360 - Elite or Pro version for reliability (if there is such a thing in 360 land!)

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lewchenko

Limp Gawd
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Jul 30, 2004
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Im just about to buy a 360. Im aware of the RROD issues though and would like to know which console is least likely to die from RROD -

1) The xbox 360 PRO (60GB) version.
2) The xbox 360 Elite (120GB) version.

Essentially, are they the same motherboard / design inside. ??

I remember when the elite was released, and people *thought* it was updated, and more reliable, but having read the customer comments feedback on Amazon.co.uk, I can see quite a few RROD stories about the elite. Am worried that the Elite's design and MB is still based on the old flawed design ?

I hate the thought of having to send my well looked after box to MS only to receive a crappy, scratched and beat up refurb unit back after a 3-6 week wait should it die from RROD.

Anyone ?
 
Should be no significant difference as long as they were both built recently. The 60gb gives you a better chance of that.

Original elites were the "Zephyr" motherboard which had no noteable reliability increase on the originals. Modern elites (and the 60gb) are falcons which improved reliability significantly.
 
^what he said.

I've had two 360s and never a RROD!!! of course the first one froze up constantly and had to be replaced by MS and now the second unit's DVD drive has failed and is out of warranty but never a RROD for me :)

hopefully none of these other issues will be a problem for you either.
 
The 360's all have the manufacturing date on them. You might see if the store accepts opened boxes for swaps. I bought an Elite 3 weeks ago and it was manufactured just 3 months ago...so I know there are newer ones. If you buy one that was made last year, their whole stock likely is so you might return it for the 60GB instead.
 
just make sure the unit can breathe. i'm always curious as to how many of the rrods happened b/c people keep them in tiny closed off entertainment centers.
 
Thanks for the replies.

Ive just read through the 6 page article about the RROD and how it came about through to how it was mismanaged and made worse by incompetence etc ! Thrilling read : History of the RROD.

Takes a while to read, but worth it.

Anyways... what amazed me were the comments after the article. A ton of people claiming the issue is not resolved nor solved, and that their console bought relatively recently (this year) also has died. That really kind of worries me you know... There were far too many posts from people who had recently had RROD's.

Right now, if Im honest I cant help but think that with my bad luck, I too will be returning mine within a few months as well. Eilte or otherwise. Scare stories and bad feedback has put me right off. (Even if the damn games I actually want to play in my lounge are on the 360 and not the PS3).
 
lewchenko... all electronics hardware fails from time to time. The problem with the 360 is that people have become more sensitive to it (and rightly so). Assume the industry standard electronics failure rate of 3% and you've got 30,000 machines failing for every 1,000,000 sold.

You'll never hear the end of it, especially not whilst old machines are still dying off.
 
Dion said:
the Zephyr's have better heatsinks on them. So it should be a little better for reliability.
Click to expand...
The numbers I collate over at NeoGAF showed that really hasn't been the case. The problem with the 360 wasn't so much overheating, but thermal expansion / contraction... which modified heatsinks only go so far to aid.

[Edit - How the hell did my post end up before the one I was replying to?]
 
Psychotext said:
Should be no significant difference as long as they were both built recently. The 60gb gives you a better chance of that.

Original elites were the "Zephyr" motherboard which had no noteable reliability increase on the originals. Modern elites (and the 60gb) are falcons which improved reliability significantly.
Click to expand...

the Zephyr's have better heatsinks on them. So it should be a little better for reliability.
 
Not to excuse MS for the faults, but you also have to realize with all the bad publicity out there you also have a ton of working machines. There's always a few people that know people that had xbox 360's fail, but on the flip side I know about 12+ close friends/family and only one required service.

Part of the problem with polls and internet feedback that try to gauge failures is that people that have working systems don't go out of their way to say "Hey my machine is still working" vs "POS Microsoft RROD". I know I would come on here to vent if my machine died, the same as if I would go to a chrysler forums to complain about a problem with my car if I experienced one. However, I wouldn't use a poll in the chrysler forum to gauge the failure rate either. It wouldn't be accurate. I'm not saying these problems should be excused, they are legitamate problems, but it does not provide an accurate picture. Unfortunatly MS will not share this information (nor Sony), so all we have is these small samples.

To be on the safe side you can look at in store warranty or get it from costco (included with purchase). That way if it does fail you can return it to the store.

Every consumer product has failures, I believe the Xbox 360 had unacceptable return rates on release, but I think a majority of the original concerns have been resolved. Unfortunatly I don't have any data to prove this outside of the "Xbox 360 died" threads slowly diminshing over time. However, as I'm a PC enthusiest, I also see my Video, HD, PSU, Memory threads as well. More recently I probably have seen allot more 280 GTX cards die than I have seen Xbox 360s, but I'm also certain a majority of them probably have no issue.

If you look around at forums and ebay, you will also see PS3 failures (seems like HDMI or Bluray lasers are the most frequent problems).

I think it's great to perform research so you know what worst case scenario is. However, worse case scenario is not the norm for the majority of people.

Personally I bought the 3 year bumper to bumper warranty for <40$. What was nice is that it also includes accessories. I just had a wireless NIC go out and I was able ot ship it back and receive one NIB. I'm unsure if Sony offers this type of warranty outside of the 1 year hardware.

Good luck with either choice.
 
note : I have 3 360s, 1 launch, and none of them have ever had a problem.
 
I had a launch 360, never RROD but the DVD drive went out on it. Now i have a Halo edition which is a falcon and never had any problems.
 
My launch system is still working just fine and it's been moved 4 times, had the HD transferred, and pretty much been a workhorse since day #1. I always had it running in an open-air entertainment center and I think that's helped.
 
RROD's are a thing of the past, and were a problem with the consoles during the first year and a half. If you bought a new 60gb or an Elite, you will be all set.
 
All models since December have HDMI. This includes Arcade, Pro, Elite. So really the only difference between them hardware wise is the accessories included and hard drive size.
Going off the top of my head but here you go:

Arcade:
No hard drive, but 256MB card included.
RCA cables included
Wireless contoller (older versions had wired)
No optical audio break out box if your using HDMI and your receiver is not HDMI <1.2 (guessing on the version) compliant. Example you needed to use HDMI for video and Optical audio for your sound.
Arcade games included: Feeding Frenzy, Luxor 2, Boom Boom Rocket, Pac-Man Championship Edition, Uno

Pro:
60GB HD included
Combo Component/RCA Cables with optical audio out included.
Wireless controller
No optical audio break out box if you use HDMI and your receiver is not HDMI <1.2 (guessing on the version) compliant. Example you needed to use HDMI for video and Optical audio for your sound.
No games included outside of demos.

Elite:
120GB HD included
Component Cables included.
Wireless controller
Optical audio breakout box included if using HDMI
HDMI Cable (reported by others)
Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance Bundled off and on but later purchases indicate it's still being bundled.
 
Out of the original batch, its rumored that 68% were defective. And MSFT knew it, but wanted to get it out on the timeline they had planned.

but yea, the newer models dont have to worry about the x-clip thing and the warping of the mobo causing the rrod, i hope -_-
 
LOL @ 68%. The reporting is actually at 33%. But it's actually 100%. Every single launch console is 100% susceptible to the RROD. They already admitted that they had a design flaw. That design was in every single launch box...meaning they could have 100% failure rate.

I am glad they fixed it, but they should really do MUCH better the next time around.
 
The Elite systems also include Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance, too.
 
I just bought a new Elite, and it came with Forza 2 and MUA, but I just assumed that is a special bundle deal. Is that the norm?
 
I'm not sure that's it's always been the norm, but I haven't seen an Elite since the beginning of the year that didn't come with the bundle.
Since they took the time to bundle both games into a combo case, I have to think it's something they're planning to keep around.
It's a pretty good bundle, too.
Forza's a great showpiece for the system, while MUA is great for multiplayer and online, plus it's good for kids.
 
The new pro models with the 60gb harddrive are going to be "Falcon" Xbox360s... and thus will be less susceptible to the RRoD.

If you get an "Elite", there is a chance that you could get one of the original designs, or the "Zephyr" Xbox360 which is slightly better, but still not as reliable as the "Falcon". Any 360 manufactured after a certain date (I believe it's August 31 2007) is a Falcon 360. Since the 60gb model was only released about a month ago (if that), it's guaranteed to be one of the newer models.
 
noobman said:
The new pro models with the 60gb harddrive are going to be "Falcon" Xbox360s... and thus will be less susceptible to the RRoD.

If you get an "Elite", there is a chance that you could get one of the original designs, or the "Zephyr" Xbox360 which is slightly better, but still not as reliable as the "Falcon". Any 360 manufactured after a certain date (I believe it's August 31 2007) is a Falcon 360. Since the 60gb model was only released about a month ago (if that), it's guaranteed to be one of the newer models.
Click to expand...

Unless they are buying on Ebay, all the Elites on the retail shelves are Falcons, and have been for a long time. Early spring the Elite was actually sold out for a short time.

BTW, you can see the manufacture date in the hole on the back of the box that shows the serial number.
 
Just bought an elite and opened the box in the store to check the date of manufacture. It was made on 29th May 2008, so this should be ok. It also has the newer 175W powersupply which is another indicator that it is newer tech than the 360's of old.

Thanks for the replies. Lets hope its not a dud when I turn it on later when I get home from work!
 
lewchenko said:
Just bought an elite and opened the box in the store to check the date of manufacture. It was made on 29th May 2008, so this should be ok. It also has the newer 175W powersupply which is another indicator that it is newer tech than the 360's of old.

Thanks for the replies. Lets hope its not a dud when I turn it on later when I get home from work!
Click to expand...

The 175w power supply only works on the Falcon motherboards, so you are all good for sure.

Congrats on your purchase! I just bought an Elite 2 weeks ago (had a August 06 2008 manu date), and I love it!
 
The Elite is nice. Granted the HDMI audio is a little wacky (search the forum from last week for details) but everything else is nice. It feels more securely built, the blade menus load faster, and you'll be ready to start installing games ASAP when the new interface goes live.
 
i just bought one of the elite 120's through dell, no games. i havent even taken it out of the box yet. i thought it would it least have a demo disc to mess with till i got paid friday
 
Domingo said:
The Elite is nice. Granted the HDMI audio is a little wacky (search the forum from last week for details) but everything else is nice. It feels more securely built, the blade menus load faster, and you'll be ready to start installing games ASAP when the new interface goes live.
Click to expand...

HDMI audio might be whacky for you?...but no reports of it elsewhere, and zero problems here with it as well.

black_bishop said:
i just bought one of the elite 120's through dell, no games. i havent even taken it out of the box yet. i thought it would it least have a demo disc to mess with till i got paid friday
Click to expand...

The 120gb HDD is packed with demo's and movie trailers. Enjoy!
 
Yeah, the 360 HDMI issues are a little wonky, but they're there. There are certainly enough posts on the AV boards to say that it certainly isn't rare. The most common HDMI enabled receivers are Onkyo, Sony, and Denon (mainly due to price) and those are the ones listed as occasionally having minor problems.
Luckily there's no real advantage to using HDMI for the 360's audio other than convenience.
Supposedly if you call MS with this issue they'll even tell you that the HDMI for the 360 is really only for video and that the audio is "unsupported" although I can't verify that.
 
Domingo said:
Yeah, the 360 HDMI issues are a little wonky, but they're there. There are certainly enough posts on the AV boards to say that it certainly isn't rare. The most common HDMI enabled receivers are Onkyo, Sony, and Denon (mainly due to price) and those are the ones listed as occasionally having minor problems.
Luckily there's no real advantage to using HDMI for the 360's audio other than convenience.
Supposedly if you call MS with this issue they'll even tell you that the HDMI for the 360 is really only for video and that the audio is "unsupported" although I can't verify that.
Click to expand...

That would all be false then. MS promotes the audio through HDMI for sure. I am using a Denon (as seen in my signature). Not a single person I have run into, or read about on the forums have experienced anything like you mention.

No wonky HDMI issues. The only things I have seen related to the HDMI are rare (and rare as the PS3 HDMI problems, which are more prevalent), and have been an issue with the AVR.
 
The Hedon said:
That would all be false then. MS promotes the audio through HDMI for sure. I am using a Denon (as seen in my signature). Not a single person I have run into, or read about on the forums have experienced anything like you mention.

No wonky HDMI issues. The only things I have seen related to the HDMI are rare (and rare as the PS3 HDMI problems, which are more prevalent), and have been an issue with the AVR.
Click to expand...

you haven't done much research then.

just because it hasn't happened to you doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist.

and we weren't talking about ps3 hdmi connectivity, which is perfect in every way, which also proves you a fraud because you're spreading lies lies lies about my perfect ps3. there's never been any hdmi issue ever on my system so you're a liar and xbox sux.

that about cover it?


...next stop, video card forum. :p
 
snaggletooth said:
you haven't done much research then.

just because it hasn't happened to you doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist.

and we weren't talking about ps3 hdmi connectivity, which is perfect in every way, which also proves you a fraud because you're spreading lies lies lies about my perfect ps3. there's never been any hdmi issue ever on my system so you're a liar and xbox sux.

that about cover it?


...next stop, video card forum. :p
Click to expand...

ROFL, but seriously if you want a reliable XBOX then get the original one. That thing was built like a tank (and weighed about as much). What is weird is that the original had much better build qualiy (internal and external).
 
snaggletooth said:
you haven't done much research then.

just because it hasn't happened to you doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist.

and we weren't talking about ps3 hdmi connectivity, which is perfect in every way, which also proves you a fraud because you're spreading lies lies lies about my perfect ps3. there's never been any hdmi issue ever on my system so you're a liar and xbox sux.

that about cover it?


...next stop, video card forum. :p
Click to expand...

That is cute. You have any mature conversation in you? Let us know when you do.
 
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