Red Ring of Death

Hey there, I know how it feels to be a victim of the Xbox 360 red ring of death. That is probably one of the worst things that an owner of the Xbox console can go through.

There are a lot of reasons in which this occurs. You might have heard about that e74 error message that a lot of gamers are getting lately as well.

Now the question is:

Can It Be Fixed Permanently Within 2 Hours From Now? Yes it can! That is the good news my friend. There are a variety of fixes that range from 30 minutes to 2 hours and even up to 3-4 weeks to get your console back to working. But our main concern is to have our console back ASAP right?

Two of them are permanent fixes while the other is a temporary one. Want to take a guess? I will tell you below:

1. The famous "towel trick" Yes, this is probably the worst technique that any Xbox owner can do to get their Xbox back to work. By doing this trick, the red ring of death will disappear and you can have your console working in as little as 30 minutes.

The downside: This is only a temporary fix and the red lights will most likely come back within a week or so.

2. For those who have warranty with Microsoft, you can definitely send the console to them. This is a great option for those who don't feel comfortable sending it to a local technician, due to the reason that they may take parts from your Xbox 360 console. However, Microsoft will reward you by permanently fixing your console.

The downside: It may take anywhere from 4-6 weeks to get your console back from Microsoft and you will have to pay for shipping which costs anywhere from $30 and up (Remember: This is quite a heavy console)

3. You can also use a DIY (Do It Yourself) guide. This is basically an online guide that will literally show you step by step videos on how to fix your console from your own home. This is a permanent fix and you can have your console permanently fixed and working within 1 hour the most.

The downside: You will have to manually do it yourself.

I hope you guys found these tips and considerations very helpful.

What's my recommendation?

I personally used the 3rd option because I wanted my Xbox to FULLY work and to be fixed PERMANENTLY rather than a temporary one. I actually felt more comfortable doing it myself rather than sending it else where because there are technicians that will "swap" parts from your Xbox console with another one.

That's right, people are sneaky enough to do that. It happened to me and it will most likely happen to you (unless you personally know them).

Xbox 360, Microsoft's video game console is subject to many issues besides the general hardware failure nick named the Red Ring of Death. Since its release in 2005, Xbox 360 is under controversies for the higher failure rates and Microsoft not only had to extend the warranty period of the device due to failure complaints but eventually launched an upgraded version 'Xbox 360 S' covering the issues like red ring of death error. Though the general hardware failure brought a very bad name to the device and damaging the overall goodwill of the company but it was not the only failure detected. Many other failures listed below were also contributing towards the customer's dissatisfaction.

1. Hardware failure

Hardware failure is the result of malfunctioning of any component on the motherboard and is indicated by a one led flashing around the power button. Usually an error code is also displayed on the bottom of screen referring to the component causing the failure like E74. This is more commonly known as one red light problem. The light that flashes red is Q4. Though it is not critical as the red ring of death error but in 2009 Microsoft had to amend its warranty and covered the one red light problem in it.

2. Overheating

This is an indication of the status of the Xbox 360 rather than a failure. When console gets overheated and the temperature of the console gets higher than a predefined level it shuts down the CPU and GPU simultaneously and starts running the fans at full speed to cool it down. In the meanwhile the two red lights start flashing until the temperature gets down sufficiently. Once the device is cooled down it is ready to be run again. To avoid this kind of situation continuous long duration gaming sessions should be divided into fairly smaller sessions and in between the sessions the console must be powered off and plugged out of the socket. It is better to keep it in an airy and well ventilated place.

3. AV cable error

All the four lights flash red when the AV cable is not connected or connected but console cannot detect it. It is a sort of status message than a mere fault so when you will connect back the cable the lights will automatically goes off and console returns back into normal operation.

4. General hardware failure or Red ring of death error

The most notorious one! The red ring of death error is deadly dangerous to turn the console into a brick. When three red lights start flashing it is time to ponder. Although it can be efficiently recovered with care in the home too but needs a bit of expertise. General hardware failure is indicated by flashing of three lights and is termed as a general hardware failure. It could GPU, CPU any other component on motherboard causing the problem. Mainly, the reason behind the red ring of death error is the bad design by Microsoft. Any sort of vibration or over heating results in the movement and expansion of the material and this causes the GPU to leave its place from the motherboard. Thus GPU gets loose on motherboard and red ring of death error appears.

The "Red Ring of Death" or the RRoD is representing a general system error in your system console. You must learn how to resolve this problem right away before it's too late.

What does the Red Ring of Death means?

The Red Ring of Death is being directed by the 3 blinking red lights on the power button area. This kind of problem happens when the Graphics Processing Unit in your system becomes loose resulting that your board or system has caused an overheating problem due to longer hours of usage. You should also give time for your system to cool down a bit so that you could avoid these overheating problems.

The supplementary form of the CPS chips including the GPU and CPU repels heat flow that sanctions suitable soldering of the lead-free welds under the system board or the motherboard. This starts the reasons of bricking and voids in the solders in the system console from lengthy continuous temperature that is changing inside the video game console. Lead-free solders, nevertheless can be the source of this because, when properly fused, they take on a dull form that specialists take as a cold solder joint in older procedures, therefore leads into slip up. The repercussions of this problem could allow the system console to collapse and making it unworkable.

As you can see that the Red Ring of Death is a very serious problem that you should not ignore. Mainly you cannot understand all the components and parts of your Xbox 360 because of its complexity but with the support guides and methods about the system console, you can learn and study the hardware and software overview of it. In this way you can educate yourself in determining the problems you may face such as the "Red Ring of Death" and many other technical problems.

There are many possible solutions and guides that you can search on the web to help you in fixing these types of problems.

Xbox 360, once the great gaming console which won over the other gaming hands down is now facing a serious problem called "red ring of death". It is also called "three red lights error". There are many technical causes for the occurrence of the red ring of death, but the top three causes are

1) Overheating,

2) Problems in GPU,

3) Problems in powerbrick.

Let us discuss about these issues below.

The number one cause for red ring of death as said above is the overall overheating of the console. Xbox 360 is nothing different from high end gaming pc, and the only difference is that all the components are tightly packed into a small space. Hence this makes the xbox overheat more often and rapidly than your pc, causing many errors including red ring of death. So,now lets see about the second cause.

GPU- General Processing Unit and its associated chips are the second cause for our problems. When the GPU and other chips inside xbox 360 becomes overheated, they are simply programmed to shut down resulting in a "screen freeze". But, when you restart the xbox, everything seems to be fine. Have ya experienced it?? If you have and wondered about it, then the above problem is the reason. But,when it happens more often, it will eventually lead to red rings of death -our most dreaded problem. Sound similar to the frequent head ache with xbox? okie, lets move on to the next cause...

Powerbrick is the other name of the box containing the transformer, essential for supplying power to xbox. Naturally powerbrick gets very hot and there is a fan inside to flush all the heat produced, away from the powerbrick. But, some people keep this powerbrick inside a closed chamber or some place where there is not much of air circulation and thus causes the powerbrick to overheat beyond its capacity, which will have its effect on the xbox, leading to frequent overheating and shut downs of the xbox, then eventually to red ring of death error. So, what do you think is the best possible prevention method, if you have not guessed yet, then read on...

As, you could have seen, most of the problems of xbox is caused by "overheating". The possible way to avoid the red ring of death and other errors is to keep the xbox and the powerbrick in a more airy place. Keep it in a place where air can flush out from all four sides of the xbox and powerbrick. Take your xbox outside of that closed display cabinet, at least when you play and till it cools down. Thus we have discussed about preventive ways and causes for the red ring of death.

Xbox 360 had been a very good gaming console, and we knew that it performed way better than pS3. But, recently there is a lot of issue around Xbox 360 red rings of death. From the red rings of death error causes to Microsoft's promise to temporary fixes all over the net and to final solution had been gaining a lot of attention. So, lets discuss on the problem and its possible solutions in this article.

The real cause for red rings of death is not known to 100% accuracy, but the most discussed cause is "overheating of Xbox" and Microsoft failing to adopt proper cooling mechanisms within the Xbox. This has lead Microsoft into real problems and widespread hatred. Lets see what Microsoft is upto regarding this issue.

So, does Microsoft stand upto defend its product? Yes, indeed. Microsoft has promised to replace or repair all the consoles which are affected by these dreaded red rings of death error. But again this problem doesn't seem to be fixed. Even after replacing some of the consoles, the new console again proves to have the same problem. Even the Xboxs which were repaired and sent back again felt victim for the dreaded "Xbox 360 red rings of death" problem. So, is there a solution, Read on...

There seems to be a wide spread temporary fix for this problem all over the net. Its the infamous "Towel Method". Yes, i have tried it on my Xbox 360. Do you know what, It Works! But just after two or three days the red rings of death problem arises again. But, it can fixed temporarily again using the same method. My serious recommendation would be to not use this method. Its like sabotaging your own Xbox. This method will cause more serious problems in the long run and its not a permanent fix either. I recently found a permanent fix for this problem.

Yes, there is a permanent fix for the problem of "Xbox 360 red rings of death", and has nothing to do with involving Microsoft either. I found out a guide online which gave me the exact methods to repair my Xbox with just some tools which can be found in the household. It had clear step by step video instructions on how to fix my console and abolish red rings of death problem. Now am happy that I found this guide and can play my halo3 again in my brand new Xbox with out those ugly red rings of death.

The Xbox 360 is an excellent piece of machinery that is worthy of great recognition, however recently the console has been plagued with a major hardware error, which is commonly known as the red ring of death. This could be due to the fact that The 360 was rushed along in the production process in order to beat the PS3, or simply because the designers overlooked a major design flaw.

Nonetheless, whatever the reason may be, many dedicated gamers are extremely frustrated with the problem and are seeking a permanent fix, as it is something that cannot be repaired very easily or quickly without the right information. Some gamers have been through as many as 4 gaming consoles in order to combat this problem; and guess what? There is no guarantee that Microsoft will send them a fifth console which won't encounter the same problem again. Luckily for you, I have discovered a way to permanently rid yourself of the red ring of death for good and it doesn't involve sending your console away to Microsoft or pay for costly repairs.

But before we go into the remedy for the red ring of death lets look at exactly what the red lights mean. Firstly you may be in luck and not be suffering from the red ring of death; if your Xbox only displays 1 red light then it means you are having a general hardware failure. This isn't all that major and it can generally be fixed by disconnecting and reconnecting the cables or Removing and re-inserting the hard drive, contact Microsoft customer support if the problem persists. 2 red lights on your button indicate that the system is beginning to overheat, if you see this warning then immediately turn the console off and let it cool down before resuming play, also try keep it in a well ventilated area for future use. If your AV plug is loose, then your XBox 360 will show 4 red lights, this is a simple problem and it can be easily fixed by plugging the cord back in its place.

Well if you aren't presented with any of the above symbols and are seeing 3 red lights, then I'm afraid your console has been contaminated with the red ring of death and your console is pretty much a regular piece of junk until you have it repaired. The red ring of death is caused due to one major problem and that is excessive overheating. The trouble is that during intense game play the heat sinks within the console become so hot that they eventually melt the thermal compounds between the CPU and GPU. This causes a general hardware failure within the console and you are presented with the Red Ring of Death to inform you of the malfunction.

Now, if you are seeking a solution to the dreaded problem then you have a few options at your disposal:

1. You can send you console back to Microsoft and have them fix it. This is an easy process however it can be a lengthy one, as it could take upto 8 weeks to get your console back. Also you will most probably receive a different refurbished console which could encounter the same problem in the future. As I mentioned earlier some gamers have been through as many as 4 consoles only to see their fifth console become doomed again.

2. Although I don't recommend it, you could attempt the infamous Towel Trick. You would've most likely heard of this solution already, and even though it works (only temporarily for about 30 mins) it is not a permanent fix and you could cause serious damage to your console in the process.

3. The third option is to repair the red ring of death yourself, with the aid of a quality Online Repair guide, that will run you through the repair process step by step using online videos and tutorials.

So what is the best option? That is totally upto you and you can decide on whichever option you wish to choose, however personally, I would recommend staying away from the towel trick. Option 1 is probably your best choice if you still have warranty and don't want to attempt any repairs yourself. If you don't have warranty then you will have to pay around $150 to have it repaired.

But seriously, why would you want to wait months to receive a repaired Xbox 360 that doesn't even come back repaired? Instead you could fix it yourself within the comfort of your own home with an easy to follow repair guide, these guides have plenty of information and they will walk you through the repair process using online videos and detailed instructions, they even offer live customer support that should help get your console back in action within an hour. The guides also come with a full money back guarantee, so if for some reason you cannot fix your console they will refund your money immediately.

Looking for a red ring of death fix? Then let this article offer your three ways to deal with it. Pick one that best suits you or one which you are courageous enough to endeavor.

The red ring of death is a rather common hardware failure of the Microsoft Xbox 360. It is indicated by the 3 curved lights that form a quarter of a circle around your unit's power button. This error is the result of excessive heat which the structural design of the Xbox 360 cannot withstand. This problem is serious but very much repairable. As promised, we are offering your 3 red ring of death fixes.

1 THE TOWEL METHOD

A popular red ring of death fix is the towel method. This is done by wrapping the Xbox in a towel and leaving it as such for 20 minutes. While this works, it is only temporary. The disadvantage is that doing this might even damage your unit as it might trap in more heat.

2 OPENING OF CONSOLE

Another red ring of death fix involves opening your console. If you are on the technical side then you might want to try to do this. You will need the following tools for this one:

4 5x20MM Panhead Machine Screw (to secure the CPU heatsink)
4 5x15MM Panhead Machine Screw (to be used for the GPU)
44 #10 Washers (to lock in the mother board)
Drill (to widen the screw holes in the metal case)
Torx 9 and 6 screwdriver (to remove screws from the xbox's case)
1/4 inch Wrench or Socket (to remove the X-Clamp posts)
Phillips-head screwdriver
Small flathead screwdriver (to poke off the X-Clamps)

The principle here is to remove the goo on your CPU and GPU and then create more room for your heat sink. Tutorials by Ryan Edwards and James Dean will provide you with specific steps in doing this. Remember to perform this with caution so as not to cause further damage to your unit. The aim is to make it work and not to put added work!

3 MAKE USE OF YOUR WARRANTY

The more clever red ring of death fix is sending it to Microsoft for repair. Since they are the ones who manufactured it, they sure know how to work around it. If you are willing to wait (I am sure it will be worth it), then make use of your three year warranty. Remember, you paid for it along with your purchase. Just go to http://www.xbox.com and click repair. You will be asked some information like the bar code on the back of your unit. Upon receipt of all information, Microsoft will send you a shipping box so you can ship your unit to them for free. Wait for it and make sure to secure your Xbox as you ready it for shipping. Microsoft will inform you once they have received your unit and will give you a date of return.

There you go, your three red ring of death fix options.

Choice Computer Technologies