PS3 Thermal Paste Replacement & Cleaning Featuring Nathan 

Dang taking this apart is so intimidating! I've assembled and disassembled my PC and that was cake, but for some reason, I am very intimidated by disassembling my PS3. I do like the tip that you gave about putting the screws back onto the components you removed so that you don't lose track of them. I will be doing this on my next day off from work and I will be using your video to help me with the process. Wish me luck!

Honestly, well done! I'm getting a PS3 again after a very long time! Just wanted to see this before I actually start playing again, thank you

Watching that heatsink go from dull to shiny made me so happy

Thanks! Did this today and have to admit my hands were shaking & heart pumping :D at the half-way i almost gave up middle of the "thousand" different size of screws & parts but then i was like f' it, there's no turning back now. Finally came in the end to put all the pieces back together and then... NO POWER! Gladly found out the POWER RIBBON was tighten badly & loose, straighten that one & voilà!, back on wheels :) thanks for the video.👌🤝🏆

If it was refurbed by GameStop….probably not. Lol so true. Bit of advice: PS3 dies are notoriously uneven. Paint the thermal compound on in a thin layer to achieve full coverage. Also, don’t use a power drill on the CPU GPU clamps. Do that by hand so you can feel torque. That’s it, great job though.

Dude great idea to put the screws back into the components they belong ! I just did this for a clean up and left a bunch of screws off 😂

I like Grizzly thermal paste, too. Especially since it doesn't conduct electricity so it's newbie-friendly.

Very thankful for this video as I have been looking for someone to do this exact service for my fat model PS3. Looks like that someone is me now

Also just a tip, you can get the security torx bits as part of a larger bit set at harbor freight for 5-7 dollars.

Hell yeah brother, PS3 is running much quieter now. Like'd and Sub'd.

Damn dude. That's one hell of a logo animation. I LOVE it! Very N64-esk!

Just got a backwards compatible PS3 and it was super loud. Googling the issue led me to your video. I've built and repaired my PC multiple times before, but the PS3 here was still an intimidating and daunting beast, but thanks to your help, I was able to get in there and blow off all the caked on dust and apply some new thermal paste. At first, I was scared I ruined something because after reassembling and plugging the PS3 back in, it wouldn't turn on. I took a deep breath and figured I'd dive in once more just to the Power Supply. If I could get it to turn on, that'd be all I needed for the night. Triple checked that the wires around the PSU were plugged in securely and I screwed it back in. And when I flipped the switch, the PS3 came on. Booted up a PS1 game and it didn't immediately kick into high gear like it had the night before. Then I popped in MGS4 and the fan turned up a little, but took before there was a lot more happening to start really spinning up. Thanks a bunch for your video. My only gripe is that taking the innards out of the bottom portion of the case is just kind of skipped over at 6:33. And it's hard to get a good look when you're reassembling it at 13:55.

I've been wanting to repair my SNES that my dad smashed when I was a kid.

Hey thanks for this video. After 15 years or so, my Ps3 is still going strong, but it's time I get that thermal paste replaced, so I'll be watching this video. Do you recommend getting the 19inch fan for it? Or just keep the standard? Will it make a difference? Thx.

Thank you so much for this tutorial ! I had a backward compatible model that i didn’t use since 2012, managed to recover it thanks to you !

mine's have overheating beeping issues.

dk oldies should take notes on this video

I like the song 💚

I’m about to learn what thermal paste is !

I’m late … but actually what does changing the thermal paste do too your console ..?

If anyone is looking to preserve a PS3 this is a great place to start, but unfortunately it's not enough in the long term. Sony's software allows the console to run anywhere between 74-78 degrees C and sometimes higher which will cause the yellow light of death, to prevent this you can install custom firmware and set the maximum temperature to 65-69 degrees C, although I will admit that this will make the console quite loud but it's better than no console especially if it's a rare BC model. If noise bothers you and you're good with your hands then I'd suggest following an IHS removal video, in this video you see the thermal paste replaced, but underneath the metal plates is yet more thermal paste, replacing this is key to a quiet and cold console with a long life span, but it is risky and should only be done if you have the skill to do so, I'd recommend buying a few dead motherboards to practice.

After paste is applied and everything Is put back together. How long do u have to wait to turn on the unit? Does the paste need time to set

Thank you very much, im following your tutorial and it worked. the fat model had so many screw and it confused me a lot 😂

thanks for the help its wierd my cechb01 is actually running quiet! :) i just thought it allways ran that loud lol wow what a dif

My dad just recently gave me the family’s ps3 from 2007, & it’s backwards compatible 😅. It’s super dirty due to the fact the last time I played it or somebody played it was on Dec 25,2011😅😅 which was MW3

Don’t you want to delid the chips and put thermal paste on the chips themselves to not just the heat spreader

Thanks alot! I like the step by step and the music.

not realy on topic but does anyone know what the background music for this video is ive been trying to figure this mystery out for YEARS now pls any info?

Good informational video man! Maybe one day I can actually get one of the backwards compatible ps3s.

I have to put new thermal paste on as well, thanks for the video! Do you think i should replace the Capacitors too? Im not too familiar with the insides of systems

Dude, you're supposed to take off those CPU covers because there's dried up paste below those as well. It's the most important step to save your PS3!!!!!

Great video. I just inherited a 60gb BC PS3, and I’m going to use your guide to replace the thermal paste. I also plan on putting in a 128gb SSD for less moving parts. Have you seen any gains with the new thermal paste?

Will you please post a link to what thermal paste you bought

This Video is great. Question, How often should i replace the Thermal Paste, right now the PS3 is sealed, it has never been taken apart.

My ps3 turns on like some minutes And turns off with beep sound & red light blinks twice

I've seen in other videos that people use a heat gun or blow dryer on the board but you just replaced the thermal paste and put everything back together. Is it not actually necessary?

Is this purely preventative? Or can this potentially solve problems? My PS3 had YLOD like 10 years ago. For whatever reason it started working again. Recently it will work shortly and then black screen. Upon reset i’ll get “No Signal” and controller wont connect, even after trying the output reset trick. Is it a lost cause and will need repair? Or should I try a good cleaning and re-thermal? Awesome video man! Ill be using this as a walkthrough if I do decide to attempt it :]

Wow, this looks like a nightmare especially as someone who has an allergy for handling small electronic components. But my PS3's fan sounds like a jet after booting it up for a while and i also want it to last longer....oh well, guess i don't have a choice then!

Great video. Exactly what I needed. I use a jailbroken PS3 and after a while, the game's freeze. So I'm assuming it's getting too hot which means it most likely needs cleaning like you did in your tutorial video here, correct? 👍

Is it normal for a PS3 to blow warm air out the back? My PS3 blows warm air out the back on the right side nearest to the power and hdmi cords, while the left side blows out cooler air. I have a Super Slim model by the way.

I'm having trouble trying to get the CMOS battery out of the socket. Any suggestions? I don't want to yank the socket off the motherboard. Thanks!

Tiny amount of thermal is enough ?

I Have CECHE01 Ps3 and It starts artifacting after about 30 minutes to an Hour of gameplay, only on PS3 games though, so far. It freezes the whole console and I have to restart it every time, Would this help me?

Is this hard to do? I just ordered a FAT PS3 on eBay and I need to replace the thermal paste, but this looks very tedious.

People love these backwards compatible ps3s, but up until like 2 years ago you could just find ps2 consoles at thrift stores or behind dumpsters. I kinda just love the fat ps3 for nostalgia, personally. I do think they’ll be highly collectible someday, as the unreliable curiosity that they are.

That was a very helpful video. I saw that there were Thermal Pads as well. Should I replace Thermal Pads too?

My PS3 is near flawless fat software ps2/ps1 emulator, def doing this service soon on a bath towel. My hdmi port isnt working which really sucks, 480i on the av cables out, I might have to send it out for that repair. I am afraid they will scratch up my baby!

For some reason now its giving me the glod. _. Guess it was better off running at 80 degrees c than not running at all

I followed this video step by step. But I kinda got some spare parts when I was done putting it together. 2 screws. Should I open it and figure out where they should go or isn't it really that big of a deal?

great video. need to do this again to get my old pictures off my ps3, is it worth leaving the top case off to help with heat just while i copy my pictures off.

did you had to re format the hard drive after doing this?

Just wondered how your temperatures are after a few years and also was curious why you only put one pea sized drop on the plates and did not spread it out evenly? I'm also surprised you didn't pop off the metal plates to get directly to the dies of the processor in GPU. I'm getting ready to do my PS3 fat and have been watching different videos and cannot figure out what should really be done

I couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t fit the motherboard back in, I had screwed the fan back in upside down 😂

whats the easiest to clean fat, slim or super slim?

That looks like an all day job.

I've done this and still shutting down after 10minutes ಥ‿ಥ

I change it but it still turns off when playing

whats the stuff in the can you your spraying please

I just did a thermal paste replacement watching this video. My fat PS3 would randomly shut down and beep and flash red. Took it apart and the old paste was crumbly and barely there. I replaced the paste with a pea-sized amount on both chips, put it back together and played some Uncharted 3 for about 10 minutes or so and it shut down and beeped and flashed red. What did I do wrong?

is removing the hard drive absolutely necessary? Doesn't that make you format it when you turn it back on?

Whats the name of the songs played in the montages where u unscrew parts?

How much do i need to leave it to cool when i barely put thermal paste on it?

My PS3 will sometimes exit to the PS3 menu screen after about 2 hours of play. While I suspect it's overheating, I find it to be a bit strange as to why it wouldn't shut off completely. I've heard of people having problems with their PS3 shutting off when overheating, whereas mine just exits to the PS3 menu screen. Do you think this could be a result of overheating, or is something else going on here?

Question: How drastic are the changes in how the internals are arranted between all the fat models? Like mine(a Cechl04) had the fan and heatsink sitting on the backplate connected with screws to the backplate and not the main board while the blueray drive has a very small ribbon cable compared to your model. So if i ever want to clean the fan i have to apply a new thermal paste.

استمر يابطل 👍🙂

Did i work after thisv

The amount of crap that one must do to open this system. Not worth it, not in a million years. Ive spend +5000 hours with my system active. With the highest demanding games, every popular game out there. Sessions of 6 or 7 hours straight. You know what? It fucking works. So till you reach those numbers, just forget about it.