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Water Cooled Xbox 360

The world's first water cooled Xbox 360! A full Xbox 360 breakdown that will show you how it is done easily.

The Story:

Four years ago next month we built the world’s first water cooled Xbox. At the time, a lot of people asked us why we would want to water cool an Xbox, mostly because they didn’t understand the motivation behind it. The fact of the matter was that the standard heat sink on the 700MHz Intel processor would barely get hot under normal use and surely didn’t warrant the performance offered by a custom water cooling kit. At the time, we did it simply because no one else had done it and “because we could.” That was our motivation then and that is partially our motivation now.

We had plans to water cool an Xbox 360 for over a year now. Little did we know that not only will this water cooling project be more fun than the original, but it may even be practical. Imagine that. With reports of heat related issues and a heat sink that can get almost too hot to touch after marathon gaming sessions, the Xbox 360 water cooling project now had a sense of purpose. We bought a retail Xbox 360 specifically for this project. The minute we got it back to the [H] labs we tore into it and, with a little help from the fine folks at Koolance, we have put together a water cooling solution that will handle anything the Xbox 360 can throw at it and literally knock your socks off.

Before we get started, I want to direct those of you who are not familiar with the Xbox 360 to read our Xbox 360 evaluation here. Please take a moment to get up to speed on the hardware involved in this mod.

Getting Started:

(Warning! Any mod that requires removing the cover of your new $400 game console voids your warranty. Period. The use of tools such as pliers, screwdrivers, and power drills within close proximity of the internal components of your Xbox 360 can result in user error that could ultimately render you console inoperative. It goes without saying that [H]ardOCP assumes no responsibility for any damage that may occur to you or your Xbox 360 if you attempt this mod on your own. Having said that, all the cool kids are doing it.)

As most of you know by now, the Xbox 360 is a good deal smaller than the original Xbox and packs easily ten times the punch. However, all of that extra horsepower comes at a price and that price is heat. While the extra beefy heat pipe use by Microsoft gets the job done, prolonged gaming sessions send the system fans into overdrive and there have been reports of consoles with overheating issues. The goal of our project is exactly the same as our original Xbox H20 project—to eliminate any overheating issues by adding a complete water cooling system made completely from off the shelf parts that anyone can buy. Our goals for the original Xbox H20 mod were as follows:

1. To achieve better overall cooling for the Xbox.

2. Make a unit that can be replicated with fairly common components, without spending a fortune.

3. Clean, professional installation. No ghetto installation, no use of epoxy to attach a crappy homemade water block, and no zip ties or wire and bubblegum tricks.

4. Leave the Xbox without any permanent alterations so that it may be easily returned to its original condition.

Aside from two small holes drilled into the back of the Xbox 360, we were able to completely adhere to the guidelines we set out four years ago for our original project. Let’s take a look at what we used for this project:

Tools & Disassembly:

You are going to need a few tools to get your Xbox 360 apart for this project: A set of Torx screwdrivers/wrenches; a small, flathead screwdriver; a pair of needle nose pliers; and a long, thin pick or flat metal rod. We will discuss the additional tools you will need to complete this mod later in this article.

While it may seem a bit daunting at first because the Xbox 360 has no outside screws, cracking the console open is relatively easy. Even if you have a limited amount of patience you can get the case apart in about 30 – 45 minutes. First of all, you will want to remove the faceplate from your system. This is a simply a matter of squeezing the sides of the faceplate while pulling outward until it pops off. You can also use the USB door hole or get your fingernails into the seam at the base of the faceplate and pull.

Now that the faceplate is removed, pull the grey plastic base plate at the bottom of your console out and, looking through the small ventilation holes on the side of the case, locate each of the six retaining tabs. Using a small metal rod (I used a utensil for eating crab…works like a charm), push each of tabs inward as you gently pull down on the plastic base plate. If you haven’t already, remove the hard drive on the top of your system and repeat the same procedure to remove the grey plastic plate located under the hard drive.

With both of the grey plastic end pieces removed, you can now open the case by separating the bottom of the case from the upper portion using your screwdriver to pry apart the two halves of the case. There are three tabs in the front of the case and a row of tabs on both sides of the back of the case. Start with the front of the case and release the tabs and gently pry the case open. Once you have the case partially open in the front, move to the back of the case and depress the tabs in the back and pull the case apart.

With the bottom of the plastic clamshell removed you will see the stamped steel inner case that actually holds the Xbox 360 hardware. There are 14 screws in the bottom of the steel case. 6 of these screws (with the larger, flatter appearance) are long and screw through the case, holding the top portion of the clamshell in place.

Do not remove the smaller, rounded screws at this time. These smaller screws, as well as the 8 black screws in the middle of the case, hold the motherboard in place. For now, remove the 6 larger screws and turn the case over and remove the top.