Console freezing.

Wow, I'm sorry this is happening to you. You even went through all of the recommended steps, which is new for me to see.

Are you getting any red lights when your console freezes, similar to RRoD?

Have you tried cleaning the exhausts out with electronics cleaner, or a vaccuum? Sometimes overheats will freeze your Xbox, with or without the 2 Red Ring error.

Hi there,

the answer to what a repair might cost, can be seen here:

support.xbox.com/.../warranty-faq and it depends if you do it online or by phone. (a online request is cheaper)

It looks like you've tried all the possible solutions but just in case here's a link with the possible solutions.

support.xbox.com/.../screen-freeze-article

The strange thing is, that it is not happening with all games, but it could still be the console

Extra information:

No, I have not seen any red rings.

Someone recommended that I reset the console to factory defaults. Is there any way to do that without losing all my saved data?

You could try removing the HDD before resetting the console to factory defaults?

So you can't loose any saved data.

-

But personally I don't think how it will fix your problem, but you never know right :-)

Yes you do know I can guarantee you that this will not help with your freezing problem. Please weigh yuor options. First of all your 360 is definitely on the way out and if you want to keep that one it needs a repair.  If you set it up yourself it will run you $99.99. If you have an agent set it up for you it will run you $119.99. I don't know what your money situation is right now but if you have a few extra bucks you can keep your hard drive and get a brand new Xbox for $199.99. Just wanted to lay all of your options out there for you. Here is a list of support numbers

forums.xbox.com/.../183809.aspx

and here is a link if you want to set up the repair yourself.

myservice.xbox.com/.../consolemanager.aspx

If it is registered if not you will have to do that first

Resister link myservice.xbox.com/.../ConsoleManager.aspx

I'm having a similar issue with this game on my xBox Slim but it has nothing to do with this quest (I haven't even been offered this quest yet). My issue is that as soon as I try to load a saved game Skyrim will go into the smokey loading screen but after about a minute of loading it locks up my entire xBox. It COMPLETELY locks up the xBox to the point that event the guide won't pop up. I've cleared my cache, removed extra saved games, and tried to load from different saved files. Nothing helps, I can't get past the loading screen. The disk is perfect, not a scratch or mark on it. Any advice on how I can fix this issue?

'- I bought my 360 in 2007, and its had the red ring three or four times, each time it was repaired by Microsoft.'

This alone says it's time to get a new one. X360's have a lifespan (based on what I've read from MANY people) of 4 years. I'm surprised that Skyrim runs seeing how it requires a lot of power, but ME 1 doesn't....
 

Have you installed these games, I would try doing that, try erasing data no longer needed to free up as much space as possible. I had a Gamecube memory card that was pretty dang large (for back in the day) and it had such a large capacity that it would have trouble reading data, I moved it and it worked fine (both Nintendo brand units). I can't imagine the 360 having such a problem, but since yours is an old unit, it's worth a try.
 

My best solution is to bury this one and get a slim, if your expenses can take the hit.

If the game is freezing and no other game is its usually a glitch in the game not the Xbox. I personally have had issues with Skyrim and other big game titles as well where I got stuck at loading screens or the game just locked up. The best thing you can do for this is install the game on your HDD. If it still happens there has been times where it would freeze and I would switch inputs watch TV for 30 mins and come back and then it continues. These are mostly performance glitches between different batches of discs you just have to wait for that one patch to come out that supports it. Developers wont tell you this cause it brings down sales. I guarantee if you grab a friends disc and play the same parts it will never freeze. Some people just get faulty discs.

Thank you for the advice. I'll try installing it hopefully that works!