XBOX 360 REPAIR GUIDE

i see alot of of topics getting made saying how do i fix red ring of death well here it is

part (1) opening your xbox 360 tools required torx t10


part (2) removing the motherboard tools required torx t8

to pull the motherboard out of the case first unclip the piece of plastic with the xbox lights on it then take out 3 screws holding in the small on/off button circuit board and pull it out now unplug the fans from the motherboard and take out fan shroud. the motherboard should now lift out fairly easily

part (3)taking the x-clamps off

put sellotape two layers thick on the motherboard all around the clamps so if you do slip you wont stuff your xbox. A1mm scratch in the wrong place will turn your console into a doorstop!
next, get a small flathead screwdriver and wedge it (gently) into the end of the x-clamp in an upright position and rock it back and forth SAFETY NOTICE DON'T POINT THE SCREWDRIVER TOWARDS YOU OR YOUR HAND WHILST DOING THIS

if the clamps don't ping off off with the screwdriver try using your fingers to prize them off. there is a definite knack to it (then just bin the clamps).

part (4) cleaning the heatsinks
push the heatsinks off by pressing on the plugs from the underside

NOTE:- NEVER LEVER THE HEATSINKS OFF (WITH A SCREWDRIVER OR ANYTHING ELSE) AS YOU WILL CAUSE IRREPARABLE DAMAGE TO THE MOTHERBOARD

the thermal compound microsoft use is quite hard to remove. DON'T use a screwdriver to scratch it off as this will damage the chips. A toothpick and some tissues or cotton wool is ideal. to make the job alot easier wet the tissue/cotton with turps white spirit which is just as good and much cheaper finally, isopropyl alcohohol (an unscented alcohol handwash like purell / cutcura is ok ) or nail polish remover can be used to bring the chips and heatsinks up to a grease free shine. the more time you take to get all the old thermal pad off the more chance your xbox will work.

part (5) the x-clamp fix

put one spring washer on each bolt and thread through the underside of the motherboard (where the heatsink plugs used to go through ). A quick tip is to use sellotape over the bolts on the underside of the board to temporarily hold them in place.

on the top side of the motherboard place 2 metal washers over each bolt this is the precise distance the heatsinks need to ensure you can't over-tighten the bolts. now with a finger in a plastic bag rub a little of the thermal paste on it and wipe it over each chip-(no thickness at all, just complete coverage). then put a dap of thermal paste on each chip (2 daps for the gpu and 1 on the cpu) there's no need to spread it out as the pressure from heatsinks will do that.

place each heatsink over the relevant chip-(best to do one heatsink at a time) - and peel back sticky tape from the underside of the board one bolt at a time and screw in HAND- TIGHT - ii tend to put 8mm socket on and tighten by hand with that

(tip you have to use thermal paste)

part (6) switching the xbox on

because you have the red ring of death this mean the board has already warped some degree and will need to re-solder itself back into place. hopefully the following will work;

place the motherboard back into the case and plug in the front board (with the on/off switch). if the motherboard doesn't seem to sit flush with apertures at this time do not worry - when it's screwed in it will. don't screw it in at this stage. now attach the power for the fans, fan shroud, DVD player,plug in the power and av cable and turn on. (you will get 4 red lights if you don't plug the av cable in).

if it works, great! leave it on for 6 mins to help spread the paste and flex the board back into shape. then turn off, wait 30 mins, tighten the bolts as described below, check it works reassemble - (don't forget the fan shroud!)

otherwise... (with the bolts still only hand-tight) take out the motherboard and prize the fans out. put the motherboard back in the case (don't screw in ) and attach the fan power. put the DVD player back in. rest the fans on cpu heatsink only next to DVD player this is to cool the cpu but overheat the gpu.( if you have an elite xbox with the extra tiny heatsink off the gpu then you may want to turn the fans over to suck the air up from the cpu rather than blow it down to stop the tiny heatsink from getting cool (but watch tthe fans don't catch the cpu heatsink).

turn on and leave it until the red ring 2 red lights ( or like i said, after 20 mins if you don't get 2 red lights) because the on/off button won't work. leave for 30 mins minutes to cool. your xbox 360 should now work! turn on to check if it works then tighten the bolts up as below&reassemble.

if it's still not working after overheating the gpu graphics chip then it's probably the cpu that needs overheating so just switch off, unplug the fans switch on and wait untill the cpu overheats and you get 2 red lights, or for 6 mins max. turn off and leave 30 mins before putting the fans back and turning the console on. remember to tighten the bolts before reassembly .

tightening the bolts- using 8mm spanner or socket tighten diagonally, a quarter turn at a time, until they are all tight remember; it's a fibreglass motherboard, not a car engine! the spring washers will help to keep tension so make it firmly tight but not too much. when the spring washers are totally flat the bolts will stop turning- don't force them beyond that.

the repair kit can be bought (uk) here [ Register or Signin to view external links. ]


(uk) thermal paste [ Register or Signin to view external links. ]


AND NOW YOU HAVE FIXED THE RED RING OF DEATH

THANK TOPIC AND ENJOY YOUR FIXED XBOX AGAIN

THIS TUTORIAL TOOK ME AN HOUR AND HALF TO TYPE ENJOY IT


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