Here is how to keep your PS3 cool, quiet and long living

PS3-Sense posted some tips about keeping your PS3 cool, quiet and long living. Some of them are really useful so its worth taking a look at it.

[Kamikaze135]

Mind = blown

[Saaking]

They're a very small minority. Most PS3s are very quiet

[prabx]

im part of that minority unfortunately :(

[f789790]

Mind was silent when beside my tv, but when I moved it to it's own section on an open shelf it got loud because the hot air just circulated in that small space.

[LiL T]

That first pic is a fail unless he has the fan sucking out air because thats the exhaust side. I have my PS3 raised on a couple old ps2 games but it has been on since launch (it gets reset for FW updates thats it) and never had any prolems.

[iamtehpwn]

My 40gb PS3 oddly gets hotter/louder then all my friend's PS3s.
Not sure why though. >_<

[MmaFanQc]

we only see the front in the horizontal position and only the back of the console in the vertical position....

http://www.ps3-sense.nl/pla...

accurate comparison...is accurate?!?

[will11]

I got my 60gb the first day it came out and it is very loud and gets very hot. I am thinking of buying a PS3 slim just for this reason

[Winter47th]

It's already cool, quiet and long living.

[N4G king]

damn that white PS3 looks sexy
i saw all the colors in the stores
but i have a black one

anyway on topic

my ps3 still runs as if it was new

[Megaton]

My refurb goes to vacuum cleaner status if it's warm inside the house. My original PS3 YLOD'd when the fan was quiet and it was cold inside the house. When it wants to die, it'll die.

[Ocelot525]

mine died 2 months ago, but it was my own fault, I sometimes played 14 hours straight.it was 4 months out warranty but:
SONY FIXES THE PS3 FREE EVEN WITHOUT WARRANTY IF YOU REQUEST YOUR REPAIR ONLINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
you only need your receipt.

here the link for repair in the BeNeLux:
https://playstationservice....

for people who live in other countries:
-option 1: immigrate to belgium or the netherlands (we have free healthcare and cookies)
-option 2: search for the link for free repair for your country, it will be a b!tch to find, you won't find the link on the official PSsite

[Nikuma]

I had my PS3 on for about 3 months straight and it never got hot or noisy. O_o The thing was literally on 24/7, if I wasn't playing a game it was doing folding @ home. 80gig BC MGS4 bundle PS3.

[SaiyanFury]

The early model PS3s do, in fact, put out a lot of heat, and while they don't get loud it doesn't hurt to get rid of that excess heat. I have a small 9" metal blade fan blow on my PS3, and on my original model Xbox 360 when I play them to blow away the ambient heat around my systems when I play them. Now my newer 80GB PS3 puts out no heat at all from the top vent (I stand it on it's side). Interesting redesign, I was quite surprised. I can leave it on for hours and I'll never feel a change in heat coming from that vent, nor will I hear the internal CPU fan.

[Multi-Console Owner]

Q: How do you keep your PS3 cool, quiet and long living?

A: Operate it under normal conditions.

PS3s work just fine when they're operated without any modifications. I play mine for 10 hours at a time and it's more quite than my dead grandpa 3 states away and blows out cool air the whole time! This isn't the console that overheats from sitting at it's main-menu, sounds like a jet engine when sending a message and dies for absolutely no reason.

[Wiitactics]

My PS3 slim run super quite but it still gets hotter than my old 60GB model, believe it or not. =(

[ThanatosDMC]

The old ones get hot but they remain quiet. Not as loud as a 360 in a nice air conditioned room. The Slim would probably the coolest and quietest one yet.

[barom]

My 60gb gets actually pretty hot and pretty loud (especially during the summer). But it's still not as bad as my brother's 360 (when the disc drive is spinning).

That said I remember reading up on this and came along some article about the PS3s being produced with two different fans. One 15-blade and one 19-blade. The 15-blade is the one that's fairly loud and the 19-blade is quiet (most people said they had to literally put their ear close to it to hear it. I can attest to this as I have (likely) the 15-blade that gets fairly loud once it gets going, and my friends and my brother has a really really quiet PS3.

I'd feel bad since I'm the odd one out of the bunch but I have hardware ps2 bc, which none of them have. So that's how I pat myself in the back everytime I hear the fan going off.

[Real Gambler]

Wow, an article showing how to prolong the life of the PS3, yet, they show a fan blowing the HOT air BACK INTO the PS3... Yes, he is showing the air flow correctly (yellow arrow), so if you would like to "help" the PS3, the fan is backward...

This thing is designed well to evacuate the heat by itself. Forget extra fans, you can even forget the coke cans. Just put it where the hot air coming out of the console can get away easily. Don't squeeze it somewhere, make sure the air flow is good and let the huge internal fan do his job!

[DaTruth]

Mine gets hot, but doesn't really get loud unless I'm Folding@Hhome; Which I don't do anymore because of that. I'd like to help, but not at the expense of my 60gig with EE.

[BLuKhaos]

Yeah I think that's what sent a lot of PS3's to an early grave.That's the main reason why I never left my PS3 running on F@H.

[shadow2797]

Does anyone actually do that fan test? I'm interested if it would be worth it.

My 80 Gb gets pretty loud and hot. It didn't use to. Nowhere near my 360's volume, but still loud enough to worry me. I'm interested in doing a fan test and then vacuuming like the article said. Good idea?

[Kleptic]

yeah I have a hard time understanding what is 'loud' and what isn't...I have a 60gb from march 2007...the fan speed/noise has never changed since I bought it...but i can definitely hear it, and at one apartment i lived in a while ago the fan would really get going on hot afternoons (AC sucked there)...

but in most conditions I can barely hear it from across the room...after a few hours of gaming, the system is 'warm', but never overly hot or anything...and the ps3 is quieter than most desktop computers im around...

but some people do claim they can't hear their ps3 at all...thats not my case, the fan changes speed somewhat often, and when it gets going I can easily hear it from 10 feet away...its not distracting or anything...but is that normal?...my little cousin has a 360, and that thing is ridiculously loud always...its nothing like that...but i haven't been around any ps3's yet that were quiter than mine...like compared to a dvd player or something the ps3 is loud...but compared to almost any computer its quiet...is that how it is for most of you?...

[AKNAA]

F$@K the add ons! I just place a 9" fan behind my 80g model and tada! keeps it cool for as long as you have it on. No issues at all! BTW, I don't know anybody with a PS3 that failed yet...

@ real gambler
"Wow, an article showing how to prolong the life of the PS3, yet, they show a fan blowing the HOT air BACK INTO the PS3"

I've been doing that for over a year and by experience, I'd say that its safe considering my PS3 is in use for either gaming, blu-rays, dvd movies or web browsing 6-12 hrs. a day.
just recently I placed my fan behind the PS3 cause it seems to blow the hot air away alittle better.

[Persistantthug]

Thanks, Ocelot525. :)

[ThanatosDMC]

Do not try the "fan test" that's bad for your PS3.

[Kassanova07]

60 gig bought at launch. Runs like a swiss watch.

[Ron_Burgundy]

not having to do anything at all, with no hassle, that's how you keep it cool, quiet and long living

unlike the flopbox, that's hot as hell, jet engine sounds, and short lived right out of the box

you have to put a whole ac unit or a fan in front of the flopbox

my favorite one that the bots like is the wet towel method :P :P :P

[Saaking]

I want a way to shut my 360 up. It's like a goddamned airliner in my room.

[DonCorneo]

don't turn it on; just leave it off

LMA0!!1!

[Marty8370]

Shot the Crapbox in the bin. Out of sight, out of mind. lol

[Solans Scott]

Good article. I'm going to try elevating the system to see if it stays cooler. I don't have problems with overheating but if it means a drop in temperature I'm all for it.

[Raptors]

I tried everything and nothing worked for me. 2 40 gigs, 2 loud ps3's. Im on a slim right now and so far so good...Personally I think its a bigger problem than ppl are willing to admit...

[RememberThe357]

My 80gb is pretty quiet but it also gets pretty damn hot.I can't hear it at all when I'm playing Killzone 2 with my surround sound on blast. But when I just put on a movie to help me sleep it is kind of annoying to hear it going. So it might just be relative.

[Jazz4108]

Im on my 100th ps3. just kidding still my first, I forgot we were not talking about the 360 lol.

[qwertyuiopasdfghjkl]

The only real prevented measure you can take is to keep your PS3 or 360 in a well ventilated area. Try to avoid entertainment cabinets with enclosed spaces or doors. You might be sacrificing your entertainment center looks, but a working console is a great benefit.

Edit: It also helps knowing the internal layout of the system, and what your best option would be to support them.

For instance, when vertical, the PS3 Fat's hard drive is located on the bottom. This can cause the heat from the drive to travel upwards through the internal components. When placed horizontal however, the heat stays in the HDD area and vented out the back.

Next its good to know where the exhaust and intakes are. For my 60gb Fat, I know the majority of heat is pumped out the back, while the cool air intake is taken from the front. With some air being taken from and relieved at the top.

[BaSeBaLlKiD721]

now i understand why it seems to get hotter when standing up... lol

[CobraKai]

That's good to know. I didn't know about the HDD. I kept it vertical so the heat can escape through the top and out the back. I guess I'll lay it down now.

[Killermen]

Nice article, I'm gonna try that instantly

[Dellis]

Here is a better one, play it just for 1 hour

these gamers out there go wild, 5 hours straight and stuff then

wonder why their console are "hot", come on

LMAO at the SODA CAN holding up the PS3, yet he has the PS3 in a tiny

place LOL

[Noctis Aftermath]

Sorry, people who only game on a Wii are like red-heads, YOUR OPINION DOESN'T COUNT.

[theEnemy]

lol

You're like my mom 10 years ago.

If you have a PS3, your body will go down first long before the PS3 itself.

[Aquarius]

wait a min.

My PS3 is on now and I can't hear shizzle.
Have I got a special PS3 or what? :P

[evilmonkey501]

this article is pretty lame. Sony did a great job designing the ps3. Quiet, cool and reliable.

[Gabe EatsWell]

How about an article how to keep the failbox 360 cool, quiet and long living instead? ;)

[dreamcast]

That article would be too long... they'd have to turn it into a book. Maybe MS can write it and sell it for $100, like their wifi adapters. They'd make a killing.

[TheblackBanana]

it would just say always have 200$ on hand so you can send it to them when it dies. lol

[Stryfeno2]

HAHHAHAAHHAHAHAAAAA Nice pic. Avatar quality.

[N4G king]

?
what about that pic ??
i dont see anything about it

[Pizzagaki]

Last year, ps3 failure rate was 3%
This year it has climbed to 13%.

You guys where right, the ps3 is indeed gonna overtake the 360.
In failure rates.

[FlipMode]

But the xbox is at 54.2%

Logic Fail?

[Gabe EatsWell]

Pizzagaki you have no brain whatsoever.

@Below: People love my matching username and avatar. Oh, and your avatar sucks.

[Pizzagaki]

Lurk more, that article was wrong.

Failure rate has dropped from 30 to 23%.
So the 360 is actually improving, while the naystation is starting to look worse.

@above
And sure, someone who impersonates Gabe sure is sticking out with his comments.

[FlipMode]

I find it funny you actually believe the PS3 failure rate climbed higher. lol

[The_Beast]

then the rod bos is 54%... so u just keep owning urself everytime u say ps3 is 13%

[Obama]

Delusional bot. Your betabox is 10x as loud as the ps3 and is 54.2% more likely to break than the ps3.

[Saaking]

pizzagaki is one of the lamest most stupid bots on this site. Poor fella, just ignore him and take his bubbles.

[Pizzagaki]

Youre all a bittered bunch of sore losers.
No wonder none of you can come with a strong argument, all you guys do is trying to downplay me with insults.

How childish.

[Gabe EatsWell]

Cry more Pizzagaki, we love it!

[Obama]

How can we get serious with you when u actually believe the failure rate of the 360 is 20%, and that the ps3 has a 13% failure rate. When you present such silly argument, u get silly comeback.

[dustgavin]

"Youre all a bittered bunch of sore losers.
No wonder none of you can come with a strong argument, all you guys do is trying to downplay me with insults."

If you actually took the time to read what you type, you just may see how ignorant you are.

Hypocrite: a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.

[N4G king]

"Last year, ps3 failure rate was 3%
This year it has climbed to 13%.

You guys where right, the ps3 is indeed gonna overtake the 360.
In failure rates."

"Youre all a bittered bunch of sore losers.
No wonder none of you can come with a strong argument, all you guys do is trying to downplay me with insults.

How childish. "

soo its not childish
that you talk like a 10 year old kid that his mom and dad didnt got him a PS3 but a cheap XBOX arcade
but
its childish that they own your ass ??

[lordkemp007]

How to keep your xbox cool, quiet and long living.

Say 3 hail mary's and pray to mohammed your house has not frazzled to the ground.

[Toolster]

Buy a PS3 slim,simples

[crillyconlig]

my launch 60gig ran realy noisey, my current ps3 is silent and runs cool, my ps2 on the other hand is deafening lol

[Jacobite]

Could this just be certain batches or bad luck, my PS3 60gb had no issues since launch (UK)and gets played more with the Blue-ray rentals I've not notice any over heating problems or noise unlike my 360(3rd one since launch ).

[Feral Gamer]

I thought PS3 was cool, quiet, and long living out of the box?

[evilmonkey501]

quiet, cool and reliable out of the box. no cheesy external fan required. If your really paranoid...maybe you should be doing something else...it's not an xbox for crying out loud... lol...

[ForROME]

Or instead of following all these tips, just get a slim, prob solved

[thehitman]

and it only makes noise after hours of play time when its hot and its still nothing compared to my friends 360... pretty sure you dont need anything to keep your ps3 cool unless you just have poor ventilation.

[NateNater]

Nope :)

[Max Power]

keeping your consoles verticle, or don't mind a little eye sore, you can pic up one of these: http://www.target.com/dp/B0... They are cheap and with the grill like shelves they will provide adequate air flow to the bottom of your system.

[skip2mylou]

i have 4 of those but its a bit old like 2003 but it has a lot more space than that one i have managed to fit about 90dvds on the shelves but that includes the stuff like the 4dvd boxed editions of movies then i have a few vhs movies on them

[kasasensei]

Dust kills ps3.
If yours starts to run louder, get ready for a nice ylod.

[peeps]

mine wasn't really any louder when it finally died. lasted me 2 years tho but ah well.

best tip is just to make sure it has some space (goes for any electrical equipment) and just run a hoover round the vents as mentioned to clear excess dust (also make sure theres no dust around the ps3 to be sucked up)

basically it's just common sense lol

[NaiNaiNai]

11% fail rate.

[Gabe EatsWell]

54.2% failure rate.

You = MASSIVE FAIL.

[NaiNaiNai]

cry more gabe cry more.

[Gabe EatsWell]

Oh the irony. Where's your Shadow Man account? :)

[NaiNaiNai]

Your fat ass ate it.

^.^

[Gabe EatsWell]

Oh look! its your last bubble. Any last words? :)

[NaiNaiNai]

yep, go get me some food you fat batch.

[Gabe EatsWell]

NaiNaiNai fails again with his 4th and last bubble.

[Gobuz]

My 60gb release PS3 doesn't get hot and isn't noisy? I now also own a slim and that doesn't get hot or get noisy either?

What is this mysterious model that does this? Is this made up?

[Superduper09]

My 40GB PS3 is placed next to my LCD TV and it usually runs very quietly. But still this might be a good thing to try I gues.

[redsquad]

PS3 is cool already... DAMN cool!

[bjornbear]

I got my PS3 Vertical and it is very cool...makes more sense too since less of it is touching the surface = exposed to air flow...

Also quite close to window so =) cool ai...as for dust...shud i do fan test? or is it bad? mine runs like new so...dno..

Oh and heat comparison is not fair...one's from the front, other is from behind....seriously?!

[lowcarb]

This is what I use to do to prolong my 360 from overheating. I refused to pay MS 100 bucks to repair something i felt was there fault and had the fan cranked up everyday. Without the fan it would heat up in 20 minutes and shut don but with it I went 6 hours straight. The only thing that sucked was all of the noise from using it on top of the 360 fans working loud trying to keep it cool.

[Ninjamonkey]

I have my ps3 up vertically plus its right next to my LCD TV. After ages sometimes the fan kicks in but theres never been a big problem.

I just hoover the fan outlets every so often to keep the air flow as high as possible.

[Chriswsm]

I have very rarely noticed mine get noisy.
Its a 60gb model (no fan test option) it is vertical and in an area with good airflow. Had it from day 1 of UK release with no issues other than sticky screws when changing the hard drive which was easy enough to solve.

[va_bank]

They are both loud, but don't seem to get hot it all - probably because fans are running all the time

[smartmart]

my 40gb is on 24/7 since I bought it 2 years ago (f@h, dvd/bluray player for the kids, music/photo server, and too many gaming hours ;) ). I do a full clean-up every 6 month (when i can notice it running...). Once the dust is out the ps3 just gets silent and well cooled again. Keep your ps3 clean and you will never need any cooling contraption nor to worry about it's lifespan. By the way, it's just a computer (albeit a cool one) so it's normal that over the millions of unit sold, some of them just break without any apparent reason. No big deal about that.

[va_bank]

Just out of curiousity, what do you mean by "full clean-up" (Is there a link somewhere)? I'd like to do that, as both my PS3 are noisy. It's not a problem for the one I got in the living room - I can't hear it when sitting on the couch, but the one in my office is only 2-3 feet from me, it gets pretty annoying when the sound is confined in the small space of this room.

[smartmart]

just check on youtube, there are many videos on how to open your ps3 safely. But you will void your warranty doing that, by removing the black sticker that covers the first screw. Once opened just clean it like you would do for a normal computer (avoid moisture and static) and by being careful not to blow dust inside the blu-ray player. It takes less than 15 minutes to open clean and close the unit. In my opinion this is better (if done carefully) for my ps3 than a manufacter warranty.

[va_bank]

Warranty is not an issue, both of mine are almost 2 years old. I think the noise was the reason I stopped playing the one I have in the office.

[va_bank]

UPDATE:

Well, I did it. Went well - I removed the heat sink and replaced the thermal paste with Arctic Silver. It was surprisingly easy to take apart, it took 45 minutes because I was going super slow. Once I finished with the thermal paste, it only took 15 min. to put back together. Oh, and there was no dust inside.

Unfortunately, it didn't make any difference - it's still loud after 10 minutes. not sure if I want to bother with doing the second one now.

[tawak]

buy xbox 360 you dont to worry about your system overheating ;)

[firetaw]

i love my little black heater :D