How to modify damaged DC jack

In this guide I explain how to modify damaged DC jack. While replacing the DC jack a few days ago I accidentally damaged one of the thermals on the motherboard.
I pulled out the internal copper coating (I name it a sleeve) from the inside of the “+” terminal as it shown on the picture below.


The the sleeve removed, it cannot be installed back. If you solder the DC jack back in place without this sleeve, it might work but the connection between the “+” lead and motherboard will not be reliable.
The following guide will help you to modify damaged DC jack terminal. This modification should work for most motherboards with soldered power jack.

Remove the copper sleeve from the “+” terminal on the jack.

Find a small resistor or capacitor with thin leads. Cut off one of the leads. I’m going to use it to modify the motherboard terminal.
Shape the lead as it shown on the picture below.

Put the lead on the “+” connector on the power jack.

Solder the lead to the power jack.

Now I’m going to modify the “+” terminal on the motherboard.

Carefully scrape off green varnish around the whole on the “+” terminal on the motherboard. You can use a small flathead screwdriver.

If the whole is not big enough for your modified DC jack, you can widen it with an awl.

As you see, the hole on the terminal is now larger. Apply a fresh coat of solder on the clear area of the trace.

Install the power jack on the motherboard. Make sure there is no gap between the jack and motherboard.

Here’s a view from the top side of the PCB.
Solder all pins except the modified “+” pin.

Now, when the power jack is secured, you can shape the lead as it shown on the picture below.

Solder the lead to the terminal. Remove excessive flux with an old tooth brush soaked in 99% alcohol.

Here’s a view from the bottom side of the motherboard.

Be very careful. Doing this modification you can damage the motherboard and make it unusable. Proceed on your own risk.

Installing USB Bluetooth adapter inside

Here’s how I installed an external USB Bluetooth adapter inside my laptop case.
My old computer wasn’t Bluetooth ready, it didn’t have the internal connector and antenna for it. I decided to modify my USB dongle and move it inside the case.

I didn’t want to use my laptop with an adapter sticking out from the side.


First of all, I installed Bluetooth adapter software on my computer to make sure everything is working fine while it’s connected to the USB port.

For this modification you’ll need:
1. Laptop disassembly experience.
2. Soldering skills and tools.
3. Inexpensive USB Bluetooth adapter.
This modification is only for experienced users.  You can damage your computer. Proceed on your own risk!
This guide should works for most computers as long as you have enough space to mount the Bluetooth module inside the case.
First of all, I disassembled the case and found a place for the adapter.
In this guide I’m modifying a Toshiba Satellite A105.

My idea was simple. Remove the Bluetooth adapter circuit board and solder it directly to one of the USB ports.
NOTE: after this modification one of the USB ports will not work.

I found some thin wires laying around.
Make sure that wires are long enough for your project.

Disassembled the adapter and remove the circuit board.

Unsolder the USB connector.

The circuit board easily fits into the empty place inside the laptop.

I soldered four wires to the circuit board. I used terminals for the USB connector.

After that I soldered wires to the back of the USB port.

At the last step I installed the Bluetooth circuit board into the case and routed wires to the USB port.
I secured wires to the motherboard with electrical tape.

Finally, assembled the laptop and tested it. There is no on/off hardware switch for the Bluetooth module but I can turn it on and off through software.

Later I found that the reception range wasn’t as good as for external adapter but it was enough for me.

New screen installed but not working

If you installed a new screen into the laptop and for some reason it doesn’t work, there may be a few  things you could have done wrong.
Lets figure out step-by-step how to troubleshoot and  and fix the problem.
First of all, I assume that your new LCD is compatible with the original one. If the screen looks identical, it doesn’t exactly mean it’s compatible. Double check the compatibility between the original and new LCDs.


Troubleshooting LCDs with CCFL (backlight lamp)

The old style screens have a backlight lamp inside and require an inverter board which is usually mounted on the lower part of the display assembly, as you can see on the following picture.

On the following picture you can see how the screen connected to the laptop. Also, check out this display diagram.
The video cable routed from the motherboard to the display through one of the hinges. Somewhere close to the hinge, the cable splits. The wider end connects to the screen (supplies data signal) and another one to the inverter board (supplies power for inverter).

If your new screen lights up but has no image make sure the video cable plugged correctly. It’s possible that during the reassembly process you accidentally pulled the cable from the connector.
Reconnect the cable, secure the connection with sticky tape and test the laptop. There is a chance that now the screen will work properly.

The video cable has to be seated properly, all the way down into the connector.

Some older LCDs have very thin pins inside the video connector as it shown on the following picture.
Take a look inside, make sure there are no damaged (bent) pins. It’s possible that you accidentally bent them while trying to plug in the cable.
You can straighten bent pins with a very small screwdriver. Be careful, they are very fragile.
Fortunately, most newer LCDs have a different type of connector, without any pins inside.

OK, you have reseated all cables but it still doesn’t work. What’s next?
If your original screen was cracked but undamaged areas still work and show some image, you can use it to test the laptop.
Disconnect the new LCD and install the old damaged one back in place. If the old screen still works but the new one doesn’t, your new screen is defective. Send it back to the seller for a replacement.
Here’s another scenario. The new screen kind of works. You can see a very faint image but there is no backlight.
Disconnect the new screen from the inverter board and plug in the old screen instead (I assume it has working CCFL), as it shown on the picture below. If the original screen lights up, apparently the new screen has defective backlight lamp.

 

Troubleshooting LED-backlit LCDs

Newer LED-backlit LCDs have only one cable connected to it. This cable supplies data signal and power for LED backlight.

If your new screen doesn’t work, check the connection first. Make sure the cable seated properly, all the way down into the connector.
You can test the computer with the old, partially working screen, as we did earlier. If the old one still works, but the new doesn’t, your new screen is defective or not compatible.
Also, you might be interested in how to troubleshoot bad video.

Battery not charging if connector moved

This laptop has a power problem. The battery stops charging when I move the AC adapter connector inside the jack. When the connector or power cord moved, the battery charge LED light on the front goes on and off.
Let’s troubleshoot this problem and figure out if this is DC jack related failure or the AC adapter is defective.

First of all, I tested the laptop with the battery removed. It turns on and runs properly from the AC adapter but as soon as I start moving the connector inside the jack the laptop shuts off and it loses power immediately.
If you have a problem like that, most likely it’s related to the AC power adapter or the DC jack.

First of all, I tested the adapter with a voltmeter. The power didn’t cut off no matter how badly I wiggled the cord. I was reading 15.45VDC all the time. It helped me to make a conlcusion that there is nothing wrong with the adapter connector or cord and most likely there is a problem with with the power socket inside the laptop.
The next step was the DC jack inside the laptop.

In order to access the jack I had to disassemble the laptop and remove the top cover assembly with the display.
You can find disassembly instructions for most laptops in their service manuals.

In my case the DC jack was attached to a cable and I easily disconnected it from the motherboard. I tested it with the voltmeter as it shown on the following picture.
When the adapter cord didn’t move, I was reading 15.45VDC.
But as soon as I started wiggle it, the voltage dropped to 0VDC.

The DC jack harness is defective and had to be replaced and the new one fixed the problem.

In some models the DC jack is soldered to the motherboard.
If the battery stops charging when you move the adapter plug, test the AC adapter first. If it pass test, replace the jack.

Laptop is dead. How to troubleshoot.

In this post I’ll explain how to troubleshoot a dead laptop and find the problem. The following troubleshooting tips are not model and brand specific.
Let’s take a look at different failure scenarios.
Example 1. The computer is absolutely dead. 
When you plug in the AC adapter and press on the power button, there are no signs of life at all. It appears to be dead.
What you can do ?
1. Make sure the wall outlet is working and the AC adapter is getting power from the outlet. Try another wall outlet.
2. Test the AC adapter, make sure the voltage output is correct. You can test the adapter with a voltmeter.
3. If the adapter is good, try reconnecting the battery. Remove the battery, wait for 1-2 minutes, plug in the adapter and try turning it on again.

If the adapter doesn’t pass the test with a voltmeter, replace it with a new one and test the computer. I always recommend buying an original replacement adapter from the manufacturer, not a generic one.
There could be more than one adapter available for your model.
The voltage output on your new adapter must be exactly the same as on the old one. The amperage, on the other hand, can be the same or higher.
If previous troubleshooting steps didn’t help, it’s possible your computer has a problem with the motherboard or DC power jack. In this case it’s necessary to disassemble the laptop and test the DC jack.
Example 2. The computer turns on and makes normal startup noises, the LED lights turn on but noting appears on the screen.

First of all, take a closer look at the screen under bright light. It’s possible the screen shows the image but it’s very faint. In this case you’ll have to troubleshoot the backlight failure.
On the other hand, if the screen shows no image at all, test the laptop with an external monitor (or TV) connected to the VGA port or DVI port or HDMI port.
You can toggle video output between internal and external modes by using Fn keys:
– Fn and F4 keys simultaneously on HP laptops
– Fn and F5 keys on Toshiba laptops
– Fn and F7 keys on IBM laptops.
Other laptops may use different key combinations.

If the external monitor works fine but the internal screen has no image at all, the problem can be related to:
– Poor connection between the video cable and screen or motherboard. Try reconnecting the video cable on both ends and check out if this helps.
– The screen failed. Replace it with a new one.
– The video cable failed. Replace it with a new one.
– The motherboard failed.

If both, the internal and external monitors show no image, the problem can be related to:
– Failed memory (RAM).
– Failed motherboard.

– Try reconnecting the memory module, maybe it’s not making good connection with the slot.
– Try cleaning contacts on the memory module.
– Try moving the memory module into another slot.
– Try replacing the memory module with another one.
If you have two modules installed you can try removing them one by one, it’s possible that one of the modules failed. Try moving modules from one slot to another.
If changing or reseating memory doesn’t help, you can try this:
Removing the battery, hard drive, DVD drive and other components you can easily access. Try turning on the laptop without these components installed.
It’s possible one of them failed and it’s preventing the entire computer from starting up properly.

Also, try turning on the laptop with an external monitor while the video cable is unplugged from the motherboard.
If external image appears after you disconnected the video cable, apparently there is something wrong with the cable. Replace it with a new one.

If the computer is still dead, try removing other internal components (wireless card, modem, keyboard, etc…) and test it with an external monitor after each removed part.

The last step is testing the laptop as a barebone system.

On this picture you see my final test. The motherboard has been removed from the base and I assembled a basic barebone system on my bench.
The bare bone system includes:
1. Motherboard (like in most cases it has onboard graphics chip).
2. CPU with the cooling module.
3. Known good memory module.
4. The power button board.
5. Known good AC adapter.
If the system still doesn’t turn on, it’s either bad motherboard or failed CPU.
If you computer shows garbled or distorted image, check out this post.

LCD screen turned completely white

What can you do if the laptop LCD screen turned completely white? From my experience I can tell that this problem may be related to the following:
1. Loose connection between the video cable and the LCD screen.
2. Defective LCD screen.
3. Defective motherboard (I assume the graphics card is integrated into the motherboard).

Here’s an example of a laptop with white screen. When you turn on the laptop, it starts but the image on the screen is completely white right from the beginning. In my case it was a Toshiba Satellite M45 laptop but this problem may occur with any other brand.


Most likely you still can use the laptop with an external monitor. Just connect the monitor to the VGA port on the back or side of your laptop and then switch the video output from internal to external mode.
On Toshiba laptops you can toggle between internal and external screens using Fn+F5 keys. Hold down Fn and press on F5 until you get video on the external monitor.
On IBM laptops use Fn+F7.
On HP laptops use Fn+F4.
It’s possible that you have to use a different key combination on your laptop but you get the idea.
On some laptops, in order to be able to use the external monitor, you have to connect it to the laptop and then restart the laptop so the external monitor is detected by the laptop.

I noticed that in some cases the laptop screen may turn white because of poor connection between the video cable and the LCD screen. If you want to check this connection, you’ll have to take apart the display panel because the connector is located on the back side of the LCD screen.
These laptop service manuals and disassembly instructions may be useful.

I always check the video cable connection first. Reconnecting the video cable may fix your problem.
If reconnecting the video cable doesn’t help, most likely you have a problem either with the LCD screen or with the motherboard.

The best way to find out witch one is causing the problem is testing the laptop with another working LCD screen. Without this test you’ll have to guess because as I mentioned before this could either bad motherboard or bad LCD screen.
You’ll have to disconnect the video cable from the LCD screen (connector 2) and the inverter board (connectors 3 and 1). After that you connect another working screen and test video.

For this purpose I’m using one of my test LCD screens. My test screen is cracked and because of that you see a wide white band in the center but it still works fine for this test.
The original screen is white but my test screen works normal (except the crack of course) and I can see the image. After this test I can tell that the problem must be related to the screen.

After I assembled everything back together and connected the original LCD, it’s still white.
CONCLUSION. In my case this problem is related to the LCD screen and it has to be replaced.

Installing internal wireless card

This tutorial explains how you can install internal wireless card into an older laptop. I assume that your laptop is “wireless ready” which means it has a slot for the wireless card and equipped with wireless antennas, but missing the wireless card. Why did I make this tutorial for an older laptop? Because all new laptops are sold with the wireless card.

I’ll take as an example my Dell Latitude C840 laptop. As you see on the picture, it has a slot for the wireless card and one antenna cable. That’s strange, most laptops have two antenna cables, white and black. One cable goes to the main connector on the wireless card, another cable goes to the auxiliary connector. Probably you’ll ask me which antenna cable connects to which connector? I think it doesn’t really matter because both antenna cable are identical.

My main concern was finding the right device driver for the wireless card I plan to install into my laptop. As you know, without correct driver it will not be recognized by the operating system and will not work at all.
Likely, I have a spare wireless card from another not working Toshiba laptop and this card worked perfectly.
You can find this wireless card by the model number: WM3B2200BG.

In order to install the wireless card into the slot, just push it into the slot at a 30 degree angle (step 1) and then press on the card (step 2) until it’s locked.

After the card is locked in the slot you can connect the antenna cable. In my case, I snapped the antenna cable on the main connector. If you have two antenna cables, snap one of them on the main connector on the wireless card and another one on the auxiliary connector. As I mentioned before, I don’t think it matters with cable goes to which connector. Both antenna cables are identical.
Finally, you’ll have to download and install the wireless card driver. If you use the same card as I did (WM3B2200BG), you can download driver from the Intel website here.
Select the operating system, download and install the driver.
You have a couple of different options:
1. Download and install the driver only. Use this option if you want to use Windows wireless connection utility. That’s what I did because I prefer using Windows tools.
2. Download and install both the wireless card drive and the connection software. Use this option if you want to use Intel’s software application. It’s totally up to you.

As you see on the picture above, the wireless card successfully connected to the wireless access point at 54Mbp/s.

How I fixed memory slot failure

Is it possible to fix laptop memory slot failure with a guitar pick? Yes, it is. You will not fix the memory slot itself, but you can work around the problem.
Today I received a Toshiba Satellite Pro 4600 laptop with the following complaint:
The laptop starts and works properly, but recognizes only one of the two memory modules installed. The laptop has two 256MB RAM modules installed, but registers only 256MB.
 

First of all, I removed the memory cover to find out if both memory modules are installed correctly. The laptop had two 256MB Kingston modules installed and they were seated properly.


When I started the laptop and entered the BIOS setup menu, I found that only one of the two memory modules is detected and the laptop registers only 256MB (262144KB) of RAM instead of 512MB (524288KB).
Just a side note. In the computer world 1MB=1024KB. That’s why 256MB=262144KB and 512MB=524288KB.
I tried reseating both memory modules but it didn’t help.
After that I tried installing both memory modules in both memory slots one by one and here’s what I found. The laptop worked absolutely fine when both memory modules were installed into the slot A, but failed to boot with both memory modules installed into the slot B.
Apparently, there is nothing wrong with the memory modules and the laptop has a faulty memory slot B. The memory slot is permanently soldered on the motherboard. If one of the slots fails you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard or use the laptop with only one working slot.
Buying a new motherboard for this older laptop wouldn’t make any sense because it’s too expensive, but the laptop is still in a good working condition except the faulty memory slot B, so I continued playing with that trying to find the solution.

I noticed that the laptop start normally with the memory module installed into the faulty slot if I slightly press on the module with my thumb. And this gave me an idea.

This guitar pick is going to fix my laptop.

I installed both RAM modules back into the slots and then placed the guitar pick over the module in the slot B as it shown on the picture.

I thought if I close the RAM door it will press on the guitar pick/memory module and it will have the same effect as pressing on the module with my thumb. And it worked!

Both memory modules were detected properly and the laptop registered all 512MB. After “the fix” I tested memory with Memtest86+ and the laptop passed the test.
I wouldn’t call it the best solution for fixing a faulty memory slot but in some cases it will work.
By the way, I didn’t charge the customer for this “repair”, he knows what is going on and how I “fixed” his problem.

Service manuals for Sony Vaio

Today I found a great source with service manuals for Sony Vaio VGN series laptops and notebooks. Links to the service manuals were posted on one of the Russian forums (comment 13). Not sure for how long these service manuals will be available for downloads but they are the time of wringing this post. Some files are large and it might take some time to download them, so be patient.
All service manuals are in PDF format and you can download them using below mentioned links.

Service manuals for Sony Vaio laptops and notebooks:




Sony VGN-A


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-FS


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-AR


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-N


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-AX


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-S


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-B


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-SZ


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-BX


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-T


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-C


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-TX


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-FE


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-U


>> Get it here




Sony VGN-FJ


>> Get it here


Sony VGN-UX


>> Get it here




 
Here’s another source for older Sony Vaio PCG series laptops and notebooks. Thank you to www.elhvb.com



PCG-R505AFE
>>Get it here
PCG-FX777, PCG-FX877
>>Get it here


PCGA-DSD5, PCGA-DSM5
>>Get it here
PCG-R505JE, PCG-R505JEK, PCG-R505JEP, PCG-R505JL, PCG-R505JLK, PCG-R505JLP, PCG-R505JS, PCG-R505JSK, PCG-R505JSP
>>Get it here


PCG-SR27, PCG-SR27K
>>Get it here
PCG-C1VP, PCG-C1VPK
>>Get it here


PCG-FX210
>>Get it here
PCG-GR150, PCG-GR150K, PCG-GR170, PCG-GR170K
>>Get it here


PCG-FX220, PCG-FX220K, PCG-FX240, PCG-FX240K, PCG-FX250 PCG-FX250K, PCG-FX270, PCG-FX270K
>>Get it here
PCG-GRS150, PCG-GRS170
>>Get it here


PCG-FX290, PCG-FX290K
>>Get it here
PCG-GRS175
>>Get it here


PCG-FXA32, PCG-FXA33, PCG-FXA35/D, PCG-FXA36
>>Get it here
PCG-GRV550
>>Get it here


PCG-FXA53, PCG-FXA59
>>Get it here
PCG-GRZ530
>>Get it here


PCG-GRX670, PCG-GRX690
>>Get it here
PCG-VX89, PCG-VX89K, PCG-VX89P
>>Get it here


PCG-NV290
>>Get it here





 
If you know other sources for Sony laptop manuals, please feel free to post links in comments.
Do you have a problem with your Sony Vaio laptop? Post it here, somebody can help you.