Hark Tech
Help & troubleshooting
Honest, practical fixes for the problems we see most often in the workshop. No paywall, no sign-up — just what actually works.
Games Consoles
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PlayStation Repair Guide — PS4, PS5 and DualSense
A practical index to every PlayStation repair guide on Hark Tech — what the fault means, what fixes it, and when to post it in for us to look at.
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Controller Stick Drift — Fixes for PS5, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch
One fault, three controllers — the mechanism behind stick drift and every drift repair guide on the site, plus the hardware upgrades that make it stop for good.
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Fixing Nintendo Switch Joy-Con drift at home: what to try first
Joy-Con drift usually means dust or wear inside the analogue stick. Try recalibration first, then a careful clean. A full stick swap fixes it for good but needs the right tools and a steady hand.
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Xbox HDMI port repair: what's involved on One, Series S and Series X
A practical, no-nonsense guide to repairing a damaged HDMI port on Xbox One, Series S and Series X consoles, including the tools required, the realistic difficulty level, and the failure modes that masquerade as port damage.
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Joy-Con stick drift: why it happens and how to fix it on every Switch
Joy-Con drift is almost always caused by wear or contamination in the analogue stick module. Recalibration and contact cleaner can mask it; a stick replacement is the only proper fix, and the procedure differs across Switch 1, Lite, and Switch 2.
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Repairing a PS5 HDMI port: what's involved and when to get help
Replacing a PS5 HDMI port is a board-level rework job requiring hot air equipment and SMD skills; this guide covers diagnosis, disassembly, the repair process, and the serious risk of lifted PCB pads.
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Joy-Con stick drift: how to fix it on Switch 1, Lite and Switch 2
Joy-Con stick drift is caused by worn potentiometers inside the thumbstick module; this guide covers recalibration, contact-cleaner cleaning and full stick module replacement for Switch 1, Switch Lite and Switch 2.
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Xbox Elite Series 2 Paddle, Bumper and Trigger Failures: What Goes Wrong
The Elite Series 2 has a handful of well-known mechanical failures beyond stick drift. Here's what actually breaks, what you can fix at the kitchen table, and what needs the soldering iron out.
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Steam Deck Overheating, Loud Fan, and Fan Rattle: Diagnosis and Fix
A workshop-grade walkthrough of why a Steam Deck overheats or whines, how to tell a healthy loud fan from a failing one, and what's actually worth fixing.
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Switch 2 Joy-Con Drift: A 2026 Field Report
Eleven months after launch, the first wave of Switch 2 Joy-Con drift reports is here. We summarise what's confirmed, what's still unclear, and the repair options open to UK owners in 2026.
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PS5 DualSense Battery Replacement: Is It the Cell or the Controller?
A two-year-old DualSense that dies after 90 minutes is almost always a tired battery, not a tired controller. Here is how we tell the difference in our workshop, and what to know before you order a replacement cell off Amazon.
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PS5 DualSense Edge Stick Drift: Replace the Module Yourself or Send It In
The DualSense Edge is the rare premium controller where you can swap a drifting stick yourself without soldering. Here's how to confirm the fault, fit a new module, and decide between Sony's official kit and a hall-effect upgrade.
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Steam Deck Won't Charge: Diagnosis and Fix Decision Tree
A workshop-tested decision tree for diagnosing a Steam Deck that won't charge, covering LCD and OLED variants and when DIY makes sense versus posting it in.
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PS5 disc drive won't read, eject, or makes grinding noise — what's actually wrong
Disc drive grinding, spitting discs out, or refusing to eject? Here's what's actually broken inside a PS5 disc drive, what you can safely try at home, and why the drive can't just be swapped.
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Xbox Series X stuck on green logo (E106 / E200) — what it means and what to try
Console stuck on the green Xbox logo, or throwing E106 or E200 errors? Here's what each code actually means, the official offline-update trick that sometimes saves it, and when it's gone board-level.
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PS5 DualSense stick drift — how to fix it (or get us to)
A walkthrough of why DualSense sticks drift, what actually fixes it, and the Hark Tech mail-in replacement service — £30 plus parts, typically 5 working days.
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PS5 white light on but no signal on TV — what's actually wrong
A PS5 with a solid white light but no HDMI signal isn't dead. Nine times out of ten it's a cable, a TV input, a damaged HDMI port, or a software glitch fixable from safe mode — in that order of likelihood.
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PS5 HDMI port vs HDMI IC — how to tell which has failed
The HDMI port is the physical socket; the HDMI IC is the chip that drives the signal. Port failures are mechanical (tripped-over cable); IC failures are electrical (usually a surge). Port repair is roughly half the cost of IC repair — knowing which is which saves money.
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How to pack a games console safely for mail-in repair (PS5, Xbox, Switch)
A badly-packed console arrives damaged — you ship a broken HDMI port and receive a cracked motherboard. Ten minutes packing properly saves weeks of extra repair. Here's exactly how we recommend customers do it.
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Is PS5 HDMI repair worth it? Independent workshop vs Sony
You've got a PS5 with a dead HDMI port. Sony wants £229 flat. An independent repair shop quotes £90. Is the cheap one actually a good deal? Here's the honest breakdown.
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Xbox Series X error codes explained — E100, E102, E105, E200 and more
Microsoft publishes only partial information about Xbox error codes. Here's a plain-English workshop guide to what the most common 'E' codes actually mean, which you can fix from the sofa, and which need bench-level repair.
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Xbox Series X won't boot — repair or replace? A cost guide
An Xbox Series X costs £450-£500 new. A repair can be £60 (dust clean), £120 (HDMI port) or £300 (SSD/mainboard). Here's where the sensible line is between fixing and replacing.
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Hall Effect vs TMR vs standard Joy-Con sticks — which should you fit?
There are three kinds of replacement Joy-Con stick on the market: the same carbon-pad design that came with the controller, Hall Effect modules, and the newer TMR sticks. They cost, feel, and last very differently. Here's how to choose.
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PS5 disc drive grinding, rattling, or won't read discs — fix guide
A PS5 disc drive that grinds, rattles or won't read is usually one of three things: a loose metal bracket vibrating against the case, a misaligned laser carriage, or a disc drive at end of life. Here's how to tell which.
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Xbox controller stick drift — fix it or replace it?
Xbox controller stick drift is annoying but usually fixable without buying a new controller. The 3-minute calibration fix handles 30% of cases; cleaning gets another 40%; the rest need a stick swap or Hall Effect upgrade.
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Nintendo Switch won't charge — cable, port, battery or mainboard?
A Nintendo Switch that won't charge has a short list of causes — and one of them (a dusty USB-C port) is the answer more often than you'd think. Work through these before assuming the battery or charger is dead.
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PS4 overheating, jet-engine fan, or shutting down — the cure
The PS4, especially the original launch model, runs hot by nature. A console that's suddenly jet-engine loud or crashing mid-game is usually a simple dust clean and repaste away from running like new.
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PS5 no HDMI signal — is the port damaged?
A PS5 that powers on but shows no signal is usually one of three things: a loose or damaged HDMI port, a faulty cable, or the TV on the wrong input. The port is by far the most common failure and it's always repairable.
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PS4 blue light of death or PS5 won't power on — what to try
The infamous blue light of death on PS4 and the equivalent 'won't power on' fault on PS5 have a short list of causes. Work through the diagnostic order here — two of the fixes take five minutes at home.
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Xbox Series X green screen of death / stuck on boot — fix guide
The Xbox 'green screen of death' — stuck on the green boot logo — is almost always a software corruption rather than dead hardware. Microsoft has a specific recovery procedure that fixes it most of the time.
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Xbox Series X overheating and loud fan — what to do
An Xbox that suddenly sounds like a hairdryer, or shuts itself off mid-game, is telling you it's overheating. Most of the time the fix is a can of compressed air and thirty minutes.
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Nintendo Switch Joy-Con drift — temporary fix or permanent cure?
Joy-Con drift is one of the most common console faults in history. You've got three levels of fix: quick clean (buys you weeks), stick module swap (buys you months), or Hall Effect / TMR upgrade — the only permanent cure.