So, here we are. Three sixty and I. Face-to-faceplate. It’s been an interesting couple of weeks since your DVD drive surrendered its will to live (Part 1 – Part 2), but now the time has come to remedy your ailment thanks to the generous organ donation of another Xbox 360 that has since moved on to wherever dead consoles go (the city dump?).

At first, there was a bit of apprehension after making the decision to repair the console myself, but after finding a few websites and helpful guides, my fear subsided. I learned the project I was undertaking would be a little simpler than I had initially anticipated. Having said that, I’ll tell you about my first foray into console repair after the jump.

As I mentioned, there were some guides online that I consulted to see how to go about making this repair. One thing I noticed is that if you managed to find the same model of DVD drive, you could easily swap them out. However, the trick was finding out what model was housed in that pasty white shell. Thankfully, there is a website out there that tracks what DVD drive is inside Xbox 360s and it’s completely searchable. One can search by manufacture date, lot number, etc. Impressive really.

At any rate, I found out the model of my DVD drive and proceeded to scour the internet for one. There were plenty available but there was a catch. It needed to have the correct firmware(!) and all of my [cheap] options didn’t include it. I would have to copy the firmware and flash it to the replacement drive somehow. That would require more work than I was willing to invest, plus there would be the risk of ‘bricking’ the new drive if something were to go wrong. I needed an alternative and, fortunately, one became available to me.

I contacted one of my gamer friends and found out that he had a spare Xbox 360 that RROD‘d on him about a year ago. I was also pleased to learn that his model was a launch-era console like mine. Just to make sure that the drives were compatible, I searched the aforementioned website to see what drive his console possessed. It was the same one! We scheduled a lunch date that afternoon and met to discuss the issue.

After lunch, we went back to his place and went to work. He walked me through opening my console. What a harrowing experience that was! After an hour, we emerged victorious. Both consoles had shed their skin and were now completely exposed. Removing the drive was as easy as lifting it out. The installation was equally simple. The swap was complete. Now comes the test.

We connected my console and were ecstatic that it started up. We popped in a game and…”To play this disc, put it in an Xbox 360 console.” Oh my. Not the result I was expecting. We tried another title and received the same message. Defeat.

What’s a gamer to do? I packed up my toys and brought my old drive home with me with the new one still inside my console. As soon as I got home, I wondered about something that I had previously read. Some DVD drives for the console have a separate board in the housing that contains the firmware. That firmware is linked to each individual system as some measure against piracy. Hope!

I hastily disassembled my Xbox 360 and removed the housing for both DVD drives. There it was. The circuit board containing the firmware that I needed was in plain sight and easily removable. I proceeded to disconnect the board from my old drive which did indeed say what version of firmware it used and was different from the replacement drive. Within minutes, the old board replaced the new. Here we go!

I fired up the system and popped in Fallout 3. Voila! Resolution! I was so pleased with myself and happier than ever to hear the alternate historical account of humanity’s demise via nuclear holocaust. Just for added measure, I started Silent Hill 4 (Xbox) just to make sure it would read and play games from the previous generation of Xbox. It worked. Thank you, Jeebus!

All was well in my little corner of the gaming world, again! I redressed my naked console and had a drink to celebrate my achievement. A little narcissistic, but I didn’t mind. After all, I saved at least $120 doing the work myself. That alone was reason enough for me to be happy. Game on!