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"My Xbox 360 Died and I Lived to tell the story" Official Thread

Totobeni

An blind dancing ho
Dash Kappei said:
Easier to hack? What does that even mean (what's the point of doing that is what I'm asking, since I'm a newbie on the matter)?


..uh..by hacking Xbox 360 DVD drive firmware or flashing the firmware , 360 can boot and play illegal/backup copies of the games .

that why Microsoft changed the drive so many times since now .
 
So, I've got error E74 on my 360. But it looks like only 1 red light is flashing, not 3. Will the repair be covered by the three year warranty from Microsoft? The standard warranty has expired.

EDIT: Just found the other thread; apparently this error is covered under the 3 year warranty.
 

sca2511

Member
has anyone ever repaired their console themselves? My cousin gave me a 360 that will turn on but it won't show any video or play any sound at all. Is it something related to the X-Clamps?
 

Dash Kappei

Not actually that important
Totobeni said:
..uh..by hacking Xbox 360 DVD drive firmware or flashing the firmware , 360 can boot and play illegal/backup copies of the games .

that why Microsoft changed the drive so many times since now .

Oh.
I thought they banned you from Live! if they found your console to be hacked in any manner. Nevermind then.
 
Well it looks like I am finally about to come to the party no one wants an invite to.

Started getting weird, pinkish color banding while playing Fallout 3. The next time I booted up the box my TV screen was black (1080 plasma). Checked the input on my TV and it said it was receiving a 480i signal. So I unplugged and replugged the hdmi cable. Then - three red lights. I reset the console and this time it started and my picture returned, but still with the pink colors, which flicker and are getting worse. Now Turned it on today and go the black screen again, then reset and it booted up fine, again with pink flickers.

Is this the sign that the GPU is about to go? Is another, permanent RRoD imminent? It's a Falcon model, btw. I am still within the Best Buy product replacement plan I bought in Sept. 07, with all the necessary paperwork. It seems like this would be the way to go, since I paid $350 at that time and both Pros and Arcades are now less than that.

Sorry to ask any obvious questions but this is a huge thread and I've not come in here until now.
 
Help!

I posted above about my 360 DVD drive not working. But, the dashboard and Netflix still loads without issue. Until today.

Each time I turn on the 360, the loading screen (the 360 logo) either a) freezes or b) is horribly off-center. If the dashboard loads, everything looks okay... but the off-center loading screen is causing me great concern. Is this this about to RRoD again?
 

Dash Kappei

Not actually that important
brendanrfoley said:
Help!

I posted above about my 360 DVD drive not working. But, the dashboard and Netflix still loads without issue. Until today.

Each time I turn on the 360, the loading screen (the 360 logo) either a) freezes or b) is horribly off-center. If the dashboard loads, everything looks okay... but the off-center loading screen is causing me great concern. Is this this about to RRoD again?

Same exact thing happened to a close gaming-buddy of mine.
Either way, it RRoD'ed within a week. He got to make it work for a couple of days with some "towel trick" you guys probably know about already, but 2 times out of 3 he had everything xmb related fucked-up and then the console finally gave up.

Dunno if his console was a Falcon or not. I'm positive it wasn't a Jasper though.
 
My local BB told me I can just bring it in and exchange for what I paid at the time: $350. I have until Sept. 16 until the two years is up. I think I might wait and see if the expected price drop happens before then. Aug/Sept is usual time frame for drops. I could score an Elite bundle. The only catch is I have to bring in my old HDD for exchange and they said they'd charge a fucking fee to transfer my data. But that could be covered if the price drop happens.
 
Dash Kappei said:
Same exact thing happened to a close gaming-buddy of mine.
Either way, it RRoD'ed within a week.

Wonderful.

I'll keep a close eye on it. If my 360 RRoD's twice within a month, is that enough for Microsoft to replace the console altogether? I'm nearing a point where I don't "trust" it to work.
 

GavinGT

Banned
sca2511 said:
has anyone ever repaired their console themselves? My cousin gave me a 360 that will turn on but it won't show any video or play any sound at all. Is it something related to the X-Clamps?

Yes, and it's super easy. Just Google "X-clamp fix" and you'll find all you need. All it requires is that go to the hardware store and buy a few screws and nuts, thermal paste, and a torx screwdriver if you don't have one. You just pry off the x-clamps that hold the heatsinks on, clean off the old thermal paste and apply new paste. Then put the heatsinks back on and fasten with the new screws and bolts.
 
Thanks psychotext

So if I buy a used 20gb and a transfer kit to store the data, would I then be able to transfer it to a third hard drive on an Elite that I get from BB? I know there are some transfer/license restrictions.

It actually is kind of touch and go, and I thought another option might be to just drop my game saves on a 512 mb memory card if it comes back to life, and then just re-DL all the XBLA games,and marketplace content.
 
Should I buy an extended warranty when I buy my console this weekend. I would think it would be easier to walk in and get a new console than deal with Microsoft.
 
RadarScope1 said:
Thanks psychotext

So if I buy a used 20gb and a transfer kit to store the data, would I then be able to transfer it to a third hard drive on an Elite that I get from BB? I know there are some transfer/license restrictions.
I believe so... there's specific FAQs around though. The only licence transfer stuff you really have to worry about is the process you use online to move your licences between machines (rather than hard drives).
 
The_Inquisitor said:
Should I buy an extended warranty when I buy my console this weekend. I would think it would be easier to walk in and get a new console than deal with Microsoft.

If you're buying a console that comes with a HDD, you'd have to give up the HDD when you did a warranty return.
 

Zzoram

Member
A few months ago I got 3 red lights, but after restarting it went away. I knew from that moment that I was playing on borrowed time, but I didn't bother calling MSFT yet. Lately I've had a few freezes while playing, and today the video messed up bad. It got all blurry and jumpy and would either be very green, red, or blue, and seemingly cycle through that.

I figure at this point I need another refurb, but it hasn't exhibited 3 red lights in a while. Is it still ok to call the warranty because it did do 3 red lights before all this happened? Or do I have to wait for 3 red lights to show up again by playing a bunch? I've been gaming a ton lately, so maybe that's why it finally crapped out after being ok for a while since the last 3 red lights.
 
Zzoram said:
A few months ago I got 3 red lights, but after restarting it went away. I knew from that moment that I was playing on borrowed time, but I didn't bother calling MSFT yet. Lately I've had a few freezes while playing, and today the video messed up bad. It got all blurry and jumpy and would either be very green, red, or blue, and seemingly cycle through that.

I figure at this point I need another refurb, but it hasn't exhibited 3 red lights in a while. Is it still ok to call the warranty because it did do 3 red lights before all this happened? Or do I have to wait for 3 red lights to show up again by playing a bunch? I've been gaming a ton lately, so maybe that's why it finally crapped out after being ok for a while since the last 3 red lights.

Yeah, you can call. Since there are many confirmed cases of the RRoD not being permanent, there's no way they can prove you didn't get a RRoD.
 

bigswords

Member
brendanrfoley said:
Wonderful.

I'll keep a close eye on it. If my 360 RRoD's twice within a month, is that enough for Microsoft to replace the console altogether? I'm nearing a point where I don't "trust" it to work.

I think having the console RROD once is enough to send it in, unless the power tripped...

Other then that get the coffin and ship her in.
 

Gowans

Member
Well the summer heat has killed my refurb 360, in the middle of a Magic XBLA tourney and just before Battlefield on XBLA.

Freezing, my shitting myself followed by RRoD.

Sick! just filled in the online form it will go back on Monday ARG!!

At least I have some consolation in having all the other platforms and some games still to finish.
 
The_Inquisitor said:
Should I buy an extended warranty when I buy my console this weekend. I would think it would be easier to walk in and get a new console than deal with Microsoft.

I would recommend it, and this is coming from someone who never, ever goes for those kinds of things when they try to push it on you at purchase. I got my Xbox in Sept. 07 and it red ringed this week. For me, the $60 is worth it, especially when I consider the price drops since that time. I haven't exchanged my machine just yet, however. I'm going to wait until August and see if another price drop shakes out around the rumored PS3 drop around Madden time.

And there is the HDD question. BB charges about $40 for copying data onto your new HDD, which of course is bullshit. Psychotext, or anyone else, would there be any problem with this solution: Put HDD on friend's working Xbox > copy saved game and profile data to a 512mb memory card > return everything to BB for a new machine > copy data to new HDD and re-DL all games and add-ons. Is there anything I'm missing that could glitch this process up?
 

AFreak

Banned
Ok, so my 360 was stolen about a week ago, and I reDLed everything onto my brothers Xbox 360. Well today i got the Classic Track Pack in the mail from Gamefly and was going to play it about 15 minutes ago. So, I put it in with the system upright and it started making a horrible grinding noise.

I ejected it, put it horizontal and then retried. The DVD tray started opening and closing on its own. It finally stayed closed and the grinding started again.

Is there anyway to fix it? The Warranty has been up for about 6 months(counting RRoD warranty) so I tihnk this is BS because I don't want to buy 2 fucking 360s. Ok, I think I'm done wanting to kill someone. I mean, fuck it, I'm pissed off.
 

Tonza

Member
So after 3 and half years of trucking along my 360 showed me 3 red lights in the middle of Vesperia. I bought it December 2005.

I turned it off, turned on again and it booted to dashboard. Should I still go buy a new one or could those lights be just one time thing (ýeah right)? I should say that it didn't boot with the guide button though.


EDIT: Played around in dashboard, watched some videos and played some demos and it seemed fine for the 20 minutes...
 
Alright this is weird. I got the E-74 error a 2 days ago and today I open the xbox 360 and it starts working again. Should I just send it to them?
 

3rdman

Member
My 360 is en route back to me from the repair center. By the time I get it back, it'll be two weeks since the time my system broke to getting it back...not bad. Hopefully it'll be smooth sailing from here on out.

This is my second 360 to be sent out...the first one (launch unit) after repair has been working fine with no issues so hopefully I'll have the same experience with this repair.

I can't say I'm angry though...yeah it sucks to be without it but it was also repaired at no cost and I now have an updated warranty on it.
 

GashPrex

NeoGaf-Gold™ Member
Manufactured 10/29/2005, Died 7/08/2009 :(

Poor guy - outlived most ....not really upset it died after 4 years. I bought broken PS3's and fixed them - buy that was an actual broken part, blu ray laser - the repairs don't seem that "definite" for the 360 regarding the heatsink and thermal paste.

So should I buy an arcade and stick the HD on it? buy a pro? any good hdmi solutions? thoughts?
 

Kreed

Member
So I was playing BlazBlue last night and 360 began freezing with white vertical lines running up and down the screen, and now it freezes every time it gets too hot. I've been able to play in "bursts" when the system cools down but I know from this topic that the white lines are a precursor to the Red Rings, so I already know I only have a matter of time before it dies.

When I purchased my system from Gamestop, I bought a product replacement plan and I confirmed with them this afternoon that I'm still covered under the plan. But my question for you guys is, should I have my system replaced by Gamestop or Microsoft when it gets the red rings? I want to know before hand if there are any advantages/disadvantages to using Gamestop vs Microsoft, but I'm mainly concerned about making sure I keep all of my data. Gamestop said I could keep my hard drive but is anything like my Xbox Live membership or my card/personal info tied to the actual system?

Sorry if a similar question has been answered already.
 
GavinGT said:
Yes, and it's super easy. Just Google "X-clamp fix" and you'll find all you need. All it requires is that go to the hardware store and buy a few screws and nuts, thermal paste, and a torx screwdriver if you don't have one. You just pry off the x-clamps that hold the heatsinks on, clean off the old thermal paste and apply new paste. Then put the heatsinks back on and fasten with the new screws and bolts.

So you have done this yourself? How have the results worked for you? I am thinking about doing this myself but I am a little wary and do not want to deal with MS.
 

Relix

he's Virgin Tight™
Antdogg355 said:
So you have done this yourself? How have the results worked for you? I am thinking about doing this myself but I am a little wary and do not want to deal with MS.

I even made a guide for this back sometime ago for this.. like... years.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=156117

The guide is kinda old. Really, it's not worth it. My Xbox broke after 8 months of the repair. I needed to repair it again for it last some meager months. Just not worth it! But there, I left you with the option =P
 
Relix said:
I even made a guide for this back sometime ago for this.. like... years.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=156117

The guide is kinda old. Really, it's not worth it. My Xbox broke after 8 months of the repair. I needed to repair it again for it last some meager months. Just not worth it! But there, I left you with the option =P

Thanks for the link I will look into it. Worse case scenario is me just buying another 360 :/
 

GavinGT

Banned
Antdogg355 said:
Thanks for the link I will look into it. Worse case scenario is me just buying another 360 :/

Do it. Odds are good that your Xbox will last for years after removing the x-clamps. I've personally repaired seven 360s, two of which I own, and none of them have had any further overheating problems. The other big problem you might encounter is a bad DVD drive, but that is usually easily fixed by replacing the laser.
 

Kreed

Member
Psychotext said:
Better to swap it in a store then use the licence transfer wizard online. Don't get caught on the refurb merry go round.

I ended up taking your advice after my system red ringed last night. The whole process was very simple and the Gamestop employees didn't ask any questions (the employee immediately knew it red ringed). Just brought in my old Xbox minus the hard drive and got a brand new one. I did buy another warranty though just in case this happens again.
 
OK I'll try here first and see what answers I get...but first off, my xbox 360 was made in September5, 2006 (bought around November), went through a RRoD on the day before Christmas of '07 (Rock band was the culprit.) And until recently, there were no problems...

Now my 360 is giving me the 2 red lights. Seems this means the console is overheating. The problem is, it's not hot. I've given it 2 to 4 hours and it still does it after about 1 minute of being on when browsing the tabs or trying to boot a game up. (Note, it works fine to stream Netflix movies, but NOTHING ELSE!) It's a refurb from MS (my first one RROD'ed on me as described above).

Soooo, any advice? I have several games I would like to play on it still (and I just started Netflix, so I enjoy the streaming a lot!) I have a PS3, and a Wii to suffice, but I would like to know if it is just time to get another one soon (I had planned to get on September-ish anyway)


Thanks all....
 
The heatsink has likely lost proper contact with one of the chips. It wont feel hot because the heatsink isn't able to do its job... and the actual processor will be cooking.
 
Is there any reason I wouldn't be able to slap a different 20 gb hdd on my 360 and take that into Best Buy's replacement program -- thereby keeping my own hdd?
 
got2bekidding said:
Alright, I received my replacement 360 today (10/22-08).

The console I received is a refurb; Manufactured: 6/10/07

Well this console is going to be shipped out whenever Microsoft figures out how to send me a shipping label. The reason they can't yet is that there is a repair order for my console and another just floating around under my name, so they are having to talking to head guys in order to clear everything up. I'm supposed to call back in 3 days. (yeah it's confusing for me too).

Anyways, the drive is reading games as dvds. This is messed up 360 #2 for me, and I'm hoping for some form of compensation for having to wait 72hours for them to clear this mess up so they can email me a shipping label.
 

Seep

Member
So I'm jumping back in, what should I be looking for, for the most reliable and quiet model out there. UK btw.

The PRO model looks fine it has the HDMI which is nice but does it have the smaller chip to run cooler or is that just the ELITE models?

Also where the fuck can I find a wireless adapter for less than 40 quid.
 
As far as I'm aware it's still mostly the Arcade models that have the latest motherboards (Jasper). Getting an Elite with one will be extremely difficult.
 

Seep

Member
Psychotext said:
As far as I'm aware it's still mostly the Arcade models that have the latest motherboards (Jasper). Getting an Elite with one will be extremely difficult.

so I have to get an Arcade model and then get the HDD and shit seperate? what kind of shit is that, oh yeah how do I get optical support with the HDMI cable.
 
No, you can get any of them, it's just that the Pro / Arcade seem to sell much faster so it's much easier to get an Arcade (then Pro) with Jasper internals. If you're willing to spend forever hunting to get a Jasper Elite then I'm sure you'll find one eventually.

To get the optical support you'll either need an elite or to pick up the dongle somewhere (maybe ebay).
 
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