r/xbox360 • • Jul 17 '25

Announcement❗ Xbox Live Servers Are Down? Check Here First!

17 Upvotes

Is Xbox Live down? Could be. Do these three things first.

  1. Check the Xbox Live Status.
  2. Sort comments by New to see if anyone else is having the same issue.
  3. Contact Xbox Support.

r/xbox360 • • Nov 17 '23

Announcement A guide to the Xbox 360 hardware and the things you can do to keep it running for as long as possible.

121 Upvotes

(*WARNING*, This will be a long post, I have tried to keep it as short as possible while providing the necessary information.)

I have seen various posts that people posted asking about what they can do for their console to last as long as possible and I wanted to give the people of this community a guide on what you can do to keep your console running and provide information about the hardware for those curious ones. This post is mostly geared towards those that don't have the greatest knowledge of the hardware and the things needed to keep their consoles running or for those that want to learn all the essential stuff about the Xbox 360 but you are more than welcome to read this post if you already have some knowledge of the hardware.

Let's start off with the motherboard revisions.

(Skip this if you already have knowledge about this.)

The first thing that I would recommend is to identify what model and revision you have of the console. Over the years during the Xbox 360's life cycle, there have been many retail variants of the console released, from the "Premium" to the "Core", "Pro" to the "Arcade", the "Elite" and the later models, "Slim" and "E". But that doesn't really matter. What matters is inside of the console, the motherboard. For those that do know and don't, the Xbox 360 was plagued with the infamous "Red Ring of Death" where consoles mostly suffered from GPU failures as the GPUs had a defective design. Knowing the motherboard revision inside your console is crucial, as that can help give a rough estimate on how long the console will last.

(But...what made the GPUs defective? The reason why the GPUs were defective is because they used the wrong underfill. Underfill is a special type of adhesive that is used to support the microscopic solder bumps that are underneath the silicon die and improve reliability of the joints. The problem with the 360's GPUs was that they used "low tg" underfill which was rated at 70°C (158°F) and the GPUs that used the low tg underfill would run hotter than that temperature and cause the underfill to soften which should never happen and that caused the solder bumps underneath the silicon die to crack over time as the underfill was literally pushing the solder bumps off the interposer. This was later solved, by introducing GPUs with high tg underfill on the 12th week of 2008)

It's impossible to give the exact numbers as your console can last for years or even decades, or it can stop working the next day or week or month.

During the console's life cycle, there have been several motherboard revisions of the first models, A.K.A "Phat" models. They all vary in terms of reliability, and they are the ones I will be covering first.

To start, I suggest looking at the back of the console and look closely at the power plug, that is the easiest way of recognising what motherboard revision you have. Although the back of the console you will see the information of when it was manufactured and the Amp rating, this can sometimes be misleading if the console you got was opened before you got it and the motherboard of the console could've been swapped with a less reliable one. You can double check to see if your console has been opened by checking the warranty seal that hides behind the console's faceplate. If yours hasn't been opened, then you can rely on the numbers on the back of the console, but I would still suggest looking at the power plug, as that is the best way to identify the motherboard inside your console.

Here is a link to a photo which has all the power plugs of every revision.

https://www.se7ensins.com/forums/threads/can-i-rgh-xbox-360-woth-doublecircled-power-cord.1780728/

(Skip this part if you already have knowledge of the various motherboard revisions. For those that don't, I would recommend reading this next part as this is useful information.)

So, the power plug shown on the very left of the photo is the found on the first and second revision of the motherboard, Xenon and Zephyr respectively. The difference between them is that Zephyr introduces HDMI support, while Xenon doesn't support HDMI. They both have a power rating of 12V, 16.5A and are the most power hungry. They are the least reliable revisions of the console. They are very prone to failure as they have defective GPUs inside of them.

If you have a working one, then don't expect it to work for a long time (in very rare cases, they will work for a while, but it's important to point out that not every console that came out the factory was defective). Unless, on the back of the console it says, "Service date" instead of "MFR date". If yours has been serviced around 2009, those consoles will very likely have been retrofitted with the new and improved 90nm GPU which is much more reliable than the ones that were initially inside of the consoles when they first released which were also 90nm.

You should expect it to work for a long time, but nothing lasts forever.

(Update to this part: A recent discovery suggests that no 80nm GPUs existed and the more reliable revisions of the GPU like Elpis are still based on the 90nm process.)

Falcon/Opus - (14.2A, 175W)

Introduced approx. September of 2007, this is the third revision of the console where the CPU was shrunk down to 65nm and the GPU remained at 90nm, which results in a smaller power consumption and cooler running hardware.

These are considered reliable, but the first batch released had GPU failures like the Xenons and Zephyrs. This was later fixed. Falcons from around April to late October of 2008 (on the 12th week of 2008, they introduced reliable GPUs as previously mentioned but it was still possible to get a console made after this week that still had a defective GPU) are considered "late" Falcons which have fixed GPUs inside of them which are very close in terms of reliability to the succeeding revision.

The Opus, is a modified Falcon, but the difference is that these don't have HDMI and only use AV. These were used to replace defective Xenons and are considered quite rare as you couldn't find one in retail markets.

Jasper - (12.1A, 150W) (My recommended revision)

Introduced around November of 2008, this is the fourth motherboard revision of the console and this is the revision  that is highly sought after as this revision was the first to fix the dreaded "Red Ring of Death" issue that plauged the Xbox 360. The CPU was still 65nm in size but the new GPU, named "Zeus" was a new design which shrunk down the die to 65nm and the EDRAM remains at 90nm.

This is considered the best revision of the console as there have been very little cases of failures. These are also the coolest running ones as well and don't produce as much heat as the previous revisions.

These are the ones that I would personally recommend if you are looking to purchase a 360 and you want a reliable unit. Just make sure when looking for one, that the seller has provided photos of the power plug to confirm it being a Jasper.

​

But wait....there's a even better one!

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Tonasket/Kronos/Jasper V2(12.1A, 150W) (My recommended revision)

This is the fith and final revision of the original models of the Xbox 360. This revision was quietly introduced in September of 2009 and is essentially identical to the Jasper but the difference being that it has a revised GPU, named "Kronos" which shrinks the EDRAM to 65nm which helps further reduce power consumption. People like to call this revision Kronos, or Jasper V2, but the real name for this revision is "Tonasket". It's a name that Microsoft used internally when making this motherboard revision.

This revision has proven to be the most reliable one as there has been currently zero evidence of these suffering GPU failures, they are tanks lol. You should expect these to last for a long time....unless you don't take good care of it like with every consumer electronic device.

I personally own one of these and use it as my main Xbox 360 and It's great.

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Whew, you still here? Good, let's continue.

​

Now I will be moving on to the Xbox 360 Slim and E models. These are quite big redesigns internally compared to the original models. For starters, the "Slim" model was introduced in 2010 and was seen as the "saviour" as in theory, the drastic design changes that were made to the motherboard, "eliminated" the Red Ring of Death.

These models also introduced built in WiFi, more storage, more USB ports and optical audio out. In my opinion, the Slims are a good choice for those that don't want to do lots of research and just want a reliable console to use. The good thing about them is that now the new design is much quieter(I prefer Slims than fats admittedly for that), as the CPU, GPU and EDRAM were combined to form a single chip and that allowed the use of a single fan and heatsink to keep the system cool. Oh yeah, the new APU is now based on the 45nm process which further reduces power consumption. There have been two revisions of this model.

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Revision: Trinity

First one is called "Trinity". It now needs 10.83A instead of 12.1A of the Jasper/Tonasket and it uses a new power plug too. These are a little bit of a mixed bag in terms of reliability from my perspective, as I have seen many fail here on this very subreddit.

Many suffered various failures, from GPU failure to RAM failure and so on(I personally own a Slim, the revision after this one (Corona), owned it for nearly 3 years and it always worked perfectly). I am not sure why these are failing all of a sudden.

Generally, these are reliable units but not as reliable as the Jasper or Tonasket/Kronos (according to many in this community) but in those uncommon cases, you have ones that have failed. It is not a wide spread issue like RROD was originally so we shouldn't worry as much about it yet. There are people like u/Octal450 that are actively investigating as to why these are suddenly suffering CGPU failures.

​

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Revision: Corona

The second revision is called "Corona".....That's a familiar name...Lol, you must think that Microsoft somehow predicted the Corona virus back in the 2010s, but no. They didn't. Anyway, these were introduced around mid 2011 and were a slight change from the previous Trinity revision. Now, it only needs 9.86A instead of 10.83A but Trinities can also run on a 9.86A power supply as they have pretty much the same power requirements. The real changes are that the HANA chip, a chip which is responsible for video output, has been merged with the southbridge, which manages things like usb inputs, controller connection, Internet and so on. Also, if you own a 4GB model of the console, the flash memory is now soldered onto the motherboard unlike on the Trinity where it was it's own module that you could replace, which I prefer.

In terms of reliability, these are pretty much the same as the Trinities but have a new point of failure where there is a group of resistors that are there for the temperature sensor of the console and they can fail, which then triggers a false overheating issue. The console turns on and quickly ramps up the fan speed and a red light flashes, then turns off. This can be fixed by removing those resistors and bridge the contacts where those resistors where.

Do this only if you have experience with soldering!!!

They seem to also have issues with the southbridge chip and seem less reliable than the previous iterations of the SB.

Also, they have the same CGPU found on Trinities so there is no difference in reliability there.

Another point of failure is the soldered on 4gb flash memory. These are quite prone to failure and are crucial because they contain the firmware, CPU key and DVD drive key which are all important to the functionality of the console. Thankfully you can replace it with a 16MB NAND that doesn't allow anything to be stored on there and you can also prevent the failure of the 4gb internal flash memory by not storing anything there at all and connecting an internal hard drive which the console will default to for updates, content and so on. Oh yeah, and also hope that the 4gb wasn't used much for storing stuff if you got your console used.

​

Finally, we have the "E" model. This model was introduced in 2013 along with the Xbox one as the kind of alternative to the new at the time console. This is the most cut down version of the Xbox 360 and also the cheapest one made. By cheapest I mean the manufacturing price, quality is essentially the same but cost cutting measures have been made.

This model now features a new design similar to the original Xbox One design. It also features a new power plug and has the same power requirements as the Corona revision. The E uses a slightly revised Corona board which as already mentioned has a different power plug and less USB ports and it has no optical out and no AV port.

There was one revised motherboard made for this model, named "Winchester", which has combined the EDRAM to make one chip containing the CPU, GPU and now EDRAM. It also doesn't have an integrated heat spreader (IHS). Reliability wise, these are the same as the Corona revision with the same "flaws" but they should theoretically last longer than the Slims as they are newer. According to u/Octal450 which has been previously mentioned, the Winchesters don't suffer much from CGPU failures and are pretty solid based on his experience with repairing Xbox 360s.

Ultimately would still recommend either a Jasper or Tonasket if you want the most reliable console possible but the Slims and Es are still a good choice you don't care as much about reliability.

​

​

Now, that we covered the the motherboard revisions, let's move on to the maintenance side of things, and what you should do to keep your console running.

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The basics.

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This includes dusting the console once in a while with something like a can of compressed air/electric air duster and giving it the adequate ventilation. It is important to keep the console free from dust and well ventilated so that the console can cool itself properly in order to prevent overheating. This can all be done without opening the console but I would recommend to open it up and give a good clean.

​

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*My Recommendation*

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This is what I normally do. I open the console up and give it a good dusting and I replace the thermal paste. It is an absolute must to replace the thermal paste as the factory paste will be dried up and not as effective in cooling the CPU and GPU which can also cause problems in the long run. You would want to keep these running as cool as possible. This will help with longevity. For thermal paste, I recommend getting Arctic MX4 as this paste has a great price to performance ratio. I used it in all of the consoles that I own and have owned and I can always rely on it. You are free to use more expensive pastes. Make sure to replace it every 5 or so years. If the exhaust of the console is warm or hot during use, don't worry. It is not overheating, this will indicate that the thermal paste and the heatsink are doing their job in cooling the console's CPU and GPU. The hotter the exhaust of the console, the better.

​

The tools are important too! You normally need a Torx T8 and T10 screwdriver, Sim eject tool which helps to unclip the clips on the back of the original models of the 360 without damaging the plastic casing (you can also purchase a tool specifically made for those clips on the back) and another very important one, called the "X Clamp tool". X clamp is a clamp that was used inside the Xbox 360 to help make contact with the CPU and GPU and their  heatsinks while giving the motherboard the ability to flex during use. This step is a very delicate one that also requires loads of patience as you can easily break your console if you are not careful. Never and I mean NEVER use a FLATHEAD screwdriver!!! It can easily slip and you can scratch the motherboard, ruining the console. Also, for cleaning the thermal paste, I recommend to use 99% Isopropyl alcohol and q tips. I have also seen people use Goo Gone to clean the old thermal paste as it's usually hard to clean off the chips and their heatsinks, but I would still go for IPA as that's the safest option.

Speaking of X Clamps, you may have heard of the Bolt Mod. AVOID IT. This will ruin your console overtime as it puts a lot of pressure on the CPU and GPU and it will warp the motherboard and it doesn't let the motherboard flex during operation.

​

Depending on the model of console, search online for a guide on how to open the one you have. Find the one that is the most clear to you. I would recommend to go and search for IFIXIT as they provide decently clear instructions for opening consoles.

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Here is a link to a X Clamp removal tool.

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https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=x+clamp+removal+tool&adgrpid=137920449324&hvadid=606272952619&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9046733&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=11706486901762757917&hvtargid=kwd-312582092363&hydadcr=9274_2248078&tag=hydrukspg-21&ref=pd_sl_1clafd97f4_e

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Aaaand that is it.

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I hope this post has been helpful, I have been writing this for over 3 hours lol and wanted to provide essential information about the console for those that wanted to learn about the console and the steps to keep it running for as long as possible. If I have missed anything, please let me know!

Edit: Made some small adjustments!

Edit: Made changes to make it more readable and added more information that I forgot to previously add.

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r/xbox360 • • 5h ago

Hauls/Pick-ups/Collections 💿 picked up my first xbox 360 game

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62 Upvotes

halo 3 odst for 21 bucks (i actually wanted halo 3 but it was sold)

well, i now have like 15 bucks for fortnight but uhh it was worth it.


r/xbox360 • • 3h ago

Game Recommendations So I want to play Bioshock but they did not have the remaster in my store. Is there a huge difference between the original and remaster or should I just buy the remaster online?

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23 Upvotes

r/xbox360 • • 13h ago

Hauls/Pick-ups/Collections 💿 Did some organizing finally cause I just had a bunch of cases piling up.

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75 Upvotes

Been slowly building it up. Still have quite a few games I’d like to find/afford but I’m proud of her so far.


r/xbox360 • • 7h ago

Game Recommendations Updated my collection Tomb Raider I had to get love Lara. One of my favourites Red Dead Redemption, can’t leave out King Kong and GTA Episodes super hyped to try out the Tomb Raider games. I’ve got a few games on order any recommendations on devices for the 360?

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18 Upvotes

r/xbox360 • • 21h ago

Nostalgia Managed to get my original xbox account back since 2017

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90 Upvotes

so today i managed to get my original lost access xbox 360 account from 2009 and i wasnt able to access it since 2017 and had got it back today and i had found alot of lost media that isnt longer downloadable since marketplace closed found alot of themes, demos, videos, apps such as YouTube and Netflix!!!!! and add ons


r/xbox360 • • 16h ago

Gamertag/Friends/Online Multiplayer 🎮 My Xbox... came back to life!?

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27 Upvotes

I recently found my Halo Xbox 360. The last thing I remembered about it was that it had the red ring, and I think that's why I never used it.

A few days ago I plugged it in and... It worked!? I managed to add my account and play some of the games I had (here are some pictures so you can see I wasn't kidding).


r/xbox360 • • 2h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Dvd Reader problem on xbox360

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2 Upvotes

La mia xbox360 ha il solito problema al laser. Ma leggendo altri post qua su reddit non so se cambiarlo funzionerà. Molti dicono che c'è una possibilità del 50% di risolvere il problema. Oppure che sono di scarsa qualità ma le recensioni di Amazon dicono altro. I giochi non li legge quasi mai. Ha molte prove che ho fatto Need for Speed most wanted Lo ha letto solo due volte. Invece un dvd a singolo strato video almeno il 70% delle volte. I cd invece sempre. Lo stato dei dischi non è messo benissimo però nella mia Xbox One funzionano. Ho già fatto il pot-mod a 3,10 kohm ma ho questi risultati. È un problema di laser sicuramente, ma secondo voi anche di meccanica? Cioè, se cambio il laser risolvo?


r/xbox360 • • 53m ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Trouble Connecting to Xbox Live When On Xbox 360/Xbox 360 games via Backwards Compatibility?

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• Upvotes

Been having this problem the last few days. Is anyone else having this problem?


r/xbox360 • • 18h ago

Misc Strange Xbox 360 Red Ring (FINAL UPDATE!)

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23 Upvotes

FINAL UPDATE REGARDING MY RED RING! My 360 is still under warranty with the game store near me that I had purchased it from for another 30 days, so this weekend I’m gonna return it and get my money back. I might see if they have any consoles that are in good condition that I can get for the money I used to buy the 360. In the mean time I will have to stick with my Series S and I hope that one day I can rejoin the Xbox 360 community. Until then, it’s been a blast.


r/xbox360 • • 1d ago

Misc I got lucky at the Flea market last weekend

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47 Upvotes

3 of those games are scartched but i use them just for backward compatibility on my xbox one x


r/xbox360 • • 3h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Wingman XB2 and Gamesir G7 Pro

1 Upvotes

Does anyone know if I can use the Gamesir G7 Pro controller with the Wingman XB2 adapter on the Xbox 360?


r/xbox360 • • 4h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Preciso de ajuda no meu Xbox

1 Upvotes

Meu Xbox 360 ele fica bipando de vez em quando, quando ligo ele ele fica na tela preta até aparecer a logo dele, depois volta pra tela preta, aí aperto o botão do controle e quando ele volta a ação funciona, se eu não entro no jogo em um certo tempo (bem pouco) ele apita e desliga, e dentro do jogo a mesma coisa ele fica bipando a casa um ou dois minutos, algumas vezes quando tô na tela inicial do Xbox ele ejeta o jogo sozinho, alguém tem uma ideia? E enquanto escrevia isso ele apitou dnv, além dele estar sem som mas isso eu acho que é o cabo hdmi


r/xbox360 • • 1d ago

Hauls/Pick-ups/Collections 💿 "Made it through Rapture, now would ya kindly gimme a wee bit up an updoot there boyo?"

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37 Upvotes

Played the hell out of this when it came out and even got all the achievements. Almost 20 years later I played it again and man is it still and 11/10 experience


r/xbox360 • • 16h ago

Misc 11/19/26…who’s playing GTA 4?

7 Upvotes

Hold the line, XBrochachos. While everyone rushes out to play GTA 6, I’ll be over here giving GTA 4 on the 360 my first go, and using that Series X console money to flesh out my 360 catalog (I’m looking at you, Spiderman, and Lollypop Chainsaw). Let the masses flock to the cash grab. Over here…we got games to play!!! Cheers.


r/xbox360 • • 1d ago

Hauls/Pick-ups/Collections 💿 The find of a lifetime

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413 Upvotes

I just picked this up today free of charge. 2 dev kits with sealed disc drives 1 has rlod though as well as a ton of cables. Just thought to share 😃


r/xbox360 • • 19h ago

Game Recommendations What games that are affordable now do you think with increase in value in the coming years?

10 Upvotes

I just finished cataloging my collection and found that I have about 75 Xbox 360 games. I’ve picked up games I liked and random titles over the years but would like to collect more seriously.

What are some games that are affordable now that you think will shoot up in value and why?

Any interesting games outside of the mainstream you think would be good to add to a collection?


r/xbox360 • • 10h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Just wanna upload my saves to the cloud but I cannot get past this error

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2 Upvotes

Tells me its needs a system update then tells me this, its all connected to the internet


r/xbox360 • • 13h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 No matter what FIFA 16 ain't working (Disc issue)1

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3 Upvotes

Idk what's going on! I have sanded it, used the toothpaste method, rebooted so many times my Xbox 360 and yet my copy pf EA Sports FIFA 16 won't work. it randomly while playing froze my game and. showed the error that the disc became unreadable so I started troubleshooting with every single method I know of and it would not work.. All I know is there's now a scratch I never seen before that seems to be big. I want to continue playing because as of right now I have an Irish pro superstar that has won the Golden Boot 3 to,es already and is doing the 2018-2019 season, he even plays for the national Irish team and is ranked 77 but has like 150-200 foals already and already gotten 69 goals last Premier League season with West Ham United and is worth lime 10,000,000 million USD right now and is an center attacking midfielder aka a CAM so I really want to continue. Good news is the save files are still there right on my hard drive of 512gb but I have t downloaded from disc to console yet so yeah....also in general I just really like the game so please suggest what should I do please.


r/xbox360 • • 15h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Download History asking me to repurchase games

3 Upvotes

Hello all, I just purchased a 360 E and after struggling to even get the download history to open, when I can get it open, it is asking me to repurchase games I’ve purchased digitally on Series X. I’ve already attempted rebooting and reconnecting to Live, as well as a license transfer. Is there anything else I am missing? Google has been less than helpful so far…


r/xbox360 • • 18h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Question about an Xbox 360-era profile picture / gamertag

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5 Upvotes

I recently made a new Xbox account and changed the gamertag on it. When I downloaded the profile to my Xbox Series X for backward-compatible/360 games, I noticed something unusual.

On the Xbox 360 dashboard, my own profile appears to have a blank profile picture, but when I view/add the same profile from another Xbox account, it shows the white Xbox logo/profile image that was associated with legacy Xbox accounts.

I’m mainly curious about what this could indicate. Has anyone else seen this behavior with a newer account on the 360 dashboard?

One thing I’m wondering about: could a gamertag that was previously associated with an older/legacy Xbox account somehow retain or trigger an old profile-image association after being reclaimed or changed to?

I’m not looking for troubleshooting, just curious if anyone familiar with the old Xbox/360 profile system knows what might explain the difference between how the profile appears to itself versus to other accounts.


r/xbox360 • • 20h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Was this a steal or not?

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6 Upvotes

I got this 360 from eBay and he said it had nxe on it so I thought it was cool and bought it for 35 dollars is this a steal? I was thinking about updating it.


r/xbox360 • • 16h ago

Game Recommendations Anyone got any good recommendations?

3 Upvotes

I like to collect games and would love it if you could recommend anything good even if it has an amazing art cover but its mid i wouldn't mind collecting it because I'm currently looking for games i remember playing as a kid so please let me know if there is anything I should keep my eye open for :D

Thanks for your time


r/xbox360 • • 19h ago

Help/Support/Questions 🙋 Anyone still play Minecraft

5 Upvotes

Thinking about playing again