Bumpgate: Difference between revisions

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With the PlayStation 3, much of the same speculation happened as with the Xbox 360. However, because the defect was never acknowledged as such by Sony, it was far less clear to consumers what exactly was causing the fault in consumers' machines. Long after the PS3 was no longer supported by Sony, this led many retro console and repair enthusiasts to make poorly informed choices in how to attempt to repair their devices. By 2018, many owners were also convinced for some time that the fault wasn't even related to their RSX GPU, but rather, the NEC-Tokin capacitors surrounding it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Naked_Snake1995 |date=15 Jul 2019 |title=(Research/Experimental) - NEC/TOKIN Capacitors Replacement - YLOD |url=https://www.psx-place.com/threads/research-experimental-nec-tokin-capacitors-replacement-ylod.25260/ |url-status=live |access-date=4 Jun 2025 |website=PSX-Place}}</ref> The reason for the misconception was because Toshiba laptops from the same era had their NEC-Tokins fail prematurely due to a design flaw specific to those laptops. Some general hardware failures can be caused by the PS3's NEC-Tokin capacitors failing (primarily due to age), but Sony had designed the motherboard correctly when placing the NEC-Tokins- so they would not fail prematurely. It was not until 2022 that this misconception was largely corrected amongst the community, and the true defect was identified as likely to be Bumpgate-related.<ref name=":4" />

A common bad practice between both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 was to reflow the entire motherboard. ~~Ultimately~~, this would only fix the problem temporarily, if at all. In addition, a motherboard is not designed to go through this process more than once (specifically, at the time of manufacture), so this would damage the motherboard over time until it would be impossible to fix the system again. ~~Because this fault was caused by a defective GPU, though, the~~ only way to permanently fix it is to replace the ~~faulty~~ GPU with one that doesn't have the defect. How possible that is, however, depends much on a person's skills, tools, and how easy or difficult it is for consumers to repair and modify the system. For example, the PS3 has a modification called "Frankenstein", which makes it possible to replace a defective 90nm RSX GPU with a 65nm or 40nm one ~~that is not defective~~. This modification was inspired by an "official" fix that Sony performed on some faulty PS3s. However, for a ~~regular~~ person to perform this repair, they would need a BGA rework station (and the skills to use it properly) and a softmodded PS3. Due to the specialized nature of ~~this modification~~, most people will still recommend for consumers to find someone skilled enough to do the modification for them, buy ~~an early PS3~~ that is already ~~"Frankenstein" modded~~, or to simply avoid purchasing consoles impacted by Bumpgate.

A common bad practice between both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 was to reflow the entire motherboard. Even alleged professional repair technicians did this, as shown in BBC's Watchdog segment for the "Yellow Light of Death".<ref name=":1" /> However, because this fault was caused by a defect in the GPU, this would only fix the problem ''temporarily'', if at all. In addition, a motherboard is not designed to go through this process more than once (specifically, at the time of manufacture), so this would damage the motherboard over time until it would be impossible to fix the system again.

The only way to permanently fix systems with a Bumpgate-affected GPU is to replace the defective GPU with one that doesn't have the defect. How possible that is, however, depends much on a person's skills, tools, and how easy or difficult it is for regular consumers to repair and modify the system. For example, the PS3 has a modification called "Frankenstein", which makes it possible to replace a defective 90nm RSX GPU with a non-defective 65nm or 40nm GPU from one of the newer PS3s. This modification was inspired by an "official" fix that Sony performed on some faulty PS3s. However, for a person to perform this repair, they would need a BGA rework station (and the skills to use it properly) and a softmodded PS3. A similar modification is also possible for early Xbox 360s, but it requires the same tools and modding experience as the PS3 does. Due to the specialized nature of such modifications, most people will still recommend for consumers to find someone skilled enough to do the modification for them, buy a system that is already modified, or to simply avoid purchasing consoles impacted by Bumpgate.

==References==

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 With the PlayStation 3, much of the same speculation happened as with the Xbox 360. However, because the defect was never acknowledged as such by Sony, it was far less clear to consumers what exactly was causing the fault in consumers' machines. Long after the PS3 was no longer supported by Sony, this led many retro console and repair enthusiasts to make poorly informed choices in how to attempt to repair their devices. By 2018, many owners were also convinced for some time that the fault wasn't even related to their RSX GPU, but rather, the NEC-Tokin capacitors surrounding it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Naked_Snake1995 |date=15 Jul 2019 |title=(Research/Experimental) - NEC/TOKIN Capacitors Replacement - YLOD |url=https://www.psx-place.com/threads/research-experimental-nec-tokin-capacitors-replacement-ylod.25260/ |url-status=live |access-date=4 Jun 2025 |website=PSX-Place}}</ref>  The reason for the misconception was because Toshiba laptops from the same era had their NEC-Tokins fail prematurely due to a design flaw specific to those laptops. Some general hardware failures can be caused by the PS3's NEC-Tokin capacitors failing (primarily due to age), but Sony had designed the motherboard correctly when placing the NEC-Tokins- so they would not fail prematurely. It was not until 2022 that this misconception was largely corrected amongst the community, and the true defect was identified as likely to be Bumpgate-related.<ref name=":4" />
-A common bad practice between both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 was to reflow the entire motherboard. Ultimately, this would only fix the problem temporarily, if at all. In addition, a motherboard is not designed to go through this process more than once (specifically, at the time of manufacture), so this would damage the motherboard over time until it would be impossible to fix the system again. Because this fault was caused by a defective GPU, though, the only way to permanently fix it is to replace the faulty GPU with one that doesn't have the defect. How possible that is, however, depends much on a person's skills, tools, and how easy or difficult it is for consumers to repair and modify the system. For example, the PS3 has a modification called "Frankenstein", which makes it possible to replace a defective 90nm RSX GPU with a 65nm or 40nm one that is not defective. This modification was inspired by an "official" fix that Sony performed on some faulty PS3s. However, for a regular person to perform this repair, they would need a BGA rework station (and the skills to use it properly) and a softmodded PS3. Due to the specialized nature of this modification, most people will still recommend for consumers to find someone skilled enough to do the modification for them, buy an early PS3 that is already "Frankenstein" modded, or to simply avoid purchasing consoles impacted by Bumpgate.
+A common bad practice between both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 was to reflow the entire motherboard. Even alleged professional repair technicians did this, as shown in BBC's Watchdog segment for the "Yellow Light of Death".<ref name=":1" /> However, because this fault was caused by a defect in the GPU, this would only fix the problem ''temporarily'', if at all. In addition, a motherboard is not designed to go through this process more than once (specifically, at the time of manufacture), so this would damage the motherboard over time until it would be impossible to fix the system again.
+The only way to permanently fix systems with a Bumpgate-affected GPU is to replace the defective GPU with one that doesn't have the defect. How possible that is, however, depends much on a person's skills, tools, and how easy or difficult it is for regular consumers to repair and modify the system. For example, the PS3 has a modification called "Frankenstein", which makes it possible to replace a defective 90nm RSX GPU with a non-defective 65nm or 40nm GPU from one of the newer PS3s. This modification was inspired by an "official" fix that Sony performed on some faulty PS3s. However, for a person to perform this repair, they would need a BGA rework station (and the skills to use it properly) and a softmodded PS3. A similar modification is also possible for early Xbox 360s, but it requires the same tools and modding experience as the PS3 does. Due to the specialized nature of such modifications, most people will still recommend for consumers to find someone skilled enough to do the modification for them, buy a system that is already modified, or to simply avoid purchasing consoles impacted by Bumpgate.
 ==References==