Which XBOX 360?

[bit_pit]

Ok, my twin nephews want a 360, so I went shopping.
I am getting a few conflicting statements from the various outlets as to the issues with the units (3 Ring error) and function.
One has told me that the Arcade version does not have the problem, because it has a new motherboard, so I would be better off getting this with the extra HDD...
Another store tells me the Premium is a better deal as it has more memory (I though this was just the HDD) and the Arcade only has composite out...didn't sound right to me.

Both would work out the same price roughly, except the Arcade comes with 5 games as to the Premiums 2.

A search of the net also brings up a few conflicting opinions.

So I know which way I am leaning, but thought I would ask the guys who really know...

[Min]

Maybe you should lean towards Micksxboxmods. He knows everthing about them and more.
Plus he does great prices aswell.

Cheers

[bit_pit]

OK, I didn't realise he did sales of 360 consoles, will PM him.

[roguefan99]

As for the Red Ring of Death, there is a new Motherboard out there at the moment with a 65nm CPU. However the longevity of this board is in question with respect to the Red Ring of Death because the cause of most RRD is not the CPU but the GPU. Rumours are going that the GPU will come out in a 65nm version in the near future but I havent seen any concrete evidence of this yet. I would expect better reliablility with the new motherboards though if only because the heat would be reduced slightly.

[Pat123]

360 Pro for sure should be able to get one with the falcon motherboard (I did a month ago) which also has hdmi.

[harry88]

Rule of thumb if it has HDMI output it has new motherboard.

[Min]

OK, I didn't realise he did sales of 360 consoles, will PM him.

Not sure if he does, but with payment upfront he might be able to get 1 and do what he does best to it.

No harm in sending a pm to find out, hey.

[nsdn]

Any 360 that was manufactured later half of 2007 has new mother boards. But just because your buying it new does not mean that it is new stock. I had a guy come in with a MS25 in it and it was brand new!! but the date code was early 2006.

Date code is everything

I doubt the new mobos will see the same problem, at least for a much longer period. The solution microsoft has come up with is pretty dodgy though, the heat pipe and extra heatsink for the GPU which should reduce the temperature swing which causes the the problem, as well as the poxy epoxy on the corners of the chip which is sposed to help stop warpage with respect to the main board, this is kind of what the x-clamp fix does but x-clamp is better I think, but I'm pretty sure whats been done is enough to give a large boost to MTBF

Smaller die size in the future will also help as the problem is caused by temperature extremes, smaller die size = less power consumption = less heat=less warpage and less stress on the balls.

[Micksxboxmods]

Not sure if he does, but with payment upfront he might be able to get 1 and do what he does best to it.

No harm in sending a pm to find out, hey.

Thats exactly right, can do it this way for you.

You basically pay RRP for console(Big W or Kmart price, whoever ischeaper at the time) plus modding and postage cost.
I'm not into profiteering from the console sale, like so many others out there.

Mick