Tips, Tricks and Fixes

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by RebelJeeper

<SIGH>....Well, after 6 RRoDs on my 360, my phat 60GB gave up the ghost on Saturday... I'm in the process of tearing it down to try the re-flow fix for the YLoD. Hopefully tonight I can get it done and smoke check it, and hopefully it'll work. What sux is I ONLY use it for watching movies, so I wouldn't think it would get all that hot. And it's sitting in the open free to breathe. Oh well...what sux is Sony won't fix it on their own dime. One good thing about M$, they manned up and fixed for free (all 8 times - 6 as I said were for RRoD) their poor design. Otherwise, I guess it'll be decision time as to get another one or just get a normal BD player. At least it has lasted about 3 years...though I was hoping it would go longer.

And if it doesn't work, I still gotta figure out how to get my Star Trek TOS Season 2 Disc 6 out...

slim time.

[Alan Gordon]

Yep! I verified it was the YLOD....

While I enjoy gaming with the PS3, I may go ahead and just get a stand-alone Blu-ray player, and pick up a PS3 Slim later this year.

I may give the reflow thing a try, but here's a question, if it doesn't work, is there a safe way to get my LBP:GOTY disc out?!

~Alan

[RebelJeeper]

Originally Posted by Alan Gordon

I may give the reflow thing a try, but here's a question, if it doesn't work, is there a safe way to get my LBP:GOTY disc out?!

If it doesn't work for me, I'm breaking out the jaws of life on that blu-ray drive

[master_8ball]

Youtube video on how to take apart the BD drive and then reset it so it works properly if you fix your PS3.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrdAH1mfpQ0&feature=fvw

[RebelJeeper]

Well, after attempting the reflow fix, reassembling, and smoke checking, my PS3 appears to be in old form again! YAY! Now, we'll have to see now how long it lasts - hopefully a long time. Much props for the video and saving me $150 (for the time being) and not having to decide if I wanted to replace the PS3 (that for me is a glorified BD player) with a slim or just buy a standalone BD player (not my ideal choice...).

[Rike255]

Originally Posted by RebelJeeper

Well, after attempting the reflow fix, reassembling, and smoke checking, my PS3 appears to be in old form again! YAY! Now, we'll have to see now how long it lasts - hopefully a long time. Much props for the video and saving me $150 (for the time being) and not having to decide if I wanted to replace the PS3 (that for me is a glorified BD player) with a slim or just buy a standalone BD player (not my ideal choice...).

Congrats, make sure you make a backup asap though just in case

[master_8ball]

4 days... it lasted 4 days

Just came home and it wouldn't turn on, wasn't like that last night so must have done it during the day when it was off, which seems strange.

Guess I will try it again and make a back up sooner this time

[RebelJeeper]

Originally Posted by master_8ball

4 days... it lasted 4 days

Just came home and it wouldn't turn on, wasn't like that last night so must have done it during the day when it was off, which seems strange.

Guess I will try it again and make a back up sooner this time

That sucks...I hope I get more than 4 days...time will tell.

[master_8ball]

Originally Posted by RebelJeeper

That sucks...I hope I get more than 4 days...time will tell.

What is smoke checking? You mean it didnt light up on fire when you plugged it in?

[master_8ball]

I re-re-flowed my PS3 last night, its up and running again. I heated the chips up more this time as I wasnt sure if I did it long enough the last, so we shall see if that makes any difference. I am all out of thermal compound so I hope I dont have to do it again soon...

[RebelJeeper]

Originally Posted by master_8ball

What is smoke checking? You mean it didnt light up on fire when you plugged it in?

Lol, yes that's exactly what it is...

Like the video, I heated up both sides for approximately 1 1/2 minutes, then I heated the GPU & CPU (specifically) at ~700 degrees for a little over 2 minutes, then gradually reduced heat to cool the board off for about a minute and a half.

[master_8ball]

Originally Posted by RebelJeeper

Lol, yes that's exactly what it is...

Like the video, I heated up both sides for approximately 1 1/2 minutes, then I heated the GPU & CPU (specifically) at ~700 degrees for a little over 2 minutes, then gradually reduced heat to cool the board off for about a minute and a half.

I tried to do the same except my heat gun has 2 settings 500 degrees and 1000. So when I did it the first time I used the 500 degree setting, I used the 1000 this time around.

[SlmShdy1]

Originally Posted by master_8ball

I tried to do the same except my heat gun has 2 settings 500 degrees and 1000. So when I did it the first time I used the 500 degree setting, I used the 1000 this time around.

I used a similar heat gun the first time I reflowed mine (borrowed it from a friend). The fix lasted for a couple months, then it started to overheat. I went out and got a heat gun of my own, one that did either 700° or 1,050°. If you watch the YouTube video, he comments that 700° is a more appropriate heat because, if you only use 500°, it could take longer to reflow. This time around, I used a higher heat and heated the CPU/GPU for about 6 minutes total. I also only used a small amount of thermal compound, and I do mean a small amount. After this second fix, my PS3's fan isn't revving up as much during gameplay, which results in a much more quiet PS3.

[buckshot]

so my launch 60 gb ps3 died. i got the yellow light of death and my parents bought me a new ps3 for my birthday, i was shocked. but how can i get all my stuff from the hdd of the old ps3 and transfer it to the new on when the old one won't even start up? i took out the hdd and tried connecting it via usb but the new ps3 didn't even register it. none of my computers can read the hdd. what do i do?

[Uxi]

We need a FAQ in the first post or something lol. No getting the data off unless you do a DIY repair. Send it to Sony, your data = bye bye. If any computer could read it, Sony fears they'd have mass piracy on the PSN games.

[buckshot]

Originally Posted by Uxi

We need a FAQ in the first post or something lol. No getting the data off unless you do a DIY repair. Send it to Sony, your data = bye bye. If any computer could read it, Sony fears they'd have mass piracy on the PSN games.

i was honestly way to lazy and frustrated to search so thank you. not worried about losing my data, just didn't want to have to re upload all the music and videos i had on there. it's weird that they wouldn't even make it where the ps3 itself could read the old hdd.

[Uxi]

ah, no worries. After being bit by the YLOD bug, I think an external drive with the media is a better path than HDD upgrades (this learned the hard way after upgrading my 60 to first 160 then 320, but YLOD before the 500GB upgrade). It also hugely increased the backup/restore times, so I'm staying with external USB and/or streaming from this point on since I don't fully trust the PS3 reliability.

[Marine Mike]

Originally Posted by buckshot

i was honestly way to lazy and frustrated to search so thank you. not worried about losing my data, just didn't want to have to re upload all the music and videos i had on there. it's weird that they wouldn't even make it where the ps3 itself could read the old hdd.

I think it probably has to do with copyrighted material / legal mumbo jumbo.

[kingofgrills]

Okay, my PS3 is a launch 60GB model, and fortunately, it has never suffered a random shut down or the YLOD. However, I have noticed that the fan is coming on sooner and it is running faster than it used to, and that's getting me worried.

What is the best procedure for cleaning and caring for a PS3 under these circumstances? Is it just a matter of cleaning the vents, or should the thermal paste be swapped out at this point? I would like to prolong the life of my PS3 while not subjecting it to any risk or harm in the process.

I tried searching the forum for an answer, but got back over 300 different threads. I appreciate all of your help and suggestions.

[Uxi]

I would disassemble and blow out the case and heat sink/fans thoroughly and redo the thermal paste. Couldn't hurt.