whats next?

[Zmakin]

i did an x-clamp fix on one of my consoles, but it didnt fix the secndary 0022 code on it, and still getting no output at all from the 360...

when i power up the box none of the green lights circle the ring like is normal on a functioning 360, just dark until like 30 seconds later the 1,3,and 4 player lights go red. during this i get nothing on my tv screen, not even the flicker of when the box would normally power up.

so my question i shwat else can i do to this 360 to try and salvage it if anything?

[HaGGardSmurf]

Well what you should know is xclamp's dont actually fix anything.

RROD is caused due to the lead free solder used on the GPU (and cpu, but the gpu is almost always the problem) The lead free solder when rapidly heated and cooled excessively, will develop tiny cracks, and eventually go cold.

All the xclamp replacement's do is put more pressure on the GPU and basically squish the solder together, its an easy fix, and usually it works, but not for long.

Try a real fix, a reflow or a reball.

I'll probably make a new reflow video shortly

[Zmakin]

Haggard,

if you could throw a link up to the new video you make that'd be awesome!

i have no soldering skills so to be able to show my step-dad exactly what to do would be extremely helpful. thanks again for the help

[HaGGardSmurf]

Well first thing your going to need to do is buy liquid flux. Flux pen's from radio shack will work, but theyre a bit of a pain. Then you'll just flux the GPU from all 4 sides until you see flux flowing out from under the chip, then you will want to use foil tape, or tin foil, and cover everything but the GPU and heat the GPU with your heatgun for about 30 seconds.

If you have an IR thermometer that's perfect, you'll be trying to get the GPU to ~400C or 750F your going to want to gradually heat and cool it, doing it fast is what cracks the solder in the first place.

Your going to also want to heat the bottom of the board, most people just heat the bottom gradually, then flip it heat the top.

I need to go and buy a griddle first before I can make the video, and ive been pretty busy lately. If you have a griddle, you can buy 8 m5 machine screw's and put them on your griddle. (Either drill them, or jb weld them.)



Like so, then put nut's on the screw's keeping your board about 3/8" above the griddle. While reflowing have your griddle set to ~450F that will take care of the heating of the bottom, and you dont need to ever flip the board, its also nice because you can gradually cool the board.

[moonknight]

I use the griddle and it works great. Here are a few tips: when you put the screws in, leave the bottom nuts just a little bit loose. This will allow for any misalignment you may have had when drilling out the holes. Second nut is what the mobo rests on, I have mine about a half inch off the griddle.

[Zmakin]

so pretty much what your telling me is that i do not want to take the GPU off but instead get the flux underneath the chip until i start to see it ooze out of the bottom of the board, or the top of the board but bottom of the chip? first one doesnt sound right but just wanna make sure i dont under-do it.

from there i cover everything else up and hit the GPU with a heat gun in 30 second bursts until it reaches about 750F?

and after it reaches that point let it slowly cool down back to room temperature...

do i just turn the griddle off? or would it be better to leave the griddle on 450F for a few minutes and slowly turn it down from there every 5 or so until i turn the griddle off?

[HaGGardSmurf]

When your cooling it down, just gradually reduce the temp every couple min's

This is how your going to want to flux the board:



The flux you'll get from radio shack should be low enough viscosity to penetrate the GPU, but the best thing to do (IMO) is to buy specialized BGA flux from ebay. (Just search Xbox 360 flux or PS3 Flux, I think I just found mine as 'Liquid Flux')

Dont do it in 30 second bursts, just cover everything but the GPU with tinfoil (after fluxing it) and then turn your griddle on to 450, and turn your heatgun to low, then move your gun in circles around the gpu, dont ever hold it in 1 spot. Your basically pre-heating the board, do that for 30-45 seconds, and have your gun about 2 inches above the board.

Now start heating it, turn your gun to high, and again, move in circles, and heat the board to about 750F if you have a IR thermometer that's perfect. That way you can figure out exactly how high to hold your gun, how long etc...

Keep in mind your going to want to buy an IR thermometer that can measure in the range you need it. I found lots that measured -30C to 380C (-22F to 716F) which is not high enough, so keep in mind the max temp should be 400C/750F or higher.

[JUVY]

tha best thing is to get a good heat gun tha lets u change ur temp setting so u can reflow it..and if u got a old style 360 wit the old GPU u might want to upgrade to the new stlye GPU so it stops over heaten & buy a stronger fan & do the xclamp fix...if u do all these 3 thingd ur 360 should be good to go..but if u dont then there a good chance ur problems might return in the furture...,y 360 would always mess up wit the rrod but since i did the upgrade i can leave it on all day witout no over heaten...

[Zmakin]

upgrade my GPU? wouldnt that involve removing the one on there(obviously) and arent i not supposed to do that? is it even possible to replace the gpu without ruining the mobo, and how would i know that it will work with the older board that i have? or that i have installed it back in correctly so that the correct connections are made?

alright, that definitely sounds like it'll work perfectly to go slowly on both the way up and on the4 cool-down. thanks a bunch on the detailed explanation haggard, much appreciated. i just have to wait to get my walmart gift-card and im goin to buy a griddle and of course for the flux to get shipped...

one last question, im at work so cant check, but would i just be able to get the newer gpu or whatever else i need off ebay? or somewhere else i gotta go

[Zmakin]

ok so i went on ebay and am just wondering about this stuff

is this the right kind of flux, and would it be worth it to get this much for just 2 360's and maybe a 3rd down the line?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Lot-200-Thermal-Pas ... 58883c1cee" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

what are these: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-XBOX360-XBOX-36 ... 27aa22669d" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

and are these needed if i dont have one of those? http://cgi.ebay.com/Xbox360-Xbox-360-GP ... 53e2055690" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

and if the first link is no good for using, is this the right stuff to be using? http://cgi.ebay.com/NO-CLEAN-LIQUID-FLU ... 1e5cc1300d" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

thanks for the info guys, i definitely wanna have the right stuff to get this working. just got my first lcd hdtv today and i wanna actually use the hdmi cable for someting and one of my broken boxes is the only one i have with an hdmi... ugh i cant wait...!

[JUVY]

no i meant upgrade ur gpu heatsink so ur gpu doesnt heat up as much and get a stronger fan to take out all the hot air in the 360 wen ur playen it. then get ur flux and a good heat gun and reflow it..if it hard for u to get the screws and washer & thermal paste i would suggest u buy the hole kit online...do the reflow 1st then do the xclamp fix and u should be good....i personaly bought the new gpu heatsink wit the stronger fan and did the reflow and my 360 hasnt had any problems till this day and i play it at times for 3hrs non stop...

here is the link check it out i would buy from them befor any1 on ebay..... http://team-xecuter.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[HaGGardSmurf]

That flux is the correct type of flux.

Dont buy that thermal paste, if you dont have any yourself, and need to buy some, buy arctic silver 5, its the best thermal paste on the market.

The other thing's you linked are reballing stencil's or kits. Reballing is done by lifting the GPU, then removing the solder on the chip and board, then replacing the solder with leaded solder, so you dont get cracks from heating and cooling.

Its a complex process, you can look into it if you like, but its not worth it if your just fixing your own xbox.

Take a look on craigslist or other sites like it for people that can do reball's or reflow's and see what they charge. It may end up being cheaper to have them do it rather than having you buy all the parts and learn how to do it.

[Zmakin]

quick question...

would a griddle that only goes up to 400F work out for this application, or does it need to be at 450F specifically for any reason?

[HaGGardSmurf]

400 should be fine.

The only reason you need the griddle is to provide some heat to the board on the bottom.

[Chhokar]

So what exactly does the Flux do? and all you have to do is get the flux underneath and then just heat it up in circlular motion?
Cheers