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Today’s article is written by guest author Anthony Uccello. Anthony is the editor of Xbox360repair.ca and can be reached here.
Microsoft’s “Red Ring of Death”
The red ring of death is the most devastating error that your Xbox 360 can encounter. The red ring of death error can also be called the 3 red light error. The 1 red light error is also a very common problem with the 360s.
So what exactly is the red ring of death? What is the 1 red light error? Is there a red ring of death fix? Will my Xbox ever work properly again?
Understanding the Red Ring of Death
So what happened to cause such a large error? Microsoft was in a huge rush to put out the Xbox 360, so proper research and development requirements were not met. This resulted in the problems that are appearing today.
Microsoft categorizes the red ring light error as a “general hardware failure.” This code usually represents one very large problem, but can also signify some small ones.
To be able to tell if you have the red ring of death error, you need to check a few things. The first indication will be your ring of light. After you have powered on your console the lights in quadrants 1, 3, and 4 will turn from green to angry red. You will not be able to go any farther after this happens and will only have the ability to turn off your console. Below are some troubleshooting tips to help you determine if another error is the cause.
- Reboot the console and see if the error returns. If the error does not return your console is fine.
- Make sure your power supply light is green. If the light is orange or red you may have a power problem.
- If the error has not been fixed and the lights are still red, you need to unplug all the cables and anything else attached to the Xbox.
- Reconnect all the cables, make sure it is plugged in properly and turn the console on.
- Check to see if the red lights are still there.
- If the red lights are gone your Xbox is fine. If the red lights are still present turn the console off and remove the hard drive. After you have removed the hard drive turn the console on. If the lights stay off, turn off your system and reconnect the hard drive. Boot your system up.
- If the red ring of death is still there, it will take a bit more to fix it.
If you are still under warranty, Microsoft has extended its coverage to 3 years for this particular problem. If are no longer under warranty, the good news is you can repair the Xbox 360 yourself.
The main cause of the problem in the Xbox 360 is that the cooling system is insufficient. The other cause is the solder that Microsoft used to attach the CPU and GPU is not the proper material to withstand the heat that the Xbox gives out. This causes small fractures in the solder from all the heat. When the Xbox heats up and the motherboard expands, the small fractures expand to larger cracks and the GPU works its way loose from the motherboard. When this happens, that is when you get the 3 ring of death error.
How to Repair the Ring of Death
If you don’t have any warranty left on your console, Microsoft will do nothing to help you and you will be on your own. The good news is you can repair the Xbox 360 yourself. All you really have to do is adjust the cooling system.
When you repair the Xbox 360 you will have to do what is called a “X-Clamp” fix. You will need to take the console apart and remove the motherboard. Then you need to remove the hard drive and disconnect everything from the console. The next step is to remove the X-clamps that connect the heat sinks to the GPU and CPU.
After you have removed the X-clamps you can remove the heat sinks. When you have removed the heat sinks, you need to clean the old thermal protective film from the chip and the back of the heat sink and put a proper thermal protective paste. Now you can reattach the heat sinks making sure there is proper pressure to the GPU and CPU so they stay attached to the motherboard.
1 Red Light Error
The 1 red light error shows up in the 4th quadrant of the ring of lights. It will show up as flashing red. You will find a code on your TV such as E65, E76. This is a hardware failure error.
The causes of the 1 red light error all seem to stem from the excess heat being generated from the Xbox. The most common reason for the error is the audio video error which will appear as E74.
Check your AV cable first. It is possible that this is all it is. If this is not the problem, then again the faulty cooling system has come into play and your GPU chip has probably worked it’s way loose from the motherboard. Unfortunately Microsoft’s extended warranty does not cover this error and you are only covered for one year from purchase.
If you have no warranty and have a 1 red light error this can be repaired in the same way as the 3 red light error.
Other Xbox Errors
After you wade your way through the 3 red light error and 1 red light error the fun doesn’t end there. You will find that there are a large handful of other errors that can happen to your console. Another very common error that has recently been reported is the “black screen of death.” There are a few possible warnings before this occurs and are as follows.
- Over tinting of one color.
- Pixilation
- Flashing bars
- Color degradation
While these symptoms can show up before video failure, they are usually only present for a very short time if you get any at all.
Once in a while the AV cable is actually the cause of the error. Attach new AV cables to rule out AV failure.
Again if these troubleshooting tips do not work, the most likely culprit is the loose GPU and you will need to follow the same steps for repair as the 3 red light error.
coffee:
i have tried the fan replacement fix and it still hasn’t worked, but i’m not giving up yet
Matt Wright:
Great info. I really liked the Xbox 360 repairs listed by you. Very helpful.