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[MadMaxGR]

QUOTE(AndreJB @ Feb 25 2010, 08:46 AM)

Hi,

When my Xbox 360 was stock, the fans weren't spinning really fast at startup, but after a couple of seconds the RPM increases drastically and the Xbox was ready for takeoff. It was blowing loads of air and everything was running fine. It was like it was running near 12 volts already.
So yesterday I felt like helping her cool down a bit more and took the X Clamps off, removed the old thermal paste and applied new paste. Then I swapped the stock Delta fans for Talismoon Whisper fans (not the "Max" version, just the regular ones). I then put everything back together and started playing some Modern Warfare 2.

I immediately noticed how much quieter it was and was quite pleased with the result. But after a few minutes of gameplay it froze. Tried a few more times and it kept on freezing or sometimes the screen just went black. I noticed it wasn't nearly blowing as much air out as usual so I put back in the old stock Delta fans. But even with those the fan speed was roughly the same.

So what could've gone wrong? Should I 7/9/12 volt mod it? It used to be capable of keeping itself cool without any mods at all. Maybe the paste is doing it's job so the fans aren't working as hard as they used to be? But why would the Box freeze then?

Anyway I hope I didn't ruined my once perfectly running 360..
Thanks for the help!

I am "smelling" GPU problem here. When you took off the MS x-clamps you must have bend it slightly, so now it will not apply enough pressure on the GPU heatsink, to keep your GPU chip in place when it gets overheated. So, apply proper x-clamp fix or you can flat the MS x-clamps and put them back under the board. It is up to you what you will do.

[MadMaxGR]

QUOTE(AndreJB @ Feb 25 2010, 12:40 PM)

I did notice that the heatsinks are extremely hot. So doesn't this mean it's already making proper contact with the GPU? The fan speed is just too low for it to be able to get all the heat away from the heat sinks. Do you know where the location of the temperature sensor is?
I properly reapplied thermal paste both on the CPU and GPU, so maybe if the sensor that's regulating the voltage of the fans is on the CPU only it would cause the GPU to overheat first?

The thermal sensor will do nothing in your case, and no it will not cause GPU overheat. Anyway as I said, do a proper x-clamp fix replacement to resolve your problem.

[WorldFormula]

The fans going down in speed was actually a good thing, it meant your repair was successful - but only for what you repaired. Chances are that the box isn't overheating, but like Max said the GPU is going out. This could've been caused by you replacing the x-clamps or because it coincidentally broke right after that.

To fix this, the best option would be to bake the bare motherboard in the oven at 80C for 5-6 hours, and then apply a hybrid advanced x-clamp fix. The baking removes any warping in the board that may have developed over time, and the hybrid keeps it that way.

The other thing would be to check your disc - rarely that's the case but its always worth a check.

[AndreJB]

Done the Hybrid x-clamp fix.. still freezes after 1 minute. I've tried to loosen en tighten the screws, but it doesn't work. What to do now?

//Edit: No red lights are showing up, the screen just freezes or turns black or white.

[MadMaxGR]

I think you need to check your HANA/ANA chip. Maybe you need to reflow it. Sometimes this can be caused by the Memory chips as well.

[Weirdjerz3y]

My xbox was freezing before too, i found out i put way to much pressure on the gpu, causing it to be very hot, and too little paste, I used artic silver, and loosened the screws a bit

[MadMaxGR]

QUOTE(AndreJB @ Mar 3 2010, 04:22 PM)

Ok so I've tried reflowing the chips you mentioned, but it still freezes at the startup screen.

This is my Xbox freezing.
Freezing Demo

So is the thing really dead now? I'm thinking about buying a new 360 arcade with Jasper chipset, because I'm sick and tired of all the problems with this one. But it would be great if it could be revived off course.

Any suggestions.. ?

Weirdjerz3y is right. This looks like your GPU is overpressured and freeze it. Play with the pressure on the GPU heatsink and let us know. Also be sure you use Arctic Silver 5 as thermal compound.

[MadMaxGR]

Buy Arctic SIlver 5. The one that is included in various "fix packages" are much lower quality than AS5. It will not impress me if you clean off the other thermal paste and replace it with AS5, it will not freeze again. I have seen it happening before.

[AndreJB]

ARGH!  

I have now put Arctic Silver 5 on both the CPU and GPU and it's still freezing!! It looks like it freezes faster when in game rather than browsing in the dashboard or main menus.

More thermal paste? Only a very thin layer should be enough, right?

 

[MadMaxGR]

OK... I told you before to reflow the Memory Chips. Did you reflow them? Especially the two that are under the GPU heatsink next to the GPU chip.

[MadMaxGR]

QUOTE(AndreJB @ Mar 9 2010, 03:54 PM)

I did a reflow on the GPU, CPU, ANA and the RAM (4 in total, right? Seen from above, 2 left and 2 underneath the GPU). But I focused the heatgun more on the GPU and ANA.

Ok I'm off reflowing the RAM then, because I really need to get back into some gaming  
Should I be doing the top AND bottom? And for approximately how long? I'm always scared burning the whole Mobo with all of it's components  

What I do is I preheat the bottom of the board first (around 150C is enough) and then I use my heatgun on top side on the RAM chips (moving in circles) at 270C-290C (not more) for 30-45secs (depends the temp and how good heatgun you have). Also is good to use no-clean liquid flux if available.

[AndreJB]

Done. Now at 3 red lights with error code 0102. Nice.