PS4 Cooling Modding?

[I337yoSh11]

Obligatory notice: If this is in the wrong section, could you please move it or tell me where it goes? Thanks.

 

Anyways, I was combing through my junk drawer and came across my old PS4. I assembled it and remembered why I hadn't used it. The native cooling method on the console is atrocious, and I've owned an original Xbox One. Loud, ineffective, and the early models (like mine) will actually scorch the HDMI port or connectors with the heat that it pumps out the back. All of that being said, I was wondering if anyone had modded their PS4 with a simple cooling upgrade. Fancy watercooling aside that costs way too much money (yes, Linus, I remember that video), does anyone know of an alternative BGA or compatible heatsink that actually helps? I don't care about aesthetics or requirements, I just need to keep this thing cool.

 

So, any ideas?

[AskTJ]

Buy a 120mm AIO and see if there is an adapter for the socket on the processor on the PS4. I have no idea what mechanism is used on consoles.

[Crunchy Dragon]

Before turning to alternate cooling, I would repaste it and see if that helps anything.

 

Blow out dust too. If that doesn't solve anything, then I would recommend looking into modding an AIO onto it.

[I337yoSh11]

Yeah, I thought about an AIO. The problem with such an investment is that I have no idea what the extent of the damage is on the existing chipsets and such; wasting around $60 bare minimum on something that might still die with its current damage isn't exactly viable. I should have clarified, I'm more or less using this as a test case for when I have to buy a replacement down the road. The socket type is BGA and modern consoles use a custom APU from AMD, hence why finding an actual cooler is so difficult.

 

The PS4 gets maybe two square inches' worth of surface intake using a puny laptop fan and heatsink for primary cooling of the APU and the memory modules, after which said fan is supposed to pump all of that hot air through the integrated PSU and out the back of the case, right below the main ports on the console. Also, the entire f***ing motherboard is encased in seamed aluminum that is used as one giant heat dispersion method, which is why the case itself gets hot.

 

Point is, aftermarket cooling truly is a necessity for the stock PS4, as it will burn itself out with common use after maybe four years.

[Serachja]

I made a very easy mod by attaching a simple waterblock on top of the existing heatsink of the ps4. Now I just cool the heatsink with the waterblock and everything is very cool and very quiet. Naturaly I had to cut an opening at the right place of the case and I used thermal compound between the block and the heatsink...but other than that it is a very easy and inexpensive way to silence the ps4 and the cool thing is, it can still be used without any water as the inbuild fan and cooling system remain untouched (say if you lend the ps4 to a friend or similar)

 

I could imagine that you could attache a common air cooled block (noctua nh-d15...) instead of a waterblock on top of the heatsink.

 

I'm pretty sure this works the same way on the pro or the slim and hopefully on the 5 as well

Edited November 24, 2018 by Serachja
I just wanted to upload more pictures in order for people to get a better idea of the mod

[AngryBeaver]

Best way to cool a ps4? Toss it in the river and get an Xbox.

[iLostMyXbox21]

Pop the top off and put a box fan facing it (stand the ps4 to where the open part is pointing to the fan) boom. (Put an ice pouch on the intake side of the fan for cooler air)

[Roni 007]

On 9/7/2018 at 6:25 AM, iLostMyXbox21 said:

Pop the top off and put a box fan facing it (stand the ps4 to where the open part is pointing to the fan) boom. (Put an ice pouch on the intake side of the fan for cooler air)

Dude, that ice pack would suffocate the machine. 

[thrasher_565]

hmm

[Peestain37]

@AngryBeaver lol

[Peestain37]

On 9/6/2018 at 5:38 PM, Serachja said:

I made a very easy mod by attaching a simple waterblock on top of the existing heatsink of the ps4. Now I just cool the heatsink with the waterblock and everything is very cool and very quiet. Naturaly I had to cut an opening at the right place of the case and I used thermal compound between the block and the heatsink...but other than that it is a very easy and inexpensive way to silence the ps4 and the cool thing is, it can still be used without any water as the inbuild fan and cooling system remain untouched (say if you lend the ps4 to a friend or similar)

 

I could imagine that you could attache a common air cooled block (noctua nh-d15...) instead of a waterblock on top of the heatsink.

 

I'm pretty sure this works the same way on the pro or the slim and hopefully on the 5 as well

Good idea because where the waterblock is mounted is already being cooled albeit with a shitty method so there’s less heat for the rad to deal with thus meaning the fan on it can run at a lower rpm making the whole system quieter.