Recap guide
Recap the PlayStation 3
Some units get the Yellow Light of Death from failing NEC/TOKIN caps, though that is one cause among several, and the slim is less likely.
Open the interactive checklist Tick off each capacitor as you replace it. It saves in your browser.
Check first. A recap is not always the answer here, so look at the guides before you order parts.
Where to start
Clues from write-ups and forum threads, not a diagnosis. Low confidence means one thread or one repair; high means several write-ups agree.
- Yellow Light of Death (Medium confidence). An iFixit guide frames replacing NEC/TOKIN caps as one possible YLOD cause rather than a sure fix. Source
Tips, tales and maybes
Found in write-ups and forum threads. These are other people's reports, not tested by us. Check part references and values against your own board.
- Watch out: NEC/TOKIN swap is hard and may not fix it (Low confidence). A Shmups thread on replacing the NEC/TOKIN caps (the poster describes eight 1200uF on fat models and four 1000uF on slims) warns of ground planes and stubborn solder that lift pads, height clashes with the RF shield, and says to use shorter parts. One tester who replaced all eight with tantalums reported it did not work. Source
- Maybe: Matching ESR when replacing (Low confidence). In another Shmups thread, a poster theorised the original NEC Tokins are around 1200uF 2.5V with very low ESR and that several small Panasonic 330uF 2.5V tantalums in parallel per position could match it, while flagging that the mod bridges rails the original left separate. This is speculation, not a proven fix. Source
- Tip: YLOD is a symptom (Low confidence). On an iFixit YLOD question, one answer said a heat-gun or thermal-paste fix is only temporary and recommended replacing the NEC/TOKIN caps by SMD soldering. Another reminded the asker that YLOD is only a symptom, so diagnose what is actually failing rather than swapping parts blindly. Source
Before you start
- Boards changed during production. Check your board number against the guides before you order parts.
Guides we used
This page and the interactive bench are built from these. They have the photos and the full detail, so please read them and support their authors.
- PlayStation 3 Potential YLOD Fix (Step-by-step) by Andrew S (iFixit). Frames NEC/TOKIN cap replacement as one possible YLOD cause rather than a sure fix. No license statement
The capacitor list
We have not checked a capacitor list for this machine yet, so none is shown. Follow the guide above for your board, then add the capacitors in the interactive checklist and it builds a shopping list for you.
Skip the sourcing
While you are in there
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Steps, tools and safety
The steps, the tools in top, middle and budget picks, and the safety list are the same for every machine, so they live on one page: How to recap, step by step.
Values are shown as published in the guides above, and boards changed during production. Check the board in front of you. A recap involves hot tools and, on some machines, dangerous voltages. You do it at your own risk.