Fix Your Own RROD With Free Console Repair Guides

Tom Goldman

Crying on the inside.
Aug 17, 2009
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Fix Your Own RROD With Free Console Repair Guides



Old broken consoles and handhelds are trash no more, thanks to a host of free repair guides provided by iFixit.

In the past, when a videogame console died there was often no simple way to get it repaired outside of warranty, especially if it was an older one. A company called iFixit wants to put the power to keep your consoles going squarely in your own hands, as it has recently released free guides for 24 different videogame products that cover 206 different repairs and upgrades.

Chances are good that if you purchased an PlayStation 3 [http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-250GB-Console/dp/B003O6JJKY/ref=sr_tr_3?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1283191856&sr=8-3] motherboard, a power supply for a Dreamcast, and even the optical drive for the new slim Xbox 360. The company's goal was to free customers from being stuck with the manufacturer as their only repair source.

The guides cover older systems too, from the Sega Game Gear to the Super Nintendo. Some guides are simpler, while others are full-fledged with pictures every step of the way. Ifixit says they're the result of thousands of hours of community labor, including some from engineering students that developed them for technical writing classes.

The bottom line is that we don't have to throw away old or new consoles anymore when they start getting wonky. At the least, iFixit's repair guides can be a last resort towards fixing up a broken system, while they're also a depository of information for interested tinkerers. Just keep in mind that cracking open a system is a delicate process and will void any warranty.

Source: GoNintendo [http://www.ifixit.com/Browse/Game_Console]


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Ironic Pirate

New member
May 21, 2009
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That is quite awesome, especially if the solutions reliably work. Certainly better than putting a towel on it, or whatever the hell people have been doing for RRODs.
 

Gabanuka

New member
Oct 1, 2009
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Your kiding right, I have a RROD Xbox just bricking in my garage, if I can fix it I would have both consoles!

 

Not-here-anymore

In brightest day...
Nov 18, 2009
3,028
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Brilliant! I can fix my RROD'd xbox! (although I was on the way to it anyway...)
And now I can try to repair my Dreamcast!
Do want!
 

HontooNoNeko

No more parties?
Nov 29, 2009
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So Xbox gives us a faulty product, it breaks and we need a 3rd party to solve the problem that Xbox created in a timely manner? So essentially they are the lawyers for console systems?
 

Sovreign

New member
Apr 25, 2009
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a friend told me to wrap it in a towel, put a plastic bag around it and submerge it in a bathtub of scalding hot water...
 

FungiGamer

New member
Apr 23, 2008
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Tom Goldman said:
Red ring of death aside, we all wish that videogame consoles could be miraculous pieces of technology that last forever, but that isn't the case.
Step 1: Buy a Nintendo Console
Step 2: ???
Step 3: PROFIT!
 

m@

New member
Aug 10, 2009
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sorry but theres been these guides around for ages, i used one for my PS2 and i brought my 360 a couple of years ago off ebay with RROD for about £50 and fixed it for about £10 lol

that said i'm all for making them free and more public but its gonna screw over the people that have made a business out of fixing 360's :/

p.s Sovreign if you put any motherboard/ console in the oven on about 180c for 20mins it basically re-solders the connections on the motherboard and does work, but a hot bath won't be hot enough i doubt lol
 

twcblaze

Lurker Extraordinaire
Jun 18, 2009
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that's pretty amazing, maybe now I can shut my room-mate up since he wants me to trade in my backwards compatible ps3 just because the fan's a little overly loud
 

Jared

The British Paladin
Jul 14, 2009
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Thats actually quite cool, and really useful! Can breath life into what was once junk!
 

Flamezdudes

New member
Aug 27, 2009
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Well, i got my Xbox 2 Years ago January. Nothing has ever gone wrong with it and i hope nothing will anytime soon.

If something does i might perhaps use this.
 

Nalgas D. Lemur

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Nov 20, 2009
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I haven't looked at any of their newer guides since they announced earlier this year they'd be covering stuff other than Apple products, but iFixit's guides have historically been rather good, in my experience. They cover all the necessary steps, detailed with photos and all the tools and parts you'll need, and I've been able to disassemble and reassemble laptops and iPods I'd never even seen before with a minimum amount of fuss.

It helps a lot for non-trivial stuff if you're at least somewhat familiar with the type of thing you're working on, and attempting to do something that requires a higher level of skill than you have is a good way to break something worse than it was to begin with, but if you're reasonably comfortable fiddling around with electronics, go nuts.
 

sephiroth1991

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Dec 3, 2009
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I fixed my Ps3 so it is possible to do it with cheap stuff i got from halfords and a heat gun my dad had.

OT:If its out of its warrenty and you don't really care you should have a go yourself
 

Shru1kan

New member
Dec 10, 2009
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I have 2 360's that I got for free after they red ringed. time to go back to work, because testing for hours with a meter was mind numbing.
 

SnipErlite

New member
Aug 16, 2009
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...Cool.

So far the only problem I've had with my Ps3 was some hard-drive problem...which fixed itself when I turned it off and on and off and on in panic.

However, when something goes wrong in the future this will be damn useful (Y)
 

Midnight Crossroads

New member
Jul 17, 2010
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I have a dying DVD drive in my 360 and looked up the guide to replace it:

The Xbox 360 is designed so that the DVD drive works only with the particular game console it is installed in. Replacing a defective DVD drive with a replacement DVD drive does not work, since the replacement has a different DVD drive key, which the game console won't accept.
Wow, Microsoft, those guys are dicks. I guess they would rather I spent that money buying a new Xbox instead of spending 20 bucks on a DVD drive that will last twice as long.
 

Willis_D

New member
May 27, 2009
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Well, seeing as I have an XBox 360 that red ringed a while ago, and the warranty is void as I've had it for nearly 4 years, this is pretty handy. Granted, I will be getting a new one, but still, gives me a project. And a second XBox may be handy.