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Yet another 360 owner thread....
stranger678
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So I have steadfastly avoided the urge to buy a 360, while I waited for great games, and then I waited for the rumors of an upgrade to play out.
Now that I am faced with the reality of a sizeable purchase, I have a few questions for all you 360 owners.
1. Red Rings of Death, are these a problem with the new consoles? Or was it strictly a launch issue?
2. Play and charge, I read that the wireless controllers are battery hogs, but how bad is it? Do I need to shell out for the play and charge kits?
3. How loud is it? Everyone seems to complain about the noise, but these are also enthusiast boards, assuming it has the quieter benQ DVD drive in the elite model, how noticeable is the noise?
4. Besides the 3 Rings, are there any other known defects/issues I should be aware of that I should get the extended warranty to protect against?
5. Are their HD episodes of Hero's available for download? I know they did a partnership with NBC
6. I plan on getting Gears while I wait for the release of Mass Effect, is there anything in the genre of God of War or Ninja Gaiden that I should pick up as well?
I really appreciate any advice you could offer.
Now that I am faced with the reality of a sizeable purchase, I have a few questions for all you 360 owners.
1. Red Rings of Death, are these a problem with the new consoles? Or was it strictly a launch issue?
2. Play and charge, I read that the wireless controllers are battery hogs, but how bad is it? Do I need to shell out for the play and charge kits?
3. How loud is it? Everyone seems to complain about the noise, but these are also enthusiast boards, assuming it has the quieter benQ DVD drive in the elite model, how noticeable is the noise?
4. Besides the 3 Rings, are there any other known defects/issues I should be aware of that I should get the extended warranty to protect against?
5. Are their HD episodes of Hero's available for download? I know they did a partnership with NBC
6. I plan on getting Gears while I wait for the release of Mass Effect, is there anything in the genre of God of War or Ninja Gaiden that I should pick up as well?
I really appreciate any advice you could offer.
stranger678 on
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You don't *need* it, but I'd recommend one. The controllers are not battery hogs by any means, I go very long periods of time without charging. That being said, the option to use AAs or to plug it in with a Play and Charge kit is quite handy. It's not expensive, so fork for it.
The original models are loud. It is not a pleasant sound. We'll need to wait for the Elite to launch in order to get an accurate picture of sound production.
That's all of the opinion and fact that I've got to offer on this one. Enjoy your 360 when you get it, it's a great little console.
2. Get the lithium Ion batteries. They last a ton longer than the rechargable aa batteries.
3. Sound hasn't been an issue for me. I can't hear it at all when I play games. Pretty damn quite compared to my pc.
4. Not that I know of. Buying an extended warranty may be a good idea. I didn't because I figured if I got a bad one it will go out with in a year and if it doesn't go out it must be a good one.
5. dunno, but if not now i'm sure there will be soon.
6. Gears is awesome. Not really anything along the line of Ninja gaiden or god of war that I can think of. Maybe Crackdown will fill your run around and kill people apatite.
As far as advice goes, are you sure you don't wanna wait a little longer and get the elite model? You will want the 120gb hdd eventually if you plan on downloading tv shows and the like.
Red rings of death haven't been a problem for me, and I got my system in October of 06. Though my store's floor model (probably there since launch) has had the red rings three times since I've started in September. One of the red ring incidents was fixed by plugging and unplugging the unit, but the others we had to call the MS rep for.
Either way, I think you're safe now; the red ring incidents seem to be all but isolated.
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Oh yeah, that's why I held off so long, I am totally sold on waiting for the elite, I am just looking for a little info before I make that purchase. My local HD package sucks so I plan on fully utilizing marketplace, so I need the harddrive.
Thanks for the comments so far guys, keep it coming.
XBL : lJesse Custerl | MWO: Jesse Custer | Best vid ever. | 2nd best vid ever.
XBL: LiquidSnake2061
When you see them.....dead 360
When my 360 died I never got rings of death: most games would still play just fine, some games would play fine but lock up intermittently, and at least one game (Crackdown) would lock up consistently after 5 to 15 minutes of gameplay. So I guess it wasn't dead so much as impaired.
Here's some controversial advice, so definitely ask around (or read lower to see if people disagree): also consider getting one of those $20 coolers that hook onto the back of the 360 -- but realize that there's a risk you need to be aware of, so this cooler isn't right for everyone.
Pros: according to my personal measurements taken with an IR thermometer reading the outside of the 360, the exhaust leaving the back of the 360 is much cooler (102-105 degrees F instead of 120-125 degrees F) and the side panels of the 360 are a bit cooler (86 to 88 degrees F instead of 92-95 degrees F). Measurements are taken by slowly waving the IR thermometer around the whole surface and visually checking for the highest number I see. The cooler doesn't fight the 360's own ventilation: before the cooler was added, hot air blows out the back; after the cooler was added, air blows out the back even harder but the air is closer to body temp.
Cons: by itself the 360's power connector latches into the 360, so it can't be pulled out without someone pushing the two buttons in on the side of the connector. If you get this third-party cooler, your power cable no-longer locks into place. The cooler's connection to the 360's power jack doesn't latch, so the cooler could be pulled free from the 360; and the power cord doesn't latch into the cooler, so that cord could be pulled free. In theory if that cord or cooler were pulled out just BARELY far enough to create a small air gap, you could get arcing and scorching that could damage your 360. Be aware of that before buying. Also the cooler slightly lowers the available voltage on whichever PSU rail it uses, and that in theory could cause reliability problems. In practice my repaired 360 hasn't had any issues, but YMMV.
I've never played Ninja Gaiden but I have played God of War. I would say Dead Rising is great for lots of mindless killing. Strongly consider getting Gears of War, Dead Rising, and Crackdown, and either get Saints Row or wait for GTA4.
Definitely consider the play-and-charge kit. I don't know what to say -- you should be able to decide for yourself. It's certainly possible to spend the price of a play-and-charge kit on a pile of batteries and play just fine for a few months.
Yes the 360 is loud, and if you get that $20 add-on cooler it's even louder. Part of the loudness comes from fans -- the console uses a LOT of power and generates a LOT of heat, so you will need to keep it well ventilated. It's about like a high-end PC. The loudness doesn't bother me because I keep my 360 with my computers, and my computers are already loud. The DVD drive makes it even louder while you're playing a game, since the 360 spins DVD's at 70% to 80% of the maximum speed for DVDs (physical substrate failure speed) it sounds like any disk spinning at several thousand RPM's would sound. It'd be nice if they slowed that down a bit, but then you get lower data rates and longer loading times.
XBL Michael Spencer || Wii 6007 6812 1605 7315 || PSN MichaelSpencerJr || Steam Michael_Spencer || Ham NOØK
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Wait these things are still having problems with heat? Anyone know how they hold up to sand and dust?
This is just a tribute.
Can't you just used compressed air cans to clean them regularly, or is this not recommended? (I don't own one, yet)
(A little bird told me that there would be a premium pack with a play-and-charge kit + extra controller for the same price as a premium today).
For as long as the 360 has been out, I wouldn't be suprised at this coming up within the next season.
With my luck, it'll come just as I've paid off my credit cards.
This is just a tribute.
I don't know I'm worried that I'll lose the warranty if I have to open it. I may just end up buy another 360 to take with me back to the sand box...
You would be correct. My PS2 has lasted about 6 months already with only having to blow it out once, but I've heard of some people returning their 360s as much as 4 or 5 times over there... I was just curious if the newer versions would be more reliable, since I know heat was an issue even in the states when it first came out.
It was too late for the warranty to cover it, so I was thinking about getting an Elite.
But then I found out they aren't going to have the new, cooler chips. Is that a big deal?
XBL : lJesse Custerl | MWO: Jesse Custer | Best vid ever. | 2nd best vid ever.
Either way, I'm still under the original warranty, but I think I'm gonna play it safe and call MS tomorrow to get the extended warranty, just in case.
I keep mine horizontal. I've run it vertical a few times with no problems; just be sure not to switch positions with a disc in it or it will gouge the disc. That's kind of unavoidable with dual-orientation drives that don't have you clip the disc directly on the spindle, like in a laptop, say.
As for other questions:
Red Rings of Death: a bit of a misnomer, it's three lights on the Ring of Light. I got 'em once after a surge or something, but unplugging everything (HDD and all) for an hour or so fixed it. It's been fine ever since and that was months ago. That said, based on the amount I've been hearing about dying 360s it's probably the console with the most reliability issues since the early PS2s.
Play & Charge: Gets 25-30 hours per charge. The first accessory you should buy, period. It rocks. I got one ($20) and an official battery separate ($12) for my second controller. To clarify that, yes, the P&C does include a battery, so I have two batteries.
Loudness: It's pretty loud. The DVD drive seems to be the worst offender, of course... although I'm not sure why a 12x DVD-ROM is that loud to begin with. It's not as ear-bleeding as a Dreamcast or Saturn seeking info on a disc, but it sure as hell isn't silent. It's quieter than my old PC but louder than my current one...
Other known defects/issues: Nothing of note, so long as you keep the power supply well-ventilated as well as the console.
HD Heroes: not that I know of, but I don't frequent the Video Marketplace.
God of War/Ninja Gaiden style games: NG and NG: Black are both backwards compatible, but as of yet there's not a noteworthy actual 360 game of that ilk. DMC4 is coming, of course, but no-one knows when yet.
Compressed Air cans (for Henroid): Just like any other console, should be fine.
Up-coming price drops: doubtful any time soon based on the introduction of the Elite. But of course these things are never publicized ahead of time if they can help it. We all find 'em out at the same time, so, nothing yet. Retailer-made bundles are possible.
Disc read errors on scratch/smudge-free discs (for legion): In my experience, what people consider "scratch/smudge-free" varies wildly. I had a guy trade in Final Fantasy Chronicles and Anthology once who insisted the discs were in perfect, as-new condition, and they actually looked like someone had rubbed them with a Brillo pad and taken a penknife to them. (His response was "well, they are used, what do you expect?" :shock: ) Still, assuming they actually are pristine discs, that shouldn't be a recurring issue. Get on to MS if it is. Just one shouldn't be cause for alarm, but keep an eye on it.
Steam | XBL
Watch for the symptoms I described, and if they happen, call MS and get a coffin.
XBL Michael Spencer || Wii 6007 6812 1605 7315 || PSN MichaelSpencerJr || Steam Michael_Spencer || Ham NOØK
QRZ || My last known GPS coordinates: FindU or APRS.fi (Car antenna feed line busted -- no ham radio for me X__X )
I imagine those can be bad signs. The noises mentioned certainly do sound worrying. All clicking and grinding and vibrating.
But I've had my 360 since just before Christmas and I've been getting occassional DREs and the weird DVD vibrating while slowing down noise along with some worrying clicking and grinding noises right before I get a DRE since I got it. In fact, it did it the first night I played it. This tends to happen mostly with Gears of War and Rainbow Six: Vegas for me, and I haven't had it fail yet. That's not to say it's a good thing. I worry quite a bit every time it happens and I really don't want to have to send it in for replacement or repair as it would be quite annoying.
It has started to happen less now that I've turned the console horizontal, though. It's just, well, worrying.
My first 360 died, but I kept it vertical and I'd assume something just burnt out completely. Now, I keep it horizontally with an oscillating fan right next to it. No problems on my new console so far (got my replacement about 3 months ago).
Electronic composer for hire.
(Seen only questions & answers regarding the wireless approach)
Mine's horizontal. It just looks like it's waiting to fall over in the vertical position.
To be fair though, mine is on top of a storage cube with no walls. I wasn't about to put something that heavy on its side with a big dog, a small dog, two cats, and my klutzy self wandering through the house.
Also, on the subject of batteries, I'll eventually be getting rechargeables and a charger because then I can power my wireless PS2 controller, my Wii remotes, and my 360 controllers with the same batteries instead of buying batteries for the PS2 controller, and docking stations for both the Wii and the 360.
EDIT: DSL modem -> wired router -> 360 works. Same with cable modem.
Steam | XBL
(Because I'm going to use a Tft-screen for playing games, btw do Tft:s support 1280 x 720 since thats 720p?).
It totally depends on the features of the display. Consult your manual.
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