Original Xbox 80mm fan upgrade

William Quade on July 17, 2017

Last week I wrote about upgrading the fan inside of my SCPH-39001 PS2 to a quieter Noctua fan. This post covers a similar mod, an original Xbox 80mm fan upgrade. I’ll be using a pretty standard Noctua 80mm 12V computer fan to silence my original Xbox.

Things you’ll need

Here’s a short list of things you’ll need to upgrade your original Xbox’s fan.

  • Original Xbox console
  • 80mm fan, I used a Noctua NF-A8
  • Tools to cut plastic, like a Dremel

Original Xbox stock cooling system overview

The original Xbox has a pretty simple cooling system design. There is a single 72mm fan in the back that sucks air in from the vents on the sides. The air goes through components like the power supply, processor, and graphics processor, and then out the back of the system. Both the disc drive tray, and hard drive tray, are used to route air where it needs to go. The fan does a pretty good job of keeping the console cool. I’ve never had my original Xbox overheat, but it can get warm. [Read More]

SCPH-39001 PS2 fan upgrade

William Quade on July 10, 2017

While my PS2 fat console isn’t even close to as loud as my PS3 fat, the fan inside still makes enough noise to be annoying in game. This post covers the process of upgrading the fan inside of my PS2 fat to a standard 60mm computer fan.

Things you’ll need

Here’s a short list of things you’ll need to upgrade your PS2’s fan.

PS2 fat stock cooling system overview

The PS2 fat has a pretty simple cooling system design. There is a single slim 60mm fan in the back that sucks air in from the vents on the front. The air goes through the power supply and heatsink fins, and out the back of the system. The fan does a pretty good job of keeping the console cool. My PS2 does get warm, but I haven’t ever had it overheat. [Read More]

SCPH-39001 PS2 Modbo 5.0 modchip installation (V7 NTSC board)

William Quade on June 30, 2017

Earlier this month I installed a Modbo 4.0 modchip into my SCPH-70012 PS2 slim console. Since I also own an SCPH-39001 PS2 fat, I decided to install a modchip into it. Modchips for the PlayStation 2 you to get more out of your PS2. Things like playing games from other regions, playing PS1 and PS2 backups, and running homebrew applications. This blog post covers the installation of the Modbo 5.0 modchip into my SCPH-39001 PS2 fat console.

Update: I put together a Modbo modchip installation guide that covers all board revisions. You can find that guide here.

Things you’ll need

  • An SCPH-39001 PS2 fat console
  • Tools to take apart the PS2
  • A Modbo 4.0 or Modbo 5.0 modchip. They are pin compatible, I bought my chip from Eurasia.
  • 30 AWG kynar insulated wire wrapping wire
  • A soldering iron and solder

Both the Modbo 4.0 and Modbo 5.0 modchips are good modchips. The Modbo 5.0 chip allows booting homebrew directly off of a USB flash drive, which is less important for a PS2 fat, because of the hard drive bay, but still a nice feature. [Read More]

Xbox 360 E teardown guide

William Quade on June 26, 2017

In my last two teardown guides I covered taking apart a PSone, and a PS2 slim. This post is similar, but for Microsoft’s second slim revision of their Xbox 360, the Xbox 360 E. My goal is to have an Xbox 360 E teardown guide that’s more complete than the others available online.

I found the process of taking apart the Xbox 360 E to be easier than the process of taking apart my original Xenon Xbox 360. You won’t need a special opening tool to help you with hidden tabs or anything like that. It was however harder to take apart than a PS3 slim, mostly because of the lack of external screws. [Read More]

SCPH-70012 PS2 Modbo 4.0 modchip installation (V12 NTSC board)

William Quade on June 14, 2017

In April I installed an MM3 modchip into my original PlayStation console. Modchips also exist for the PlayStation 2 and allow for things like playing games from other regions, playing PS1 and PS2 backups, and running homebrew applications. This blog post covers the installation of the Modbo 4.0 modchip into my SCPH-70012 PS2 slim console.

Update: I put together a Modbo modchip installation guide that covers all board revisions. You can find that guide here.

Things you’ll need

  • An SCPH-70012 PS2 slim console
  • Tools to take apart the PS2 slim
  • A Modbo 4.0 or Modbo 5.0 modchip. They are pin compatible, I bought my chip from EurAsia.
  • 30 AWG kynar insulated wire wrapping wire
  • A soldering iron and solder

I initially installed a Modbo 4.0 chip, but ended up swapping it out for a Modbo 5.0 chip. The Modbo 5.0 chip allows booting homebrew directly off of USB flash drives, which is important since the PS2 slim doesn’t have support for an internal hard drive. [Read More]