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Sell your MacBook

John

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John
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  • Good to know, and glad it worked out. All I can think of is to try jumping it with a paper clip -- sometimes screwdrivers or other tools you'd think would do the job don't end up properly bridging the pads for whatever reason. You can also try with…
    in Hot wiring an Aug2011 17" Macbook Pro Comment by John June 2012
  • Hi Martin! I looked up your machine, and it appears the pads are in the far-left bottom corner of the board, just to the left of the RAM. There is a screw in the corner, and then just right of the screw on the bottom edge, maybe a half inch from t…
    in Hot wiring an Aug2011 17" Macbook Pro Comment by John June 2012
  • Sorry for the delay -- I've been away. Yeah, it's very hard to get rid of sticky keys once liquid damage has occurred. I don't think I've witnessed one recovering fully. Have you tested the fuse (by bridging both sides of it with tweezers and pow…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • Hi! It's always best to open the machine and clean the board with 90% alcohol and a toothbrush, because most liquids are corrosive and cause more damage over time, even after they dry. If doing this restores the solid light but it still won't powe…
    in 13" Macbook Pro issues, water damage.. Comment by John May 2012
  • Wow, interesting machine! I'm not sure whether the displays are compatible...I believe they switched display technologies somewhere in the unibody line, so I'd be careful. That might be a good question for ifixit.com/answers, where someone with mo…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • From the dents it looks like there is some sort of creature inside trying to get out...who knows what kind of damage it's caused kicking around in there. I say "avoid".
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • I think $450 is a lot to pay for a machine that is already confirmed to have erratic issues. There are no typical liquid damage machines -- there are a zillion different ways a machine can have liquid damage. The best you can do with that type of …
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • You might get it cheap because the guy obviously doesn't know how to list something properly or describe it well (or even post a picture of the machine itself), but on the other hand there's always the risk that it's worse than he's describing. I w…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • Again, we only have his words to go by, but based on what he's saying, it does sound like at least one bad slot. Three beeps indicate no RAM, or a failure to address the RAM. Do you know if he has tried removing the RAM from the slot that is not s…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • Thanks, and I appreciate the kind words! I don't mean to be discouraging...it's just that a lot of people don't know what they are getting into, and I hate to see them lose money. But you seem to have a good grasp of the concepts and know what you'…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • That sounds like a good plan. Like I always say, the #1 rule is to never pay more for it than you can sell it for broken. Always assume the worst case scenario, even if the ad makes it sound great. If you do sell it again, I'd recommend selling i…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • The way to test for bad slots is to power on with one slot empty, and then power on with the other slot empty. If there's a bad slot, the machine generally won't power on with RAM in that slot. Yes, it's generally a bad board. If it's an intermit…
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • Unfortunately it doesn't work that way -- a "bad RAM slot" usually has nothing to do with the slot itself, and is more often related to other parts of the board failing to recognize the RAM when it is in the slot. Therefore by working on …
    in Fix RAM slot on MBP 2009? ASAP!! Comment by John May 2012
  • Hi! Sorry for the delay. The discussion in the previous post below has a link to a picture of the location of the microfuse. Please note, I believe the microfuse location varies per model of machine, but it always looks very close to this one. Y…
    in LVDS Connecter? Comment by John April 2012
  • Hi Justin! Thanks for the post, and sorry for the delay getting back. It sounds like our level of experience is very similar, and you've done most of what I would do. I too have a good knowledge of the boards in general, buy my abilities fall sho…
    in identifying problem area on Macbook logic board? Comment by John April 2012
  • Wow, that's a weird one. I don't know where the SMC chip is. Of course technically you should try all the normal stuff, i.e. a different AC adapter, different battery, etc. When you say it's not charging when it's off, have you left it connected …
    in MacBook Pro doesn't charge when powered off Comment by John March 2012
  • Honestly, if jumping the board doesn't work, there's not much point in taking apart or replacing the keyboard. The whole point of jumping the board is to remove the keyboard from the equation and see if the board is functional at all. If you can't…
    in jump start 17 inch unibody Comment by John March 2012
  • Thanks! It's frustrating that Apple makes it so difficult. What I've found is that there are only three A1181 board identifiers that mean anything at all in terms of connectors, form factor, etc. -- 820-1889-A, 820-2213-A, and 820-2279-A. (Actual…
    in The RIGHT logic board Comment by John February 2012
  • Wow, great info!
    in NO Audio - MacBook 1181 2.16GHz Comment by John February 2012
  • Hi Brett! You're right, it can technically be done, but I was going with the assumption that he'd want to stay with the same model computer he has, whereas to get an 820-2279-A into his machine he'd basically have to transform his computer into a t…
    in The RIGHT logic board Comment by John February 2012
  • Hi! Unfortunately it's not possible to go to 2.4GHZ with the machine you have. The only Energy Star 2.16GHZ T7400 board is the 820-2213-A class of boards, which is incompatible with the form factor of the 820-2279-A board, one of which is the 2.4G…
    in The RIGHT logic board Comment by John February 2012
  • You can e-mail him by clicking on "Inbox" at the top, then click "Start a New Conversation", and then enter "AB Cellars" as the recipient. As for the board compatibility question, please start a "New Discussion&qu…
    in NO Audio - MacBook 1181 2.16GHz Comment by John February 2012
  • Hi! Thanks for the post. First off, does your logic board see the audio hardware, as in, do you see the volume control icon in the upper-right, or is everything to do with audio greyed-out and/or missing? Also, by chance, when you look in the hea…
    in NO Audio - MacBook 1181 2.16GHz Comment by John February 2012
  • I'm afraid I haven't. I definitely consider the design of the screen enclosure to be one of the few weaknesses of the unibody line.
    in Easy way to replace LVDS cable? Comment by John February 2012
  • If the light on the AC adapter is dim, it's most likely not going to power on in that state. You need a solid light on the AC before it will power on. Do you see any corrosion on the board? Look at it with a flashlight and see if you can spot any…
    in jump start 17 inch unibody Comment by John February 2012
  • Hi! How is it possible to confirm the power button is OK if the machine fails to show any signs of life when you press the power button? It sounds to me that the power button, and the keyboard/power button assembly as a whole, may be at fault. Di…
    in Macbook Pro 15" Comment by John February 2012
  • Hi! There is no formal guide out there that I am aware of, but I'll give you a few pointers that should help. First I'd go to ifixit.com and walk through the guides on removing the optical drive, logic board, speaker, DC-in, etc. On some models y…
    in Replace keyboard on 15" Macbook Pro (Mid 2009) Comment by John February 2012
  • 70% is fine -- it's just got more water and less alcohol, so it is slightly less effective, and requires more time to dry before powering up (because of the water). Good luck!
    in Spacebar not working on 13'' Macbook Pro Unibody Comment by John January 2012
  • Just a point of note: I've been referring to the i5 13" Pro as if it's something other than an A1278, but in fact it is still an A1278, just like the far older non-Pro unibody 13" MacBook. Kind of like the older white/black A1181 series,…
    in put i5 logic board into 2009 A1278? Comment by John January 2012
  • Hi! I don't know what approach you took while cleaning the keyboard, but I would literally pull the spacebar off the keyboard (you can snap it back on afterward), and thoroughly clean everything under the key with 90% rubbing alcohol and a q-tip, a…
    in Spacebar not working on 13'' Macbook Pro Unibody Comment by John January 2012