Simple Playstation / PS3 Repair

By Peter Brown

If you are one of the many people who forked out 300 or more for your playstation 3, you know all too well the pain of suddenly experiencing problems and needing Playstation / PS3 repair! As game systems have become more and more technologically advanced it is no longer possible to fix game read errors by blowing on the cartridge or into the player. That is a nod to the original Nintendo and other cartridge type games for those too young to understand the reference! Anymore you need a scientific degree to fix an errant game system. There are a few common fixes you can try at home however.

The first thing you have to do is figure out whether or not you have a warranty that is still valid. They usually last for about a year and then you're left to fend for yourself. Keep in mind this extends to the mechanical defect, which eventually causes a malfunction. So basically they're telling you not to spill the soda pop on the console or you're just out of luck.

Whatever you do, don't try to fix your PS3 while it's still under warranty. If you do have to send it off anyways and they notice your best efforts, it voids the warranty. So make sure it's outside the warranty area so you can start making the fixes on your own.

One of the most common problems with the original release Playstation 3 is what is known as the yellow light of death. If your system is coming on but nothing is displaying on the screen, look at the front LED light, if it is yellow you have a serious hardware failure. There is little you can do for this problem, this system is so powerful with a motherboard, CPU and graphics interface built together things get pretty hot inside the unit. Heat eventually weakens the solder on the motherboard resulting in cracks and disconnects. This will require professional repair assistance.

Another issue might just be that your system comes on but the yellow light isn't there. If this occurs it can be easy as resetting the system. All you do is press and hold the power button for about 20 seconds. During this time you will hear 3 beeps, and when you release it the console should come back on normally.

Every once in awhile your hard drive will contain corrupted data and require a clean sweep. If your system is freezing up during game play but will play DVD movies or BluRay discs just fine a hard drive format can solve your problems. Remember to back up all your data before formatting the hard drive, as this is the equivalent of erasing everything.

There are a bunch of other repair options if you want to fix your system at home, and most are pretty common. While this is true it's still possible you will have no other choice but to send it to the manufacturer. If you're willing to take risks and gifted in console repair, you can find spare parts online.

Instead of constantly researching online it would be a good idea to get a repair manual. It will have all the information you need to fix your PS3 or know that a professional must repair it. Take the time to consider different ones because some are geared for resetting, others for cleaning, and even more for in depth information on Playstation / PS3 repair. Your best options is to have a little of both.

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