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You are here: MacNN Forums > Enthusiast Zone > Gaming > Deja-Vu, all over again.

Deja-Vu, all over again.
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sek929
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Jul 21, 2009, 01:36 AM
 
In a rare move for Xbox 360, mine decided to kick the bucket about an hour ago playing WaW on an HDTV. E74 error, one red light in the bottom right corner of the unit. Started when I went to show my friend Fallout 3 and the screen started to display green fuzz everywhere. The tubes said that an E74 error can be caused by a faulty HDMI cable, so I to returned home to my SDTV.



First 360 froze alot, but no RRoD. Second 360 got the classic RRoD. Rounding off the triple play, sek929's third Xbox pulls an E74 RRoD!

Funny thing is that this was probably brought on by heavy use under HDMI, a problem that might not have surfaced with my SDTV. Something to do with the HDMI upscaler overheating, whatever, friggin POS.

My Best Buy replacement plan (which was $7 this last time) ensures I'll be gaming by mid-day tomorrow. For the new unit, all that BB offers now is Black Tie Geek Squad or something, which means WHEN the next one breaks it'll get sent in to be fixed, instead of me walking out with a new unit in 20 minutes.

Still, this replacement plan was worth every goddamned penny.



I also get to give back my old worn controller from two systems ago and get a brand-new one.
     
Dakar V
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Jul 21, 2009, 10:21 AM
 
I'm curious, do they no longer offer replacement plans just for the 360 or altogether? Because the former would be hilarious. How much did those things run you anyway?

You're buying the 20 GB systems right? I was discussing with Bogues Fri that my Elite has a nasty case of the guide locking up all the time for about 5 seconds, but otherwise, no problems.
     
klb5090
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Jul 21, 2009, 11:29 AM
 
wow terrible luck, you by far have had the most 360 problems i've heard of, i though my 2 RROD's were bad.
Hopefully my HDMI connection doesn't kill my elite

BTW: last monday Best Buy launched a new GSBT (Geek squad black tie) program just for consoles, make sure you ask which one your purchasing and what is covers ( I think both programs are still in the system although only one will continue in the coming weeks), i'm not 100% but i think the new GSBT on consoles is 40 bills and is a full replacement. (i'll double check tonight, unless your back gaming before that)
     
sek929  (op)
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Jul 21, 2009, 11:33 AM
 
I think the replacement plan in general has been re-tooled, maybe to disallow the more expensive items.

I bought it on my original 360 for 60 bucks, it covered my second unit and my third unit. This past time I was able to buy yet another two year PRP for only 7 dollars. I'll soon see what kind of deal I get with this new system, but either way I'm definitely getting some sort of coverage, I don't trust the 360 at all.

It seems whatever MS did to fix the RRoD hasn't affected the frequency of the E74 error. The newest consoles are supposed to have a revamped cooling system, we'll see. It's going right from BB back to the HDTV for an extreme day of gaming.
     
Dakar V
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Jul 21, 2009, 12:55 PM
 
Originally Posted by sek929 View Post
I think the replacement plan in general has been re-tooled, maybe to disallow the more expensive items.
Heh, heaven forbid it turns out to be a wise decision for the consumer.
     
::maroma::
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Jul 21, 2009, 07:07 PM
 
That blows sek. Just about everyone I know with an Xbox 360 has had the RRoD and/or the E74 error at least once. Except me. I have been using an HDMI cable I bought on my own, and have yet to have any real issues. I've had the 360 freeze from time to time, but only during games.

MS should be giving you a credit for a free Natal system. Yeah, that would make it all better right?
     
sek929  (op)
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Jul 21, 2009, 07:41 PM
 
27 Dollars for black tie service. Up to one year it's a store trade-in, after that it'll get repaired in 4-5 days (yeah right).

My brand new controller is nice.
     
sek929  (op)
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Jul 24, 2009, 02:27 AM
 
Despite numerous older version 360s still being sold I, in fact, have the new 'Jasper' model 360. The biggest difference seems to be the 150W power adapter (the first 360s had a 203W). Besides that the system is slightly quieter (still a lot of fan hum, but no more high pitched whine) and noticeably cooler after long gaming sessions.

I still expect it to break, but I have slightly more hope for this unit...fourth time is a charm right?
     
Big Mac
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Jul 24, 2009, 03:06 AM
 
How could connecting a unit over HDMI possibly cause it to fail faster? That explanation seems strange. And here I thought the 360 was one of Microsoft's first truly decent products.

"The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground." TJ
     
Dakar V
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Aug 3, 2009, 10:05 AM
 
Originally Posted by sek929 View Post
I still expect it to break, but I have slightly more hope for this unit...fourth time is a charm right?
For marriages, maybe.
     
shifuimam
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Aug 3, 2009, 10:42 AM
 
I'm a little surprised - everything I've seen online has indicated that the new 360s with HDMI have far fewer problems than older hardware revisions.

Wouldn't the replacement also be covered under the 360's warranty from MS?
Sell or send me your vintage Mac things if you don't want them.
     
sek929  (op)
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Aug 3, 2009, 04:58 PM
 
MS will fix it for free, but I have to send it in and wait for it back. Also, I'll still have the same revision 360 with the same heat problems as all the other earlier models.

They supposedly took care of the heat problems after the first revision, but that is utter BS. My newest console draws the lowest amount of power so far (150W vs 203W for the first 360) and doesn't appear to get nearly as hot as other units.

As far as the HDMI units being more reliable, 4 of my friends have (had) recent Pro machines with HDMI, they all got the E74 error. Recently my friends young cousin had the two red rings error (overheating) so he opened the case only to find the heat-sinks plastered with dust like peanut butter. Cleaning them off worked perfectly, but that sort of thing voids the warranty so in my case I would've had to wait for it to die in order to get it fixed or replaced.
     
sek929  (op)
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Aug 3, 2009, 05:02 PM
 
Originally Posted by Big Mac View Post
How could connecting a unit over HDMI possibly cause it to fail faster? That explanation seems strange. And here I thought the 360 was one of Microsoft's first truly decent products.
There is a separate HDMI upscaler chip called the HANA chip which resides between the CPU and GPU heat-sinks and the fans. So basically it gets nothing but boiling hot air dragged over it and, like the other 360 errors, melts it's own solder under heavy load. People without warranties have 'fixed' this by weighing down the HANA chip with a stack of pennies, forcing the loose solder connection to re-set.

My buddy who is an electrical engineer fixed my other buddy's E74 error 360 by using the "X-Clamp Fix" and a heat gun to reset the solder under the GPU and HANA chip.
     
Brien
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Aug 3, 2009, 05:26 PM
 
So it would appear that all 360's are doomed to fail. Mine just died on Saturday, so it's in the process of being "repaired". I just love how MS won't do anything other than re-solder the GPU. They really should be forced to do something to alleviate the problem, maybe then people wouldn't have to send them in 4-5 times.
     
sek929  (op)
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Aug 3, 2009, 05:36 PM
 
Do you know what revision Xbox you have? If it's one of the earlier models then look forward to heat causing a failure again, even with repairs. It might be worth it to look at where it resides and attempting to create better airflow to and from the unit. Also, it might have gotten really dusty, but the 360 is supposed to turn off with the two red rings error before the heat melts the GPU solder.

Another problem that un-seats the solder is the heat/cool cycles that any console gets from being used. Seems there night be a maximum amount of heat/cool cycles left before the expansions and contractions loosen some component.

I've also seen 360s online modded with absurdly large heat-sinks, so much so that they wouldn't fit in two 360 cases.
     
Brien
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Aug 3, 2009, 11:07 PM
 
I've got a launch system. I know that it'll break because I've been through this already.

As for dust, it's on it's own shelf, tons of freespace on each side, and I blow it out with an air duster monthly.

I suppose if it keeps happening (thank goodness for the 90-day repair warranties) I'll bitch until they give me a new one.
     
   
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