How to solve a 4x4 cube on speedcubeshop.

How to : Yau method

Have you ever wondered how fast speedcubers like Tymon Kolasiński solve the 4x4 cube very fast? Well, here is a guide on how to use the Yau method, the method that will increase your solve times by a lot!

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Step 1: White and Yellow centers

If you are transitioning from the beginner’s reduction method, this part is pretty intuitive. In a nutshell, you make 2 white bars, then connect them on the bottom to form a center. Then, you make 2 yellow bars as well. Use the algorithm: Rw U2 Rw’ to insert one yellow bar. If a bar is already solved, then insert the next yellow bar by putting the first bar on top of the second bar, in the yellow layer. Then, use the algorithm again to solve the yellow centers. This is to preserve the white center as well.

When one yellow bar is on top, set it up into this position and do Rw U2 Rw’

Step 2: 3 white edges

In the reduction method, you’d be solving the other centers right now. In the Yau method, you first want to solve 3 white edges, so you don’t have to later. The reason is that later, once the centers are solved, you have to worry about repairing the centers after you’ve made the pair. Here, as long as you don’t break white or yellow, you don’t have to worry, because the centers aren’t solved yet.

Step 3: Half centers

Now, make 3 half centers to go with the white edges you just solved. For example, if you solved the red-white edge, you can connect a red center bar to it. Try to use wide moves and not slice moves in this step, as it might slow you down. Actually, don’t use slice moves for any of these intuitive steps.

Once you made a half-center + edge pair, go ahead and move it to the bottom white center (Yes, at this point, you should know how to solve with your cross on the bottom on 3x3. If not, go learn that first, as we are still reducing the 4x4 into a 3x3, and your 3x3 times affect it greatly.), with the correct color scheme. In the reduction method, you’ve probably memorized the color scheme from white on top. Now with white on the bottom, all you have to do is to reverse it. For example, when white was on top, orange was on the right of blue. When you reverse it, orange is now on the left of blue.

Then, rotate the cube so that white is on your left (and on the right for left-handed solvers), and the side without a half-center on top. Now, solve the bottom center. Let’s say that the bottom color is red. It already has a bar solved, so we find the remaining red pieces, and bring them to the top using a variety of Rw and U moves. Be sure to finish all of your Rw moves. (eg, once you bring a red center piece from the front side — blue, you would do something like Rw U’ Rw’ to preserve the centers you’ve solved so far.) On the top, use the hide-and-reappear method commonly used in 3x3 F2L to make a bar on the top. Then, insert the bar using Rw’2 down to the red center, where they will pair up.

Next, solve the front and back centers using the same manner, only when you are inserting, make sure to bring the slot up with Rw for front or Rw’ for back, so you won’t break the bottom center.

Once you solve those, the last center (orange, on our case) will be automatically solved. Now, make the last orange-white edge, and connect it with its solved center. Now do F moves to bring it down to your white cross, which should be a cross if you did the last step correctly. Finally, rotate the cube so yellow is on top again.

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Step 4: 323 edge pairing

Oh god. 3 + 2 + 3 = 8 edges to solve!

When you cross is solved, the middle and top layers’ edges should still be unsolved. Now, do a Uw or Uw’ depending on your choices. I usually do Uw’, unless there is something better on the Uw slice. The reason that we’re doing this is to set up 6 edges pieces (resulting in 3 solved edges, hence the first “3”) on the slice to a position where they will be solved when you slice back.

Once you figure that out, you can move on the the next “2”. If you solved 3 edges correctly, there should be 2 more edge pieces in the F2L layer. Try to find what pairs up with the top or bottom edges of the piece on the top layer. Insert that into a slot next to it so when you do a Uw or Uw’ slice, they will pair up. Now, do the slice. Once they pair up, check what the other edge pairs with. Notice: Don’t slice back yet. Take the solved edge out from the middle, and insert the edge that the second edge pairs with. Now slice back. If you’ve done everything correctly, both the first and second edges should be solved. Repeat this for the last edges. If there are 2 edges that need to pair with each other, do this algorithm when they are across from each other (that means that doing a Uw slice move won’t pair anything up, and they are both in the middle layer): Uw’ (R U R’ U’) (F’ U F) Uw. They should end up solved.

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Step 5: 3x3 stage + parity

Now, solve it like a 3x3. Your cross is already solved, so it should be easy F2L, and…What is this OLL case??!!

It seems like you’ve encountered OLL parity.

If you know beginner’s method, you should know this case, so go ahead and do it. If not, here is the algorithm:

Rw U2, X, Rw U2, Rw U2 , Rw’ U2, Lw U2, Rw’ U2, Rw U2, Rw’ U2, Rw’ (Copied from speedcube.com.au)

And PLL parity is when you encounter an impossible PLL.

r2, U2, r2, Uw2, r2, u2

(Also from speedcube.com.au)

Conclusion

Now that you’ve learned the Yau method, you can increase your times by so much. However, like transitioning to any new method, your solves will be slow for sometime, then start to receive the benefits from the Yau method. Have fun solving!