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Hardware and Tech / Re: My 60gb PS3 Fat Preservation Project.
« on: January 23, 2016, 06:06:38 am »
I have a FAT 60gb PS3 and I tried to restore mine a while back, doing a couple different things than those described here. I never replaced the stock power supply, and never removed the CPU or GPU covers, but now after reading I am going to try since I now have to replace the wifi chip and laser deck anyways. Mine came with the 19 blade fan stock, and I did replace the Hard Drive with a 120gb SSD which may be slightly cooler, but I don't think it makes that big of a difference temp wise (except my install times are 2/3 faster!).. What I really did differently was use Noctua NT-H1 compound (my favorite and least finicky when it comes to application style), I also used the pea method which seemed to work well. I replaced all the thermal pads with better blue pads that were said to transfer heat better and last longer than the stock pads which were all dried and crumbling. I also modded the case by drilling holes in the bottom where the fan is. I first marked the center of the fan by putting a little thermal paste there and sat the already re-assembled board in the bottom case so I knew where the center was. I used a protractor to draw a perfect circle the size of the fan, then marked where I would drill 1/8" holes in a circular design so that it would still look nice and artistic. I heard that messing with the air flow could overheat the PS3, so I didn't want to over do it by simply cutting a huge hole in the bottom, but still probably drilled about 30 small holes. I never had the YLOD but did notice that when I first bought it refurbished a few years back, it was not moving as much hot air as I wanted it to. Now it blasts out hot air and noticeably runs cooler! I have no fear of it overheating anymore. The only time it seems to kick into stage 3 is when I am playing PS2 games for hours. Surprisingly, the fan usually stays in stage 2 when playing PS3 games for long periods, depending on the temperature in the room. Sometimes it kicks into stage 3 when streaming movies, but I live in Florida and we keep the house at about 80 degrees most of the time. Oh, and I always have my system standing up vertically, which I heard makes it run slightly hotter as well. When I have the air conditioning turned down to the mid 70s, the fan rarely kicks into stage 3. I do think the right thermal compound makes a big difference, as well as the better thermal pads, but the biggest thing may have been the case mod. Something to think about. 