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Fun with PS3!!

Dr. FrenchensteinDr. Frenchenstein Registered User regular
in Help / Advice Forum
So i have a low memory fatboy PS3, it's pretty old but not a launch unit. i also have a Harmony Smart control (the one with the sensor hub that is connected to a LAN). when i start up the "play video games" activity, the PS3 blinks a different color, beeps a few times, and then goes solid red. if i push the power "button"(not the switch), it turns off, then if i hit the power button again, it comes on. no problem.... i tried to start it up from the controller, and it doesn't do anything at all (all the lights blink on the controller, nothing happens on the unit)

My concern is that it's in it's death throes. If so, i want to make sure i have all my data and stuff backed up before it bricks! anybody had this happen? i see people getting the yellow light then blinking red, and not being able to start it up, but nothing like the issue i'm having.

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    RMS OceanicRMS Oceanic Registered User regular
    Sounds like a classic Yellow Light Of Death to me. The most common cause is the thermal paste around the CPU coming ineffective. There are usually folk who can examine it to see if that's the problem and apply fresh paste, which last time I did this cost me £40 (around $60). In the long run that can just be a reprieve however. It bought me another ten months of PS3.

    The controller not responding thing is unrelated: Sometimes the controller needs to be synched with the Playstation that's already switched on before that functionality works.

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    Dr. FrenchensteinDr. Frenchenstein Registered User regular
    oh it syncs right up if the PS3 is on. even if it's connected via USB it doesn't start up the PS3. Also, i tried directly turning it on (not through the harmony remote) and i got the same issue.

    Hmm, i wonder if it's worth getting it repaired, or just biting the bullet and getting a new slim model. i'm not planning on upgrading to PS4 anytime soon. I'll look around for repair shops and how much they charge. i think $60 is reasonable for a reprieve (i don't play it that much), but if it's closer to $100 i might just suck it up and get a new unit. i can get a refurb from gamestop for 200 with 5 games, or a brand new one for $270 it looks like...

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    Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    I had a problem where sometimes my controllers wouldn't wake up my PS3 fat. And the Sony BluRay remote almost never worked properly.
    So I got a new wireless board online, and fitted that up. Everything has been perfect since. While I had it apart I also took the opportunity to de-dust everything and apply new thermal paste to both processors.
    They're actually pretty simple to take apart, and there is a nicely photographed iFixit teardown guide that shows you exactly what (and how) to do.

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Penny Arcade Forums› Help / Advice Forum