had the shop do it to maintain warranty) and the PC was never running, the room was probably 5 degrees cooler. Now I don't run it all the time, so it doesn't make as big a difference I don't think my 360 has even as big an effect as my PC...it's not really that bad.

Also a related note:I bought one of those stupidly named "intercoolers" (nothing "inter" about it for crying out loud) for my 360 and ended up taking it off. I can't see it making any difference. Fans behind fans don't help, and I can only hope the fans on the intercooler are drawing MORE volume than the stock fan or it's hurting not helping. Main reason I ditched it was the incredible NOISE. I thought my PC was loud...but the 360 cooler is crazy loud. It'd be fun to get one of those IR thermometers and compare case temps with the notanintercooler on and off the machine.

What I did was buy a small $5 fan from walgreens. I have it sitting between my Wii and 360 drawing hot air from behind them and helping keep the air around them from getting too hot. I know there's nothing to worry about with the Wii, but for the 360 I'd rather play it safe. I imagine my walgreens fan is far more effective than some stick-on fans running behind the stock fan on the 360.

[bmike818]

my old 360 used to freeze while playing...then one day it frooze. turned it off and on like I always did, then there it was the ROD. I got a Halo 360 now...hope it lasts. if it dont I guess I will have to buy another 360. Besides switching to PS3 dont make sense....they dont have the games I like to play....(except for MGS4)

...besides I like my Achievements...what's your Gamerscore?

[redtop91]

Among the excellent library achievements and gamerscore are excellent. I was one of the critics when I heard the idea but it adds something to gameplay and at least 20 extra reason to continue playing beyond the main storyline of a game. GS FTW.

[scissors4hands]

wow, what i read a while back was that the RROD was the 360 protecting ur system from overheating like a sleep mode type thing. and that the rug trick makesit overheat an resets it.

Thats what i heard, an i wasnt trying to go agaisnt you guys, just trying to get the right answers.

[TrueVillan]

After the RROD happened the first time I can now play for about 6-7 hours fine no problem. But them it comes on again. It's like the 360 is telling me to stop playing lol.

But I guess I'll just send it to Microsoft, but I dont know if I can hold the gaming for 2-3 weeks. I really like the Gamerscore factor that the 360 has. Mine is 3490 and Redtop is right, it adds that extra reason to keep playing the game after beating it.

Plus its going to take more than MGS4 for me to buy a PS3, but man does finally finishing the MGS series factor sounds so tempting.

[s13jus10]

Well I've said it before, and I'll say it again.. Home will deliver.

Not only will it have trophies, acheivements, etc., but you'll have an actual room in your virtual Home to display all of your trophies, medals, what have you. So if you ever want to show them off to your homies, you can just invite them over to your Home, play some pool, watch some TV, yah know!

..so xekushnr, have you thought up a response to my little rebuttal up there about the towel-trick? I'm honestly really curious to know why one would have to wrap their 360 in a towel to reheat it if it's original location got it hot enough to melt the solder in the first place..

[redtop91]

The towel trick is and has always been exactly that. A trick. In the real world we have this thing called scientific method. The towel gimmick doesn't work even remotely enough to be called a "fix." Sure you can take a laser light to your pupils and hope for the best but just because joe schmoe got 1/20 vision from it it isn't exactly a fix. Basing and argument off such a horribly inaccurate and unreliable concept is lame. And in case you didn't catch it in the original post no one cares about PS3. There is as little reason for you to be posting in this thread as I would in the PSN ID thread or someone with a KA-T in RWD SR or vice versa. Share your story of how RROD happened to you or GTFO.

[s13jus10]

Plus its going to take more than MGS4 for me to buy a PS3, but man does finally finishing the MGS series factor sounds so tempting.

hmm.. how about a blu-ray player, built in wi-fi, free online play, remote play (the ability to pop in any PS1 game and play it on your PSP wirelessly through ANY hotspot[FFVII on your PSP is FTW], turn your PS3 on/off through your PSP, stream videos/music/pictures from your PS3 HDD [or flashdrive] onto your PSP wirelessly, as well as access the Playstation Store on your PSP through any hotspot), stream music/videos from your computer-to-PS3 or vice versa, bluetooth & usb (flashdrive) capabilities, expandable HDD, SD/Micro SD/CF/Pro Duo card slots, ability to change the actual OS (Yellow Dog, Fedora, etc.).. the list goes on.

I'm sorry that it doesn't have ZOMG HALO, but one can only ask so much.

[s13jus10]

okay, that's fine. consider that^ my last post in this thread.

sorry if I offended you.

[redtop91]

No offense, just an issue of relevance. NICO as a whole is dying because of everything being so damn off topic. Stick around.

[xekushnr]

What rebuttal? I know you dont understand anything about the 360, which as usual makes your opinion moot, but why should I have to explain stuff that you dont understand? All you have to do is read up on it.

Hopefully you got what I wrote before. As you hopefully know, the red lights prevent you from playing a game. That means that the system is just sitting idle while its on with the red lights. The system is not under load, the processor is obviously not using much power. So the system doesnt get as hot. You use the towels to insulate the system to get it warm enough again, since it cant get as hot on its own since its not under load. As Ryon mentioned, its just a trick. It is by no means a fix, it definitely would void your warranty, and it can cause permanent damage.

Just stay out of all 360 threads and go play the 3 or 4 games worth buying on the PS3. I'm having fun with the 24 that I own on the 360. And I still dont have Bioshock, Halo 3, Eternal Sonata, Ninja Gaiden II, Project Gotham Racing 4, etc...

[s13jus10]

You're absolutely right, I'm sorry. the xbox 360 pwns all, and the PS3 ain't got shiet on it. how many of those 24 games are even worth mentioning lol? ohhh, Bioshock and Eternal Sonata.. you mean the ones that are officially slated to release on PS3 as well? I'm surprised you haven't "read up" on that info yet, seeing as how reading is your favorite thing to do. PGR4??? c'mon man, if you're gonna throw out some games, you gotta put up a better one than that.

Ryon I'm sorry for ONCE AGAIN going off topic, I realize that up to this point I haven't really been much help to anyone in this thread, and I've probably officially established myself as this thread's troll, so I SWEAR from now on I'm just going to STFU. no hard feelings towards ANYONE, and I'm sorry to all.

..to the gym!

[MinisterofDOOM]

I really don't see why the PS3 has even entered into this discussion. This is a thread about issues with the Xbox 360. The PS3 is irrelevant to this thread.

[xekushnr]

You're absolutely right, I'm sorry. the xbox 360 pwns all, and the PS3 ain't got shiet on it. how many of those 24 games are even worth mentioning lol? ohhh, Bioshock and Eternal Sonata.. you mean the ones that are officially slated to release on PS3 as well? I'm surprised you haven't "read up" on that info yet, seeing as how reading is your favorite thing to do. PGR4??? c'mon man, if you're gonna throw out some games, you gotta put up a better one than that.

Ryon I'm sorry for ONCE AGAIN going off topic, I realize that up to this point I haven't really been much help to anyone in this thread, and I've probably officially established myself as this thread's troll, so I SWEAR from now on I'm just going to STFU. no hard feelings towards ANYONE, and I'm sorry to all.

..to the gym!

I never said the 360 pwns all. You are the one who constantly comes into 360 threads with your PS3 holier-than-thou attitude. You start the **** on your jaded beliefs of the 360 and then try to back it up with trivial ****. GT5 and Home, great, that **** isnt even out yet. Even when it does, that still makes like 5 things that I want on the PS3, they have to do better than that. I've used the PSN and I'm fine with paying $50 a year for a better service. So what if you can turn on the system with your PSP. I can turn my system on with the wireless controller, its the same thing (and I dont have to spend $170 to do that.) Everyone wants to buy something that provides a plethora of entertainment for the value. The PS3 just is nowhere close to it for me. I would have MGS4, Resistance, and Drake's Fortune and that would be about it for me. Sure, I would get GT5 and FF13, but they are still a long way out. It just doesnt have the exclusive games. The 360 does. And most games developed on both systems until now have looked and played better on the 360. Whoops.

The PS3 could be good if it had the games, it is a game system after all. But right now it gets a nice big old FAIL

[s13jus10]

actually, the OP was the one who started the PS3 discussion. he was talking about how the 360 has it's trophies/achievements, and said it would take more than MGS4 for him to get a PS3, so I simply stated that the PS3 will have that also, and laid out some information about the PS3 that he might be interested in. no big deal.

and x, I can turn my system on/off with my wireless controller too. you missed my point, so I'll give it to you. let's say I pop FFVII into my PS3 before I head off to school(or ANY PS1 game for that matter). during a passing period, I can go to the library (hotspot), turn on my PS3 USING my PSP, play FFVII on my PSP (or stream videos/pictures/music directly from my harddrive or flashcard, or access the Playstation Store to download demos, etc), and then turn off my PS3 USING my PSP when I'm done. and this can be done at ANY hotspot. so no, it's NOT the "same thing".

it's cool if you think the 360 has lots of good exclusives, I just believe that the PS3 has or will soon have a title that can match or even surpass all 360 "exclusives".

you've got Gears 1&2? hey, we've got Resistance 1&2.you've got Forza 2? Gran Turismo 5.you've got Halo 3 and Mass Effect? Killzone 2 & MGS4.you've got Dead or Alive 4? Tekken 5 & 6Ninja Gaiden 2? God of War 3 will destroy it. until then, we've got Uncharted.PGR4? Motorstorm 2.Ikaruga? Super Stardust HD.you've got Yoda? We've got Vader

so if more games is your argument, then yeah you're right, the 360 has more games. if your argument is better games, then I'd love to debate over it.

to the OP: what's happening with your system? did you send it up to MS?

[OldmanPurdy]

I've repaired a couple 360's before MS put out the blanket warranty coverage, there are 3 main issues that by themselves wouldn't be a problem but combined cause the rrod

1) Low quality lead free solder that has to be used because of govt. regualtions for items marketed towerds children.

2) The X clamp that holds the heat sink to the chip die is poorly designed and dosn't provide enough pressure to keep the chip inplace when the solder becomes weak

3) Poor cooling for the ammount of heat the system generates

I was able to fix #2 by replacing the "X clamp" with bolts that screw directly into the heatsink, also the best position to place the xbox in is on its side with supports that raise it off the surface 5-6 inches. This is not because of increased cooling but because in that position the chipsets are lying flat and if (when) the solder melts they are more apt to remain in place.

[TrueVillan]

to the OP: what's happening with your system? did you send it up to MS?

No, I can somehow play the 360 fine now. I let it cool off for a day and runs fine now. But if it does it again I'll just send it in.

But man you make some serious points on the PS3. If you can actually play through your PSP then thats awesome.

[s13jus10]

1) Low quality lead free solder that has to be used because of govt. regualtions for items marketed towerds children.

2) The X clamp that holds the heat sink to the chip die is poorly designed and dosn't provide enough pressure to keep the chip inplace when the solder becomes weak

3) Poor cooling for the ammount of heat the system generates

see, my question is.. after 2 1/2 years that the system has been out, why is it that Microsoft hasn't jumped on these issues? Why are they still using the same poorly designed x clamps on even newer model 360s (elites, halo edition, etc)? why does it generate so much heat and isn't able to cool itself down? why does it sound like a jet taking off every time you start up the console? and please don't tell me it'll be "too expensive" for MS. that's BS. if an average consumer can find a way to repair these problems, why can't they? more importantly why haven't they?

the xbox360 does have great games. don't get me wrong. I love Gears of War. Forza 2 is also a most welcome addition. Xbox Live is nothing short of spectacular. it's just that all the risks and hassles that come along with the system aren't worth those things. the juice just isn't worth the $350 squeeze. and it's even more of an investment paying for Live, if you want to go wireless ($100 adapter), play-n-charge kits, etc. so it really boggles me when you say a PS3 isn't worth the money, when it's the best rated blu-ray player on the market, built in wi-fi, free online play, etc etc. I don't know, maybe it's just me.

But man you make some serious points on the PS3. If you can actually play through your PSP then thats awesome.

Thanks man, glad I could be of some kind of help. Other members on this board tend to be a little less optimistic. I just want everyone that judges the PS3, saying it's not worth it, to know all the other features that it has other than playing video games.

also, I'm glad that your system is running fine. like everyone else said above, just try to keep it as cool as possible for now.

[OldmanPurdy]

see, my question is.. after 2 1/2 years that the system has been out, why is it that Microsoft hasn't jumped on these issues? Why are they still using the same poorly designed x clamps on even newer model 360s (elites, halo edition, etc)? why does it generate so much heat and isn't able to cool itself down? why does it sound like a jet taking off every time you start up the console? and please don't tell me it'll be "too expensive" for MS. that's BS. if an average consumer can find a way to repair these problems, why can't they? more importantly why haven't they?

I really don't know why they haven't done anything substantial because yes they can fix it and yes they have the money to do so, after all the ps3 uses the same lead free solder and it seems to work. I do know that to fix the cooling would require drastic changes to the consoles casing and fan placement, most of those nice vent holes in the side are covered by the metal mobo case making them pretty much useless. My best guess is that running the repair depots is cheaper than retrofitting the factory's for a new design of the 360, that seems to fit with M$ business model.