Can You Fix Your XBox 360 3 Rings Of Death?

 Photo by Robert Paul Young

The reason you are reading this is probably because you are one of the estimated 35% of XBox 360 owners that has the 3 rings of death. Now you are here because you are looking for options to get your console fixed.

Good news, you have come to the right place.

A general hardware failure in your XBox console is what triggers the 3 flashing red lights. One major cause of the XBox 3 rings of death is a graphics chip that puts out too much heat. The graphics chip was designed "in house" by Microsoft in order to save money.

Unfortunately, Microsoft's experience in the manufacture of chips did not match the expertise of their vendors that produce these chips on a regular basis. The result was a chip that put out too much heat. Microsoft has since gone to a chip provided by an ASIC vendor that does a lot to reduce the heat produced.

Although the new consoles are produced with the more efficient chip, a lot of the XBox consoles that are in use today still have the old chip and will suffer from the overheating problem. The excess heat in the console causes solder joints to crack or break and chips to weaken or shut down altogether.

Your XBox can be sent in to Microsoft for repair. If the console is still under warranty the repair should be free. If the warranty is expired or void, it could cost around $140.00 plus shipping to get the unit repaired. In addition to the monetary expense, you may have to wait 6 to 8 weeks to get your console back.

You can take your console to a local repair shop. This option should be faster but will probably be more expensive. Another option is to fix your XBox 3 rings of death yourself. In order for this option to deliver the desired results, you will need to have the information to make sure you do everything right. Clicking on the link above will take you to a Squidoo lens that will give you more information.

There is one important thing to remember if you decide to fix your console yourself. The warranty on XBox consoles suffering from the 3 rings of death has been extended by Microsoft to 3 years from date of purchase. If your console is still under warranty you will void that warranty if you open the case yourself.