Print PDF
Favorite
Email
To start, I'll first just admit that I have always been an XBOX 360 fan boy. I have done my fair share of ridiculing the PS3, and even deterred people from buying one. But that was all before Gran Turismo 5, which literally had me convinced at first sight that a PS3 was something that I had to own. So, I bought one. A broken one. A YLOD one. Now, some might think that was a stupid choice, with good reason.
However, because I was an XBOX fan, I was very familiar with the Red Rings of Death, or RROD for short. And because I am an aspiring engineer and experienced tinkerer, I had gotten very familiar (and very good) at fixing consoles with this problem, thanks to the many helpful tutorials posted on sites like xbox-experts.com. Once I discovered that the YLOD is basically the same problem as the RROD, I made the choice to buy a broken PS3 and fix it. This tutorial explains how I did it, using tips, tricks, and methods I have used to fix XBOX's in the past.
BE AWARE THAT PERFORMING THE METHOD WILL VOID VOID VOID YOUR WARRANTY (which is probably expired anyway if you are fixing a launch console). I will also say right now that I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE for any damage you may do to your PS3 or your oven (I'm talking about a conventional kitchen oven BTW, not a microwave!) by following this guide, and I do not guarantee a fixed console. But I will say that if you follow this guide, your chances are good.
However, because I was an XBOX fan, I was very familiar with the Red Rings of Death, or RROD for short. And because I am an aspiring engineer and experienced tinkerer, I had gotten very familiar (and very good) at fixing consoles with this problem, thanks to the many helpful tutorials posted on sites like xbox-experts.com. Once I discovered that the YLOD is basically the same problem as the RROD, I made the choice to buy a broken PS3 and fix it. This tutorial explains how I did it, using tips, tricks, and methods I have used to fix XBOX's in the past.
BE AWARE THAT PERFORMING THE METHOD WILL VOID VOID VOID YOUR WARRANTY (which is probably expired anyway if you are fixing a launch console). I will also say right now that I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE for any damage you may do to your PS3 or your oven (I'm talking about a conventional kitchen oven BTW, not a microwave!) by following this guide, and I do not guarantee a fixed console. But I will say that if you follow this guide, your chances are good.
Remove these ads by
Signing UpStep 1Background & Theory
So what causes the YLOD? There are several prevailing theories, including a faulty power supply, corrupted hard drive, or virus circulating through the PSN (which is probably 100% false). But, while I'm not saying that these AREN'T the cause of your particular case of YLOD, I will say that most likely, the cause of your issue are the solder balls underneath the RSX (basically the GPU, or Graphics Processing Unit) and Cell BE (basically the CPU, or Central Processing Unit) chips. These can be seen in the picture on this page. This style of fastening the chips to the board is know as BGA, or Ball Grid Array. What you really need to know though, is that under the chips their are hundreds of tiny balls of solder, which pass information from the chip to the motherboard. These balls are constantly submitted to intense heat due to the chip above them, which is being cooled by a huge heat-sink and fan.
This would all be hunky dory, except for the lead free solder which composes the chips. The European Union, a political and economic union of 27 countries, banned the importation of electronics containing lead in 2006, which has caused most electronics manufactures to switch to lead free solder in their products, even those sold in the U.S. (thanks to Entropy512 for the information). Unfortunately lead free solder has two (theorized) weaknesses. The first is that with repeated, high temperature (higher than what Sony engineers intended) exposure caused by 8 hour Call of Duty marathons or similar, followed by rapid cooling of the console once turned off, the balls begin to lose their elasticity, and eventually crack. This causes an open circuit, and when you try and power the PS3 up again, you are greeted with the YLOD. The other theory is that over time, due to the aforementioned high temperatures, the balls begin to grow "tin whiskers" which cause a short with another ball nearby, once again causing the YLOD. Which actual cause it really is doesn't matter, because the method I outline here will fix both.
This magical method is known as an oven re-flow. In a nutshell, the oven is used to heat the PS3 motherboard up to a temperature high enough to melt the solder balls underneath the RSX and Cell BE chips. When the board cools, the balls are reformed with the help of flux, which gives them back their elasticity. Don't worry, the oven will not get hot enough to "liquefy" the solder and cause it to pool into one giant glob, but only enough to cause it to "goo up" and reform each individual ball.
After the re flow, high quality thermal paste can be used to increase the PS3's cooling efficiency and lessen the chance of the YLOD reoccurring. More info on and clarification will be given on this later.
Now, the last thing is to "critique" other methods of fixing the YLOD. The main one that you may have heard of is the heat-gun method, which works, but has several downfalls, the first of which in my mind is the price. A heat-gun costs like 50 bucks at your local hardware store. The oven method is almost free - all you need are some basic supplies, which are less than 20 bucks. The other big downfall is that the heat-gun warps the motherboard because it heats one area while other areas stay cool. This means that when you put the warped board back in the case and bolt it all in, it puts stress on the new solder balls, which is never good and will help to cause failure in the future. The oven method avoids this by EVENLY heating all areas of the board, keeping flex very minimal. The other "trick" I have heard of is using a blow dryer to heat up the innards of the console. While this also works, it does not re-flow, but instead will un-flex the motherboard over its whole area (similar to the low temp. oven bake detailed later in the instructable), which causes a temporary re-alignment of the cracked solder balls. However, after a few cycles of hard gaming, the board will warp back to the way it was, and the console will fail once again. The best way to fix BGA related failure is to use a professional re-flow station and griddle, but these cost big bucks, and would be pointless to buy for a one time fix.
Alright, lets do it.
This would all be hunky dory, except for the lead free solder which composes the chips. The European Union, a political and economic union of 27 countries, banned the importation of electronics containing lead in 2006, which has caused most electronics manufactures to switch to lead free solder in their products, even those sold in the U.S. (thanks to Entropy512 for the information). Unfortunately lead free solder has two (theorized) weaknesses. The first is that with repeated, high temperature (higher than what Sony engineers intended) exposure caused by 8 hour Call of Duty marathons or similar, followed by rapid cooling of the console once turned off, the balls begin to lose their elasticity, and eventually crack. This causes an open circuit, and when you try and power the PS3 up again, you are greeted with the YLOD. The other theory is that over time, due to the aforementioned high temperatures, the balls begin to grow "tin whiskers" which cause a short with another ball nearby, once again causing the YLOD. Which actual cause it really is doesn't matter, because the method I outline here will fix both.
This magical method is known as an oven re-flow. In a nutshell, the oven is used to heat the PS3 motherboard up to a temperature high enough to melt the solder balls underneath the RSX and Cell BE chips. When the board cools, the balls are reformed with the help of flux, which gives them back their elasticity. Don't worry, the oven will not get hot enough to "liquefy" the solder and cause it to pool into one giant glob, but only enough to cause it to "goo up" and reform each individual ball.
After the re flow, high quality thermal paste can be used to increase the PS3's cooling efficiency and lessen the chance of the YLOD reoccurring. More info on and clarification will be given on this later.
Now, the last thing is to "critique" other methods of fixing the YLOD. The main one that you may have heard of is the heat-gun method, which works, but has several downfalls, the first of which in my mind is the price. A heat-gun costs like 50 bucks at your local hardware store. The oven method is almost free - all you need are some basic supplies, which are less than 20 bucks. The other big downfall is that the heat-gun warps the motherboard because it heats one area while other areas stay cool. This means that when you put the warped board back in the case and bolt it all in, it puts stress on the new solder balls, which is never good and will help to cause failure in the future. The oven method avoids this by EVENLY heating all areas of the board, keeping flex very minimal. The other "trick" I have heard of is using a blow dryer to heat up the innards of the console. While this also works, it does not re-flow, but instead will un-flex the motherboard over its whole area (similar to the low temp. oven bake detailed later in the instructable), which causes a temporary re-alignment of the cracked solder balls. However, after a few cycles of hard gaming, the board will warp back to the way it was, and the console will fail once again. The best way to fix BGA related failure is to use a professional re-flow station and griddle, but these cost big bucks, and would be pointless to buy for a one time fix.
Alright, lets do it.
| « Previous Step | Download PDFView All Steps | Next Step » |
"Blu tack has a flash point of 93°C/200°F, at which it releases carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water vapour, oxides of nitrogen, and toxic fumes."
Ummm....
i don't have access to an oven thermometer. pls i will like to know how long, i will leave the motherboard in the oven before i open the oven door.
is it necessary to fix in screws for support in the motherboard? i will like to know about any other way to keep d board from touching the oven pan. pls i really need help. nnamdiibens@live.com
N a couple of days.
Only comment I would have is a hint on the rebuild side. Depending on your model you may need to remember to replace the battery for the backup memory BEFORE putting the motherboard back in it's rack. Also for the model I have it was not necessary to remove the fan...just unplug it.
Great instructions from jake for the reflow and oven approach THANKS!
http://www.wwbroadcast.com/CircuitWorks_Lead_Free_Flux_Dispensing_Pen_p/tcnc_cw8400.htm
the only thing this guide is missing, is removing the IHS heatspreader off the RSX chip, and cleaning all the adhesive off the four ram chips, then using either thermal adhesive (arctic alumina) or else thermal paste(i like arctic mx-4) to attach the heatspreader after.
reflowing a board with the IHS still attached will completely own all the thermal paste that the RSX has on it in the center of the heat spreader.
i imagine this will happen with the cell's IHS as well, but the rsx is usually the culprit for YLOD and the silicon on the CELL's IHS makes it a challenge to get off.
I fixed a laptop like this last week. A Packard Bell SJ51-B028. I thought it was dead. I hadent view this instructable. I putted the motherboad in the oven at 180° Celsius during 8 minuts.
Things I wish I had known:
Ribbon cable clamps rotate up and down, away from the connections.
You need lots of sticky-tac.
You really can only buy the flux on ebay, unless you want a gallon of it.
You should buy the bolts as the tutorial instructs, it helps to keep the long power connections from being heated. (oops)
My only error is that the connection to the internal battery isn't working, so it asks for the date and time whenever it gets unplugged. It plays blu-rays but can't tell time- who cares? (Maybe I'll fiddle with the connection at a later date.)
I'm amazed that such a high tech piece of equipment could actually be repaired by exposing it to such extreme temperatures... You gotta love science!
had that ylod ps3 laying around for over 3 months now and never really tried to fix it. It was from a friend who bought a new one so i had nothing to lose :D
I skipped the 8 hour thing and insulated only with some aluminium foil, luckily i could get my hands on a really good thermometer.
I fixed up the board on 5 screws ( everything real quick'n'dirty you see ;) ) and put it in the cold oven. Waited till the temp hit 237° C, turned the oven off and opened the door.
Nothing exploded or melted. I got the brown residue some people mentioned but guess that is not a problem. The only thing I noticed is that the PS3 now smells a bit like a hair dryer but doesn't get extreme hot so i don't care.
Thanks for this really really nice and helpful guide!!!
What do you think about cleaning the oven? I didn't bake anything since and I don't want my next pizza to taste like micro-chips :D
but i think i have some idea as to how, and here's where i screwed up
i got a little $6 oven thermometer at bed bath and beyond to use for my reflow, the dial goes up to 600, and i assumed it would be an accurate reading.
i skipped the 8 hour at 170 degree board unflexing step, but i don't think that was the problem
i used $2 off brand sticky tack from hobby lobby for the insulation, and that was probably not a good move. The sticky tack left a TON of residue on the board all around the capacitors. it was so bad that i accidentally popped off a tiny chip near the small forward capacitors as i was trying to clean it!
And when i was doing the reflow, the oven thermometer stopped climbing at about 425 when the oven was set to 500 and had gotten there. I sort of panicked and threw the door open to begin cooling with a fan. I removed the mobo after it cooled down, but a tiny 8 pin chip from the bottom of the mobo was left behind on the tray! I suspect the solder melted a little and it just fell off, meaning i got it too hot.
i tried to verify the thermometer, and sure enough, when the oven was going strong at 450 (While baking something else) the thermometer only registered 400. wtf!
and then when i went to turn it on, i got a solid green light, but a red blinking light beside it ,and no fan activity of any kind! it's not a ylod but it's not a working system either.
so, for other people; remember this
-get a GOOD oven thermometer you KNOW is accurate (test with your oven beforehand to see if its at least 20 degrees close to the mark)
-get BLU TACK BRAND SPECIFICALLY
"The no-clean flux is used because flux is basically an acid. What it does it eat corrosion off of the solder and solder pads, so that the solder will correctly "stick" to the clean surface rather than flow around the impurities that would otherwise be present. However, because of its acidity, if left on the solder, it will slowly eat it away also, leading to weak joints and possible failure. This is why normal, activated flux must be cleaned from joints when used heavily. Obviously this is not necessary for no-clean, hence the name.
Now rosin flux it still an acid, but it only becomes active at high temperatures (as long as it is purely rosin based). This is the standard hand soldering flux, which is available in three flavors: non-activated, mildly activated, and activated. Any type that is activated will require cleaning, as it is corrosive and contains an "active" acid. Apparently there are "non-corrosive" types, which I assume are non-activated. They will be safe to use, but perhaps not as good at wetting the solder as a no-clean type for our given situation. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soldering for more info.
So in conclusion, you'd be better off getting some Kester 951 from eBay. However if you absolutely must buy local, the non corrosive flux will *probably* be your best bet. "
Also, I just want to say THANK YOU EVERYONE WHO HAS POSTED YOUR SUCCESSES AND FAILURES. It's great to get feedback, even if it is sometimes negative :)
Thank-you for you input into this excellent 'ible, time well spent.
And with NO insulation!
I've moved to spain and most of the ovens over here don't even have temperature settings. So I just started it up at the lowest setting for the first pass... (left it in 4 hours because my gas bill just couldn't stand 8), then I turned the dial to about 7:30 (if it were a clock) and kept it in there for five minutes. Then I cracked the oven door and let it cool slowly.
All this with no insulation (I really do think you're underestimating the PS3s caps). I also believe that what the other guy said was correct, if the bottom of the caps is being heated to one temperature then the top must be getting heated to the same. And far from the blu-tack keeping heat out... it's also keeping the heat that's rising from the bottom in. So I think the blu-tack method would actually make the caps heat FASTER... not slower.
But that's just an opinion. (We'll have to have the Mythbusters guys settle this one.)
Anyway I couldn't find blutack anywhere in Barcelona so I had to take my chances and it WORKED!
I wish I had found your article a long time ago. I would've mastered Dark Phoenix by now!
Thanks!
its called uptech computers but great instructable i will consider this if they cant fix it
Some pics of my procedure:
http://s10.photobucket.com/albums/a122/graphicsgod/PS3%20Fixing/
And the melted areas:
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a122/graphicsgod/PS3%20Fixing/PS3_MB_09.jpg
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a122/graphicsgod/PS3%20Fixing/PS3_MB_10.jpg
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a122/graphicsgod/PS3%20Fixing/PS3_MB_12.jpg
I recommend anyone with a PS3 to cut holes/slits/whatever in the bottom of their "FAT" PS3 for maximum airflow (I think for the "Slim" the fan is now on the top)!! Makes no sense why Sony did this design and made the air holes on the sides do nothing! And no way to get "cool" air into the system for proper air flow. Anyway, it might be scary to cut your PS3's case, but if your already planning on putting your MB in the oven, this is nothing!.. Plus it will keep the YLOD from happening more often. So far my system has been going strong with no sign of stopping, only froze on PSHome once. And the fan is modded to be at high speed with the flip of a switch in the back. But it is so freaken loud that I have to turn up the volume of the TV to wash it out, but still it's better than letting it overheat I guess. I plan on doing this again soon. I just ordered an XBOX 360 Elite with RROD, now I just need a really good tut. for fixing this in the oven without doing any damage to the MB..
If anyone knows of some, send me a link!!
graphicsgod@gmail.com
In a nutshell, do some googling, and if you're still convinced cracked solder balls are at fault, feel free to try it at your own risk.
Oh, and check and see if you have a warranty! If you do Sony will replace your console... FOR FREE!