PS3..best cooling option

juztbecause

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I can play BF3 for hrs however unit gets very warm and will freeze.
I have a PS3 320 GB model.

After seeing many options online what have you folks found to be the best cooling option ?

I did think of parking it inside the beer fridge but that will warm my beer and that just won't work with me.

Something easy and effective would be great.

Thanks.
Juztbecause.
 
I can play BF3 for hrs however unit gets very warm and will freeze.
I have a PS3 320 GB model.

After seeing many options online what have you folks found to be the best cooling option ?

I did think of parking it inside the beer fridge but that will warm my beer and that just won't work with me.

Something easy and effective would be great.

Thanks.
Juztbecause.

Haven't really tried any of the coolers, but I will just state the basics, keep the vents (on the side, back and front!) clean and free of obstructions!

A lot of people like to stick their PS3s on shelves and in entertainment units that don't provide enough airflow, or they put other things like stacks of blu-rays or DVDs and games right next to the system which also blocks the vents.

I am running my original first-model 60GB without any extra cooling, and it runs great -- just be diligent about maintaining it by keeping the vents clear and free of dust is the best advice I can offer.

I'm sure others will comment about the coolers, just thought I could add the above info.
 
Thanks for the info. None of those issues or conditions apply.

Unit sits alone on top of a cabinet (not inside), no junk anywhere near it, or heat source, low traffic area, large room 25' x 15'. vents are clean, unit used by myself only. Resides in my man cave and the rules are simple, no visitors without my approval, nobody allowed to use the PS3, projection unit or my laptop. The pins and vids are free to use and the dog stays out.

So... when I do use the PS3 I mostly play BF3 and that can be anywhere from 2hrs to 8hrs, just depends how much free time I have.

I have a temp gun and could check the temp, just not for a week as I'm now night shift and game playing won't happen for another 5 days.

Thanks for the input.
 
Unless you're open to the idea of opening it and making some modifications, I have nothing to suggest. Addon fans don't do SQUAT, don't waste your money.

If your warranty is up, and you're ok with tearing it apart, I would suggest pulling the heatsinks, replacing the thermal compound with Arctic Silver 5, and maybe even adding copper shims(with compound on both sides) between the heatsink and CPU\GPU.

The cause of overheating and eventual failure(YLOD) is the stupidity of choosing BGA(Ball Grid Array) chipsets over FCPGA in such a compact device where heat is an issue for BGA, the solder joints crack(microscopic, causes failure.
If you're having freezes, chances are the GPU is starting to exhibit these problems. Soon enough, the CPU will likely follow.
 
If your warranty is up, and you're ok with tearing it apart, I would suggest pulling the heatsinks, replacing the thermal compound with Arctic Silver 5, and maybe even adding copper shims(with compound on both sides) between the heatsink and CPU\GPU.

Thanks, I may very well have to do that.
 
How many hours are you playing to get this problem to occur?

I play MW3 for hours and I have my original PS3 with no problems.
 
Which orientation does your ps3 sit? Mine is standing vertical, and I've never had any over heating issues. I've played 12 hours straight numberous times.
 
Play time 2-8 hrs.
Unit sits horizontally.

Once I'm done night shift in a few days, I'm going to see if I can help it breathe a little easier and start with a simple fan for air flow (although currently the air flow is not restricted)


If this works then I'll come up with a more permanent solution, if it does not work then I'm back to the drawing board.

Thanks.
 
I don't normaly post on the console section, but this one caught my eye. My brother-in-law gave me his PS3. I had to "fix" it 3 times because it kept YLODing. Every time it was the same fix. Heat gun to the CPU/GPU! It would be good for about 2 months, then do it again. I modded it and it's been running fine for almost 6 months straight. Part of the problem is the cramped space and the CPU/GPU don't get enough air flow. But, I've also found that the power supply gives off a tremendous amount of heat. Part of the problem is that they have a heat sheild that's plastic lined over the power supply. That holds in a lot of heat and has no where to travel so it stays inside the case. It took some effort but, I removed the heat shield and placed a fan blowing directly on the heat sink of the power supply. Also, mounted a fan inside the front (see the vent holes) blowing that air out. A large fan was placed under to force air to the CPU/GPU. I've had no problems at all. Played Black Ops for about 10 hours one day. Sure it was a little extreme, but I only paid $10 for the large fan on the bottom. Besides, the green LEDs of the bottom fan now gives it a cool glowing effect.
 

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Thanks for the reply. I'll give it a go in a few days and see what I can come up with.

Stuff like this is why I never buy the latest console, I'm usually one behind.
I thought all the bugs would have been worked out long before I bought my slim PS3, apparently not.

Thanks for the info.
 
Play time 2-8 hrs.
Unit sits horizontally.

Once I'm done night shift in a few days, I'm going to see if I can help it breathe a little easier and start with a simple fan for air flow (although currently the air flow is not restricted)


If this works then I'll come up with a more permanent solution, if it does not work then I'm back to the drawing board.

Thanks.

If it's possible to stand it vertically, do that.
 
I think mine even came with the vertical stand? I didn't even think about that being an issue.
 
How many hours are you playing to get this problem to occur?

I play MW3 for hours and I have my original PS3 with no problems.


I do the same. My kids play for a couple hours MW3 and then I stream Netflix most of the night and never had any problems.
 
I can't really add much new, but I can echo what people say about the "intercoolers" you can get for these.

They don't work. Unless they have changed since my store sold them 3 years ago, they actually tend to act like a vacuum and suck more dust in to your system.

Not to mention that some plug in to your systems AC port and then you plug the wire in to the cooler. They had been known to cause systems to short out.
 
I can't really add much new, but I can echo what people say about the "intercoolers" you can get for these.

They don't work. Unless they have changed since my store sold them 3 years ago, they actually tend to act like a vacuum and suck more dust in to your system.

Not to mention that some plug in to your systems AC port and then you plug the wire in to the cooler. They had been known to cause systems to short out.

I have heard a lot of neg. about these.

I'll try the easy stuff first like a vertical mount and an addition small fan nearby, just to confirm it is a temp related issue, I have temp gun so I can track that as well.

Worst case scenario I'll mod for an additional fan. I used to build pc's back when DOS ruled and windows was not even a pipe dream.
 
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