X-clamp repair. Struggling to keep machine with green light

[MrBungle]

Done the x-clamp mod and still had 3 red lights, tried adjusting the screws tension and had a green light for a minute. But now back to 3 red lights and now no matter how tight or loose I have the screws I still have 3 red lights.

I've done this mod before on a mates machine and after slightly tightening his screws it's been ok for months. But unlike him where he had warnings of semi frequent red lights, I had no such thing. machine stopped working one day with no warning. So I'm a bit worried that mine might not be so easilly fixable.

Is there anything I can try to keep the green light back on? Any little trick I might have missed? Thanks.

[Nettwerk]

Done the x-clamp mod and still had 3 red lights, tried adjusting the screws tension and had a green light for a minute. But now back to 3 red lights and now no matter how tight or loose I have the screws I still have 3 red lights.

I've done this mod before on a mates machine and after slightly tightening his screws it's been ok for months. But unlike him where he had warnings of semi frequent red lights, I had no such thing. machine stopped working one day with no warning. So I'm a bit worried that mine might not be so easilly fixable.

Is there anything I can try to keep the green light back on? Any little trick I might have missed? Thanks.

I had one do that, had to do the heatup method. Its been running 10 months since.

Loosen the top bolts you used to hold down the gpu heat sink, take out the air duct, and unplug the rear fans. turn on the system and wait till it overheats, 2 red lights start flashing. let it overheat for 2 mins and then shut off and tighten the gpu bolts down good immediately after shutdown. Let it cool down and it should work.

[MrBungle]

damn, just tried that and thought it had worked. But as soon as I disturb anything, like put the DVD drive in place - back to 3 red lights. I'm beginning to think this might not be repairable. It seems a little too flakey to stay reliably working even if I keep a green light for a while.

Edit: seems to be working at the moment. Did the heat thing again, then tightened the screws. Have left it running here but the fans are really noisy as though it's struggling to keep cool. Despite the fact my room is freezing at the moment as I don't have the heating on.

I think maybe the heat sink might need tightening a bit more, but if I do that I get the 3rrod again :(

[Nettwerk]

Yea just keep toying with it. On the one I was fixing I tightened the nuts real tight on a last ditch effort.

[davsmith64]

make sure that the heat sinks are sitting FLUSH on top of the whole chip, this is why using the right spacing is IMPORTANT, i did the clamp mod and still kept getting the red lights after, used to overheat straight away!
so i checked the tolarence etc and the sink must not have been sitting flush, so after overheating it then tightening the bolts up tight, i let the xbox cool down then i put the original xclamp on temporary till i got the spacers sorted to be bang on, i still have it on the old xclamps now and its still going strong :o) the fans hardly speed up too as its staying cool.

[welderforlife]

i am having problems as well. i did the x clamp fix and now i get the 3 lights for a sec and then they go away and i get two red lights and then ten secs later the fans turn off. help!!! o and the method i read and used didnt use nylon washers. this is the one i used.

http://rbjtech.bulldoghome.com/pages/rbjtech_bulldoghome_com/XClamp.htm

[ramzeva]

i am having problems as well. i did the x clamp fix and now i get the 3 lights for a sec and then they go away and i get two red lights and then ten secs later the fans turn off. help!!! o and the method i read and used didnt use nylon washers. this is the one i used.

http://rbjtech.bulldoghome.com/pages/rbjtech_bulldoghome_com/XClamp.htm

Same problem I had, it would do 3 RROD and then 5 seconds in it would switch to 2 red lights (overheating). I could never get it to go away so I had to buy a new Xbox 360... I think once you are at that point you are screwed, you cant do any towel tricks either because 2 red lights means the X360 shut the power to the CPU and GPU, thus it wont heat up.

Iv never had long term success with fixing RROD, I really have doubts that there is any true fix, Xclamp worked for about 2 weeks and now the system is totally dead as said above.

[ando2k5]

Same problem I had, it would do 3 RROD and then 5 seconds in it would switch to 2 red lights (overheating). I could never get it to go away so I had to buy a new Xbox 360... I think once you are at that point you are screwed, you cant do any towel tricks either because 2 red lights means the X360 shut the power to the CPU and GPU, thus it wont heat up.

Iv never had long term success with fixing RROD, I really have doubts that there is any true fix, Xclamp worked for about 2 weeks and now the system is totally dead as said above.

your obviously doing something wrong then

[welderforlife]

so any advice ????

[ando2k5]

if your experiencing 2 red lights after the x-clamp, its usually a sign of screws being too tight on the board loosen them up and see if it helps

usually works for me

[welderforlife]

ok i tryed that still nothing i am going to try and put new thermal paste on atleast thats what i think it is called on the chips and if that dont work then i dont know what i am going to do. anyother ideas

[brews]

- You'll need good thermal past for sure. (I use arctic cooling mx-2).
- Make sure you get all of the old past off both the gpu and cpu (I use goo gone, wipe it all off, and clean the residue with isopropyl alcohol. I do the cpu too because it invariably breaks the bond of the existing paste and can 2 red light, which isn't really a destroying your box problem, but you box locks up after a few minute)
- Use the correct height washer and the tighten that sucker down. (not sure the exact height, but I bought a crapload of washers that work perfect. I always tighten it to the point where I'm kinda scared for the chip, but make sure you tighten them evenly)
- Overheat the gpu for about 3-5 minutes. (I sit the fan ontop of the cpu heasink so it doesn't 2 red light, and cover the gpu heatsink so it gets really hot.)
- Let it cool off for 30 minutes or so.

I've had 100% success with this. I also only remove the xclamp on the gpu, but put it back on the cpu.

One other thing, if your washers below the mainboard aren't almost the exact height of the risers, then you'll get excess warp on your board, and it might not fix.

[nae1701]

i had this problem with a 360 i was doing. My solution to the problem was to drill the holes in the case that the x-clamps screwed into big enough to get your screwdriver into (6mm i used), put the 360 board in after ensuring there are no burrs on the inside (outside not matter so much). Screw the board back in using the silver screws you took out then tighten the screws/bolts on the gpu quite tight, let the machine overheat for a couple of minutes.

Once it has cooled down try again and it should work.

The problem seems to be that the mobo gets warped which causes the rrod, screwing the board back into the case and then tightening is what i find works.

[welderforlife]

ok so i fixed the 3rod and i turned it on and it was good for like maybe 5 mins then it shut off and said its overheating can anyone help i was thinking maybe i didnt tighten the nuts enough or something i am not sure.

o and i used one nylon washer and one metal washer for each screw looked ok but not sure whats going on

[dannybII]

Clean all the old thermal compound off the CPU and GPU. Get rid of every last bit.
Make sure you only apply a very thin layer of new paste. I use arctic silver but thats just personal preference.
I know you've read the tutorial but here it is again more or less.

Get your 10mm M5 Machine screw and put 1 spring washer on each. I poke them through the mobo then put a stiff magazine or whatever is handy on tot uf the screws. Flip it over (ta-dah the mag stops bolts from falling out) put on a nylon washer on each screw then a zinc washer. Line the heatsink up (which you should have cleaned also), then flick the mobo/magazine back over supporting the heatsink with your hand to spot it moving.
Tighten opposite corners (diagonally) a little at a time offering no preference to any particular side. Doing it this wy will make the screws tighten evenly. Tighten all screws fairly tight. Don't ***** with it, but don't go mental either.

If you get probs when it's put back together try the CPU clamp as well. I have only ever had to do this with 2 360's 99/100 it's just the GPU, but never say never. If in doubt do both.

Screw, spring washer, motherboard, nylon washer, zinc washer and heatsinc.
Clean old compound replace with new.

My first couple of 360's I did leave off fans to "bake the fix" but I've not had to do that in over a year now.

[welderforlife]

well i guess when i get back home i will take it apart again and clean all of the paste off and use some spring washer and i am thinking about cutting the holes bigger then the dots out for the fans for more air flow i hear it helps it run cooler

[dannybII]

Yes 100% use spring washers. Make sure they're not too big otherwise they'll but into the board/tracks. They need to be the same size as the rings on the 360 motherboard. Spring washers will keep the screws tight as heat expands/contracts and the vibrations could easilly cause bog standard washers to come loose. You aren't going to get a good bite with flat washers.
And certainly get rid of all the old paste, the stock stuff will be dry uneven and useless by now.

On my personal unit which has a full custom case mod I did cut out the metal in front of the fans for improved air flow, however, worry about getting the RROD fixed before you go down that route. If you can't get it going you'll just be wasting time. In the short term the air-flow will not let you know if you've cured the rings.

[d3lions]

I had a similar problem where after using the x-clamp method I couldn't get the green lights. I slipped a new 1 pence piece between the chip & the heatsink & retightened the bolts. Been working flawlessly for 8 months.

[dannybII]

LOL,
Whatever works is obviously a good thing, but if you are to use a spacer between the chip and h/s I would sugest a flat piece if ally or copper etc. Even the very shallow indentations of a coin COULD (not in the above case though so good on you) cause heat conductivity problems. As with any CPU/GPU h/s scenario, it's advisable to have a perfectly flat surface so the paste and metal can bond and allow the best transfer.
There are a lot of an@l enthusiasts that even go as far as condeming normal machining scuffs as imperfect. These are microscopic compared to the indents in a penny.

Like I say though, if it works for you, good on you. A fix is a fix.

[welderforlife]

ok so i took it all apart again and cleaned the heatsinks and chips till the chips till i could see my self in them. then i put a little bit of the paste on it and put it back togeather and still works for about 4 or 5 mins maybe and then overheats so i guess the next step is the spring washers. and if that dont work i dont know what to do next

[d3lions]

Try a shimmy?

[welderforlife]

what do you mean try a shimmy. i was just told to use the spring washers i am not really sure what i am just just glad to see the green again but i wish it would just stay green. help anyone

[d3lions]

what do you mean try a shimmy. i was just told to use the spring washers i am not really sure what i am just just glad to see the green again but i wish it would just stay green. help anyone

A spacer between the chip & the heatsink. A flat piece of copper will do. Read my previous post. It helps to evenly distribute the pressure against the chip & the motherboard. Its worth a go.

[welderforlife]

so what your saying is cut out like a 2 square inch of copper and put it between the heat sink and the chip?

[dannybII]

Yup,
It's a proven technique. Try it but ensure it's 100% flat with no sharp "knurls" that will cupt into anything when clamped.
Do try the spring washers first though.
If you can get green lights for a while it may be that as your existing setup expands with heat etc, the flat washers aren't doing ther job properly.

[welderforlife]

ok so i havnt been able to make it to home depot to get the spring washers ,but i was messing around with it and retightend everything after it got hot and started it up then i noticed that one of the fans wasnt working. so i moved the fans out of the way and put a house fan i had in my room behind it and now its working just fine execpt that it froze a few times after about ten or 15 mins. but i have 10,000bc playing in it right now as i am typing and its been playing for about 20 to a half hour just fine with no problems i will take a pic of how i have it ghettofied and post it in a few mins. any ideas y its freezing?

[thewasher]

Everyone seems to have their own take on the use of metal washer vs plastic washers. Which is best? I have purchased both. The metal washers are slightly larger than the markings. I am aware that if I put the spring washer directly onto the motherboard it will mark the area and possibly score the motherboard. So, my plan is to put either a plastic washer or a paper washer and metal washer on the underside and then either a plastic washer followed by a metal or paper washer followed by 2 metal washers. The paper washers are 0.075mm so I hope won't affect the spacing. Any one got any thoughts or suggestions?

[welderforlife]

it is alive thanx guys the spring washers did the trick its all back togeather and running like a champ.

[dannybII]

Spring washers are important IMHO... thats why I stressed it above :-)
With reference to them marking the mobo as mentioned above... thats only if you use larger ones. The ones I have are perfectly sized and do not go outside the copper coated area that surrounds the holes. If that area gets marked it's of no importance as it's not like you're cutting through a trace or something. Just make sure you get the right sized ones.

[SK4Dj]

Does the x-clamp fix require a specific type of screw and washers. I know that the screws must be M5 and 10mm is there anything else to it?

[SK4Dj]

What spring washers measurements do you use for the xbox?

[syk1k]

i have bought a xbox 360 of ebay which had the warranty sticker intact, until i got it. the problem with the console was it had E74 with one red light. i pulled apart the console took of the x clamp for the cpu and gpu, cleaned the heat sinks using some IPA @ 99%. unfortunately the cpu and gpu also had some acetone put on them.

To be specific it was done in this order -> zinc washer then nylon washer placed on the M5 10mm bolt which was placed into the mobo, this meant that the nylon washer was sitting against the mobo not the zinc washer,then another nylon washer was placed on top of the bolt where it sticks through the mobo meaning each bolt has 3 washers 2 nylon and 1 zinc. 2 where the x clamp used to be and one on the other side.

after putting it all back together with new cooler master thermal paste i turned it on WITHOUT the av cables plugged in to make sure it was booting properly and out putting the 4 red rings. this was not the case even with just the power pack it still outputs 3 rings. i tried to overheat the gpu but i feel all is in vain if i am getting 3 rrod without the video cable plugged in. can anybody shed some light on this please? the cable worked fine before i pulled it apart.

hopefully the acetone which is laboratory grade, meaning very high purity has not done something bad. it was not alot and only used for maybe 5 mins at most.

on another note the warranty ran out only 3 days after it arrived on my door, pity i didnt ring microsoft earlier and assume it was still under warranty.


*edit*
360 boots up properly, by which i mean the av cable is being detected now its just 3rrod no more e74. the board seems a tad warped i think but i am not sure

[croatoan]

provided you let the acetone dry off its no big deal, I personally use Articlean and artic silver for my fixes. Used to use nail varnish remover until I accidentily got hold of one with conditioner in it lol.

Nylon washers / split washers is pretty much irrelevant.

Neither make one jot to the fix from personal experience, in fact have seen a few so called expert fixes come through my grubby paws and have been pretty god damn awful.

The correct tightness on the bolts is more important as is good quality and correct application of thermal paste. Not to mention careful removable of the original x-clamps. Replacement of old type heatsink and uprated fans can help against refailure.

One bolt and 3 standard washers are perfect. I personally use 10mm M5 hex with a socket, less chance of slipping that a screw head.

Before anyone moans about not using nylon or split washers..........

Split washers when tightened make adjustment difficult and can scour the motherboard. When the board in back in the case the metal casing prevents the screws working loose.

Regarding nylon washers?

How many of you are pc builders? How many of you have ever used nylon washers on a pc motherboard installation for fear or short circuiting? I personally have never heard such rubbish.

In ten years pc building and even in my last upgrade to a 4ghz i7, did I my ass.
Next I will be sticking sellotape on the back of the board to hold the screws in?

The fix is about getting it working for £3. Its not a reflow and results vary depending on how good a job you do.

Is it permanent? depends who you ask.

[syk1k]

provided you let the acetone dry off its no big deal, I personally use Articlean and artic silver for my fixes. Used to use nail varnish remover until I accidentily got hold of one with conditioner in it lol.

Nylon washers / split washers is pretty much irrelevant.

Neither make one jot to the fix from personal experience, in fact have seen a few so called expert fixes come through my grubby paws and have been pretty god damn awful.

The correct tightness on the bolts is more important as is good quality and correct application of thermal paste. Not to mention careful removable of the original x-clamps. Replacement of old type heatsink and uprated fans can help against refailure.

One bolt and 3 standard washers are perfect. I personally use 10mm M5 hex with a socket, less chance of slipping that a screw head.

Before anyone moans about not using nylon or split washers..........

Split washers when tightened make adjustment difficult and can scour the motherboard. When the board in back in the case the metal casing prevents the screws working loose.

Regarding nylon washers?

How many of you are pc builders? How many of you have ever used nylon washers on a pc motherboard installation for fear or short circuiting? I personally have never heard such rubbish.

In ten years pc building and even in my last upgrade to a 4ghz i7, did I my ass.
Next I will be sticking sellotape on the back of the board to hold the screws in?

The fix is about getting it working for £3. Its not a reflow and results vary depending on how good a job you do.

Is it permanent? depends who you ask.


i have tried to heat up the GPU for 30 mins without luck and then for another 60 mins, both times with the fan over the cpu to stop from over heating and shutting down. this still results in RROD, however i do notice when i tighten the bolts up the board seems to warp until i undo them, i have tried tightening to the point i feel like i may break the board and i have also tried to loosen them right off to the point the gpu is a little bit loose, not alot though. my next attempt was going to be the towel fix but i feel as though this fix is stupid.

whats this i am reading about a small piece of copper between the chip and heatsink, does this mean its sitting in the thermal paste? i do notice a small gap between the mobo and heatsink after tighening the bolts up, but this is only around the edges of the heatsink so i am unsure if the gpu and heatsink are making proper contact

[SK4Dj]

What do ppl mean as in warp?

[syk1k]

the board is warped as in bowed or out of shape, imagine this bracket is your motherboard ) but not quiet as curved as that.

mine seems to have given me green rings once then i moved it to plug it into the tv and now rrod again

[croatoan]

Overheating your gpu for 30 - 60 minutes is not a good idea. More to the point............have you checked your secondary error code to see if it is likely its a gpu fault?

It could be the cpu side.

You should never over tighten, can really tank the board. You should only use a small amount of force tightening the bolts. If you still get an error overheat for a couple of mins or test it to see if its working then give them a quarter turn.

Check the secondary code, if its something like 0002 your screwed. If it is, put the xclamps back on , clean the sticker off and raise a repair request with MS and hope they fix it.

In most cases they will provided the console looks untouched, if you have clear signs of case access, scratched the board or other noticeable mods they will likely send it back.

[syk1k]

i am unsure how to check secondary error messages

[SK4Dj]

While your xbox is showing a red flashing light (any) Hold the Sync button and then press the eject button then the ring in your xbox will blink the code: 4=0 3=3 2=2 1=1 . press it 4 times and record the code.


Did you make the wholes bigger on the chasis to stop it from the warp?

[syk1k]

i am unsure how to check secondary error messages

ok i found out how to check for secondary error codes and mine is 4234

I havent done anything to the holes on the the chasis.

And i put a shim on the GPU.

where does the spring washers go? on the bolt thread or is it sitting in the thermal paste to make a connection between the chip and heat sink

i currently have it set uplike this

bolt, nylon washer, mobo, nylon washer, heatsink and the shim is a piece of aluminium from a hobby shop that i cut to size and sanded down with wet&dry sandpaper @ 600 grit then to 800grit which is sitting ontop of the GPU chip and has thermal paste on it aswell

when i turn it on the centre green light stays green for about 30ecs then it goes to rrod

[SK4Dj]

Try your error code again, that error code doesn't exist.

Try:
-Take everything apart Take off any screws (if you also did the CPU take it off as well)

-Clean the thermal paste you put on both the GPU and CPU chips with Thermal compound remover until you can see your self on the chips.

-Add a small amount of Thermal paste on the chips and spread it around

-Next use this order, screw, zinc/steel washer, nylon washer, mobo, nylon washer, zinc/steel washer.

-Tighten the screw evenly going around as if you were screwing in a tire, go around screw a small bit on top then on the bottom screw do the same amount you screwed in on the top, then on the lower left screw do the same and upper left screw the same. Until you get them tightened but not too much.

-Then cook it, idk which procedure is better but I do both sometimes. You can disconnect the Fans and turn on the Xbox and leave it on until you get 2 red lights. OR Leave the fans connected and put the fan over the CPU heatsink for 20-30 minutes.

-Before putting your xbox back together turn it on one more time and see what happens. This part is the moment of truth. So far its been working for my friend's xbox that I have been trying to repair and I am still testing it and its been working fine.

Try it out, and there are other stuff you can add like the spring washer
but Idk how to do that procedure. If this doesn't work then for what I think its really broken.

[syk1k]

i have done it a few times i will make a vid and utube it soon, unless i am doing it wrong its the same sequence every time


*edit* gpu chip has a crack in it which i can clearly see, i guess im out of luck

thanks anyway guys

[SK4Dj]

Hey I just wanted to know which method is recommended to fix the rrod and E-74?

1)Doing the x-clamp repair only on the GPU chip and leaving the CPU X-clamp on? w/o drilling holes on chasis

2)Doing the x-clamp fix on both the GPU and CPU at the same time? And drilling holes on chasis


Also, will drilling holes on the chasis make a difference? Because I repaired to Xbox 360s by doing method #1 above and without drilling holes and they still work after 3 months. Then, I tried repairing two Xbox 360s doing method #2 and drilling holes and both broke down at about the same time (1 or 2 weeks). But im confused, many people say do method #2 to fix rrod and mrthod one for E-74. So which one is better? PLease help.:confused:

Thanks!

[craig1979]

hi im new on here,

i have the same prob with e74 on a hdmi i keep repairing thermal paste and cooking till 2 red lights , its ok for a while ( sometimes a week sometimes 2 days) then returns to 1 red light.

good it be a dry solder maybe a reflow ?


ive done about 30 3rrods with no probs but 1 red light stumps me,

any suggestions would be very helpful .

[saleem]

xclamp should fix E74 unless the ana chip is proper messed.its a chip near the av port on the motherboard.if its realy messed then that will be more difficult to fix,they say heating that up and then applying pressure to it while it cools down can fix it,supposadly.

E74 can be prob though sometimes,because even when its fixed you can get messy dash board,it looks bad sometimes.

after all E74 is video error.
:)

[way6]

i used a clamp kit.i fitted it correctly.8x .locking washer,screw two washers and apack of paste.an hour later halfway thrugh kaiser cheifs on lips and rrod.i thentried the penny fix and it seems to have worked.there are instruction videos on utube.

[abgl1]

hello guys... been reading the posts... i was basically having the same problems...so i tried one of the methods thats all over the net about the x clamp fix...it worked for a couple of days...had to search for another fix...i found this one ..its pretty much the same as all the rest...except it has a few extra steps..a little more in depth repair..it actually addresses the warped motherboard problem...read it first...they have homemade and advanced instructions...i made my own parts that they are trying to sell in the advanced instructions...imho...this is the method that should be used...since ive done this repair i have had no problems...hope it works for you....

heres the link...

://xbox-experts.com/tutorial/team-hybrids-ultimate-xclamp-fix-released/



i dont have enough posts to add a link ... dont forget to add the ...http