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[Geremia]

GPU package is made of GPU core and DRAM, are you sure both are perfectly on the same plane? If not, one core will dissipate less than the other, because the heatsink is just 1 plane. Maybe MS was not sure and solved problem with aluminium foil.
Maybe if you remove the foil you'lll have worse results as some members here already told, maybe consoles with heat problems are the ones without the foil...but it's just my thought.

[SharkUW]

Wow, so there should have been a recall afterall. We should demand that MS release the info as to which lots/serials this is a problem on. That can most definitely cause a problem down the line if a console hasn't already had a problem. That's pretty bad that they didn't do a recall on them earlier. Sure they don't want the bad press, but come on. Now that people had to find a problem for themselves they could at least exchange them...

[fghjj]

Here's an idea: apply some quality control on the news posts. Thermal conductive alu tape is older then the first Duke Nukem Forever announcement.

[adfinder23]

QUOTE(SharkUW @ Mar 10 2006, 09:55 AM)

Wow, so there should have been a recall afterall. We should demand that MS release the info as to which lots/serials this is a problem on. That can most definitely cause a problem down the line if a console hasn't already had a problem. That's pretty bad that they didn't do a recall on them earlier. Sure they don't want the bad press, but come on. Now that people had to find a problem for themselves they could at least exchange them...

Not bashing you, but it is generally a good idea to read other's posts before replying. As many posters have said, the foil is common in computer hardware and not a mistake.



As for it being front page news: the headline does have ? on it if that is saving grace.


Anyway, I can't read German, but did these guys even bother to get a temp reading before and after? Or would guaging the temperature inside or exiting the box not really relate to any temp increases/decreases caused by leaving or removing the foil?

[hjhbg]

QUOTE(adfinder23 @ Mar 10 2006, 04:46 PM)

Anyway, I can't read German, but did these guys even bother to get a temp reading before and after?

the only thing they did was opening an xbox. then they saw the foil and for them this was evidence enough.

[VinnySem]

LOL, another point, if that was only a protective plastic film, dontcha think it would have melted?

[Interloper]

Well had their name been MICROHARD, they probably would have known what they were doing!!!!

[erexx]

I have seen this happen to PC's purchased from many OEM’s.

I have come across many PC's that still had this aluminum foil attached.

I usually perform my own "burn-in" tests of new PC's using Prime-95 and other apps.
The PC’s CPU were heating up and shutting down the machine.

Strange behavior and random crashes prompts an inspection of the machine before deployment.

Removing it and adding some non-silicon based heat sink compound fixed them all right up.

I have had tech’s try to tell me that this thermal conductive aluminum tape is part of the heat sink design.
(Only to have at least one tech call me back and tell me that this was a real problem for them too)

Well maybe thermal conductive aluminum tape is a part of this heat sinks design.
If it is, it’s a bad design and a bad choice for the Xbox360, in my opinion.

Thermal conductive aluminum tape is a poor substitute for other more efficient solutions.

Testing should rule out any personal bias.

[mlapaglia]

m$ needs to pick up a copy of "idiots guide to assembling a computer"

[grim_d]

just curious. why does everyone go on about AS5 and not ceramique. Ive seen it work better, it costs less and is non-conductive.

[Gunfingers]

QUOTE(mlapaglia @ Mar 10 2006, 10:23 AM)

m$ needs to pick up a copy of "idiots guide to assembling a computer"

mlapaglia needs to pick up a copy of "idiots guide to reading a thread"

[Trance_Allstar]

QUOTE(nightmare84j28 @ Mar 10 2006, 03:07 PM)

So if the foil is suppose to be there why hasnt this guy got them?

My thought exactly. Why would they put this thing on a few random Xboxes only.

Also, I still don't see how this tape would help with the thermal transfer.

If there is also cooling paste involved, why even have the tape there in the first place, since it will only be one more thing heat has to travel through, even though I don't contest that it might be more efficient at heat transfer than thermal paste. Just loose it and use thermal paste only. Surely thermal paste has alot better contact in small grooves etc than a solid tape?

Just my immediate thoughts...

[jonsayers]

the foil isn't a protective layer!!! It's part of the heatsink/paste design! Lots of laptops have exactly the same stuff on it. It saves all the paste getting stuck to the GPU/CPU as it gets hot and thins under the foil rather than glueing itself to the GPU/CPU.

[xboxexpert]

We spend the evening testing Indium foil as a Thermal Interface Material (TIM).  We compared it to three different thermal pastes and found that it came up short.  All three thermal pastes beat the Indium foil.  The best paste beat the foil by over 7 degrees F.  The pastes used were the pastes talked about most in this thread.  Shortly the foil is called "Indium foil" and is supposed to be there.  So the German people tend to know less about Thermal Interface Material then we would think, a waste of a post on the main page of XS but meaningful none the less.  You should remove this foil and drop some paste on it if you want to lower your temps by at least 7 degrees.  If you are interested in knowing the properties of this foil take a look over here.  Industries use this foil becasue of its Thermal Conductivity.
-xboxexpert

[krims0n]

QUOTE(grim_d @ Mar 10 2006, 10:25 AM)

just curious. why does everyone go on about AS5 and not ceramique. Ive seen it work better, it costs less and is non-conductive.

I have always used ceramique and get solid results from it every time. I like the non-conductive material when working with chips that can't be removed from the PCB (video cards for example). Don't need to be as cautious when applying.