Chosen Solution

I have a problem with my PS3, and I am getting worried. The problem is that when I press the PS Button to turn it on, the LED goes green, and in a few seconds it beeps rapidly, then turns red, and then blinks red. I don’t know what is wrong. I might just call Sony, but I want to know what is wrong with it first.

Try this: HOW TO RESET THE PS3 IN SAFE MODE:

  1. With the TV off and the PS3 off, connect only the HDMI cable between them.
  2. Turn your TV on and select the correct input that is connected to your PS3 (DO NOT TURN YOUR PS3 ON JUST YET)
  3. Press and hold the power button on the PS3 until 3 beeps are heard. a. 1st Beep - Turns the system on b. 2nd Beep - Resets the video output c. 3rd Beep - Turns the system off At this point, your PS3 should be OFF. If it isn’t, repeat the above steps.
  4. Press and hold the power button AGAIN until the following beeps are heard: a. 1st Beep - Turns the system on b. Double Beep - Places the PS3 in Safe Mode. Release the power button at this time or the system will shutdown on the next beep. At this point you should see a menu with 6 options highlighted on your screen. If you do not, and you are sure you completed the above steps properly, contact Sony and ask for further assistance. Continue on if you see the menu.
  5. Select “Reset System.” Should be menu item #1.
  6. After the system resets, the screen should tell you it has detected an HDMI device. Select “Yes” to configure the PS3 for the HDMI output.
  7. After the HDMI output has been configured, the screen should ask you if you would like setup the HDMI output for optimal settings, select “Yes” and the resolution of your screen should change to its optimal setting (in my case it was 1080i).
  8. The familiar PS3 menu should appear at this point with the problem resolved.

Go to youtube and search for PS3 YLOD FIX by GILKSY. Also view his “Arctic Silver Application” video and his “Fluxing PS3 BGAs” video. Follow his steps to the letter and you will have a fixed PS3 system. It cost me $40 US to buy a variable heat gun (Harbor Freight) and $10 for the Arctic Silver Thermal Coupling compound (Radio Shack). You will need a very small phillips head screwdriver and a samll Torx head screwdriver. I took my time and did this in about 4 hours over 2 days (I went very slow to ensure I did not screw something up!) So for about $50 bucks I “SAVED/FIXED” our PS3 - MY KIDS LOVE ME!

Currently, iFixit does not offer a repair guide for the PS3 Slim YLOD, however, we do have guides for the PS3 Slim Motherboard. What I recommend is using the PS3 Slim guide to get to the motherboard, and then following the general procedure for repairing the YLOD from the PS3 fat YLOD guide. iFixit also offers a YLOD fix kit, which includes everything you should need to access your motherboard.