XBOX 360 - surge protector necessary?

C

Capfarland

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
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I have read rumors about how the power brick that comes with the 360 has a built in surge protector, I can't find any conclusive evidence that proves it though. Would there be any reason why it would be bad to plug the 360 into a surge protector?
 
i would personally never have any of my electronics plugged directly into the wall, its just not worth the risk, and remeber even if the power block for the 360 is a form of surge protection it was built by the lowest bidder :)
 
i had a MS tech tell me that if the 360 was plugged into a surge protector and it RROD it would void the warranty. Of course there is no way they could know that it was, but that indicates to me that it doesnt require one.
 
4saken said:
i had a MS tech tell me that if the 360 was plugged into a surge protector and it RROD it would void the warranty. Of course there is no way they could know that it was, but that indicates to me that it doesnt require one.
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i read through that link and from what you say sounds so stupid to me, how could a device that is ment to filter out voltage spikes cause harm to the 360?

plus have you ever unpluged your 360 power block the light stays on even after a loss of power, not for long but it does, telling me that it has a capicator of some kind in there, so if there was a voltage drop it shouldn't affect it.

call me dumb but how do you have voltage loss when there is a voltage spike? the surge bar absorbs the spike in power while maintaining a constant level to the device, correct?

and since i am new the 360 world, it was my understanding the RroD was caused by overheating? and it was fixed in the new 360, so unless MS has been misleading and its actually a power/voltage issue which could open them up to law suits i am confused as to what the causes the RroD and what was done to fix it.

UPDATE:
so with your statment ringing in my ears i decided to call 360 support, and i was told that it did not matter if you used a surge protector or not, and that in fact using one could aid in helping prevent the RroD. he even put me on hold to go check. So take it for was its worth but MS said its ok.
 
4saken said:
i had a MS tech tell me that if the 360 was plugged into a surge protector and it RROD it would void the warranty. Of course there is no way they could know that it was, but that indicates to me that it doesnt require one.
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No, that just indicates that MS support for handling the RROD that everyone praises (e.g. "MS sure screwed up but they're manning it up and handling it well" - bullshit) are trained and paid to do absolutely everything in their power to avoid having to repair/replace your system and making you believe that you screwed yourself instead of MS screwing you.

The new systems with the Falcon motherboard (the pro/elite with the HDMI port) have supposedly mostly solved the problem(s). Their failure rate is supposed to be somewhat on-par with the Wii and PS3 now, but it's too early to tell. From the many Falcon systems (literally in the triple digits) I've personally sold, I really haven't had that many customers come back saying it broke down, not nearly as many as the old models.
 
Long story short: Go ahead and plug and put it into the surge protector. It will not hurt it. Unless I see conclusive evidence showing otherwise from engineers, you are recommended to plug it into a surge protector. Especially if your power fluctuates / blacks out often.
 
I personally haven't even finished hooking up my 360 yet because I'm short spots on my surge protector. Once I get a new one then it'll be hooked up. Sorry but where I live we have horrible spikes and brownouts and i'm not about to put a ~$500 piece of equipment on the grid w/o some protection ;)
 
This argument has been going on for ages...

Basically their argument holds no weight when you consider the variation in electrical current coming from the local utility or caused by other devices in your house (microwave, refrigerator, water pump, washing machine etc. etc.) that could "cause" this type of damage. The surge protector isn't at fault if they are blaming death on voltage fluctuation. If this is in fact the case, it means that they cheaped out on the power supply and that is not the consumer's fault.

The Xbox 360 is similar to a computer on many levels and I don't see too many computer manufacturers to plug it directly into the wall unless it is for troubleshooting purposes...

Anyhow, this one's been beat to death I think. Use it if you want (or have to because hey, who has enough outlets) or don't use it. I have never had RROD issues with mine in the last couple of years of ownership and it has always been plugged into a surge protector.
 
If you look in the manual it says do NOT use surge protectors. The power brick has a built in one and if you use a surge protector it will drain the power from it and eventually break it.
 
A Yellow Fellow said:
If you look in the manual it says do NOT use surge protectors. The power brick has a built in one and if you use a surge protector it will drain the power from it and eventually break it.
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I think you're mis-interpreting the manual, it simply says not to over load your powerstrip/wall outlet. At least that's what the PDF manual (page 15 i think) at http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/systemsetup/xbox360/resources/instructionmanuals.htm says.

I've got my entire home theatre setup on a surge supressor (APC) and both of our PC's are on UPS's (also APC) and have had pretty good success
 
Quoted directly from the Microsoft KB

MORE INFORMATION

The power supply has several built-in safeguards to help prevent damage to either the console or to the power supply itself. The power supply can turn itself off when there is too much current, too much voltage, or too high a temperature. Under these conditions, the light on the power supply will turn from green to orange or to red. Or, the light will turn off. When the power supply light is green, the power supply is working correctly.


To help the power supply work correctly, always try to use the following best practices:

  • Make sure that all ventilation openings in the power supply are free to ventilate.
  • Do not put the power supply on a bed, on a sofa, or on any other soft surface that may block ventilation openings.
  • Do not put the power supply in a confined space, such as a bookcase, a rack, or a stereo cabinet, unless the space is well
  • Do not put the power supply on a stereo speaker, an amplifier, or a heat source such as a radiator or a heat register.
  • Plug the power supply directly into a wall outlet. In other words, do not use extension cords or power strips.
Take note on the date of last review " September 11, 2007 " That's after they started issuing the RROD warranty
 
Mavvy911 said:
I think you're mis-interpreting the manual, it simply says not to over load your powerstrip/wall outlet. At least that's what the PDF manual (page 15 i think) at http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/systemsetup/xbox360/resources/instructionmanuals.htm says.

I've got my entire home theatre setup on a surge supressor (APC) and both of our PC's are on UPS's (also APC) and have had pretty good success
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No I forgot where it is, but it says exactly what I said. I also occasionally go to the xbox forums and they all say it is a big no no. Also I called MS one time and they said the same thing.
 
I can't tell you what is in the 360 power block. They are most likely concerned about proper power distribution through the power strip. I can envision a case of MOV's not being matched causing too much stress in one or both. This may cause the power block to malfunction. I also think this is a bit of a stretch as many items have MOV's in them without concern. Myself, I use an APC suppressor. To me they are well designed for good power distribution, have well understood protection thresholds, and an indicator for when they have blown or malfunctioned. I've been lucky at 2 years with a 360 plugged into the surge suppressor with no failures.

edit: After further thought, MOV's in parallel may not be doing much to work together but shouldn't be worse off than just one.

edit: Another possibility I have not been able to confirm. The filter and protection network in two different device can form a tank circuit resulting in instability.
 
Plug the power supply directly into a wall outlet. In other words, do not use extension cords or power strips.
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a power strip isn't a surge suppressor
 
I actually read the documentation that came with my 360 and it said to me:

Plug the power supply directly into a wall outlet.
 
Sixthsense said:
Regardless if a power strip is not a surge suppressor or may or may not have a surge protector built in. The KB still states to plug directly to the wall outlet. :p

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=176
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either way i call bullshit, unless a certified electrical engineer can explain to me how its possible that a device desgined to protect electrical components will actualy harm the 360 i say MS is just feeding us crap. there isn't even ground fault protection for the 360 power supply, would any of us plug our pc's directly into the wall? so i don't think i will be following the KB's advice, i will keep my 360 plugged my surge suppressor. :eek:
 
I've had a computer since 1993 and have never used a surge protector & have never had one problem. ::shrug::
 
Mac[X-D];1032519464 said:
either way i call bullshit, unless a certified electrical engineer can explain to me how its possible that a device desgined to protect electrical components will actualy harm the 360 i say MS is just feeding us crap. there isn't even ground fault protection for the 360 power supply, would any of us plug our pc's directly into the wall? so i don't think i will be following the KB's advice, i will keep my 360 plugged my surge suppressor. :eek:
Click to expand...

I'm pretty convinced it has more to do with power quality than surge suppression. Make sure you use the appropriate UPS. Don't overload your power strip.
 
I work on offshore rigs (a lot of them), and there are things that a surge protector does that no brick out of a manufacturer's box will do. I have seen many electrical products ruined offshore, and I will never plug into anyone's outlet without a surge protector. It has to do with the regulation of the power. Normal power runs so many microcycles per time unit. I asked an electronics tech about why my all the clocks on the rig were gaining time, and he explained to me that while it doesn't instantly 'fry' the equipment, it has a serious cumulative effect to the battery and also to the boards in the equipment. I had a high-dollar custom Sager with the five pound power brick (the one that does it all;) and costs your firstborn to replace). Told him I didn't need a surge protector. Anyway, many dollars later and a new motherboard, and a new battery, and even a new power brick-----I now always use a surge protector.
 
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