XBox Question: Laying it on its side

[Sainters7]

So I just have a question about how I'm using my XBox. Since I got it in the summer, I've been keeping it standing upright. It scares the crap out of me though, as I've almost knocked it over a few times, which I know can destroy the fragile as china things.

So right now I'm laying it on its side. I'm also keeping it where you'd usually keep your VCR in an entertainment centre. My concern is that I know the Red Ring of Death is usually caused by overheating, and by laying it on its side, its blocking all the vents underneath. I'm also keeping my XBox games on the right side of it, so the vents on the right side are also partially blocked. The vents on top and to the left are completely clear though. Am I putting my system in danger of the Red Ring? Or is it perfectly fine to keep it this way? Funkin' fragile XBoxes...

[Hack&Lube]

Red Ring can happen out of the blue for many reasons. There is nothing you can do to avoid it. It's almost inevitable. Just put the Xbox however you want it. If you want to stand it up, use some books or something heavy to keep it up.

[FlamesKickAss]

should be okay, I switched mine in august to on its side and there isnt much room above it. its in an entertainement centre above a fireplace. The only thing I did was move the games to somewhere else, boy it does get pretty hot though.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Really? I thought RROD was hardware failure due mainly to heat? Something about the chips seperating from the heatsink?

Regardless, it's not somewhere I would be keeping mine. Standing it upright exposes far more surface area for heat release. I also clipped an intercooler to the back. I have read the intercooler doesn't do any good but I really don't see how. My Xbox is much cooler to the touch with it then without. I have always been of the opinon that heat is the biggest killer of most electronic devices so I keep mine as cool as possible. So far so good.

I do have the elite version though, I think they have the newer chipset.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by GoinAllTheWay

Really? I thought RROD was hardware failure due mainly to heat? Something about the chips seperating from the heatsink?

Regardless, it's not somewhere I would be keeping mine. Standing it upright exposes far more surface area for heat release. I also clipped an intercooler to the back. I have read the intercooler doesn't do any good but I really don't see how. My Xbox is much cooler to the touch with it then without. I have always been of the opinon that heat is the biggest killer of most electronic devices so I keep mine as cool as possible. So far so good.

I do have the elite version though, I think they have the newer chipset.

It is heat. The solution is simple and that is to mod the case with more vents or just add a computer fan. Most people are unwilling to void their warranty though. You can blame new regulations on lead free solder for all the issues. This stuff is brittle and heat causes it to fall apart and separate. Aftermarket intercoolers can't do much because of the faulty original case design.

But regardless of standing up or laying down, hundreds of thousands have had RROD.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Was the case design different on the Elites?

I hear what you are saying but those intercoolers do seem to do the job, I can feel air being drawn in the front of it far more with it on then off and it fires a good amount of warm air out the back. Unless the chips aren't directly in the path of the airflow(in which case you have to wonder why not), I don't understand how it couldn't be beneficial.

The use of the intercooler voids the warranty?

Not saying your wrong in any way H&L, just looking for clarifacation.

[RW99]

I had more problems when it was sitting straight up.

[Sainters7]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll probably move the games away from it but I'll keep it where it is. I was sick of constantly worrying about my cat or one of my jackass friends knocking it over.

[FlamesKickAss]

yea I think there is more chance of doing damage on end that on its side and I dont think RROD matters how it is laying.

[WhiteTom]

I would keep it lying down if at all possible. If anyone or anything bumps the console while it is playing there is a good chance the CD will be ripped to shreds (happened to my friends Saints Row).

[Igottago]

I still can't believe MS was dumb enough to release a flawed machine that customers actually have to worry about doing mods and provide additional ventilation to ensure its working properly.

One of the key design features was the option to stand it up or set it sideways. Consumers should'nt have to worry about their machine f'ing up based on that.

I personally believe you'll get the red light either way, so just do what works for you.

[Sainters7]

Originally Posted by Igottago

I still can't believe MS was dumb enough to release a flawed machine that customers actually have to worry about doing mods and provide additional ventilation to ensure its working properly.

One of the key design features was the option to stand it up or set it sideways. Consumers should'nt have to worry about their machine f'ing up based on that.

I personally believe you'll get the red light either way, so just do what works for you.

I hear ya. I had absolutely NO IDEA how flawed XBox was when I got it, I never would've picked one up had I known. The irony is I've always been a PlayStation guy too, I had PS1 and 2. I only went XBox this time around because it was cheaper, and for some reason I thought Madden 08 looked better on the 360 than it did on PS3, and that's basically the only game I played at the time. I can't believe in this day and age a game system was released that is this flawed.

Still, I've had it since the summer and haven't had a prob yet, so I guess I can't complain. I just dont wanna do anything to risk it.

[llama64]

You cannot prevent a RROD by keeping it on it's side. If your machine is fated to suffer the RROD, it's just gonna happen -- it's a problem with the internals of the machine. Overheating excacerbates the problem but it's still going to happen no matter how much you do to keep it cool.

I've been keeping my xbox on it's side since I got it. It's one of the models from before MS even acknowledged the problems and so far I havn't have an issue with it.

So to answer directly, lay it on the side if you like that better and don't worry about it.

[Sainters7]

One other Q I have about the RROD is, can you briefly get it and have it go away without having to fix it? Back in the summer, when I only had the system about a month, it flashed the dreaded RROD. I quickly turned it off after about 2 seconds, and restarted it. And voila, it was gone and back to a cool neon green. Six months later and it hasnt happened since. I'm sure it wasn't the actual RROD, but it was very bizarre.

Anyone else had this happen to them?

[NHL009]

I have the very first versions of the xbox. I bought my only one a week after it was released. I've never stood it up once ever. I've never had a problem with my Xbox since I bought it years ago.

*Knocks on wood*

[Fire]

Originally Posted by Sainters7

Anyone else had this happen to them?

Yes.

[FlamesKickAss]

Originally Posted by Sainters7

Anyone else had this happen to them?

yep but mine was a loose video connections

[wooohooo]

Doesn't microsoft have some long warranty against the RROD since it's such a common occurrence? Something like 5 years?

The new xbox's have a Jasper chip I believe, smaller power bar or something like that. Should be better... hopefully

[Nage Waza]

From what I know, the RROD is typically caused by defective thermal paste on the video card. It does not matter how cool you make the system, the gel was bad. RROD can be cured (for a short time) by overheating the system! Wrap the system in a blanket, the gel eventually melts over the parts again, and you are good to go, for a while.
The 360 is a great system, unfortunately there have been some major tech issues. I went through 3 or 4 from the release date, the last unit has lasted since month five. I don't know if Microsoft can really be blamed for this; this is such a small yet critical aspect of the build that if it is bad from the get-go than systems are going to fail.
I don't even know if there is a class action lawsuit for this.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

From what I know, the RROD is typically caused by defective thermal paste on the video card. It does not matter how cool you make the system, the gel was bad. RROD can be cured (for a short time) by overheating the system! Wrap the system in a blanket, the gel eventually melts over the parts again, and you are good to go, for a while.
The 360 is a great system, unfortunately there have been some major tech issues. I went through 3 or 4 from the release date, the last unit has lasted since month five. I don't know if Microsoft can really be blamed for this; this is such a small yet critical aspect of the build that if it is bad from the get-go than systems are going to fail.
I don't even know if there is a class action lawsuit for this.

Completely false and stupid playground rumor started by teenagers who don't know what they are doing. There's no such thing as burning in or reheating thermal paste or thermal pads. Heating thermal paste (typically silicon emulsion) will only reduce the moisture content future, and make it more brittle. If you really are worried about the thermal paste, void your warranty, open your system. Remove the heatsink and heatpipe assembly, and apply some Arctic Silver.

As I stated before. The problem is due to the leadless solder. Temperature fluxes or cold solder joints cause the ball grid array solder to crack or separate between the GPU and CPU and the motherboard. The same issue happened with nvidia graphics chips in several laptops last year causing their stock price to plummet.

BTW, Microsoft recommends not using an intercooler because it takes it's power by going into the power chain between the powersupply and the unit and earlier versions were known to damage the console or prevent it from getting enough power.

Never revisions like the Jasper are switching to 65nm fabrication which consumes less power and generates less heat but RROD is still possible if the solder joints fail.