HOW TO MAKE AN OPTIMUN XBOX360 CASE TO AVOID ALL HEAT RELATED ISSUES

[Locobox]

HOW TO MAKE AN OPTIMUN XBOX360 CASE TO AVOID ALL HEAT RELATED ISSUES



Hi everyone !!!

On this project we will make a better XBOX360 case to address most of the heat issues this console suffers, I hope this is a lasting solution for some of the RRoD problems even for most XENON boards and you will see why.

BACKGROUND

Since 2005 I've been a happy owner of 4 Xbox360 consoles (2 XENONs, 1 FALCON, 1 JASPER) the first 3 of them don't work anymore, these consoles are all RRoD positive (GPU related error code 0102) (See picture 001).

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-001.jpg

Since early 2006 I have done to those consoles almost any imaginable hack to revive them with little or no luck.

I've reflowed both XENON boards more than 3 times.

First time just reflowed the GPU and worked fine for 1 month.

The second time I reflowed the GPU again but this time got rid of the X-clamps (Put the washers underneath etc...) this time after 3 months it RRoD on me again.

After lots of frustration and money spent on kits to fix the problem the third time I did all of the above (Reflow + X-clamp replacement) + upgraded to the new extended heatpipe GPU heatsink, and after just 1 month ... the RRoD was there another time.

Tired of this situation I started to read everything I could about the matter.



KNOWN XBOX360 PROBLEMS

A- The original XBOX360 "box" needs more holes or bigger ones to let more cool air in.

B- There is poor air circulation inside the steel cage.

C- Stock fans (Locked at only 5v) won't suck enough air from the heatsinks.

D- Low quality (brandless) thermal compound that runs dry after just 2 years.

E- At high temperatures (60c, 70c and up) lead free solder balls under the CPU & GPU starts a degrading cycle.

F- The heatsink over the GPU does not have enough area to disipate the heat generated by the chip, because of this, the GPU enters a thermal rundown from which it cannot recuperate.

G- On some 1 gen boards some other chips like the HANA/ANA chip, The southbridge or even the 8 VIDEO RAM bricks runs very hot specially the RAM under the board of most XENON consoles.



SOLUTIONS

As you can see most problems on the console are heat related.

A & B
The XBOX360 box has a beautiful industrial design but saddly not very functional at all, this iteration of the Micro$oft console was designed to be smaller than the first Xbox to appeal more to the Japanese market, the designer's had in mind that the box should be small enough to fit in a media center rack with the possibility to stack other appliances over it (Source: The Xbox Uncloaked by Dean Takahashi).

Ok we need more space so you can take the DVD drive outside the console to make room for a bigger heatsink over the GPU. A better solution would be to get a Liang-Li Xbox 360 Case so you can fit everything inside the box but it is almost impossible to get one and when this box appears on eBay from time to time it's price gets pretty high.

So better build your own box.  

C
Rated at just 0.44 amps the stock dual fans won't help that much, we need powerfull 12V fans to move more air across the heatsinks, the stock fans instead of inject cool air inside both suck hot air and that is a problem.

D
Better than Micro$oft brandless thermal compound use a compound with metal particles in it, that aids the heat tranfer, I see most modders and PRO's use Artic Silver 5, you can use any of the shelf cheaper and brandeless compound but remmember always that you get what you pay.

E
Lead free solder used under the GPU and CPU can't tolerate high temps as well as lead based solder, the damage heat makes under these chips is acumulative, I noticed that after powering off my console temperature could go up some 5c to 7c for as long as 30 minutes, keep in mind that both fans were off while this temp peak attacks.

A safe temperature for a working XBOX360 Jasper is somewhere around the 55 to 60c. Xenon boards are known to reach 80c to 90c before auto-shut down (2 red lights).

Read more on XBOX360 operating temperatures according to board revision here:
http://www.isodownload.org/xbox360/jtag-tutorials/cooling-mods-a-how-to.html

F
It is well known that the heatsink under the GPU won't help to cool the chip, even on newer boards (Jaspers) with the new revision of this heatsink (The one with heatpipe) can get as high as 55c - 59c during extended gameplay, we need the better second revision heatsink like the one over the CPU.

G
RAM temperatures on Xenon & Zephyr boards can get pretty high (40c to 47c) I cool these chips as a preventive measure to extend the life of the console.

According to the book The Xbox360 Uncloacked the box was made to last a top 5 years but on most scenarios is something less than 2 years, I think that with this tips here you can make your console to last probably a decade.



What is NOT the problem.

After a lot of reading I came to the same conclusion as most repair shops, The X-clamp is not the cause of the RRoD, if it was the cause I don't think Micro$oft would be using it on the newer slim boards as that would cost them money.

Look at it this way, the PS3 suffers from the same heat issues as the Xbox360 and the Sony console does not have any X-Clamp. It's heat what damages the lead free solder on both consoles. You can blame that to the 2005 European Union regulation banning the use of lead on solder.



BUILDING A BETTER XBOX360 BOX

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-000.jpg

Picture 000 shows the blueprint of a simple yet functional design where the drive sits over the GPU & CPU air duct.
I plan to build the protoype on cardboard and then use 2mm aluminium for most parts.
 
I started with a Xenon board as it is the first and "hotter" of all Xbox360 motherboard versions, rated at 200 watts of power consumption.
The initial idea is to add better coolers to both GPU and CPU and better fans.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-002a.jpg

I used the first version of the CPU heatsink (The one with the heatpipe) If you can get the second version use it as it is a better official passive cooling solution, if you can get your hands on better PC heatsinks thats better, when talking about heatsinks bigger is always better, what counts is the total area within the heatsink fins.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-002b.jpg

I have seen other people using PC (Pentium 4) heatsinks on Xbox360 consoles but as those are not stock pieces, further modification is always needed to install them properly.  

It is very important however that the non official heatsink you use must has parallel fins, avoid any circular design as shown below (IMAGE 003), we try to have 1 main air flow across both heatsink's fins stay away from circular designs that may cause turbulence inside the box.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-003.jpg

On picture 004 you can see how the air will flow, as in high end computers or servers the best way to get rid of heat is to move cool air across the heatsink's fins fast.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-004.jpg

The CPU on an Xbox360 console always will run hotter than the GPU, the CPU is the only chip with a thermometer and auto shut-off function to protect the CPU from any damage, however the GPU does not have that protection that's why most problems are GPU related.

On image 005 is the fan layout, i use a powerful 12v .80 Amps to blow cool air on both chips CPU first between GPU and CPU heatsinks I put a 12v 4cms .40 Amps blower necesary as the fins on these heatsinks are to dense, this single addition drop my final temp on 3 to 4 degrees (celsius). And finally located at the other end is a 12v .22Amps to suck the hot air.

I plan to power all 3 fans from the board (Via a variable voltage regulator), you must consider however how much currect your new fans will draw, the 200 watt stock PSU can provide up to 1.9 Amps for cooling if you are going to use more powerful fans consider upgrade the PSU to one from an old PC.

Schematics for a variable voltage regulator:
http://proyectoselectronics.blogspot.com/2008/05/lm317-lm338-lm350-regulador-de-voltaje.html

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-005.jpg

I used a tunnel with big exhausts to create a high and low preassure zones on both necks to help move even more air.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-006.jpg

You can see on image 007 how the final setup will be on the box. With the drive on top of the air tunnel no heat is transfered to the GPU this is how the console should have been designed from the begining.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-008.jpg
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-009.jpg

Some modification on the metal box is necesary to optimize things up. A & B correspond to the lateral walls of the box I used a metal scissors to cut thru the 0.9 mm steel sheet I have seen others do it with a saw which is the PRO way but avoided it later because the saw may deform the cage and any deformation would result in a short under the mainboard.

Both walls were cutted and folded out to serve as convenient fan bases.

The small bevel on the front of all Xbox360s must be flattened, nothing a hammer and a press can't do (This was a design requirement for my box you can skip this step).

D Shows where the underboard RAM sits, maybe the hardest part of all the mod without access to a metal press, to cut thru I made a lot of succesive holes with a drill.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-010.jpg
As I stated before, all eight 64MBs RAM modules on XENON boards tend to overheat so you better cool those chips as well, for that task make use of the GPU stock heatsink, the GPU Heatsink is made of maleable 1mm aluminiun soft enough to cut it with a metal saw, if you see picture 004 on this guide you will see how I reuse the GPU heatsink to cool the RAM, Southbridge and the ANA chip.

END OF PART 1

[Locobox]

PART 2

To glue those small heatsinks to the chips you can use thermal adhesive if you can't find any you can make your own, you need thermal compound + any epoxy/silicon based glue here are the instructions: http://www.overclockers.com/need-thermal-epoxy-make-your-own/[/b]]http://www.overclockers.com/need-thermal-epoxy-make-your-own/ please keep in mind that lots of tests are needed in order to achieve a good thermal adhesive.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-011.jpg
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-012.jpg
Final setup of the wind tunnel and box, made of thick (0.3 mm) cardboard, I used masking tape to cover the cardboard and then painted it with wood glue (The white one) this type of glue acted as a sealant and when dry left me a durable plastic like material resistant to heat and moisture, another advantage is that if any modification is needed a Xacto knife can easily cut thru the plastified cardboard a material ideal for quick prototyping.

I used the same material for the costruction of the box unlike the wind tunnel for the box I used 3 layers of cardboard instead of 1 to gain structural rigidity.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-013.jpg
This is the front layout for a better XBOX360 box, efficient yet beautiful, almost simetrical design where the DVD Drive sits over the air tunnel (Over a plastic foam to avoid vibration and heat transfer). All the controls are on their original places I would liked to place the ON/Off board right below the DVD Drive but I guess I'm just lazy, besides that mod would required a taller box.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-014.jpg
Some adjustments for the DVD-Drive.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-015.jpg
This is the plastified box although is not painted yet you can see that most errors on the surface were covered by the glue, all the necesary holes were made before gluing.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-016.jpg
Another view of the box, notice the "L" shaped hole for the underboard RAM.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-017.jpg
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-018.jpg
Box with the XBOX360 motherboard inside. Although everything fits fine minor adjustments were required thats why working with cardboard is so convenient.

On picture 018 you can see all the cables ready to power 3 12v fans directly from a specific point located under the motherboard (See picture 019B) I don't suggest to take the 12v from any other point as this point is fed directly from the PSU. Keep in mind that not only the voltage matters but also the current, the AMPS are much more important in this case that's why I don't recomend take 12V from the DVD cable as that may interfere with the DVD Drive's energy supply.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-019.jpg
I used AWG 22 cable to handle the current for the 3 extra fans and AWG 7 for the 2 digital thermometers (AWG 7 same as in EIDE PC cables).

The thermometers are feed by a regulated variable power supply, you can do it yourself with less than 9 parts (Plus is a very helpful solution you can apply to other projects).

Both thermometer's sensors were glued on top of the heatpipe with adhesive allumium tape (That handles up to 110c).
The Aluminium tape sealed the top of the heatsink as in the shroud mod.

For the DVD data cable I use an of the shelf standard PC SATA cable, you can also make your own up to meter long but is quiet difficult.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-020.jpg
Everything is inside the box, the fan on the right will feed cool air only to the CPU & GPU. Unlike the fan on the right the fan from the left is not all covered and wil suck hot air out of the box.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-021.jpg
Without the top cover this is how the prototype box will finally look, notice how both thermometers aren't connected to the main AC yet.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-022.jpg
For all the necessary buttons I used simple click switches soldered to the motherboard via EIDE Cables and drop of cyanocrilate (Crazy glue) on the base of each button for final assembly.

The black thick plastic piece on the front comes from the back of a DVD case, I use it cause I like the contrast between textured black plastic and the shiny smooth white surface a-la-imac.

A layer of vinyl foam sits underneath the white plastic to cover small imperfections (Notice the "stealth" XBOX ring barely visible under the white plastic sheet).

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-023.jpg
Another view of the box.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-024.jpg
And after some 80 hours ... the final prototype is finished.
 
ERROR: there is an error on image 024 the direction of the cool air was from left to right, by just changing the air flow from right to left you can lower the CPU temperature 3c to 5c.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-025.jpg
Here you can see the lateral walls and top cover.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-026.jpg
Console ON, I like how the green leds glow thru the white plastic.

What you hace seen is a W.I.P my final goal is what you can see on the blueprint below , I would like to use 0.2mm aluminium for the walls and wood for the front, base and back.
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-027.jpg

The front also shows the green ring and ports relocated at the center and a convenient handle on top to carry the console around.

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/efficient-xbox360-case-028.jpg
Probably a much optimun design for future consideration, a lot like a micro tower computer.
The advantage of this design over the first box is that there is NO heat transfer from the CPU to the GPU since both heatsinks are installed in the same direction as when the console left the factory allowing the GPU & CPU to achieve even lower temperatures.



TEMPERATURE TEST

IMPORTANT: Just before closing the box I upgraded to the 2 Gen CPU heatsink on both chips (Like the ones on the picture below this paragraph), with better coolers the central fan is no longer neccesary (Also less power consumption).

http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/xbox360-dual-heatsink-mod-001.jpg

-Average temperature on the room is 31c.
-2 independent sensors were used one for GPU and another one for the CPU.
-I reused the stock X-Clamps under the GPU & CPU.
-Airflow from right to left.
-Both thermometer's sensors were located on the base of each heatsink in a drilled hole filled with thermal compound where I guess the reading is more accurate.

BOARD: XBOX360 Xenon 203Watts (Reflowed for the 4th time)
FANS: x2 12cms @12v/1.20 Amps
GPU HEATSINKS: 2 Gen
CPU HEATSINKS: 2 Gen

5 Mins on Dashboard:
GPU=33.1c
CPU=35.5c

30 Mins of gameplay (RAGE):
GPU=37.3c
CPU=38.2c

6 Hours of gameplay:
GPU=42.6c
CPU=39.2c

As stated above I noticed that when the console is turned off after heavy gameplay temperatures will rise as much as 5c to 7c for as long as 30 minutes, I can see now why many technicians on repair shops talk about accumulative damage as the console gets even hotter when you turn it off, keep in mind that there is no ventilation when that happens and that's bad news, picture an unmodified console with stock fans and coolers working at 65c, after that console is turned off it will easily pass the 70c barrier.

The direction of the cool air from right to left (From CPU to GPU) is a possible flaw of this setup as the hot air from the CPU hits the GPU. The hot air from the CPU adds some 4c to 6c to the GPU temperature. That's why I think the design on image 028 is far better.



TOOLS
-Xacto knife
-30 watt soldering iron
-Thin +Flux
-Multimeter with buzzer (To check continuity)
-Cable cutter & stripper
-Hammer
-Saw (For metal)
-Drill +Metal bits
-Aluminum tape



COSTS:
$40..........x1 Broken RRoD Xbox360 Xenon (Error 0102) eBay.
$10..........x3 1x1m 3mm thick cardboard.
$ 5..........x1 liter of white (wood) glue.
$ 3..........x15 Nuts & bolts.
$10..........x1 60x60cms white plastic sheet.
$ 3..........x2 Digital thermometers.
$ 5..........x1 Variable power regulator.
$ 3..........x3m Cable.
$15..........x5g Artic Silver.
$10..........x3 Masking tape.
$ 6..........x2 White spray cans.

TOTAL: $110



PROS & CONS

CONS:
-Of course the box is bigger but who cares this is not a handheld, the main goal here is to keep temperature inside as low as possible.
-Yes it is loud! ever been in a data center? ... LOL well not that loud, sounds like a PIII Compaq Proliant series server, quietness was never a concern for me since I always play with headphones on, besides my home server is in the same room so I'm pretty much used to those lovely decibel levels.
-If you don't know how to solder correctly it is better to get help as there is some soldering to do ahead.
-Unsupported Official XBOX360 HDD, as the HDD port is blocked by the 12v lateral fan, although you still can install games on a USB stick as the current dashboard version supports this feature with the same functionality as the official HDD drive, just be sure to use a fast card (Class 6 SDHC or better).



PROS:
-Working with cardboard is easier, cheaper and way safer than aluminium or even steel. 
-Full XBOX360 functionality with XBL enabled.
-Far better looking and functional than just taking the DVD-Drive out of the case.
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/xbox360-dual-heatsink-mod-000.jpg
http://www.locobox.org/thumbs/xbox360-efficient-case/xbox360-dual-heatsink-mod-002.jpg

-Working at lower temperatures the console seems more responsive and less prone to system halts or errors (Of course NOT even a single overheat issue or twin red lights in the last months).
-Cheap working Xbox360 that probably will last a lot longer than the next XBOX720.
-You will learn a lot about heat dissipation and soldering and that alone is the best.



LAST WORDS

So far the console has been ON (Non-stop) since May 5 working with no problems, before May 5 I tested it for more than a month playing an average of 4 hours a day with 0 incidents.

Peak temperatures on the log are GPU=44c/CPU=41 on a 32c day.

... Did you ever noticed that XENON boards has something that sounds inside them? Even when I tried I was not able to locate where the sound comes from ... Anyone?

Thanks a lot for your time reading this guide, hope you get a lasting console that won't RRoD on you.
Any comments will be appreciated.

 

[Grandmaster56]

Looks horrible.Appreciate there are some handy things here but my xenon runs at 48 degrees on the gpu and 44 on the cpu so you have done all this work and yet your console is still around the same temperature as mine with conventional cooling methods.Seems like alot of work to have no effect.Guess it will be cool for some people though
Also the "sound" your hearing im guessing is the rattling sound from all 360 mobo's iv seen which is the sensor switch to tell if the console is standing upright or horizontal to display the ROL correctly.

[threesixtyuser]

Nice efforts and compliments for the detailed worklog! But it does look pretty nasty indeed 

Think I might just prefer my current case (not built by me but by a fellow dutch casemodder: kier)
 
http://forums.bit-tech.net/showpost.php?p=2713217&postcount=56
 

 
Temps are a lot lower as well

[Locobox]

Thanks for the comments guys.

Grandmaster56 your temps are OK for a Xenon board are you using 2gen heatsinks on both chips?
Thanks for the info on the mysterious sound.

Threesixtyuser your box looks sweet (I think it is based on the Liang Li box?), I imagine that with liquid cooling temps must be lower.

[Grandmaster56]

Nope...using 1st gen heatsinks although i removed the stock thermal paste and used "arctic freeze" thermal paste instead.

[bonzo pl]

http://translate.google.pl/translate?sl=pl&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=pl&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fbonzo-pl.blogspot.com%2Fp%2Fxbox-360.html&act=url

[Dreamerguy]

Thanks for collecting and sharing all this information, your article is as good as  isodownload found at:

http://www.isodownload.org/xbox360/jtag-tutorials/cooling-mods-a-how-to.html#comment-1053

I have a project that I intend to apply a mod on a Falcon I bought recently …

Him, with his considerations and the author I quoted intend to remove the dvd drive and make exhaust heat through the top casing, without the heat pass through memories, chip ANA / HANA and nortbridge. I will use to connect 12v fans of the original but replacing them with empowering fans 120mm exhaust with wind tunnels commonly used in cpus, what do you think?

Sorry by Google Translate service errors…