Playstation 3 DE-LIDDING FOR BEGINNERS (phat or fat PS3)

With so many de-lidding recordings on YouTube, I thought it was time to do a video for someone who was serious about de-lidding their console. Other videos are made purely for entertainment purposes, and when you try to replicate the process, it fails as the video missed out important information on the process. This is because essentially you are watching someone who is basically showing you what works for them, and what works for them, may not work for you.

So, I have come up with a tutorial that is informative and addresses a lot of the myths surrounding the de-lidding process. I have also evolved my technique so someone else could copy what I have done and do a successful de-lid themselves. This is aimed at a beginner or novice that wants to limit the risk and have a maximum chance of success.

please keep comments respectfull,

tools required.....

A hard, flat surface to work on.
Painters knife set
A rework station (get a cheap one for 20-30 pounds)
Sealant Remover
flux in a syringe
fine sand paper
Masking tape
Isopropyl alcohol
Cotton buds
A stop watch
Air duster
Thermal paste (I use liquid metal)
Old tooth brush
plenty of patience

[kavogaming]

Hi again Tim, I just successfuly delided my ps3 following your method.

I tried with a broken ps3 first and knocked a chip off the motherboard trying to break the silicone.

But second time around it was a complete success. An hour playing Last of Us and the fan now sits at 37%, it used to be 80%.

Thanks 👍🏻🙏🏻

[tony]

great process! Yes, that little "looks-like-a-scratch" under the CELL is always there. I think it's a little residue from the machine which applies the sealant. I panicked when I saw that the first time! :)

[jaylonsweet]

After hours of looking for a good video brother you have topped everyone nc mods or whatever and everyone else very detailed clear and work safe first over quick and messy

[anuyahvictor]

You're the best I almost gave up with other numerous dumb videos. Just lucky I found urs thanks 🎉

[TheHighlander]

Hey Tim. Very useful video.
When I place overlay texts like you do, I find it helpful to add what is called an outer stroke with an alternate colour to the font. That way the text is much easier to distinguish from any items in the background that match the font colour.

[KeilDaBaker]

I feel being right handed this makes holding everything a little more difficult so thankful I'm a lefty

[marcelr]

Very percise Video, I will maybe try it in the future, probably while watching this.

[Hadobedo]

Successfully delidded my first CECHG01 PS3 Phat using this guide! Went without a hitch thanks to this video!! :) I applied liquid metal to the RSX and CELL and Arctic MX-6 to the IHS and fan heatsync. After running GTA V for 20 mins I've managed to bring the CELL down to 64c however the RSX likes to hover around 66-68c with fans @ 40-48% . The dynamic fan max temp in webMAN is set to 68c and my ambient room temp is 26c. Ive tried reapplying the liquid metal to the RSX and adjusted its IHS but I pretty consistently get the same temps. Could it be that this particular RSX 'runs hotter than the rest' or is that hotter than you'd expect after a delid? I've looked online for other peoples delidding results but they seem to vary wildly aha

Thanks again!!

[kavogaming]

Hello Tim, thanks for this great video. I just ordered a broken PS3 fat online for 15 quid. Gonna try this first before doing it on my working one. I have a question, could you put sealant remover around the entire thing or is it best to just choose one spot?

[eightzerofour]

This was a very informative and cool video, thank you so much. My question is i am assuming you replaced the lids using liquid metal instead of thermal paste ?

[bigphillydc]

I really enjoyed the video. What type of sealant remover did you use?

[xtroncool]

Hello there
Love your vids
Done this job myself last night on a PS3 Cech03
Went well happy to do it again! Quick question please. Whilst the console is open I’m trying to buy from amazon UK the CMOS 2032 battery and wires already made up
But please tell me what the male and female plug is called
Is it MOLEX???
Best regards
Ty

[DaveDoc]

Hi Tim, Can you offer a De-Lidding Service? I am UK based and have 2 Backwards Compatible PS3's that will most definitely need this. Neither have ever had the YLOD.

[JustinKosler]

Sorry for contacting in this medium with a question, but I've watched a number of videos and read some forums and Reddit and such and have decided that your opinion, I would give credence to more than most doing stuff with this. I have an OG A01 unit in the US that I purchased new, I don't even remember when, and I haven't really used it much in the last ten years, and I recently brought it out and began my journey down the rabbit hole of taking care of this device. Fan comes on almost immediately and once starting a game it kicks up several notches very quickly sounding like a small single engine aircraft, so I believe the maintenance prescribed is in order. My question is should I first install custom firmware, to be able to check temps, prior to beginning any attempts to open? I watched your other video explaining to warm up the machine prior to the first time getting down to the thermal paste, but do I need the temp from the software, or would just letting it run until the fan kicks up, and it feels hot, suffice? TIA

[Soulcommander]

Aww I did not see what you used for the paste or how you put it on.

[ShaDoWxGFX]

I just did a delid on a white Japan 40gb Model (CechH) Its kinda loud, 40-45 percent fan speed after the delid on Gt6, about 35-40 on all other games. I've got other units that have never been opened which run cooler than this one. Any tips on how to get the temps down? Is it to do with the thermal paste brand? I used deep cool thermal paste. I do have liquid metal but i dont want to go down that path, much rather thermal paste

[robmcshane]

Hi Tim do you offer a refurbishment service for working backwards compatible PS3s ? New paste and cleaning etc

[kavogaming]

Hi Tim, Im gona delid another ps3 and going to order a new painter's knife set. Is it necessary to sharpen the end of the painters knife or no?

[Gemini]

Thank you for this, very helpful!
I took some comparison notes with the fan set to SYSCON on the XMB and after 10 minutes the CPU ran 9 degrees cooler with the fan running 5% slower. The RSX went up to 74 degrees however, presumably because of the low fan speed?

[osvaldaspaslauskas]

Which model did you de-lid? As apparently newer slim models and even newer models are basically impossible to de-lid as they used different material to stick down the cpu and gpu heatsink.