Xbox 360 and original Xbox repair

Red ring faults, disc drives and hard drives on the Xbox 360, and repairs to the original Xbox.

What goes wrong

The early Xbox 360 gave the world the red ring of death: three red lights around the power button, caused by faults on the motherboard under heat. Later versions and the 360 S and 360 E are far more reliable, and have their own red-light warnings for overheating.

The original Xbox from 2001 is now a collector's machine. Its internal clock capacitor is known to leak and corrode the board, and its hard drive is locked to the console it came with.

Repairs

Red ring and red light faults

Diagnosis of the error code, board repair and renewed cooling.

Disc drive

Open-tray errors, unreadable discs and stuck trays. The drive is matched to the console, so its board is kept.

Hard drive

Faulty drives and caddies.

Power

External power bricks and internal faults.

Original Xbox

Clock capacitor removal and board cleaning, hard drive and DVD drive faults.

Your saves and data

Xbox 360 saves are stored on the console's hard drive unless cloud saves were switched on. The drive sits in a removable caddy and uses its own file system, which a computer does not recognise but which can be read with the right tools. Saves, profiles and downloaded content can usually be copied off a drive that is still readable.

The original Xbox locks its hard drive with a password held in the console. The drive is read through its own console, repaired if necessary.

Sending a console

Take out any disc or game card, and remove memory cards you want to keep at home.
Send the console itself and its power lead. Controllers are only needed if they are part of the fault.
Box it with at least 5cm of padding on every side. The original box alone is not enough protection.
Add a note with your name, phone number and what the console does. Include your sign-in PIN if one is set.

We collect by insured courier from anywhere in the UK, or you can bring it to the workshop in London SE1. Every repair starts with a free assessment and a fixed price, and carries a 3-month warranty. See console repair prices and how the courier service works.

Common questions

I have an old 360 hard drive but no console. Can you read it?

Usually. Send the drive in its caddy and tell us what you are hoping to find.

Is the red ring always fatal?

No. The pattern of lights is an error code, and several of the codes have straightforward causes.

Get a price from a technician

Tell us the make, the model and what has gone wrong. A technician replies with a price and the quickest way to get your laptop to us – normally the same working day.

020 7237 6805

Creative IT workshop
Unit 1, 80 Willow Walk, London SE1 5SY
Monday to Saturday, 9am–6pm