Hello all, i'll cut right down to business here.
I know and have heard a few people are having problems with their ps3 and i have a few simple rituals that i do to keep mine healthy. I highly suggest them to all ps3 and console owners.
#1: Always eject after a game/bluray/dvd after using it. That disc slowly spins in the tray and the lasre is on too. Its called wear and tear, that motor is running and can help to burn it out quicker, same thing with the laser. So always try to eject and put the game away after using it, when you turn the system back on it will ingest the disc back into the tray, try to keep that tray motor from running if you can by taking the disc out completely.
#2: Keep it standing up. Heat travels up, the vents are on the side, you have it turned up, the vents are now up, allowing the heat that fan don't catch to escape through the vent. We all now how hot the machine gets and by keeping it flat the heat rises to the top and slowly seeps out the side vent, eliminate that by standing that bugger up.
#3: Clean, clean, suck it clean. Always wipe the dust off of it, we know how its a magnet for dust and it will get inside the console. My method is not just to use duster because just that alone will move the dust to places where it wasn't before but if you want to use duster or any kind of compressed air/Co2 then stick a good vacuum cleaner up to the back vents and turn it on, the duster will move the dust into the air and the vacuum will suck it out. I infact don't use duster but just a vacuum cleaner with a small hose attachment and put it on all the vents on the console, after a good wipe down of course, then i turn the console on and use the vacuum again but just in the back vents. I don't know if it is okay to use duster anyway, so use it a you own risk.
#4: Keep your games clean. Wipe them down if you have to, just don't scratch them. The laser is really powerful and and you don't want to make it try to read something it can't due to dust or scratches. A less burden on the hardware is always a good thing. And keep your games in the cases, thats how dust and scrathes mainly occur, from them getting on the disc and us trying to clean that disc but not doing it gently enough. It doesn't take much to clean a dirty disc.
And thats about all i can think of at this time. I have a launch 60 gig(now 250) with linux installed and over sixty games on the hdd. Its been dropped 18 inches and has a scar on her face that would make Tony Montana look like a pussy, been in a backpack traveling with me from florida to north carolina in a greyhound bus, put in a freezer because i thought my download speeds were way to slow and i wanted to see if cooling it down would help (it didn't, it was my modem not "standing up" a reference to #2 but a different electronic), and has been a top notch performer playing games. The only time it freezes is when i use the shitty browser. But i follow these steps myself and it runs like deer, a john deere.
I hope these may help keep your system healthy like mine has been.
#1_in_the_hood_G!!
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Great! I take great care of my PS3. I don't want it to break, I spent $600 on that mofo!
I will definitely take a vaccume to my PS3 tomorrow, I usually just wipe it off, but now I realize that dust gets into the system .Great tips.
I didn't realize that it constantly spins the disk and engages the laser while a disk is inside. Now I shall always eject my disks. I spend a lot of time watching tv shows on the hard drive or on the internet.
This was helpful to me.
I also have a launch 60gb that works like a charm. I take it to work in a backpack once a week and I put it away when I leave work. Mine gets moved around a lot.
Don't have a PS3, but the same rules apply to the 360 (I guess), especially the vacuuming of the vents.
Or you can do what I do, leave it off for months at a time because it has no games!
Oh, I kid, I kid!
Good suggestions. I always eject discs anyway, but I didn't know it kept running even when not in use.
Then again, should I be taking maintenance advice from someone who's put his ps3 in the freezer?
it still works like a dream, freezer or not.
The standing upright thing may work fine for PS3, but I would definitely not recommend doing that for a 360, unless you want burn rings galore. I've seen so many people accidentally knock over their 360 with it standing upright and completely ruin games.
yeah, i don't know how much these would work with other systems but i know they work with the ps3. i do these things out of habit now, its a good habit to have i suppose.
My PS3 recently broke and I should have it back anytime now. I didn't know discs spun when idle and I never thought about standing it up that way. When I get it back I'll be sure to do these, hopefully I'll never have to send it back again. Great tips.
You know what I've noticed? Everyone on Destructoid who's reported problems with their PS3s all had the original 60gb model. That can't be a coincidence.
I thought vacuuming (sp?) wasn't good for electrical equipment because it creates static electricity that can damage it?
I found a company in my city that will fix my ps3 for $150, and I don't have to deal with the 3 weeks of no gaming. They seem pretty legit. Hopefully everything turns out for the better. See you guys soon on the PSN!
Also: Nice write up, I'm definitely going to be extra cautious when I get it back.
I need to do these. I bookmarked because I'll need this again as a point of reference^^
thank ye
@Pedrovay2003: The people with the original 60Gb model actually have PS2 games they can play right now, thus it's getting used.
"Heat travels up, the vents are on the side, you have it turned up, the vents are now up, allowing the heat that fan don't catch to escape through the vent."
It has two vents, one on each side, thus you get a cross wind. Vertical, where's the in-air coming from? The "hot air rises out my console" is missing the basics of how heat travels around a console.
Also, the console should just work as it is. If I need to keep actively doing things to stop it breaking, it's not been made right.
Also, vacuum stuck on the side!? Are you crazy!!? That's one of the worse things you can do. the components aren't designed for that kind of pressure/wind changes.
the in-air comes from the front vents. put your hand there and you can feel it being sucked in, is there a vent where the hdd is located? i only see 4 little slivers. hot air rises, that's a fact and doesn't need an explanation.
the vacuum cleaner i use ain't from nasa and isn't greatly powerful, it won't hold a bowling ball up. the system took an almost 2 foot drop, a vacuum cleaner ain't gonna break something that drop couldn't.
and yeah, you don't have to do these if you don't want but i do and i'm not putting a gun to your head to do the same. these are my rituals and i thought i should share what i do with you all. the machine will work regardless, but i like the 6 P's: proper planning prevents piss poor performance. take care of your console.
Hey, just giving advice that I took as fact.
"hot air rises, that's a fact and doesn't need an explanation."
Get something warm and get a very, very small fan. Put the fan above the hot thing. Unless the air is still, the warm air won't rise. Sticking your console on end makes no difference as there are fans.
It makes a difference with the 360 as the bottom (when vertical) of the 360, when on it's side, acts like an extra vent.
But, as I said, if the PS3 is going to get damage from being 90 degrees different, it's designed wrong.
i agree, if the ps3 is angled wrong and breaks, then it is shit designed.
i just notice that when the machine is on for a bit, heat does pour out of the side vent, the fan does push most of it out the back, but even now, i can feel heat coming out the top, i just don't want to burden the fan with more heat that i can help to eliminate. i know some people may not have the space but just make sure the back vent has space to blow out the hot air, i'd say about 5-6 inches from any wall, too close and its about like covering your hand on the back vent, that heat won't escape the way its designed to. it needs to circulate, not be stuck with no ventilation.
its a super tough machine though
thanks for the tips, I am guilty of always leaving discs in.
you're welcome.
I once every 4-6 months.
Use a DVD/CD Lens Cleaner Disc.
I read somewhere on the internet. That a small amount of particle build up on a Blu-Ray Laser Lens is a REALLY bad thing. I don't know if this is exactly true, but do it regardless.
Laying the PS3 on it's side will result in higher internal temps because you are covering more surface area thus insulating one side. It shouldn't really make a huge deal, but that's how it is.
Good advice. As for the "keep it standing" point though, I just don't have the space in my place to put it up. As such my solution is to have a lot of open space in front of each vent, the better to move the hot air away from the machine.
Also great tip on keeping the drive clear, I didn't know that before.
I'd also like to add that if you want to keep your power costs down (she's a hungry baby), take the machine off standby mode when done using it by flipping the main power switch on the back.
If you've got a separate blu-ray player, use that instead to play blu-ray movies, as comparatively a launch-model 60gb uses five times as much power as a standard dedicated player.
Follow these tips and those above to keep your baby going through its supposed 10-year lifespan (LOL). This is especially important if you've got a 60gb model or that 80gb MGS4 bundle, as those are the only models left with PS2 backwards compatibility. You don't want to find your machine conking out as you try to play Persona 4...
I'll be removing discs from now on.