XBOX 360 and PS3 owners , time to change your Thermal Paste

s8n

s8n

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hi members , i am currently in the process of replacing the Thermal Compound on my Jasper (2009) XBOX 360's and Slim PS3's (2009) models. Actually 360's are done i'm now working on PS3's. I noticed with the original compound on both consoles is that it has hardly any tack feel to it , on a scale of 1 to 10 i give both consoles a 1. You should expect this on a 10 year old console , also with the 360's i've noticed that on the Chassis where the rear exhaust fans are i think it was 6 out of 7 had rust forming. It wasn't a huge amount but the process had started , i have removed the rust with sandpaper and treated it with WD-40 to prevent it coming back. I've started this thread to alert people of my findings and help their consoles last longer.
 
Can't speak for 360s, but the fat PS3s are especially notorious for this. I got much better temps on one years ago that I had delid and put new paste UNDER the lid - not just on top which is usually what is done. The one I did it on was a reflowed PS3 that had YLOD, so it wasn't really a big deal if it broke. But it's a risky process that I'm more hesitant to do on a good working console.

Found a guide on the matter: https://quade.co/2017/ps3-delid-ihs/
 
Mord.Fustang said:
it's a risky process
Click to expand...
More FUD? Honestly, after reading a bunch of (generic, not PS3 specific) delidding horror stories, once I tried it myself I found it way easier than advertised. Just don't be a klutz, add some heat to soften the glue, work slowly and you'll probably be fine. (Do check beforehand to make sure it's not a soldered CPU though, obviously. And have a photo of where there's tiny components below the IHS open while working.)
 
Arctic MX-4 and Noctua NH-1 is what I have, and I just use whatever syringe I happen to grab first. The difference between the better TIMs is so marginal, it really doesn't matter outside of very high end PC overclocks - definitely not for consoles at stock speeds.
 
cta said:
More FUD? Honestly, after reading a bunch of (generic, not PS3 specific) delidding horror stories, once I tried it myself I found it way easier than advertised. Just don't be a klutz, add some heat to soften the glue, work slowly and you'll probably be fine. (Do check beforehand to make sure it's not a soldered CPU though, obviously. And have a photo of where there's tiny components below the IHS open while working.)
Click to expand...
Hey, I never said it would destroy your console, but as you said, you have to be cautious. I've done it on video cards too with good results. Again, just be careful. That popping sound once it does come off is so satisfying though.

As for the paste, I just use anything that isn't no-name. While the no name stuff does work fine, I find the biggest difference between pastes isn't how cool it'll make your system - it's how long lasts! Meanwhile, every forum imaginable only concentrates on temps while forgetting about longevity.
 
I did mine last year when I bought my 2008 phat model CECHK01 online, it really needed it because it was overheating. It had about 1 and 1/2 cups of dustbunnies in it. It looked like somebody kept it on the floor for a full decade no lie. It was literally chock full! I tore it down, took the air compressor to it to remove all dust, and bathed the plastics in hot water and let them sit in the hot August Texas sun. Then I cleaned the motherboard of all dust with isopropyl alcohol and a Q-tip. Cleaned the old paste from processors and added high quality MX-4 thermal paste.

My baseline temps when idling were 85c before. After refurbishing it went to 53c average idle temps. A full 30c change! I have had it for over a year, jailbroke it, threw in a spare 600gb HDD, and been enjoying the hell out of it since! No more issues after the refurbish!

I should probrably do the same to my 2008 360 model. I am sure the paste on it is ready for a change too. Luckily both my systems are post YLOD and RROD machines.
 
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Mord.Fustang said:
Meanwhile, every forum imaginable only concentrates on temps while forgetting about longevity.
Click to expand...
Probably because if you manage to repaste even once, you'll have little trouble doing it again. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ It's not like they - even the cheap ones - only last a couple of weeks, right?
 
The way I see it is, if I'm going to take the time to open up the system and put new paste, I want it to last. Why do the same job more often than it needs to be done?
 
I have a PS3 TOOL DECR 1400A with a red light of death, Should I reflow it? And if I do it, How much time can it last?
What can I do?
 
Changing thermal paste and reflowing are two completely different things. You may be better off asking this in a new thread.
 
I would say never ever change the thermal paste because than you can get sooner a Ylod or RoD. Why is simple, the problems with the death of the generation is based on the solder points. Thats also the reason the Xclamp fix was born. When you remove the heatsink to renew the thermal paste you never get the exakt preasure on the screws what mean that the preasure on the chip is different and thats will end that you solder balls get sooner loose. It dont musst be the case, but it has nothing to do with the heat +/- ~15 °C at all. I did many tests, even with a watercooler system. I say its not worth the efford. Sure the heat is also a problem because the heat up and cooldown forming the pcb.
 
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