Playstation 3

[xerostar]

I'm in Oz now and I'll be in Bangkok next week.

Can I buy a PS3 in Pantip Plaza?

Alternatively can I get my old PS3 repaired in Pantip Plaza?

We also have a Wii which needs repair ..

The kids are hangin out for their games machines.

They have mainly PS3 software.

A new PS3 here in Perth is $399, X-box is also $399 and Wii $138 (Dick Smith)

Can you buy these machines in Thailand? If so is there any price difference?

Also can you buy the software?

Any info much appreciated

Thanks

[jsat]

Looks like no one plays games here (smile) but for repair work it would be better to get it done there at your leisure rather than on a timetable when on holiday here.

Edited December 10, 2012 by jsat

[xerostar]

The consoles are in Thailand - I had a look at them when I was home in October.

So the dilemma is to buy new ones here in Perth or try to get the old ones fixed in Bangkok.

With the PS3 - it runs when you put a DVD in the drive but there's no video signal output.

With the Wii - it runs but the video picture is distorted.

Looks like new ones bought here in Perth would be the safest and easiest (but expensive) option.

[User3]

Both consoles can be purchased at Panthip. I'm only familiar with PS3s, not sure about other console. Generally here in Thailand PS3 have only recently (1 year or so) been officially imported by Sony. Most places other than Sony sell grey market units 'imported' from either Japan or Hong Kong. Prices run from 8,000 baht for grey market to about 12,000+ baht for official Sony registered and warranted units.

For repair I would say do not get it done here. This is based on my first PS3 finally attaining the YLOD and the local place where it was repaired did not do a very good job of the repair. It failed within a few days, which isn't the issue. When it croaked I got another one and then decided to rip apart the corpse. What I saw on dis-assembly was that they had not put all the screws back into the mounting holes, had not put the ribbon connectors along their normal routes but instead just laid them wherever was easiest and most important, had a) not cleaned the old paste from the top of the CPU and GPU and then, to make matters worse, had put only about 1/3 of the correct amount of paste (thermal) on these components when putting the unit back together. This was at one of the largest game console places in Bangkok, who recently opened a branch in Siam Square.

You can purchase older ROM PS3s at Panthip that come with a loaded external HD but I don't remember the prices. Or if your original PS3 has an early enough firmware (I think it's 3.5??) you can purchase an external HD with programs for around 4,000 baht if memory serves me. Which it probably doesn't....

[xerostar]

Thanks for that info User3.

Can you say what was broken on the PS3 before the "repair"?

I disassembled our PS3 expecting it to be clogged with fuzz but it was actually fairly clean.

The heat sink paste was all dried out but found nothing else that would point to the problem.

It may be that the HD was full?

I see there are a lot of YouTube Vids showing all manner of fixes including shooting with a shot gun.

Nice to know I can get a new one in Pantip!

Edited December 12, 2012 by xerostar

[trimesh]

Thanks for that info User3.

Can you say what was broken on the PS3 before the "repair"?

I disassembled our PS3 expecting it to be clogged with fuzz but it was actually fairly clean.

The heat sink paste was all dried out but found nothing else that would point to the problem.

It may be that the HD was full?

I see there are a lot of YouTube Vids showing all manner of fixes including shooting with a shot gun.

Nice to know I can get a new one in Pantip!

The most common fault is cracked solder joints on the chips - basically the same problem that the early 360s had, but it took longer to develop on the PS3s. The cause seems to be the same, too - a combination of Pb-free solder, marginal heatsinking and chip carriers with a coefficient of expansion that was poorly matched to the main PCB. The best way to repair them is to remove the chips completely from the board, reball them (preferably with Pb based solder balls since they are more ductile) then reinstall them using an infrared reflow machine - this gives you a result that's arguably better than the original.

A lot of the people offering repairs don't have the right equipment, though - they just remove the mainboard and use a hot air gun. This will often get it working, but the lack of preheating and controlled cooling sets up stresses in the solder that means they will likely fail again soon.

[Lorin]

I have problem with HDMI connector in my PS3, accidently pulled the cable out, now its not showing on the TV, where I can fix it in BKK? Pantip?

[xerostar]

The most common fault is cracked solder joints on the chips - basically the same problem that the early 360s had, but it took longer to develop on the PS3s. The cause seems to be the same, too - a combination of Pb-free solder, marginal heatsinking and chip carriers with a coefficient of expansion that was poorly matched to the main PCB. The best way to repair them is to remove the chips completely from the board, reball them (preferably with Pb based solder balls since they are more ductile) then reinstall them using an infrared reflow machine - this gives you a result that's arguably better than the original.

A lot of the people offering repairs don't have the right equipment, though - they just remove the mainboard and use a hot air gun. This will often get it working, but the lack of preheating and controlled cooling sets up stresses in the solder that means they will likely fail again soon.

Thanks for that Trimesh.

Now I can see why they tried to offset the problem with the huge cooling fan and heatsink.

The heatsink paste (that dried out) was very likely a major factor then.

Using the console for many hours (in a very hot environment) probably hastened the onset of problems.