so today i decide to replace the x-clamps in my console (i didnt have 3ROD) i just did it because my warranty was already voided.

what happens now is that i always get 3ROD, no video, no error codes.

as soon as i boot it up its straight to 3ROD, but sometimes ill turn it on and it wont do anything just stay there(still no video or anything) and then after about 20 seconds it would give me 3ROD.

i could really use your help guys please help fix this problem

thanks

Did you screw the bolts hard? Did you apply new thermal compound to the chips? Check that the pointy things near the connectors (power, video, etc) are inside the metal casing and not outside of it, somebody pointed out that this might cause shorts. Also, test your console without closing it entirely and see if it works that way.

Check and see what the secondary error code is and post that. If it worked before ya replaced the clamps then it's something you've done to it and the problem is there and should be easy enough to fix.

well now what it does is make a weird sound when it starts up like the samsung drive except i have a hitachi drive and it goes straight to the 3ROD and the fans spin for 1 second and then shutoff and the power supply will go green for a milisecond and back to orange when i press the power button, so itll stay on orange while the 360 is on and the 3ROD is flashing

i screwed the bolts hard, i didnt apply new thermal compound as i thought it wouldnt need it as i already put arctic silver 5 a couple months ago, im not sure about the pointy things ill have to get back to you on that on, and every time i checked to see if the console works it was always open, i never close it while testing

for RDC
the secondary error code only had two numbers the first one was all four quadrants, and the second was 3 quadrants (quadrants 1,2 and 4)

so the error code is 03 is this the same as 0003?

The secondary error code should be 4 digits, not 2. Back the bolts off some and try it again, they don't need to be tightened down so hard, you probably have the things shorting on other components on the board or worse chips themselves.

That code is a power problem so it definitely looks like it's a short

i did the secondary error code again and i got 0003

how would i know where it is shorting or how its shorting

alright i tried it out of the metal chassis i still got the 3ROD straight away but i didnt get that weird noise

would a picture of the motherboard help you guys out?

Underside of the motherboard

Topside of the motherboard

also when i tried it out of the metal chassis i didnt have the heatsinks as tight as i had them before, i had them snug

Get those bottom pennies off the RAM and insulate them if you plan on using them first, the top ones are close to shorting on some SMT caps also, ditch them as well. It's hard to tell what may have been shorted out, and really the only thing you can do now is ohm out the 5v and 12v lines to see if the problem is there.

ok i did everything except the ohm thing but that is irrelevant now because now i get a different secondary error code which is 0021 and i dont have the dvd drive connected.
is there any possible solution to this?

That error could be from the DVD drive not being connected or the GPU is causing it. Put it back together now with the X-clamp mod alone and see how it acts, don't over tighten the bolts so much this time.

well i put everything back together as normal and i still get the 3ROD and i still get the same error code

should i do heatgun fix, penny fix or turn the xbox on to overheat without the fans connected?
please help me on this as i dont want to pull out another $400 for a new console

you should have just waited on the xclamp fix if you weren't getting 3 rlod...

and that As5 looks like its everywhere

i suggest cleaning that up and putting some new as5, not alot though so it wont come off the chips and run onto some of the other parts (it looks like its doing that in your pics)

when you tighten the bolts, do it by hand until they are snug, not until it wont turn anymore

are you using nylon washers to touch the motherboard on both sides? if not, tht could be causing a shortage

its not shorting out any more im get error code 0021 which is gpu error so my washers are fine.
i just wana know what i can do to fix this

Looks like ya already had the pennies on it and that didn't go to well, the heat gun isn't the best thing to throw at it either unless ya know exactly what you're doing (even then it's not a proper reflow) and overheating it more than a few times on purpose isn't going to get ya anywhere good either.

Do the X-clamp mod for scratch and let it overheat once and snug the bolts down to see if you can get it to even boot up once with no errors or at least a change in the error code. If you can get it to boot or show a 0102/0020 code, then sending it off for a proper reflow would be what I recommend having done anything else ya really do at your own risk.

First don't panic, it can take a lot of work to get these thing going again even for people who are experts. I just fixed a 0020 box which was the definitely GPU and I believe that your 0021 is similar. I performed an MKIII but I need 3 washer between case and board and 1 between heat sink and board. Also If i over tightened I got 0020 and under tightened allowed my system to boot but it froze soon after. I took a on of trail and error to find how much each screw needed to be tightened. Also make sure you properly apply the thermal grease, if not done right you will get two red lights indicating overheating. So relax, read though a ton of posts (a must) and try again, don't give up, this is what engineers do all day and plus you'll feel good once you get it going. Good Luck.

i havent got the 360 to boot at all in the past 4 days, no matter what i do i cant get it to boot i can only get it to give me different errors which are not related, the errors i get are 0021, 0003 and 0002.
this is really starting to get on my nerves as i am unable to fix this

I... uh... I'd tell you what you should be doing now, but they've got that covered.

I just have to ask though... what were you thinking then!?

If it 'ain't broke, don't fix it dude!!!

I don't see that there is anything wrong with using the x-clamp replacement on a working console. Provided you use the least amount of flex (ie. largest number of washers) so there is little to no pressure on the chip, I think it can be beneficial as a preventative measure; getting rid of the x-clamps eliminates one of the main causes of the failures in the first place.

To the OP: I feel for you man. I am doing the same mod right now on my console (without the pennies...I am using thermal pads and heatsinks). I really hope things work out for you!

i have the same problem and i solved with this way

1. first attach without the bolts the gpu and cpu with coolers
2. turn off the fans
3. let the 360 for 2-3 mins power on
4. power off
5. wait 15 mins
6. place the fans and the heat sinks BUT put the bolts with your hand and NOT with any screw
7 power on

probably this will solve your problem
the point is do not give to the gpu too much pressure with the bolts and heat sinks

sorry mate but i dont understand the first step, what do you mean with coolers?

First it sounds like you have a power problem, when the power comes on then goes off that usually means that box can't get what it needs. I was putting an ATX supply on my box that could provide the necessary 18A and it did the same thing, I hooked an external DC supply and found that an extra 3A got it to boot. My guess its that you either have a power drain from a short on your board (you can use a multimeter between all the combinations of 5V, 12V and ground) or your PSU is damaged and can't provide enough power. Once you get that straightened out then you can start worrying about the probable GPU issues. These things aren't that complicated or sensitive but it can get frustrating and/or expensive to fix them so keep plugging away at, good luck.

well i bought a new xbox 360 yesterday and i tried the power supply, but now it doesnt even turn on, with both power supplies (this was happening before i plugged in the new power supply)