Xbox Mini with softmod, randomly turns off

[Coop]

So I have an xbox that I have softmodded. I have been planning on cramming it into a ATX computer case so its super tiny.

For a long while it has been working and been played, with no problems whatsoever.

Today after rewiring 3 caps (they are all correctly rewired), extending a controller port and extending one cable off the powerbrick [5VSB] I ran into a problem.

-Now when I turn on the xbox it will randomly shutoff, but still have the fans spinning and the LED's blinking on the front (It could be after a minute of playing, or after getting past the main loading screen)
-I have gone over each thing I rewired and all seems well
-Its not overheating as the temperatures it shuts off at is 10*F cooler then I have played it before on

My question is, what could be causing this?

 

[ttsgeb]

What kind of wire did you extend your 5v with? Check the resistance on it, it could be dropping the voltage below what the xbox wants. (Doubt it, but still)
I have to ask, is this just a modded xbox, or a 360S, since you're saying it's a xbox "mini"

Pictures would be good, video would be better.
What revision xbox it is could also be helpful.

 

[Coop]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLhZE7AZuIs

-The wire is a thicker gauge then the blue one used for the 5VSB line
-Its an original xbox
-Revision I am unsure of, and the site that I have past checked it on currently wont load for me

On a side note, when I change to an untouched controller port it plays fine, but after checking the lines and making sure nothing is out of place the extended controller port is the one with problems

 

[ttsgeb]

I have a problem where my extended controller ports won't work, either.

Maybe try using actual controller cable to extend them, or wrapping the cable in tin foil or something. The shielding could help things out a bit.

 

[Coop]

At the time being I was able to get much further into play time then I normally could so I assume the problem is solved
Thanks for the help, you saved me tons of headache

 

[Coop]

Problem not solved...
I finished the project and brought it to a friends. The second player port wasnt work, but no big deal. So we start playing co-op halo and the thing bugs out again like it originally did.

So we reset it, and smoke comes out.
The black line in the controller ports burned away (and yes the setup was wrapped in tinfoil at the time)

Anyway, what could have caused this?

 

[ttsgeb]

Pulling too much current through the ground line. Use thicker wires there. maybe 20 AWG or so.

 

[Coop]

Used thicker wire, and that problem is all well and settled. I also re shielded the wires in the box using a thick layer of aluminum foil

I then played for 15 minutes and nothing bad happened (co-op Halo). Then I try again and the thing does the turn off randomly thing. (Singleplayer)

I switch the controller ports to the original, unextended on, and it still turns off with the fans going.

I also heat tested the mobo and nothing was above 90*F


What one earth could be doing this?

 

[ttsgeb]

If you still have the original HDD, try switching that in. I know it's not a solution, but it can tell us a bit more about your problem.

 

[Coop]

Dang I just came back to edit my post. What I should also mentions is I had it turned on for about an hour installing 2 new games and making sure it ran. During this process everything was fine.

Only when I play the games now does this problem occur. And the original HDD is long gone

 

[ttsgeb]

Does it happen with every game, or just Halo?
How about apps and emulators? Anything from them?

 

[Coop]

Emulators have tendency to freeze, but other apps run fine. I have tried games other then halo, and they do the same

 

[ttsgeb]

Can you tell if you still get the problem with a disk drive attached?
On that note, will it even let you use a disk drive with that sata-ide adapter, and how did you get rid of it with a softmod?

 

[Coop]

This sat dormant for a long time before I picked it up again.

As far as I can tell it ran fine with the disk drive, but it has also played that long under other circumstances.

It will also let me run it with the adapter no problem.

 

[ttsgeb]

Alright, so with the wire extension, how did you splice in the connection? Is it actually soldered in, or is it just twisted and taped?

Also, how far did you relocate those caps? Assuming they're the 6.3V, 1500uF guys, I have replacements that are half the height of the old ones and just drop in. If you're in the US, I'd be happy to toss them in an envelope and get the to you by New Years for something like $2.50. Make it $6, and I'll throw in some caps for the power that have long leads and are a bit smaller, too. Perfect for laying on their sides. Throw a PM my way if you're interested.

 

[Coop]

Cut them in half, one by one, and soldered in the new wire. Then wrapped them in electrical tape at the solder points

I just desoldered the caps, added wires about an inch long, and did it that way

Im not sure what caps I need right now, seeing as I have no possible idea what the problem is, I want to figure that out first before I dump in more money

 

[ttsgeb]

Alright.
it's really easy to heat damage caps, so I would go in and check everything you relocated. You will have to pull them off the board again, I'd go for the joint between the caps and the wires.

 

[Coop]

So turns out the LEDs are blinking orange, not green (Im colorblind)

This leads me to believe it could be a solder splash, but seeing as the problem only happens sometimes could this be it?

Or possibly a broken trace, but wouldnt it also reset itself sooner

And my third thought it, maybe its overheating. My fans (Iceberq's) have clean thermal paste on them and never read above 90*, but maybe I put them on so flaxty the fans dont even get the heat?

 

[ttsgeb]

... I didn't even pay attention to the color. Do you have a different Av cable? Check all the pins, and see of unplugging, and replugging the Av cable works.
outside of that, check for splashes, especially around the Av chip.


if none of that works, I have a hunch that you should check the relocated cap by the cpu.

 

[Coop]

I think it was just a heat issue in the end, the heatsink was improperly installed a few years ago by myself and was reading cool though the chip wasnt

Anyway now I am stealing power for my sunon 12v fan from the DVD drive

After reading up a bit online about resistors and multimeters I am still flying in the dark about what strength resistor I should use


My question is, do I need a resistor in a 12v line for a 12v fan, and if so how would I go about calculating what I would need?

Also, I am negating to use the tachometer output line of the fan at this moment and does this matter?