I Am the Newest Member of The Club of Having had my 360 break on me. It sucks hard.

[garagesaleking!!]

I turned on my 360 this morning and it came up system error e74, please contact xbox support. I looked at my system and it had 1 red flashing light in the bottom right corner. I went to gamestop and bought a new av cable, but still had the problem. I called microsoft and my system is still under warranty and ill be sending it in and getting it fixed for free.

It just sucks it will be about 4 weeks before i have a working system again. I never thought this would happen to me. My system was made on 2/21/08. I thought since i had a new system all the problems were fixed, but i guess not.

I have heard that playing call of duty 4 and world at war is said to give you a higher risk of getting the e74 problems with your xbox. Is that possible that could be true. All i have been playing for the past week is nonstop call of duty wow.

It just sucks, im so bored and want to play my 360 and cant. It sucks really bad. Now i believe when i read everywhere that xbox 360s really do break all the time, and i even babied mine, and always was extra protective of it, but still get screwed.

The only way to describe my feelings is pretty much, damn.

[Oobgarm]

My DVD drive is failing, so I feel for you.

[sebastiankirchoff]

Amazingly, my Xbox hasn't broken yet, and I bought it October 2006. It has frozen up a couple of times, but I just restart it and it works again perfectly. I don't know how many hours I have played on it, but it is probably close to 150.

[Alfador]

I just got my first 360 and it came with a broken controller, is this a sign of things to come?

[G-Boobie]

I'm on 360 number four, so I feel your pain.

Good luck.

[boatofcar]

Go outside. Read a book.

[super nes]

I dont know how this happens my 360 is on almost 6 hours a day and i never had any problems with it i guess its because i keep it on the cold floor or im really lucky...

[jcalder8]

Now tell us how you really feel.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I'm on 360 number four, so I feel your pain.

Good luck.

I'm on #6

3 on the FIRST DAY I bought one!

[NE146]

Now i believe when i read everywhere that xbox 360s really do break all the time

You mean you didn't believe it before?

I didn't know there were still people like you :p

[ProgrammingAce]

there's no truth behind the theory that some games increase the chances of a RRoD. If the system is defective, then it's defective. Not all systems are borked, but enough to be a problem. A vast majority of 360s will never RRoD, the failure rate is below 25%.

Though, i'm getting a bit tired repeating myself. I've expianed the RRoD situation in detail in about a dozen different threads.

http://programmingace.com/images/360Promo/MicrosoftMotivation.jpg

[nate1749]

When it breaks again and it will be out of warranty (since now that you've used your warranty once that period is now null and you get I think 90 days from when they fix it) there is a guy on eBay who fixes them the same day he receives them and ships them right back out. It was $50 when all was said and done, but he fixed mine RROD and I couldn't be happier, he was out of AL if I remember correctly.

Seriously what a great business plan, fixing microsoft's broken hardware - you know you'll always have work!

I also never thought mine would break since quite simply I never played it - it had a total of about 20 hours of powered on time (in an always chilly a/c apartment) over the course of a year and I hadn't used it in over a month and when I turned it on to play Mirror's Edge (only game I wanted to play since Gears Of War) I had the RROD.

Nate

[boatofcar]

A vast majority of 360s will never RRoD, the failure rate is below 25%.


I don't care where you say you get your data from, I call BS on this. Everyone I know IRL except me has had at least one RROD. Some have had two. Granted, this is only 4 other people besides me, but anecdotal evidence suggests the failure rate of 360s is well above 25%.

[aclbandit]

Go outside. Read a book.

What's "outside"? It sounds unpleasant. Isn't that where "The Sun" lives? He's mean, I've heard. I don't think I want to go there.

[monkeychemist]

why do you guys insist on still buying crap from that company? Just stop! Look at what they gave us: X360, Zune, OfficeX documents, Vista...all crap crap crap

[scooterb23]

TROLLING ROCKS!!!! Awesome work monkeychemist...

*Ahem*

Sucks garagesalesking, take the 4 weeks to enjoy the hidden gems of your collection, or take up board gaming or something for a few weeks :) Time will fly by, and you'll barely miss the thing.

[XYXZYZ]

It just sucks, im so bored and want to play my 360 and cant. It sucks really bad.

What did you do for fun before you got a 360?

[Oobgarm]

There's always black tar heroin. :)

[megasdkirby]

I'm on #6

3 on the FIRST DAY I bought one!

Ok, now that pretty much scares the shit of me purchasing one. :(

I've seen problems with the console before, but this one takes the cake!

[Trumpman]

My first one (a 4/2008) model was RRoD'd the moment I got it. That was rather disappointing.

[Garry Silljo]

I'm on 360 number four, so I feel your pain.

Good luck.

I refuse to buy a system that many times due to manufacturer incompetance. When you keep buying the system over and over, companies don't learn a consequence.

[FxMercenary]

i got an old 2006 model that still works! Of course as soon as the news began to fly around that they were all failing i reinforced to solder points and pasted the cpu and gpu with silver thermal compound. No problems yet!

[Jimid2]

Man, that sucks... My son and I just bought a new 360 Pro yesterday - we couldn't resist the Boxing Day pricing ($240 w/ two games). I know they're infamously unreliable, but I plan on using it heavily for three years - if it RRODs, Mickeysoft can send me a new one with the Jaspur chipset and board in it; I hear those are being put into the new Arcade units with the 256MB of memory onboard, so they should make it into the Pro models before too long... All that being said, I picked up Gears, Bioshock, PGR3 and Rainbow Six for only $60 total (used, EB's sales), and we're having a blast! Oh, and we got HALO 3 for $20 too! I think this thing will get the crap played out of it over the winter... ;)

[ProgrammingAce]

I don't care where you say you get your data from, I call BS on this. Everyone I know IRL except me has had at least one RROD. Some have had two. Granted, this is only 4 other people besides me, but anecdotal evidence suggests the failure rate of 360s is well above 25%.

The initial problem was a combination of two things, and sadly one wasn't diagnosed until sometime in 2007. There was an initial problem with the clamp they used to hold down the CPU. As the system heated up, the clamp forced the motherboard to bend and it would start breaking the solder joints.

Microsoft quickly discovered this and made corrections. Unfortunately this was just a symptom and not the real issue. After adding additional cooling and modifying the clamping system, consoles were still dieing. It wasn't until they asked a major electronics manufacturer for help that they discovered an issue with the soldering process and the RoHS solder they were using.

Basically the solder they were using was crap and melted at a lower temperature then specified. This wouldnt have been a major problem if it hadn't been for the clamping system. The reason the problem only effects a small number of consoles is due to the wave soldering process. The tolerances were off and the design spec didn't take into consideration the crappy solder. If your 360 was soldered well, it'll last for years without a heat related RRoD (the console can RRoD for 30+ reasons, including bad code in a game).

Any questions?

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I refuse to buy a system that many times due to manufacturer incompetance. When you keep buying the system over and over, companies don't learn a consequence.

You mean the billions that Microsoft has openly gone on-record about losing due to non-stop warranty extensions, shipping costs, and repair parts & labor for RROD consoles?

While I do believe that Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo and Sega have all recouped SOME money in the past off of consumers who have re-purchased their systems due to hardware failure (or simply purchased a "refresh" design of a console/portable)...

I think that regardless of how many 360s any of us buy, in this specific instance with the 360, MS learned their own lessons from their own poor R&D on the product and the time and money they've spent and lost on repairs/replacements.

[garagesaleking!!]

does one red light still qualify as being the rrod. I thought the rrod was when you had 3 red lights.

I am on break from college and just wanted to relax and play my 360, thats what sucks, i guess i will hook up my original xbox and play some campaigns.

I just bought an xbox live download card recently and wanted to download some new rockband songs for when im back up at college, but i cant do that now.

Will they fix my system, or send me a new one? does anyone know?

[Sudo]

I refuse to buy a system that many times due to manufacturer incompetance. When you keep buying the system over and over, companies don't learn a consequence.

You don't have to keep buying it, Microsoft will fix it for free.

[scooterb23]

Awww, Sudo, come on now...why take all the fun out of a completely fact-starved, misguided rant ;)

[Garry Silljo]

You don't have to keep buying it, Microsoft will fix it for free.

I don't keep buying them, I won't even buy one. Others in the thread mentioned being on box number 4 or even 6. They didn't say one box fixed that many times. They said that many boxes.

[chicnstu]

Mine quit working earlier this year, it was fixed and so far hasn't messed up again. Has there been a console worse than the 360? The games and features of the system are great but the system itself is crap. Compared to the other systems I own it seems like the worst made of them all:

1. Many die
2. Pick your 360 up, hold it. Then hold a Wii or PS3. The 360 feels so hollow, flimsy, and fragile. It feels like a Saturn. A Wii, PS3, DC, GC, etc feels solid.
3. Worst D-Pad I've ever used
4. Very stiff A/B/X/Y buttons, they feel like something from a late 80s toy.
5. Horrible Analog sticks, as bad as the ones on a Hyperscan. The "crater" in the top was put there to keep thumbs from sliding off, but it does the opposite.
6. Fat controller, but it's made by a U.S. company and I guess most people from the U.S. have larger hands than people from Japan.

Oh well, the 360 has the most games so we are stuck with it.

[eugenek]

there's no truth behind the theory that some games increase the chances of a RRoD.


According to this anonymous engineer interviewed by 8bitjoystick, there is:

Q: Does some games more than others cause hardware failure. Gears of War and Dead Rising were thought to be system killers when they came out.

Of course. Infant mortality, which is a weakened mechanical "thing" like a solder joint with a void in it, are exercised to failure by cyclic stress. The number of cycles and the amplitude of temperature change from low to high determine how quickly it will fail. Certain games will consume more bandwidth on the GPU, which has the most substandard thermal solution on the mother board, making it a lot hotter, warping the mobo and flexing the solder joints. Weak joints fail quickly. The better the game, the more often it will be played, again accelerating failures.

http://www.8bitjoystick.com/archives/jake_inside_source_reveal_the_truth_about_xbox_360 _red_ring_of_death_failures.php

Jake has terrible grammar, but I think he's pretty credible.

[PapaStu]

I don't keep buying them, I won't even buy one. Others in the thread mentioned being on box number 4 or even 6. They didn't say one box fixed that many times. They said that many boxes.

I'm on Number 3. Microsoft has REPLACED my two dead units with new (all be it refurbed) units. I can almost guarantee that our other posters who've had 4, 6, x number of systems die have had MS replacements vs going out and buying 4 or 6 new units.

@ garagesaleking
It depends on what the problem is with your unit. Mine have all had disc drives shit out on them. They've replaced my system with a 'new' system. Good buddy Dangerboy had his die within a few days of my last one, with something else dying, and they repaired his system and sent it back to him (serial #'s matched).

[Rob2600]

Has there been a console worse than the 360?

I'd say the Coleco Adam...maybe.



2. Pick your 360 up, hold it. Then hold a Wii or PS3. The 360 feels so hollow, flimsy, and fragile. It feels like a Saturn.

The Saturn is a durable, reliable console.

[j_factor]

The only problem Saturns seem to have is the cartridge port failing to recognize. But that's probably mainly caused by Interact's ridiculously thick cartridges that stretch out the contacts. I would say that the Dreamcast (or maybe Sega CD model 1) was actually Sega's least reliable console, although it's still pretty good. Game Gear has a lot of issues that have come out over time -- I don't remember hearing about anyone having problems with them 15 years ago, but nowadays, almost every Game Gear I come across has some sort of problem.

[ProgrammingAce]

According to this anonymous engineer interviewed by 8bitjoystick, there is:

I completely agree with what he says, but he's being too specific. Think more general.

If the console has bad solder joints, it'll fail. If the solder joints are fine then it won't.

The games you play have no affect on whether or not the console will fail. Individual games may cause the system to fail faster though. If you never take the console out of the box, it'll never fail...

[garagesaleking!!]

so the e74 problem is related to overheating?

[gepeto]

. Has there been a console worse than the 360? .

Well for what it is worth my original psx and everybody I knew that bought one of the 300 dollar units. The one with the av outs.

The cd lens went bad and the unit had video playback problems and needed to be turned upside down. Whether it worked was hit and miss. Repairs cost me 125 dollars. Then they was a class action where they offered money or a game of your choice.

At least for the most part MS is free.

[jdc]

We all know that the 360 has left many gamers with bad feelings towards Microsoft. The big question is whether those same gamers are going to be first in line with their $500 when Microsoft launches their next console? My money's on the fact that they will be, and Microsoft is most certainly counting on it.

[garagesaleking!!]

the 360 is just so superior to the ps3 in my opinion, and even the wii, that it is too hard to not still love it. xbox live just blows my mind.

[Gameguy]

We all know that the 360 has left many gamers with bad feelings towards Microsoft. The big question is whether those same gamers are going to be first in line with their $500 when Microsoft launches their next console? My money's on the fact that they will be, and Microsoft is most certainly counting on it.
Just hope the next one will be backwards compatible. I believe in 20 years the 360 will be one of the rarest consoles to find as most will break down by then.

I don't have a 360 and don't plan to get one anytime soon, I wouldn't spend hundreds of dollars on something I know has reliability problems. Even if the games are really good I wouldn't buy it for such a high price(older systems have good games and they're really cheap now, around $30). The 360 has pretty much become a big joke to most people, I've seen T-shirts making fun of it so it has to be pretty bad.
http://img78.imageshack.us/img78/4665/360wx3.jpg

I should mention that I don't have any current gen system(excluding portables), I'll wait until I find them at yard sales.

[Skelix]

Just have more than 1, that way when one breaks you can mail the other out and still have a system to play.

I'm playing one right now, have a broken one in various pieces and an unopened Elite still in the Amazon packaging.

I'll never miss out on free dlc again!

[unwinddesign]

Mine quit working earlier this year, it was fixed and so far hasn't messed up again. Has there been a console worse than the 360? The games and features of the system are great but the system itself is crap. Compared to the other systems I own it seems like the worst made of them all:

1. Many die
2. Pick your 360 up, hold it. Then hold a Wii or PS3. The 360 feels so hollow, flimsy, and fragile. It feels like a Saturn. A Wii, PS3, DC, GC, etc feels solid.
3. Worst D-Pad I've ever used
4. Very stiff A/B/X/Y buttons, they feel like something from a late 80s toy.
5. Horrible Analog sticks, as bad as the ones on a Hyperscan. The "crater" in the top was put there to keep thumbs from sliding off, but it does the opposite.
6. Fat controller, but it's made by a U.S. company and I guess most people from the U.S. have larger hands than people from Japan.

Oh well, the 360 has the most games so we are stuck with it.

The 360's controller is the best one I've ever used. Don't know where the hell you get stiff buttons and crappy analogue sticks, but it's really the opposite. Since I don't play 2D games, the DPad is of no consequence (although this obviously varies with the user). And calling it fat? WTF? It's about the same size as a Dual Shock, slightly smaller than the GC's pad, smaller than the original Xbox's pad...maybe it's massive compared to the Wii or SNES controller.

The console itself is fairly heavy, and does not feel hollow. It feels no "cheaper" than the plastic casing of the Wii or PS3.

They do break, but that doesn't give you a warrant to just make up a bunch of random shit to support your thesis that "the system build is the worst out of every system ever made." Worst out of this gen? Yes. Worst ever? Doubtful. The PS2 was a giant sack of ass when it came out, as was the PS1. The Dreamcast had a fair number of issues, the original Xbox had notoriously horrible drives...the list goes on. The cart based systems were nigh indestructible, but now it seems that all bets are off. That being said, the PS3 and Wii are well constructed, so Microsoft needs to step their game up with some revisions, otherwise people are going to get tired of this shit, good games or no.

[SegaAges]

Mine RRoD'ed on me once about 6 months or so ago. I havent had any problems with it since.

[darkhades]

I am curious, is there anyone here with a launch 360 system and has had absolutely no problems? Pehaps I may just be the luckiest mofo'n 360 owner around.

[NE146]

Since I don't play 2D games, the DPad is of no consequence (although this obviously varies with the user).

Well there you go. The 360 D-Pad is definitely the worst thing about the 360 controller. If they could only fix that one simple thing (I mean how hard can it be????) then the 360 controller would be one of the top of all time imho.

[garagesaleking!!]

hey, i have another question, does anyone know microsoft fixes an xbox sent in with the e74 problem? do they do a permanent fix on it? or just something that will break again at some point?

[Garry Silljo]

Just have more than 1, that way when one breaks you can mail the other out and still have a system to play.

I'm playing one right now, have a broken one in various pieces and an unopened Elite still in the Amazon packaging.

I'll never miss out on free dlc again!

People were telling me this doesn't happen?

[eugenek]

I am curious, is there anyone here with a launch 360 system and has had absolutely no problems? Pehaps I may just be the luckiest mofo'n 360 owner around.

I'm curious, about how many times do you switch the system on in an average week? There's some speculation that it's the number of power cycles (and not total playtime) that frequently causes RRoD. So maybe if you turn it on once every couple of days it may not matter if the system is on for 8 hours every time.

[G-Boobie]

Just have more than 1, that way when one breaks you can mail the other out and still have a system to play.

I'm playing one right now, have a broken one in various pieces and an unopened Elite still in the Amazon packaging.

I'll never miss out on free dlc again!

Even though I currently have two(MS 'lost' the second one I sent in, so I bought an arcade. The other one showed up two months later much to my[and MS'] surprise), that's nuts. Planning on buying multiple 250 dollar consoles because they're poorly engineered? Are you hiring?

[ProgrammingAce]

Well there you go. The 360 D-Pad is definitely the worst thing about the 360 controller. If they could only fix that one simple thing (I mean how hard can it be????) then the 360 controller would be one of the top of all time imho.

Patent issues, same reason sony uses the shitty D-Pads they do. Talk to Ninty, they hold the patent. I don't think anyone has found a better way to make them that isn't already owned by Ninty or the arcade manufacturers.

Sucks.

[Princess-Isabela]

you all lie - I'm on my launch 2005 360 and it plays perfect.
liars...

[darkhades]

I'm curious, about how many times do you switch the system on in an average week? There's some speculation that it's the number of power cycles (and not total playtime) that frequently causes RRoD. So maybe if you turn it on once every couple of days it may not matter if the system is on for 8 hours every time.

I guess on average I play it about 5-10 hours a week, probably turning it on once every couple of days. The last couple of months I've been playing almost every day, 2-4 hours a day.

[neist]

My DVD drive is failing, so I feel for you.

Me too.

I've just been installing every game on the HDD now, and uninstalling them after I'm finished with that game. It's annoying, but at least I don't get random disc read errors.

Apparently theres a new chipset coming out soon (Jasper? I don't recall the code name). Hopefully that one will be better. I'm really hoping that somewhere down the line they actually revise the 360 hardware into something more efficient, especially if they still want the thing around in 5 years.

[chicnstu]

The 360's controller is the best one I've ever used. Don't know where the hell you get stiff buttons and crappy analogue sticks, but it's really the opposite. Since I don't play 2D games, the DPad is of no consequence (although this obviously varies with the user). And calling it fat? WTF? It's about the same size as a Dual Shock, slightly smaller than the GC's pad, smaller than the original Xbox's pad...maybe it's massive compared to the Wii or SNES controller.

1. Press the A/B/X/Y buttons on your 360 controller

2. Press the A/B/X/Y buttons on a Nintendo controller and the Triangle/Circle/Cross/Square buttons on a Sony system

3. Notice the difference...? The 360 buttons feel like a 20 year old toy. Yes they work, I'm just saying they feel worse than other controllers.

Yes, the analog sticks on the 360 controller feel the same as what's on a Nintendo or Sony controller but all I said was that the dip (or having it round on top like the Dual Shock) makes a person's thumb slide off when held in one direction for a long period of time. The lines that are on the Wii controller keep that from happening. I'm playing Fallout 3 and Animal Crossing: City Folk right now. In both games you are constantly traveling. When I play Fallout 3 I have to readjust my thumb often, when I play Animal Crossing, I never have to.

And the 360 controller is fat, the part where palms and fingers wrap around looks and feels very bloated compared to the Dual Shock and GC controller. After years of holding those the 360 controller doesn't feel good, but maybe it does to other people...even though I have long hands.


The console itself is fairly heavy, and does not feel hollow. It feels no "cheaper" than the plastic casing of the Wii or PS3.

Yeah it's heavy, but what does that have to do with durability? And yes, the console does feel very hollow. You must have never held a Wii if you don't think it feels hollow.


They do break, but that doesn't give you a warrant to just make up a bunch of random shit to support your thesis that "the system build is the worst out of every system ever made."

Cussing at me because I pointed out faults? I never said it was the worst built ever, I asked if it was because I hated the problems I had with my PS and having to blow the NES cartridges every time I wanted to play a game.

And none of that is random, read them again, think about it, check it for yourself, it's true.


Worst out of this gen? Yes. Worst ever? Doubtful. The PS2 was a giant sack of ass when it came out, as was the PS1. The Dreamcast had a fair number of issues, the original Xbox had notoriously horrible drives...the list goes on. The cart based systems were nigh indestructible, but now it seems that all bets are off. That being said, the PS3 and Wii are well constructed, so Microsoft needs to step their game up with some revisions, otherwise people are going to get tired of this shit, good games or no.

I agree with all of that.

Most of the problems I pointed out are minor but having so many minor problems has made me hate the 360 console, not the games. If I sound like a Nintendo or Sony fanboy, I'm not, almost all I've played this generation is the 360, it has more good games.

[garagesaleking!!]

i actually dont like the ps3 controller, it is too small, it feels weird in my hands, and i just dont like the layout, i think the 360 controller is the best, everthing about it is perfect.

[j_factor]

Patent issues, same reason sony uses the shitty D-Pads they do. Talk to Ninty, they hold the patent. I don't think anyone has found a better way to make them that isn't already owned by Ninty or the arcade manufacturers.

Genesis and Saturn had perfectly good d-pads... better than any of Nintendo's IMO. The Turbo's d-pad was perfectly acceptable as well, and I didn't even mind the Dreamcast d-pad.

[alxbly]

Garagesaleking: Sorry to hear about your 360. My Elite died a few weeks ago... I know your pain.


1. Press the A/B/X/Y buttons on your 360 controller

2. Press the A/B/X/Y buttons on a Nintendo controller and the Triangle/Circle/Cross/Square buttons on a Sony system

3. Notice the difference...? The 360 buttons feel like a 20 year old toy. Yes they work, I'm just saying they feel worse than other controllers.

The only difference I notice is that they have slightly more travel than Sony/Nintendo controllers but I do prefer the reassuring click of the 360's buttons. The consoles I play varies quite regularly and I can't say I've ever picked up a 360 pad and thought "this feels old/bad/whatever". The d-pad isn't great, apart from that I find the 360 controller to be really good.


Yes, the analog sticks on the 360 controller feel the same as what's on a Nintendo or Sony controller but all I said was that the dip (or having it round on top like the Dual Shock) makes a person's thumb slide off when held in one direction for a long period of time.

Never had this problem with the 360 controller either. The only controllers I've had that kind of problem with are the Gamecube's c-stick. I've always been interested to hear why Nintendo went with such a crap design for that c-stick. Does anyone know why it was just a stalk without any real surface area at the top (or a proper thumb grip, like you get on every other controller). Seemed like a strange decision.

The only other time I had similar problems is when I have friends/family playing my games and they're eating in between games, so they end up playing with greasy hands. I always wash the controllers after cos I'm kinda anal about things like that.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I've never had my thumbs "slip off" of a dual shock stick either.

I think the 360 controller is the best design MS has come up with. Very balanced, very ergonomic ... but for my personal playing taste, I prefer my analogs next to each other, and a smaller over-all controller.

I've always thought that the Dual Shock design was perfection in controller engineering, and it remains my favorite controller design.

[graciano1337]

Just had my Elite red ring on me last week. And it does suck hard. Really hard.

[Streetball 21]

So I start playing COD 5 this morning on my 360, and I start getting these weird patterns/lines on my screen. I keep playing since it's not that bad, and then stop to mess with the wires, thinking there's a bad connection somewhere. Then I see one red line on my 360, and the first thing that comes to my mind is RROD. But then, I get a message showing "Error E74". After calling Microsoft, I find out it is $100.00 (I also saw it on the forums as well) which is ridiculous. My one year warranty expired on 12/26/2008. I'm thinking of claiming RROD, but I'm not too confident that will work. Not sure it will do any good to speak with a supervisor, it seems Microsoft is NOT set on replacing XBOX's with this error message. This sucks.

[mr obscure]

my 360 has problems with resident evil 5.
The screen freezes with loading screens and movies.
But no red rings,thank god.

25% is a lot.
Thats 1 out of 4.... think about that 1 out of 4...damn

[ProgrammingAce]

So I start playing COD 5 this morning on my 360, and I start getting these weird patterns/lines on my screen. I keep playing since it's not that bad, and then stop to mess with the wires, thinking there's a bad connection somewhere. Then I see one red line on my 360, and the first thing that comes to my mind is RROD. But then, I get a message showing "Error E74". After calling Microsoft, I find out it is $100.00 (I also saw it on the forums as well) which is ridiculous. My one year warranty expired on 12/26/2008. I'm thinking of claiming RROD, but I'm not too confident that will work. Not sure it will do any good to speak with a supervisor, it seems Microsoft is NOT set on replacing XBOX's with this error message. This sucks.

If you've *ever* had an RRoD, the system logs the error message and you can send the system in on that error message.

[Nature Boy]

If the console has bad solder joints, it'll fail. If the solder joints are fine then it won't.

That's not technically true - if the console has perfect solder joints it could still have a faulty drive, which I'm convinced I have.

(I know that's not your point, I just can't help myself sometimes...)

I've gotten "cannot read disc" errors on brand new games, and every once in awhile a game seems to give me trouble that shouldn't. I'm constantly thinking about what I'll do *when* it does finally kick the bucket.

I love my 360, and I will do what I have to in order to repair it, but *man* will MS have to have a seriously spotless product when they release their next Xbox, because I will NOT touch it if I even get a HINT it'll be faulty.

Anecdotally: Five 360 owners in my office. Three of them have had to send theirs in for repairs (one drive related, the other two I'm not sure ). Bottom line: nobody cares *why* the machines fail, only that they have.

[josekortez]

360s are like modern marriages.

That said, I'm glad I finished Bioshock because it kept freezing over and over again. My system will probably take its final bow soon.

[YoshiM]

My system just up and croaked tonight. Got the E79 and one light error and then the RROD when I disconnected everything and put it back together.

I bought it used from a DP member for a great deal and even though it died, I got a lot of use out of it so I'm not overly miffed. Just sucks I recently reupped my Gold account, though. I'll just pack rat it away and if the urge is strong to play, I might jump. By then the RROD problem might be wiped out. Maybe. Hopefully.

[s1lence]

360s are like modern marriages.

That said, I'm glad I finished Bioshock because it kept freezing over and over again. My system will probably take its final bow soon.

Sounds like a typical Bioshock happening.

[YoshiM]

Update: Microsoft said the paint job wouldn't affect the warranty, so they will repair/replace my system. Just gotta scrounge up a box to send it. Whew!

[s1lence]

Update: Microsoft said the paint job wouldn't affect the warranty, so they will repair/replace my system. Just gotta scrounge up a box to send it. Whew!

Thats good, the problem is that the one you have painted will most likely not be the one you get back.

[ProgrammingAce]

depends, they're better about that now. The replacement motherboards fit in the old cases now, so they have the option of reusing the old case. That's something they really couldn't do a few months ago.

[YoshiM]

Thats good, the problem is that the one you have painted will most likely not be the one you get back.
Probably, but I can deal with that. It'll keep the Wii company in the color department as everything else on the TV stand is black.

[Gameguy]

So I start playing COD 5 this morning on my 360, and I start getting these weird patterns/lines on my screen. I keep playing since it's not that bad, and then stop to mess with the wires, thinking there's a bad connection somewhere. Then I see one red line on my 360, and the first thing that comes to my mind is RROD. But then, I get a message showing "Error E74". After calling Microsoft, I find out it is $100.00 (I also saw it on the forums as well) which is ridiculous. My one year warranty expired on 12/26/2008. I'm thinking of claiming RROD, but I'm not too confident that will work. Not sure it will do any good to speak with a supervisor, it seems Microsoft is NOT set on replacing XBOX's with this error message. This sucks.
That error is now covered under the 3 year warranty, it should be free to get repaired.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/04/14/xbox-360s-class-leading-warranty-extended-again-to-cover-e74-er/

[Nature Boy]

Looks like I'll be humming Pallet Swap Ninja's "Three Red Lights" for the next few weeks.

Was playing Fallout 3 when my system froze. So I restarted it. Froze again. Lather, rinse, repeat. After the 3rd attempt I saw the RROD. Took a pic, mailed it to a buddy, then I hit the MS website and started the repair process.

My office is now 4/5 for RROD. That's 4 RRODs for 5 co-workers (including myself) who have purchased a 360. Bravo MS, bravo.

[Streetball 21]

That error is now covered under the 3 year warranty, it should be free to get repaired.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/04/14/xbox-360s-class-leading-warranty-extended-again-to-cover-e74-er/

I had just paid the $99.99 before they announced this. I had a feeling they were going to do something to correct this. I'm hoping to get my refund in the mail soon.

[The 1 2 P]

Was playing Fallout 3 when my system froze. So I restarted it. Froze again. Lather, rinse, repeat. After the 3rd attempt I saw the RROD. Took a pic, mailed it to a buddy, then I hit the MS website and started the repair process.

My office is now 4/5 for RROD. That's 4 RRODs for 5 co-workers (including myself) who have purchased a 360. Bravo MS, bravo.

The official Xbox magazine had a reader write in that he got the rrod and took his system to his friends house first. It worked fine there and he discovered that it was just his power brick that was faulty. I'm not sure if thats what you have but it doesn't hurt to check as long as one of your friends let you borrow or test it with their power brick.

[Nature Boy]

The official Xbox magazine had a reader write in that he got the rrod and took his system to his friends house first. It worked fine there and he discovered that it was just his power brick that was faulty. I'm not sure if thats what you have but it doesn't hurt to check as long as one of your friends let you borrow or test it with their power brick.

I might try that - thanks. My box has been flaky in the past (I get "cannot read disc" errors on brand new games for example. It's almost like they have to get worked in sadly).

[PapaStu]

I might try that - thanks. My box has been flaky in the past (I get "cannot read disc" errors on brand new games for example. It's almost like they have to get worked in sadly).

If you're getting that then its the disc drive shitting out. It has problems trying to load stuff and will freeze (especially in heavy load games like Fallout 3). The RRoD was probably a by-product of the drive issues your box is experiencing. (I've had 2 drives shit out on me, that sounds like whats happening to you). Once you see the white screen with the Please insert an Xbox disc in 6 languages the drive is done for and its time to call MS.

[Nature Boy]

If you're getting that then its the disc drive shitting out. It has problems trying to load stuff and will freeze (especially in heavy load games like Fallout 3). The RRoD was probably a by-product of the drive issues your box is experiencing. (I've had 2 drives shit out on me, that sounds like whats happening to you). Once you see the white screen with the Please insert an Xbox disc in 6 languages the drive is done for and its time to call MS.

Yup, that pretty much describes it. I got that "Xbox Disc" thing a few times with Left 4 Dead - my Xbox kept trying to tell me that it was a DVD I was inserting.

[jcalder8]

It took about 2 and a half weeks all told but I've got a "brand new" refurbished one from MS and I have to say the whole process was quick and mostly painless, apart from Purolator's stupidity.

[YoshiM]

Well, I got my 360 back and noticed that it was my machine! Inside was a note stating that it was not repaired because of [insert list of possibilities here]. So I called the 800 and talked to a rep and found that the reason it wasn't repaired was because it was "modified". I explained that it was probably because the case was painted but that I had spoken to someone at the service center before and that it was "all right". Apparently not.

Oh well, I still had fun with the 360. Just a bit miffed at MS for telling me one thing but doing another. Don't know if I'll get another system as I've got the "fear" that it's just going to up and die on me in a short period of time.

I'll be selling a bunch of stuff in the Buying and Selling forums so I'll be including my Xbox 360 stuff on there.

[Nature Boy]

We all know that the 360 has left many gamers with bad feelings towards Microsoft. The big question is whether those same gamers are going to be first in line with their $500 when Microsoft launches their next console? My money's on the fact that they will be, and Microsoft is most certainly counting on it.

You can definitely put me in the NOT gonna be there day one list.

I love my 360 console - the games, the XBL experience, achievements. But I did not enjoy the experience of waiting for it to break down, once I knew I was headed there.

If there is even a glimmer of possibility that their next console is anything but perfectly reliable I'll stay away, at least until they get it all worked out - possibly for the whole gen if I like what PS4 brings to the table.

Having said that, my warranty claim has gone pretty smoothly and that's to their credit. It took 6 business days for me to receive the shipping box, but only two days after that to get notified (a) they received it, (b) they had fixed (replaced) it, and (c) it was being sent back to me. (a)-(c) was a 2 hour span just this morning.

The bummer is that it's now been almost two full weeks since I was able to play Fallout 3, let alone download the new free update to Left 4 Dead!

[NESGamer24]

Got my 360 on Launch Day. About 2 Mays later (so about a year and 6 months later) when I got home from college I started getting the red ring of death a lot. So I call up support (this was before they made the announcement about the extended warranty.

The tech support guy tells me "I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is your warranty expired 3 days ago. The good news is we have a policy that if you call within 7 days of your warranty expiring we will still honor your original warranty."

So I got mine fixed for free and I havent had any problems with the referbished model they sent me and that was a few years ago now. *crossed fingers*

Nature Boy, they were like that with mine as well. Took a few days to get the box but once they recieved it they shipped out a replacement that day. In due time you will be killing mutants and working on your karma.

[Nature Boy]

MS definitely gets good marks for being fast with the turnaround. I think it's funny that it took 10 business days total before I got it back, and 6 of those were for receiving the shipping box.

I'm also encouraged by how much more *quiet* my replacement box is. My old one sounded like an airplane taking off. This new one I can barely here.

The first thing I did was fire up Fallout 3 again, and sell those "Scrap Metal" pieces I had set aside for Walter for the 60 caps and 37 EXP I was excited about 2.5 weeks ago. Then I turned it off since I'm at work and all, but I had to have closure :)

[hellfire]

mine broke a few weeks ago

[The 1 2 P]

If mine ever dies on me I'm going to kill it.

[Streetball 21]

So I'm going to bump up this thread since it is related to my question. Has anyone gotten refunded for repair costs for the E74 error? I paid for mine back in March, and they had no problems taking my payment. Now for the refund, the website says if you dont receive anything by July 1, 2009, to submit a claim form. There is nowhere on the website where you can do that, unless I'm missing it. So I call today, and they said now I have to wait till the end of July. I did tell the rep that the website clearly says July 1, and they need to change that. I have a feeling they are in no rush to refund my $100.00. So anyone else going thru this crap?

[Therealqtip]

yeah wish microsoft would stop sucking at shit they do, Come on sony we need you to get better games and better online.

[carlcarlson]

I got a RRoD of sorts on Sunday. I was playing a game when I got a phonecall. I exited to the dashboard but left the system on while I talked. Apparently the power went out while I was on the phone because when I came back the system was off and my clocks were blinking. When I turned the system back on it immediately went to three red lights and wouldn't show any picture or eject my disk. I turned it off and on a couple times and got the same results. I noticed that the light on the power brick was also red, so I unplugged everything and then set it back up. Now it works.

Was this an actual RRoD or more of a "your system did not shut down properly" error?

[Zing]

Go outside. Read a book.

This is fucking stupid. If he wanted to go outside or read a book (ignoring the fact that humans are capable of doing these things in addition to playing video games), then he wouldn't have bought a video game console in the first place.

[ProgrammingAce]

I got a RRoD of sorts on Sunday. I was playing a game when I got a phonecall. I exited to the dashboard but left the system on while I talked. Apparently the power went out while I was on the phone because when I came back the system was off and my clocks were blinking. When I turned the system back on it immediately went to three red lights and wouldn't show any picture or eject my disk. I turned it off and on a couple times and got the same results. I noticed that the light on the power brick was also red, so I unplugged everything and then set it back up. Now it works.

Was this an actual RRoD or more of a "your system did not shut down properly" error?

You had a power surge that tripped the breaker inside the power brick. You should have that thing hooked up to a surge suppressor.

[carlcarlson]

You had a power surge that tripped the breaker inside the power brick. You should have that thing hooked up to a surge suppressor.

Cool, that's what I figured. The system actually is running through a surge suppressor, but I guess it didn't quite cut it this time.

[Leo_A]

You had a power surge that tripped the breaker inside the power brick. You should have that thing hooked up to a surge suppressor.

Your employer recommends against doing that.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

The sad truth is that "surge protectors" while good, aren't any guarantee that things like this won't happen.

If you had what you described as a power OUTAGE, you likely didn't have a spike or a surge at all, in fact, it was probably the browning of the power either prior to or directly after the "outage" that caused (and typically causes) the most damage.

In my experience brown outs do more damage than black outs and "power supply/regulating" devices like the XBOX360 power brick can be damaged the MOST by "choking" the live power that it's pulling from the wall current.

Unfortunately surge protectors don't help with that ... that would be a job for a Backup Power Supply.

Though, it's good to hear that the 360 power brick can automatically protect against that and can be reset ... but I'd venture to guess that multiple brown outs could permanently choke it out.

[The 1 2 P]

The sad truth is that "surge protectors" while good, aren't any guarantee that things like this won't happen.

Perhaps but it's better than nothing.

[BobaFettHotep]

my 360 died yesterday :(

[duffmanth]

Yet more evidence of what a pile of shit the 360 is!

[R.Sakai]

My Elite, built in Aug 07, bought in Nov 07, died yesterday.

Has had nowhere near the amount of hours I've put into other consoles that still run to this day. It's always been treated nicely, and well ventilated.

I'm really fucking dissapointed in this thing, for a system that was $550 + $100 wireless adapter, bought for the $10 Space Giraffe, to have not lasted two years even, is really fucking unacceptable.

[The 1 2 P]

My Elite, built in Aug 07, bought in Nov 07, died yesterday.

Has had nowhere near the amount of hours I've put into other consoles that still run to this day. It's always been treated nicely, and well ventilated.

I'm really fucking dissapointed in this thing, for a system that was $550 + $100 wireless adapter, bought for the $10 Space Giraffe, to have not lasted two years even, is really fucking unacceptable.

That sucks man but atleast Microsoft will fix it for free because it's still under warranty.

[Sonicwolf]

I cant imagine how hard it will be to find a good working 360 in twenty years. So many just break for no good reason.

[Mr Mort]

Well, it finally happened. My launch-day 360 finally RROD'ed out of the blue last Saturday. Caught me off guard. Of course it's out of warranty, I checked.

I'm not that bitter about it tho, I knew it was only a matter of time. I had actually bought a backup 360 while back in anticipation. Besides, my new one is so much more quiet than the old one it's ridiculous. You can hardly hear it. The old one roared like a jet engine even with no disc in the tray.

[stonecutter]

I am pleased to report my third RROD, this time on my Elite with a built date of 2008/1/28

I can say that i wont be supporting the next MS system, they can shove it up their ass. If it wasn't for all the money spent on DLC for RB etc, I would gladly sell all the MS crap and go to PS3, and I despise Sony. I have 2 360 and I am in a vicious cycle of RROD, shame on me for getting into this mess.

[Ed Oscuro]

I can say that i wont be supporting the next MS system, they can shove it up their ass.
Actually, I'm just waiting for the next system to come out and get (hopefully) rave reliability reviews, and hopefully have BC. Otherwise there's always late-late-LATE model 360s to get and hope will stick around :p

[R.Sakai]

That sucks man but atleast Microsoft will fix it for free because it's still under warranty.

Yeah, I was a pretty pissed off guy when the first thing I saw when logging in to their support site was a red dot and a "warranty expired", felt much better when I saw the deal about it being 3 years if it red rings, fixed for free.

My biggest worry was what happens to my XBL games. Most everything I've read and heard from guys I know is the license transfers usually work great. I still play my copy of Tempest 2K, and in 14 years, I'm pretty sure I'll still want to play Space Giraffe.

I can't say though, that I wouldn't go for another MS system, since even though my original Xbox was a launch unit that had it's HDD lock after 3 or 4 years, I honestly played that thing into the ground. And my overall experience with the 360 has been a good one. But not even two years into this premium priced "Elite" console and it up and dies hopping into a game of 1 vs 100?, yeaaah, that's inexcusable.

[Streetball 21]

So here we are in November (my last post about this was around March or April), and no refund for my repair costs yet. After calling in last night, they finally said someone would call me back and after they "verified some info". Apparently November 1, 2009 was the deadline to submit a claim, so I called right on time. Even though I repeatedly tried to submit the claim numerous times months before, I was denied and said it would come in the mail which it never did.

So I get a call tonight saying my refund is in my account immediately. Which it is not, but according to my bank it may take a couple of days to get my refund. I'm still not confident I'm going to see my refund. Sorry to vent, but after being given the run around, and then having to repeat myself 5-6 times to each rep I speak to, its just ridiculous.

[Streetball 21]

Wow, so in a weird turn of events, I ended up getting my refund this morning. I really believe Microsoft turned me away numerous times throughout the year so I would either forget or miss the deadline, which I almost did. Oh well, its over. I nearly got rid of my XBOX because of this. I just hope I dont have any more issues with Microsoft in the future.

[Sniderman]

I just hope I dont have any more issues with Microsoft in the future.The fact that you're willing to continue to give money to them after all of this just floors the shit out of me.

[Zing]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome

[Gozer]

I've had my 360 since Christmas of 07. I just got the RRoD.

It was bound to happen at some point I suppose.

[GameBoyGeek]

I order you to cease any and all supernatural activity and return to forth/with to your place of origin or to the nearest convenient parallel dimension.

Ya know its a sad state in gaming where when you go to buy a system of any kind you already know ahead of time that its gonna break down and that there is pretty much nothing you can do to stop it from happening....Its total bull shit and didnt always used to be like that. Ive had my NES for 22 years and it still works with only needing to replace the pin connector which i did about 8 years ago.

[The 1 2 P]

Ya know its a sad state in gaming where when you go to buy a system of any kind you already know ahead of time that its gonna break down and that there is pretty much nothing you can do to stop it from happening....Its total bull shit and didnt always used to be like that.

I agree. Thats why I waited so long to get a Jasper chip 360. I've been on XBL for several years(with my original Xbox) and some of my friends who took the early plunge learned the hard way that getting the first batch of a new system isn't always a good idea.


Ive had my NES for 22 years and it still works with only needing to replace the pin connector which i did about 8 years ago.

Actually, out of my 20+ systems, my original Nes is the only one that ever broke down. I even have a GB pocket and Game Gear that still work.

[Oobgarm]

Bought my Resident Evil 5 Elite on launch day.

Three days ago, it decided that it wouldn't read discs. No errors or anything, it would just say "open tray" on the dashboard. Tried a bunch of different games in it, no luck. A call to Xbox support told me that it needed a repair, and the guy told me I could process it online(which I was OK with since his English was awful). I was gonna wait till Monday toprint out a shipping label at work since I have no printer at home. The next day, I tried it again and it started working somehow.

Over the course of the next couple days, the game would stutter when people would come online, especially noticeable in games like Forza 3. It seemed like online lag. Just shrugged it off, at least the console still worked.

Go to power it up today, and all I get is the light in the center, no outer rings and controllers won't sync. No picture on the screen. So I just sent off for the coffin, and I'm displeased. Almost decided to sell all my 360 stuff off but I've spent so much on XBLA titles and have 1.5 years of paid Live service, I couldn't do it.

So now, we wait. Good thing I had 2 MONTHS left on my warranty.

[megasdkirby]

So now, we wait. Good thing I had 2 MONTHS left on my warranty.

That's good to hear.

Will you demand to get the same unit back, or would you prefer a new refurb?

I would request the same console, though. Could care less if the innards change, just as long it had the same casing.

[kupomogli]

So now, we wait. Good thing I had 2 MONTHS left on my warranty.

What happens when you get the new 360 back and somewhere after two months from now the new 360 dies? That's what I was afraid of and just sold my console early. If you want a 360, I'd suggest once you get the new one back, sell it off since it's still working then pick up a new arcade unit and keep your same hdd.

[Oobgarm]

That's good to hear.

Will you demand to get the same unit back, or would you prefer a new refurb?

I would request the same console, though. Could care less if the innards change, just as long it had the same casing.

Yeah, I'll be sure to get at least the red casing back. It was one of the reasons I bought it in the first place.


What happens when you get the new 360 back and somewhere after two months from now the new 360 dies? That's what I was afraid of and just sold my console early. If you want a 360, I'd suggest once you get the new one back, sell it off since it's still working then pick up a new arcade unit and keep your same hdd.

Well I have 90 days from that point so I think I'd just go through the process again. I don't want to sell off my LE console, too much money spent on it as is.

[duffmanth]

What happens when you get the new 360 back and somewhere after two months from now the new 360 dies? That's what I was afraid of and just sold my console early. If you want a 360, I'd suggest once you get the new one back, sell it off since it's still working then pick up a new arcade unit and keep your same hdd.

Why people continue with the hassle of constantly replacing this piece of shit system is completely mind boggling to me?! They must either love the thing or have unlimited patience? If it fucked up on me more than once, that would be where I would draw the line. It's not right when someone who plunks down $300 on a 360 has to worry about not if, but when the thing will die on them.

[Oobgarm]

If you've spent a good amount of money on XBLA stuff and games, why let it all go to waste and get maybe 30% back on selling the physical media? I considered it but realized it wasn't a good idea. Just because you're pissed off doesn't mean everyone should share your viewpoint.

[stonecutter]

Agreed Oobgarm. I had the same considerations and didn't for the same reason. I thought of how much it would cost to get going on a PS3 as well, which I don't have, the cost of that and replacing what I have, or want to replace on XBOX was just too much.

[s1lence]

Agreed Oobgarm. I had the same considerations and didn't for the same reason. I thought of how much it would cost to get going on a PS3 as well, which I don't have, the cost of that and replacing what I have, or want to replace on XBOX was just too much.

Exactly the reason why I put up with it.....though I think I'm a bit more deep in the the 360 then most.

[PapaStu]

Exactly the reason why I put up with it.....though I think I'm a bit more deep in the the 360 then most.


Ya think? Mr. 179,629 gs. :P

[Shadow Kisuragi]

Ya think? Mr. 179,629 gs. :P

Meh. 179k is nothing. I've had friends restart accounts after reaching 200k and they've almost passed me up again at 121k. He's not devoted to the console - he's devoted to the gamerscore system. Xbox Live Anywhere would make him a walking zombie :)

I also agree on DLC being a reason not to ditch the console. Although, you can always sell the profile with all of the licenses and try to make some of it back, but you'll never make anywhere near what it's worth back.

[PapaStu]

Meh. 179k is nothing. I've had friends restart accounts after reaching 200k and they've almost passed me up again at 121k. He's not devoted to the console - he's devoted to the gamerscore system. Xbox Live Anywhere would make him a walking zombie :)



Actually not true. s1lence there is quite devoted to the sytem in general. He's got more 360 games than I do PS2 games (450+), not to mention PAL, NTSC-J systems and additional US 360's hooked up around his house.

[megasdkirby]

If you've spent a good amount of money on XBLA stuff and games, why let it all go to waste and get maybe 30% back on selling the physical media? I considered it but realized it wasn't a good idea. Just because you're pissed off doesn't mean everyone should share your viewpoint.

I would not get rid of it, but I would not give it the same level or priority that I used to.

I would get the PS3 and still retain the Xbox 360. We (most of us) are collectors anyway, so owning the console is part of what we like to do (collect).

With another console, I would just prioritize that console over the previous one that gave me problems. For instance, if a game I want comes out on both, I would get it on the console I know would be most "stable". Exclusives are another issue, as each will have it's own fantastic exclusives that I would get anyway.

A similar event happened to me with the Dreamcast many years ago. It was still fairly new when it died on me in the middle of playing Grandia II. It left a very sour taste in my mouth (the overall experience) and even though I did not hate the console (kept purchasing games afterwards), the priority I had for it dissipated with time. I would get the games that were available as multiplatform on the competitors system (usually the PSOne, even if it was graphically inferior) because I knew it was stable (at least for me, as I've never had a PSOne console die on me). But exclusives, like Illbleed and Skies of Arcadia (at the time) I would get for the Dreamcast. And I would still love playing the console.

From that point onward, I would get the most "stable" platform first. I would get the most games for that console and the exclusives on the other consoles. Sure, having more consoles equates wasting more money, but it's a hobby I know many of us enjoy.

[The 1 2 P]

Bought my Resident Evil 5 Elite on launch day.

Three days ago, it decided that it wouldn't read discs. No errors or anything, it would just say "open tray" on the dashboard. Tried a bunch of different games in it, no luck. A call to Xbox support told me that it needed a repair, and the guy told me I could process it online(which I was OK with since his English was awful). I was gonna wait till Monday toprint out a shipping label at work since I have no printer at home. The next day, I tried it again and it started working somehow.

Over the course of the next couple days, the game would stutter when people would come online, especially noticeable in games like Forza 3. It seemed like online lag. Just shrugged it off, at least the console still worked.

Go to power it up today, and all I get is the light in the center, no outer rings and controllers won't sync. No picture on the screen. So I just sent off for the coffin, and I'm displeased. Almost decided to sell all my 360 stuff off but I've spent so much on XBLA titles and have 1.5 years of paid Live service, I couldn't do it.

So now, we wait. Good thing I had 2 MONTHS left on my warranty.

Was it a Jasper chip 360?

[Oobgarm]

It was manufactured January 2009, if that helps. I honestly have no idea.

[s1lence]

Meh. 179k is nothing. I've had friends restart accounts after reaching 200k and they've almost passed me up again at 121k. He's not devoted to the console - he's devoted to the gamerscore system. Xbox Live Anywhere would make him a walking zombie :)

I also agree on DLC being a reason not to ditch the console. Although, you can always sell the profile with all of the licenses and try to make some of it back, but you'll never make anywhere near what it's worth back.

No, I'm quite devoted. I track all the releases, every region. Catalog each one and obtain the title in question. I own 6 systems, 4 us, 1 japanese and 1 PAL system.

200k IS a big deal. Why would some one "restart" an account unless they cheated/hexed/glitched/gamesaved etc etc etc.

Yes I like gamerscore, but I really am into the 360.

[swlovinist]

I agree. Thats why I waited so long to get a Jasper chip 360. I've been on XBL for several years(with my original Xbox) and some of my friends who took the early plunge learned the hard way that getting the first batch of a new system isn't always a good idea.

Ironically enough, I have a "first batch" system(won and received it two days prior to launch) and it still works fine(minus HDMI cable slot). I feel for all those who have had to replace their system.

[megasdkirby]

Question I need to ask, as it seems to be something I've been noticing with dead Xbox 360's.

How many hours a day, in a row, is the console being played? If it's, for example, six hours a day, at what intervals? Three hours in a row? Two hours in a row?

I am asking because I notice that friends that have X360's but play no longer than an hour and a half, then rest for over an hour (cool down the system) has had their console last years...many even still having their original launch unit. Others that play frequently, leave the console on hours at a time, at some point die out (usually in less than a year).

Yes, I've seen flukes (like that new X360 that RROD right out of the box when I did the exchange for the customer), but this is not the norm.

Because if it's due to heavy use, I will more inclined in getting an X360 sooner, since I am a person that does not use the console for more an two hours at a time. After that, I complete turn off the console, making sure there is no electricity flow in the system (unplug it).

[Oobgarm]

Mine saw sporadic use. Couple hours a day at most, maybe a couple days at a time.

[s1lence]

Question I need to ask, as it seems to be something I've been noticing with dead Xbox 360's.

How many hours a day, in a row, is the console being played? If it's, for example, six hours a day, at what intervals? Three hours in a row? Two hours in a row?

I am asking because I notice that friends that have X360's but play no longer than an hour and a half, then rest for over an hour (cool down the system) has had their console last years...many even still having their original launch unit. Others that play frequently, leave the console on hours at a time, at some point die out (usually in less than a year).

Yes, I've seen flukes (like that new X360 that RROD right out of the box when I did the exchange for the customer), but this is not the norm.

Because if it's due to heavy use, I will more inclined in getting an X360 sooner, since I am a person that does not use the console for more an two hours at a time. After that, I complete turn off the console, making sure there is no electricity flow in the system (unplug it).

Some of my systems like my PAL system I only use a couple of hours a month, unless I'm really working on a specific title. My US systems will sit on for hours and hours and they still keep going. I don't unplug them either when they are not in use. I do have them in a open stand so they get good air flow. I have only had ONE system RRoD on me and ONE E74 on me. The E74 error happened to me almost 2 years ago on a system that was a month old. I have had one that was pulled off of a shelf by a 2 year old and most recently I had one that wouldn't load a retail game, XBLA works fine on it so I still use it.

[stonecutter]

I have had 3 systems RROD on me, my systems get good use. Played every day, not uncommon to have sessions of 4+ hrs, and as high as 8 hrs. Often these extended sessions are not broken up. It may consist of my son playing x hrs and then me playing after him etc, but it does get lots of use.

[megasdkirby]

I have only had ONE system RRoD on me and ONE E74 on me. The E74 error happened to me almost 2 years ago on a system that was a month old.

Yes, but did that particular unit (E74 unit) given heavy play during that period? For example, was it played for hours straight? Three hours in a row? Four hours in a row?

What about the RROD unit? Was it played heavily? Lot's of use? Nonstop use?

Oobgarm, you mentioned it had sporadic use. Usually, how many hours in a row would you play it when you did? Two hours at once? Three hours in a row?

[s1lence]

Both the ones I had fail had heavy use. The RR0D system had VERY heavy use, basically non-stop especially when I was unemployeed.

[Oobgarm]

Maybe 2 hours at a time tops. The only times it saw more use than that is when Modern Warfare 2 and Forza 3 came out, then it was played/turned on for 4+ hours at a time on weekends.

[Vectorman0]

I have been under the impression that the widespread RROD issue caused by solder cracking is more likely to occur the more times your system is cycled from being on and fully heated up to cooled down to normal.

[duffmanth]

I think it's possible that given how popular Xbox Live is, that would increase play time among most gamers and might contribute to some heavily played 360's crapping out.

[megasdkirby]

I have been under the impression that the widespread RROD issue caused by solder cracking is more likely to occur the more times your system is cycled from being on and fully heated up to cooled down to normal.

There is that possibility, but also if heat is not being eliminated correctly from the system (due to any reason), this heat accumulates, increasing the temperature inside the unit. This heat can be so much that it starts melting the solder.

Case example: my friends PS3 60GB model. He was playing Uncharted 2 for a few hours, then after he finished, he immediately started playing a BluRay, and an hour later, the console turned itself off. When he turned it back up, he got the YLOD, which is basically similar to the RROD.

[suckerpunch5]

NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

My Halo 3 Limited Edition console! How could you leave me like this? All alone, and with so much gaming still out there. I should have seen it coming, I suppose. Bioshock 2 just came out. Yeah, we had some good times with Halo 3, but then things got a little rocky when Halo Wars came out.

Looking back, it was probably my fault. Maybe my comparisons to Dune 2000 weren't as funny as I thought they were. I dunno. We tried it, sure, but we never could recapture the magic. Did I spend a lot of time with the original Bioshock? Yeah. Of course. But who didn't? It just seemed so exciting the first time, and, I dunno. . . I kept playing. Ok, yes, I kept playing, but can you blame me? Its not like it was serious. Just a fling, while I waited for ODST.

I don't even know why I'm posting this. Moral support? Someone to tell me its not my fault? Maybe. Maybe not. In retrospect, I see more clearly though. Everything I wanted, I had. You let me get the Battlestar Gallactica premium theme. Nothing hardcore, just a few high def renders of vipers. All very tastefull. And you laughed when I changed my motto to "The cake is a lie." But I always came back. We had an understanding.

So where did we go wrong? You must have seen the look in my eye when I brought up Bioshock 2 last weekend. You knew it was more than trivial fascination. As the picture comes into clear focus, I realize I'm the villan. You didn't die. I killed you. The worst part is, I'd give anything to have you back. My Xbox 360, loved in life, and desperately cherrished in death.

[The 1 2 P]

NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

My Halo 3 Limited Edition console! How could you leave me like this? All alone, and with so much gaming still out there. I should have seen it coming, I suppose. Bioshock 2 just came out. Yeah, we had some good times with Halo 3, but then things got a little rocky when Halo Wars came out.

Looking back, it was probably my fault. Maybe my comparisons to Dune 2000 weren't as funny as I thought they were. I dunno. We tried it, sure, but we never could recapture the magic. Did I spend a lot of time with the original Bioshock? Yeah. Of course. But who didn't? It just seemed so exciting the first time, and, I dunno. . . I kept playing. Ok, yes, I kept playing, but can you blame me? Its not like it was serious. Just a fling, while I waited for ODST.

I don't even know why I'm posting this. Moral support? Someone to tell me its not my fault? Maybe. Maybe not. In retrospect, I see more clearly though. Everything I wanted, I had. You let me get the Battlestar Gallactica premium theme. Nothing hardcore, just a few high def renders of vipers. All very tastefull. And you laughed when I changed my motto to "The cake is a lie." But I always came back. We had an understanding.

So where did we go wrong? You must have seen the look in my eye when I brought up Bioshock 2 last weekend. You knew it was more than trivial fascination. As the picture comes into clear focus, I realize I'm the villan. You didn't die. I killed you. The worst part is, I'd give anything to have you back. My Xbox 360, loved in life, and desperately cherrished in death.

I know you are talking about your 360 but it sounds more like your ex-girlfriend:sob:

[Sniderman]

Earlier I posted:


I just hope I dont have any more issues with Microsoft in the future.

The fact that you're willing to continue to give money to them after all of this just floors the shit out of me.

And now I shall post:


The worst part is, I'd give anything to have you back.

The fact that you're willing to continue to give money to them after all of this just floors the shit out of me.

[megasdkirby]

Earlier I posted:



The fact that you're willing to continue to give money to them after all of this just floors the shit out of me.

And now I shall post:



The fact that you're willing to continue to give money to them after all of this just floors the shit out of me.

Can't agree enough.

First time, pure coincidence.

Second time, I'm getting annoyed and thinking something is up.

Third time, I will send the console to hell and get something else.

I'm not saying that the Xbox 360 is bad, because it's definitely not, but really? Why continue to promote a company by purchasing their items if said occurrence will continue? Many will defend their stand by stating it's "an investment", but truth be told, wouldn't they prefer something that is both enjoyable and that lasts?

[primalmaster]

Still have a 360 from launch that works just fin if you install game to the hdd, else it gives read errors from time to time. but got elite for hdmi and bigger hdd.

[LiquidPolicenaut]

My second 360 is on its last legs but I have a question for everyone: my system was giving me the 3 RROD yesterday and then today it booted up fine. I played Rock Band for like 5 songs worth, it froze, rebooted it, it gave me the digital vertical lines, then RROD again. Point is, its not consistently giving me the RROD but its most definitely dying/dead. Can I send it now to Microsoft or wait until its RROD are more consistent? I just don't want to send it to them and, somehow, the RROD don't show up and they tell me to pay :(