PS3 has YLOD

[Dari]

So, I finally got the time to take my PS3 out of storage, 5 years after putting it in there. But it's not working and the issue is YLOD. Can I send it to SONY to have them fix it? If not, how can I take the data on the HDD off? It's not being recognized in Windows.

 

[Doppel]

I googled it appears to be a ~$150 fix, which is a bit silly given that craigslist is selling PS3s for $150 anyway. There are methods to try and repair it yourself, though. Could be worth a shot.

I suppose I must mention that if you went the last five years without it maybe you won't end up playing it anyway!

 

[Rakehellion]

You can take it to a repair shop, but they might charge you more than the console is worth. Some people have had success with putting the circuit board in the oven to reball it.

 

[Nintendesert]

I think it's time for a PS4 to be honest.

 

[Sulaco]

I think it's time for a PS4 to be honest.

And how does that help him with his PS3 game library?

 

[Dari]

Thanks for the responses. $150 is a lot for a known problem with these machines. If I get a used system can I put my old HDD in there and it'll recognize it? I am more concerned about the data although I do want to play some games now that I have more time.

 

[Rakehellion]

You can't just swap the hard drive because each system has a unique encryption key. Try the reball thing if you want to keep your data.

 

[Rakehellion]

If you get the system working, you can use data transfer to copy everything to a new PS3.

 

[Shadowknight]

See if there's a Play N' Trade in the area, and pay them $100 bucks to fix it. If you do the oven fix, it is a temporary fix, and you are applying heat to ALL of the components, which will shorten their life.

 

[Nintendesert]

And how does that help him with his PS3 game library?

He hasn't played it in 5 years. I think it safe to say he's not really going to miss those games. So why spend $150 on fixing something he doesn't use?

 

[mmntech]

When I sent my PS3 fat in to Sony years ago to get the YLOD fixed, it lasted maybe 8 months before dying again. Biggest waste of $150.

A brand new 12GB is only $50 more than the repair fee. You can recycle the hard drive from the old PS3. Probably have to wipe it so it works with the new system though.

 

[Rakehellion]

See if there's a Play N' Trade in the area, and pay them $100 bucks to fix it. If you do the oven fix, it is a temporary fix, and you are applying heat to ALL of the components, which will shorten their life.

The system is already dead. Sounds like he's just trying to recover the data.

 

[Dari]

Ok guys, I got it to work. I bought a $12 heat gun from Freight Harbor in Brooklyn. Got some alcohol pads, thermal paste and pads from our IT department. I followed the ifixit.com instructions and it boots up. I will extract the relevant data then play some Xenogear this weekend.

 

[Fallen Kell]

Glad to hear you got yours working. Almost all the YLOD are avoidable if people properly cleaned their system and fan. But once you let your fan, intake/exhaust vents gunk up, you are pretty much at the mercy as to what breaks from the excess heat. Reballing will sometimes fix it if the problem was simply a bad solder join from the different metals expanding at different rates when operating at increased temperatures and essentially cracking the solder.

I've been doing an annual break-down/take apart cleaning of my launch PS3 and have yet to have any issues. I re-applied thermal paste about 3 years ago and will probably do that again in another 2 years.

 

[Dari]

Spoke too soon. The HDD is a goner. Oh well, at least I have the PS3. It's asking me to format the drive and that's exactly what I plan to do.

 

[Doppel]

Ok guys, I got it to work. I bought a $12 heat gun from Freight Harbor in Brooklyn. Got some alcohol pads, thermal paste and pads from our IT department. I followed the ifixit.com instructions and it boots up. I will extract the relevant data then play some Xenogear this weekend.

Well done!

You can get a new hard drive, like a 60 GB, which really is fine if you don't play much (or want to resell) for virtually nothing on ebay.

 

[purbeast0]

Spoke too soon. The HDD is a goner. Oh well, at least I have the PS3. It's asking me to format the drive and that's exactly what I plan to do.

when my ps3 ylod i did the heatgun fix, and the first thing i did was backup the hdd onto a usb drive in case it went out again. i never played my ps3 since then though, but it survived long enough to back up my whole hdd.

 

[Dari]

When I was using Netflix last night, after about 10 or 15 minutes the PS3 literally came roaring to life. It's like the fan went into overdrive. The PS3 is in an area with good airflow. Is there something I did wrong when fixing it? Do I need to add more thermal paste? What could be causing it to do that?