slowmo said:
I'm gathering from your detailed description you know very little about what actually causes RROD and E74. Allow me to highlight why it's not some simple fix that is easily solved with a few updates. The primary cause for the problems is the use of lead free solder which is mandatory for electrical goods now. Lead free solder has a melting point of around 220 degrees roughly which when compared to lead solder which has a melting point of around 180 degrees (Celsius). The problem here is that in order to solder the GPU to the motherboard the solder when using lead free solder is heated to a lot higher temperature to flow, at such high temperatures the heat isn't applied as long (to protect the GPU silicon), also the solder doesn't flow as well as leaded solder. This produces micro fractures in the joints and generally not as good connectivity. Having established the GPU and CPU aren't soldered as well as they could be we move onto the next contributing factor. The 360 uses a multi layered board which is very thin. Over time the xclamps when combined with heat build up in the board can cause the motherboard to warp slightly. When the board warps this can be enough to trigger a break in connectivity on the GPU which reaults in the RROD and E74 errors. In order to prevent RROD Microsoft have tried numerous fixes, one of these is when they went to the HDMI chassis they altered the height of the middle standoffs which were too high and caused the middle of the board to bend too. This is the probable reason for why E74 errors became more common than RROD because they moved the motherboard warping to a different point. The xclamps are often blamed for the problems with the 360 but in fairness they're a good solution if not anchored like they are on the 360. People often say why can't Microsoft solve such a simple issue, the fact is the problem is very complex and there is only one real solution to the issue. They will have to redesign the motherboard completely, this will probably mean ideally being a thicker board to reduce warping. The next point is a complete chassis and cooling revision which will be a huge job as they would likely involve changing the exterior of the 360 too. The Jaspers do reduce the risks of board problems through a lot less heat generated, also no memory on the bottom of the board helps. I suspect the plaster approach they've used to fix the issues so far is so they could wait for a full redesign to coincide with a slimmer model. The 1 billion they wrote off might not be such a hefty bill when you consider how much it would of cost for 2 drastic board revisions in the consoles lifetime. Sorry for the wall of text but if it highlights to just one person how complex the problem is then it was worth writing.
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thank you for adding that to my post.
if you taken physics you should know that costant heat input can slowly degrade the solder just as 180 C but slower.
but of course a better attachable cpu+gpu in a single die would help preventing of both going wrong, and that's why valhalla it's being develop-
