Xbox 360 FAQ
What is the best Xbox 360 motherboard?
Starting with the Xbox 360 versions
First off we need to break this down by console version, or, iteration. The Xbox 360 had the Fat, Slim (Or S), and E versions. The fat is the original version released and the one that is so notorious, the Slim was the second, and the E was the last. By far, the Xbox 360 slim had the best motherboard versions inside, I personally am not a fan of the E console due to its lack of modding options and just the fact that it wasn't in production long so there aren't as many out there. This will make the E motherboards more rare and more expensive as time goes on. More than likely, you need to know WHICH of the motherboards are best for EACH iteration. If you have a fat, which motherboard version is best, etc. So let's get into that now.
What is the best Xbox 360 fat motherboard?
In total there were 5 motherboards for the Xbox 360 fat console. In order from oldest to newest we have the Xenon, Opus, Zephyr, Falcon, and Jasper. There were two variations of the fat console in that the earlier versions did not have HDMI ports, only the proprietary A/V port.
The Xenon and Opus motherboard were both Non-HDMI motherboards. If you have a console that does not have the HDMI port, then the Opus is by far the best version. It usually came with upgraded heatsinks (Though you can always upgrade the heatsinks yourself with an Xbox 360 heatsink upgrade kit like one of these.) It also had some slight upgrades like stabilizing glue around the CPU and GPU (Though the Xenon also got this for a period too. And also got this treatment when a console was sent into Microsoft for repairs.) However the Opus would be the way to go if you are dealing with the Non-HDMI version of the Xbox 360 console. This motherboard is still prone to failure but it is definitely the best one for this version. Your main issue here is that the Opus is a VERY rare motherboard as this was being produced at the same time they started offering the HDMI versions of the console. So this is going to be hard to find. Addionally, you can always upgrade the Xenon to perform better like mentioned above. So, A Xenon Xbox 360 fat motherboard like one of these would still be a valid option if you can't find an Opus, just plan on replacing the heatsink compound and upgrading those heatsinks if you do!
When dealing with the HDMI version of the fat, the Jasper is absolutely the best Xbox 360 motherboard you can have here. RROD and overheating issues were fine tuned and most Jaspers run well enough to not have to worry about that happening. Don't get me wrong, the Jasper can absolutely still fail in the same ways. The 360 fat design in general means they were only going to be able to improve this so much. However upgrading to a Jasper Xbox 360 motherboard like one of these is absolutely the way to go if you have an HDMI version of the fat.
What is the best Xbox 360 slim motherboard?
When dealing with the slim (Or "S" for short) the discussion changes because there are only two motherboard versions. These are the Trinity and the Corona. Both of these are VERY similar in functionality and reliability. There is some debate back and forth about which one is better as far as how well it runs and how long it lasts, but these are VERY minute differences. Simply keeping the motherboard clean of dust and replacing heatsink compound every year or so is more than enough to keep either one of these running a very long time. However, I believe the Trinity motherboard is the best Xbox 360 motherboard when you are dealing with the slim. If you are looking to mod the Trinity is easier to deal with and you have less hoops to jump through (Depending on what you want to do with it) Most trinity motherboards also have a plug/connector that allows you to attach the 4GB internal memory module which is a nice little feature to get a little more storage space. If you don't care about modding then you can use either version and be fine. I just prefer the Trinity due to the extra little features and ease of modding. You can find a Trinity Xbox 360 S motherboard here if you are in need of one.
What is the best Xbox 360 E motherboard?
The E console is kind of irrelevant as it only had one real motherboard version so there is nothing to compare. There were a few very minor changes done to the E motherboards but they were so small and insignificant that it didn't even count as a different version. They were mainly component upgrades/downgrades for cost saving. As I said in the start, I'm not a fan of the E console, so I won't really discuss the motherboard here much. It runs well enough and it does have fewer RROD failures than the slim and fat but I also believe the disc drives were way worse and fail regularly.
