Swapping Drives

[trencej]

Currently i have 2 xbox 360's, A first batch model with a rrod, And an elite, which is no longer reading disks.

I have not been inside an xbox360 before, although i have modded tons of Original xboxes. Could i swap the two dvd drives over without any other mods? I know this could not be done on the original xbox, so im guessing the same for the 360. If, however, i need to flash it, i may aswell drive flash it at the same time, as i dont play on live anymore anyway.

Also, how would i go about fixing an rrod. the whole towel thing did'nt work for me. As its quite old (pre dash update) so would make a good jtag candidate.

Cheers for the help.

TrenceJ

[Inferno.]

Your old 360, just sell it as a RRoD JTAGable console on eBay, with the money you make buy a new drive for your other 360 that won't read discs. If you intend to play the latest games on copy you need a matching DVD drive. (I'm guessing your Elite will be a BenQ/LiteOn, and that your old RRoD system will have a Samsung or Hitachi.) In which case you'll need a replacement BenQ/Liteon for LT+ to be able to function.

[trencej]

Thanks for the reply.

As i could not sleep last night, i decided to jump in with both feet, as the rrod machine had pretty much been replaced anyway, i ripped the bugger to bits, Read info on fixing the rrod, and had success! Pennies on the ram did the trick for me. While i was at it, also flashed the Drive. so now i have one working console, running copied games. Shame i trashed the case in the process, so next mission, is to place it in an original xbox case. Im currently extending the connector for the ring of light, to try and get it to sit inside the jewel ontop the original case. Quite pleased to be honest. Now to look for a replacement drive for the elite.

[Inferno.]

Thanks for the reply.

As i could not sleep last night, i decided to jump in with both feet, as the rrod machine had pretty much been replaced anyway, i ripped the bugger to bits, Read info on fixing the rrod, and had success! Pennies on the ram did the trick for me. While i was at it, also flashed the Drive. so now i have one working console, running copied games. Shame i trashed the case in the process, so next mission, is to place it in an original xbox case. Im currently extending the connector for the ring of light, to try and get it to sit inside the jewel ontop the original case. Quite pleased to be honest. Now to look for a replacement drive for the elite.

Your repair job won't last, you'll warp the motherboard even worse making it unrepairable when it does die again.

What you should have done is:

Removed the heatsinks, worked the motherboard over with a hot air gun to reflow the broken solder, cleaned the heatsinks and reapplied artic 5 thermal paste, then replaced the x-clamps with nuts and washers and put it all back together. It would've only lasted a few months tops, but it would have lasted longer than just using the 'penny trick' which is a terrible 'fix'.

EDIT: And I'm not meaning to sound like a dick, I too fell for these easy fixes back in the day. I remember when I replaced the x-clamps on my E74'd Falcon in 2008, then added some sponges onto the RAM chips (same idea as the penny fix) - I was gutted 15 minutes later when it died again. These 'quick fixes' just don't work I'm afraid.

[trencej]

Hey, dont worry about sounding like a dick, i know you cant put over emotion very well on the net.

I should have gone into more detail i suppose, i did clean and reapply thermal paste (im used to doing it in PC's, used to fix them for a living. its habit now), and put washers on the clamps etc, i just did the other fixes also. We shall see how long it lasts, to be honest, im not that bothered if it dies again. like i said, i had already acceppted it was dead, thats why i decided to try in the first place. was quite a suprise when it worked to be fair, and its in bits at the moment, but working.

More of an experiment than a long term solution, a learning experience if you will. any excuse to take something apart. But many thanks for your comments.