Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Toshiba Satellite m35x motherboard repair

Wednesday, March 23, 2011
After three years of publishing this manual, I just did the Third Edition of this ebook and added a ton of new materials. With over 30.000 happy people that repaired their laptops using this manual, I'm happy to present this Third Edition with all the updates, suggestions and answered questions that people sent me in the past year. It is as people say, "a great book with very clear explanations" and I believe this will help you to repair your laptop as well.


If you own a Toshiba m35 or HP laptop that does not turn on, chances are your laptop is one of the hundreds suffering from the Maxim chip failure. I faced that same problem two years ago. But don't worry, I fixed my Toshiba m35 and you can too. 
But before we move on to the repair tip, see if your laptop has some of these symptoms:
  • Does your laptop fail to turn on any time you press the power button?
  • Do the LEDs blink for a seconds and then shut off and the laptop shows no signs of life?
  • Does the CPU fan spin up for a second and then the laptop goes dead again?

If your answer was YES to at least ONE of these questions, there's a 90% chance you're on the right place. If you answered YES on two questions, you're about to find out how to fix your laptop in less than an hour.




This repair manual has:

  • 28 pages of great explanations of the defect and repair
  • 12 images and illustrations so you can clearly see what the problem is, and how to fix it
  • 3 repair scenarios so you can pick the one that matches your level of technical know-how
  • 4 illustrations explaining the safest repair process
  • 3 videos explaining the easier but more advanced approach
  • an Appendix section explaining how to do a high quality resolder of the power plug
  • a dissasembly instructions list with links to the Toshiba and HP service manuals



Did you know that Toshiba and HP together spent millions in repair fees over this same problem? Toshiba had problems with their M-series (especially m35, m115, then A65, A75 etc)  produced between 2002 and 2008, and HP had problems with the NC series, especially nc6000, nc8000 and nc9000 models. If you go to their repair centers, you’re likely to end up with a new motherboard and a repair fee of at least $300 for the motherboard and labor. This repair process lasts for over 10 days if you get lucky, and there is no guarantee that they'll manage to find a suitable motherboard as production stopped a few years ago.

If you spent some time researching this problem you probably found many so called repair tutorials that ask of you to figure out the binary code of the LED blinks, and then they ask you to post that code only to get a response such as

"You have a problem with the 3.3V module"
or 
“Your motherboard reports an A2H fault, you’ll need to consult the repair handbook for that.” or 
"You'll need to repair the power regulating circuitry"

The bottom line is that all these error codes point to the power module which is integrated in the Maxim 1987 (Maxim 1532 in some models). Repairing the power module doesn't take much time, but it does take some guidance. The trick is in a redistributive resolder of the Maxim 1987 chip. If you've done redistributive re-soldering you are set to go. The trick is not to use heat gun to do a simple "reflow" because this is just a temporary solution. Of course, there are plenty of people that advocate reflowing, but if you dig deeper into the dry solder issues after the RoHS legislative (that banned Led-based solder alloys) you'll realize just as I did that the only way to make your Toshiba or HP work again is to use the redistributive resoldering technique.

If you never heard of redistributive resoldering I strongly suggest that you don't try to look for repair shortcuts and by no means use a DIY approach. If you are not a seasoned Surface Mount Device-level repair technician you'll need technical guidance. I have a step by step repair manual that will help you understand the problem, and teach you how to perform this redistributive resolder of the Maxim chip

Here's what you get in the PDF illustrated repair manual:
  • Step by step dissasembly instructions, 
  • Maxim 1987 power driver resolder instructions,
  • Power plug resolder instructions.
  • illustrations and videos to guide you through the repair

101 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey, Igor, thanx a lot man! That's such a great post. You know how hard it is to isolate a problem like this faulty "MAX power chip"!
Your solution worked great for me.
Great job finding the problem!

Thanx!

Anonymous said...

You are genius!!! My laptop is a live after being dead for two months. THANKS A LOT!!!

Anonymous said...

Same problem with my laptop, same solution with your guide.
Thank you so much

Anonymous said...

Great post. Thanks for sharing your experience. My M35X-S109 would stop running (power LED still on but every other indication was the system was dead) after anywhere from 3 seconds to a a couple minutes. I also noticed that the fan never turned on again after an initial couple seconds immediately after first powering it on. Following this procedure seems to have fixed the problem, even though I could see no cold solder joints under 10X magnification. Does that IC also run the fan? I can't find any data on it online.

What I'm really curious about is, how did you ever figure this out?

Igor Mateski said...

@Erickson
The Max 1987 is a power driver, a chip that regulates/provides current for all the components on the motherboard. When it malfunctions, you've got a dead laptop. I don't remember where I got the details for the chip but I do know reading about it somewhere online. I think it was while I was researching a fix on HP nx6110 laptop that had random freezups. Anyways, this fix of a Toshiba is genuinely mine, as I've searched for about a year and didn't find a fix for it. I did some testing in the power module, got to know that the motherboard receives power but not everywhere. The key with this was that my laptop died when I tried to open up a bit more the screen. Probably tue to tensions, the second I pushed the LCD, the laptop died. This opening and closing, as well as heating and cooling caused "chip creep" effect, which is a big issue with the led free soldering alloys, which are very "stiff" and many components "creep" due to expansion and contraction caused by heat, and eventually a pin somewhere loses contact. You cannot really see this fault no matter how big a zoom you use. On the surface everything may be OK, but you may still not have contact between the pin and motherboard. Read up some books or do a search for soldering techniques for the theory of soldering.
I'm glad this post is so popular. I hope when I get the time to write up the tutorial for the freezing HP nx 6110 as this is a far more widespread problem, and the fix is also a simple one.
Cheers folks
Igor Mateski.

Anonymous said...

Mother F**king Genius. Brilliant. Sincerely one of the best posts ever!

Anonymous said...

Igor, I knew my problem was a chip that had broken solder but I didn't know which one. That is until I read your (as stated before) Mother F**king Genius and Brilliant post. You're the man. Thank you for your research and time. Wish this world had more like you.

Anonymous said...

U DA F'in MAN

Its that chip ... now to find someone to solder it... I sux with small things.

LanaTheGreat said...

Igor, thanks a million for this thread. My mother has a HP NC6000 laptop, and the same thing happened with it. When applying pressure on the motherboard it would start up, but when releasing the pressure it would die. The "experts" told me the motherboard had to be replaced as it is fried. The same Maxim chip was the cause of the problem, and it took some time to find the chip as it is quite small and is on the bottom of the motherboard. I soldered the 48 points, and it is alive again, and Mom is happy. Igor for president!

Anonymous said...

This fix worked for me. Thanks Igor for sharing your experience and knowledge.

Unknown said...

Hi Igor, Had the very same issue with the M35x Laptop and I just followed your steps and the Laptop now works fine. Thank you for finding the problem and putting it on the web thing for everyone to share. You have done a great job.Thanks again
Vasu

Anonymous said...

As of Jan 19, 2009, Igor's fix STILL WORKS!! THANKS!!!! Just reheated the pin with the soldering iron and it came back to life. THANKS!!!

Anonymous said...

Igor...You are GOD!!!
Thank you very much for this great post...i fixed my friend's lap top...
And we are thanking you for this! Great job!!!

Anonymous said...

I had reassemble my m35x-s329 and found that the power chip using Maxim-max1532a ETL instead of max1987. Can I just replace by max1987 which is easier to found this specific on the market..
ID motherboard K000019630.

Igor Mateski said...

about the Max1532a, please visit this post http://imateski.blogspot.com/2009/01/maxim1532a-maxim1987-issue-on-toshiba.html

cheers
The author

Anonymous said...

DO YOU THINK YOU COULD JUST USE THE TAPE THEY USE TO HOLD DOWN BORDS ON CHEAPER PRODUCTS CINCE IT DOESNT TAKE MUCH PRESSURE

Igor Mateski said...

Before I soldered down the chip, I used a metal spring attached to the cooler which applied quite a bit of pressure on the chip, and the laptop worked but unreliably. It would just shut down sporadically. The point with the pressure was to use that force to break through the oxidized/loose contacts between some of the pins and the PCB. As it turned out, improvisations don't work reliably, so don't waste your time with tapes, springs and other mechanic solutions. Use the tutorial and do a clean and tidy job so that you'd have a reliable laptop.
Regards
Igor.

Anonymous said...

I remember losing hope about a week ago until I found this Post. But hey I'm so new to fixing this myself. The question is I have M35X-S329, Can I do the same procedure?
Many Thanks in advance!

Igor Mateski said...

Jay, sorry for the long delay. YES, your Toshiba will also benefit from this fix, of course if you do a good job of resoldering.
Post your results.
Good Luck
Igor.

Anonymous said...

Just to clarify; what type/size of soldering iron did you use?

Igor Mateski said...

@Dustin
I use a 1 millimeter diameter soldering tip. Its almost as small as a normal ball pen tip. In general, look for the smallest tip available.

Anonymous said...

Hi from Poland. Thanks, You help me too. Look on www.elektroda.pl Best regards... zdzich42

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor. I’m interested to know if you have any idea about Toshiba L20 and if they used the same disastrous Maxim chip on L20. A friend got a L20 and it has the same symptoms of M30X, M35X and M40X. Just as information: I checked two M40X notebooks (the ex-popular Toshiba notebook in Germany) and found they are equipped with a Maxim-max1532a ETL. Best wishes

Igor Mateski said...

Greetings to Germany. I am not familiar with the L20's power driver details. What I do know is that many laptop brands use the Maxim chip for power regulation, so if the symptoms are the same, chances are the L20 also has a Maxim power driver. The easiest way to find out is to actually open the laptop and check.
Hope that helps. By the way, if you do find out, would you please post a comment on your findings so that other owners of L20 can know?
Thanks

Regards
Igor

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor. I checked the L20 and found two Maxim chips instead of one (MAX 1917A ETL528 and Maxim 9755E). I believe the first one (1917A) is the power driver. In any case I re-soldered both but it didn’t work. Probably it got other problem rather than the Maxim chip. Hope the information will be useful for others. On the other hand I got a Satellite A40 with a blank white screen. It works just fine with an external monitor but I tried two LCD cables and two LCD monitors but the internal screen remains blank and just the backlight is working. If you have any knowledge about A40 I’ll be grateful if you share with me. All the best

Anonymous said...

Well, from 3 dead motherboards, I was successful on getting 2 to work. The trick is always use flux. Going to a 1mm tip to me doesn't allow enough heat to touch the leads. Make sure your tip is properly tinned and sharp enough to reach the pins. I used to solder this stuff all the time by hand. The foil technique to me is not a good solution because you are reheating old oxidized solder. Clean solder always gives better results. Use a magnifying lense when complete to make sure there are no bridges. If you have more than 1 bridge, let alone any bridges, you didnt use enough flux or used too much solder. if you have bridged contacts, clean the solder iron tip and allow the tip to "wick" the excess solder off the contacts.. again, flux is the rule.

Unknown said...

Igor you rock !!! I thought I'm the only crazy guy enough to find the needles in haystacks :) In other words I truly understand how much time and patience you have invested in finding this fault.
CONGRATS man!

For the guy in Germany with a blank screen: a blank screen (white) with the backlight on is usually a fried SMD fuse on the screens board. It's the fuse that provides power to LCD controller board.Open carefully the lcd screen and replace the fuse.

I have a similar problem with an Acer Aspire 5315 (me and a few more hundreds of people I guess). They have the same symptoms described on M35x. Mine is dead completely. I'll check what MAX chips has on the mobo and hopefully I'll find the cure.

Anonymous said...

Great fix Igor! If you happen to be really lazy like me, I took the easy way out and it works perfectly. Remove the securing strip and the first 3 screws on the bottom directly under the Maxim chip. Flip the laptop and remove the 2 keyboard screws and flip the keyboard over. Remove the wifi cover and remove the wifi card. Then unplug the screen and remove the 4 screws to remove it from the base. Cut a piece of a very small dow stick just a bit higher then the space between the maxim chip and top piece. Now slide a guitar pick or similar object to separate the top & bottom where you removed the 3 bottom screws. Put a little super glue on the top of the dow stick and put the end without the glue on the Maxim chip. Reassemble the computer and it will boot forever. Total time 25 minutes using the lazy mans way!! LOL

DownRiver the lazy guy!!

Igor Mateski said...

DownRiver, thanks for sharing your experience. Before I gathered enough courage to put a soldering iron to the chip, I also used a pressure approach in the similar way you're describing. Unfortunately, due to the chip creep effect (discussed in more detail in another post on my blog), this solution lasted for only a few days, after which I had to increase pressure. Very soon it became too much of a frustration to lose work every time the laptop shut down that I decided to do the fix explained in the tutorial. The bottom line is that once you open the laptop, the repair lasts only a few minutes, and viola, a perfectly working motherboard. Let us know if your laptop stops working again.

HwangB said...

Hi Igor,
first, thank you for mailing me the guide. But I failed at resoldering it...because I didn't use soldering paste. Just the soldering flux to reflow its own soldering "thing". But it didn't work. Same as before, monitor won't turn on, the fan spinned and the power buttom lights up blue and the one on the side is green.
What helped you to paste soldering paste and flux that precisely on the joints?

Igor Mateski said...

Hwang, I used solder paste, applied it at the same time on all pins, and used fine pin solderer (1mm diameter) and applied 60/40 solder tin on individual pins. The described process in the tutorial is for people with less experience in order to prevent unwanted short circuiting of pins, as this is more than likely to happen. As mentioned in the tutorial, if you've never ever worked on such a small scale SMDs, it would be best if you take the motherboard to a TV repair shop and just ask them to reflow the chip.

HwangB said...

So, you mean I have to apply solder tin, too, even though I pasted solder paste on the contacts?

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Igor
You saved my laptop that I would have thrown away. Toshiba M35X-S329.

If any of you have the problem were the laptop turns on but the BIOS doesn't show and nothing happens, than this is probably the fix for you.

Keeth said...

Hi Igor, I tried to reflow it with a heatgun. But i think i fried the chip. Do you have any idea how I can measure this on the chip. (is some pin voltage then typically saturated,... ). I can't seem to find any datasheet for it.
Thanks in advance,

Keeth

Jeh246 said...

So I had the same problem with my HPNC6000 where the fan would spin, the amber light would go on, and then it would turn itself off. I found these instructions on the internet and fixed the MAX1987 chip. It then appeared to boot (hard drive turned on, green lights on, fan spinning normally) but my screen would turn on.

I assumed that the board had been damaged while taking it apart and got another board. Fixed the chip, but it still does the same thing, turns on but no screen no backlight. I've also tried hooking up my laptop to another screen and nothing happens.

Any advice would help, this is really frustrating.

LanaTheGreat said...

Jeh246

The LCD not having any backlight COULD easily be the little switch for the lid being stuck that switches the backlight off when closing the lid. Check that out. For an external monitor connection ensure that you have the display set. Easy enough to check, press Fn+F4 or whatever F-key has the little monitor on it. I managed to get an HP NC6000 working again. It lasted about five months but mom says its buggered again. Will wait until I get to see her again. Good luck.

Jim Horn said...

Thanks for the tip! My Toshiba M35X-S169 died as you describe. Resoldering the MAX1532 brought it to life again. Hooray!! But only temporarily - one of the pads on the chip had been pulled off by thermal cycling. Maxim is sending two more as engineering samples.

The datasheet isn't available as the chip is made only for Intel IMVP licensees. However, if you register as an engineer at Maxim's web site and request it, they may send it to you. 'Tis a "Dual-Phase, Quick-PWM Controller for IMVP CPU Core Power Supplies".

Meanwhile I hope this is what's wrong with two Dell D400 laptops I have as well. More news soon.

Many thanks again - and best to all!

Anonymous said...

hi, I have acer aspire which green light on for few seconds and the fan also then everything stops does this solution work on my laptop?

Igor Mateski said...

To the owner of the Acer: Please specify the model (eg. Aspire 7720z or whatever is your model) and when you bought it. If the symptoms are the same this tutorial may also apply to your Acer as many brands used the Maxim chip as a power regulator.

Not_A_DoDo said...

Hi from Australia,
Would this solution work on Compaq EVO N620c. It appears to have a similar problem. Yesterday it took over and hour to 'not' boot up properly was able to restart but got as far as showing Windows XP loading then stopped. The screen is black/grey the light are on [but no one home] and the mouse cursor moves, but nothing. Would love to fix it as I am very attached to this Laptop

Regards
Janina

Igor Mateski said...

To the owner of the N620c: If you have seen the mouse cursor and nothing else shows on the screen, ie you only have a black screen with the responsive cursor, the problem is software related and is caused by a virus. I had the same problem on my Acer Aspire 7720 a few months ago, and after some troubleshooting I did get some progress but decided to format the hard drive and have a clean install. It's a hassle, but I think it needs to be done. So, the bad news is that this tutorial won't work for you. The good news is that you have a fully functional laptop that only needs a fresh reinstal. After that, I suggest Comodo Security, which comes with an antivirus and a firewall, or the less annoying Avast. Both solutions are free, as is this advice :) Cheers from Ohrid, Macedonia.

Dmitry said...

One day my Toshiba Satellite M35X-149S after disassembling started not properly. I have found this topic, read that brief information turn on my soldering iron and recovered my laptop! It's great!
Thank you Igor, God be thanked - we have like people in Internet.

rossbo said...

My screen on the M35-s4561 laptop has grey alternating 1/2 inch bands over the desktop screen. Would this be a graphics card problem? Would your solution fix it?

Igor Mateski said...

@Rossbo
That may be a graphics card issue or it can be a bad wiring issue. This tutorial won't help you as your Toshiba works fine... other than the LCD. Find a known good external monitor and hook it up to your laptop. If the image on the external monitor also has these stripes, then it's a graphics card issue. If not, then you've got a problem with the LCD assembly. It's hard to give a definite diagnosis without a photo of the LCD screen. Take a look at this site and see if you come up with something http://www.laptoprepair101.com/laptop/2006/08/17/bad-video-on-lcd-screen/comment-page-1/.
If not, snap a photo and email me and we'll take it from there.

Anonymous said...

Will the motherboard repair apply to a Toshiba M45 S269... sometimes mine powers up and then immediately goes dead...replaced power connector but it still does it. No power or lights usually...take apart put back together and it will fire off and go dead.

Igor Mateski said...

As far as I remember, several owners of m45 got this tutorial, there was no complaint from them so I suppose the tutorial helped them with their laptops. Other than the m35, the tutorial also covers the m115, a45 and several other Toshiba models, as well as HP nc and dv 6xxx series. I also had several Gateway owners purchase the tutorial, so this issue is widespread and if the symptoms resemble the ones I describe on my blog, chances are your laptop suffers from the same problem. From my research, this tutorial may apply to any laptop produced after 2000 because the power regulating chip was produced in 1999 and was widely used because it replaced several chips, thus making the production cheaper, and as you know, it's all about manufacturing a cheaper product on the market so all of the major PC manufacturers jumped at the opportunity to shave off a few bucks per unit.

j ferguson said...

what a delight to find an intelligent and plausible suggestion for fixing my Toshiba Satellite L45-S7423 which powers-on, shows the toshiba boot screen and then shuts down. Sounds like a nice afternoon project.

Igor Mateski said...

@ jferguson
Good luck with the project! Don't forget to share the results with the world.

Motherboard Service said...

Being a Motherboard repair expert, I would say that you have done a great job by writing this blog post. In addition, this will definitley benefit people to save their laptops.

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor, i went on a 3 weeks trip and left my M30 unplugged in a laptop bag in my closet. when i came back, it booted normally and shut off 15mn later. I tried to reboot, it booted fine and shut off after 1mn. I tried again and it wouldn't start at all and the blue power led became orange and blinking. If i leave the m30 unplugged to ac for, let's say, 1 hour, it boots again and shuts down after 30 seconds. The longer i unplug it, the longer it can run.
I know it's not the battery, nor the psu.
do you think it could be the Maxim chip ?
Thank you.

Igor Mateski said...

@ the M30 owner: The very first thing I check nowadays is the Maxim chip as there are literally thousands of M-series laptops suffering from the very same issue. It almost always does the trick. In rare cases the symptoms you're describing may point to a faulty capacitor, but they go bad during exploitation not while being off power for so long.
Here's why I think it may be the Maxim: extended period in a compacted, and probably unventilated area caused dew buildup which speeds up oxidizing of the solder joints and electricity can't pass through this insulating oxidized layer. When unplugged, the motherboard and Maxim chip cool off, compact and this pressure-due-coldness breaks the insulating oxidized layer and this is why the laptop boots up. When powered up on the other hand, the Maxim chip heats up, expands and loses contact with the motherboard, and this is why you cant run the laptop for longer periods. So, to wrap up, if I had your laptop in for repair I'd definitely first go for the Maxim chip issue. I'd also check the power plug solders on the motherboard, which is also explained and illustrated in the repair manual. These two faults account for over 70% of all hardware failures. If we count out bad hard drives, RAM and power supplies, about 95% of hardware failure is due to the power module faults such as the Maxim, the power plug or a dried up capacitor.
Hope this helps.

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much Igor, this is very helpful and informative.
And a quick answer definitely was a bliss !
Just to be sure, i'm gonna try to remove the ram sticks of the m30 and see what happens, but very likely i will get to your pdf.
You save me big time !

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor,

The pdf is great, but i realize the m30 (an export model bought in japan)is very different from the m35.
The power jack is not connected directly to the motherboard, and the maxim chip is not at the same place, so i could not have a quick test after taking off the bezel near the keyboard.
Moreover, the only maxim chip with 48 pins i found was not called 1987 nor 1532, but 1988 (or 1998, it's hard to read). Have you heard of such a chip ? I tried to push it as said in the pdf, but nothing happened. I actually tried to check everything i could on the motherboard, with no success.
I read that the blinking orange power led is not a random pattern, but actually a code. Mine goes like this : -- - -- - - - -- - / -- - -- - - - -- - / -- - -- - - - -- - / etc...
That is, one long orange led, one short, one long, three short, one long, one short, a pause and repeat the same cycle.
Would you have any idea as to what this would mean ?
You mentioned it could (unlikely though) be a capacitor problem, so i was wondering if this orange led blinking pattern would give a hint.
Anyway, the pdf was very informative, as well as your explanations about the whole process of different temperatures.
If you have any idea, would please be kind to let me know ?
Thanks you.

Igor Mateski said...

Yes, the error codes in the POST (power on self test) on laptops measure voltage feeds to various components to see if these components are fed the correct amount of electricity, and then measure if their power consumption is wihtin normal. This is how PCs detect an extra stick of RAM, or a new hard drive or what not. The trick is that all POST procedures revolve around power feed and power consumption, which is regulated by the power module, which is in turn, managed by the power driver chip, the Maxim 1978, 1532, 1988 and alike. The point is, that if you find a Maxim 1xxx chip that has four equal sides and about 36-48 pins, that is the power circuitry controller, and that is where the problem lies.
The error code just tells you that one of the voltages is off limits. In your case, the error code is 01000101, or converted in HEX values, 45h, which points to the 3 Volts line inconsistency. I'm not quite sure, but chipsets use a 3 Volts power supply, so if I look at the Maxim 1988 diagram I can even pinpoint which pin you need to resolder. But the thing is that the POST stops at the first error it hits, so soldering just one pin could fix that first error, and we cant be sure if this is the ONLY error. So, best approach, do a full resolder. That should do it.
Hope this helps, let us know of the results.

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor,
Thank you so much for your time and help.
All this is so informative !
I guess i'm all set now, the problem is pintpointed... just have to find someone to do the soldering, hahaha !
This chip is so small it's actually scary for someone with very little soldering experience.
Still less scary than cashing out 1500 bucks for a new laptop, hehehe...

Anonymous said...

Hello Igor,

My laptop have the same symptoms as described on the M35 model. But my Toshiba laptop model is A200-AH5. I disassembled it but cannot find the Maxim chip. Possibly they changed it into another chip brand and part number? Thank you so much.

Igor Mateski said...

@A200 owner: The PDF tutorial explains how to find the chip, so read through it again (I'm asuminsg you bought the tutorial?). If you can't find it then take a few photos of the motherboard and email them to me so I can help out. First take pic of the entire motherboard, and then split the motherboard in four other pics for better quality. DO the same on both sides of the motherboard. I had a buyer who also had an A200 but that was some months ago and I don't remember where the chip was exactly. Hope this helps.

Anonymous said...

Igor

I just tried this fix on a M35X-s149 with no luck. I have the same symptoms as before- turns on, fan starts for a few seconds then nothing but the power LED.

I went over the pins twice now using flux and 60/40 solder with a 40w iron. The connections look fine but I've never soldered anything this small before.

Is there anything else to check or some way to verify that it is the maxim chip and not something else?

Igor Mateski said...

It usually won't work the first time round. It took me a few attempts till I got things right. Make sure you follow the PDF tutorial exactly, otherwise you risk of ruining your motherboard. I fried one board before i got things right and I have 15 years of hands-on experience so take your time and again, follow the instructions. I had too many reports of people trying to do shortcuts and learned the hard way that electronics does not tolerate shortcuts, and there's no Undo button after the "oopppss moment"

Wataru said...

Hi,
My laptop had the same problem and I wonder if it got the same power chip. Its the Toshiba Qosmio X305 - Q705.

Igor Mateski said...

@Wataru, That's a good question buddy...if your laptop is built between 2000-2007 chances are it's the same power regulator, but I cant say for sure as I havent had the chance to open up that laptop model. It may be best to open it and check. Some of the people that got this tutorial for non m35x models took pics from their motherboards so I could help out in locating the problem chip, so you may do the same. Hope this was helpful.

Anonymous said...

hey Igor, you did a good job for those people out there. I have the same problem with my laptop but it is HP DV2855EE, is your tutorial covers my laptop model?

Igor Mateski said...

@ the HP DV owner: thanks for the kind comment. This tutorial covers several models from the HP line, like nc6000, nc8000 and nc9000 series so there's a good chance it may cover the DV line. Again, can't guarantee that it does, but if it's produced between 2000-2007 chances are it uses the same power regulator, the infamous Maxim 1987 or Maxim 1532. I recently got a few spare 1987 directly from Maxim, and got a datasheet that says nowadays it's the Maxim 9000 series that takes over the 1987, so we can expect this tutorial to apply to newer models also. The only difference is the Maxim model number, the solution will be the same: resoldering the Maxim chip will once again do the trick of repairing a dead or non responsive laptop.
Hope this helps.

ToshibaOwner said...

hi Igor, i have a m305 s4910, it get stuck in the toshiba logo window, and it dont boot, could this be a maxim problem? thanx

Willem de Bock said...

Hi Igor i have a Acer Aspire 1680 with a few maxim chips, 1714, 9755, 1772 and 1907
Does you pdf cover this model

Igor Mateski said...

@ ToshibaOwner: If it gets stuck at the logo I'd first go with the http://imateski.blogspot.com/2009/03/fixing-non-responsive-hp-nx61106xxx.html which deals with a nonbooting laptop. This is assuming you can't even get into the BIOS. If this is the case then the nx6110 is for you.

Igor Mateski said...

@ the Acer owner: the Maxim fault is spread out to almost all the laptop brands, so if your laptop has the described symptoms in this post, then it's the Maxim chip issue and the tutorial may help you. Note that as years pass by Maxim changes their chip models so in your case even if you don't have the Max 1532 or ax 1987 which is found in the Toshiba M30 series, chances are that in your case it's either the 1907 or the 9xxx chip. I just got a products brief from Maxim and as I recall the 9xxx series is the new power driver chip. But mostly the location of the chips determine their function, as is explained in the tutorial.
Hope this was helpful.

Unknown said...

Hello, Igor!

I believe I got the same problem in my Toshiba Satellite A105-S1014: it turns on for 3 seconds then it shuts off just to repeat this cycle a couple of times. I'd like to ask you if your guide would help fix my computer. Thanks for your attention.

Best,

Paulo.

Igor Mateski said...

Hi Paulo,
As I can remember, several people sofar got this tutorial for their A-series laptops, sofar I havent heard any complaints so I guess the tutorial helped. In any case, whoever gets the tutorial is more than welcomed to ask for guidance along the way. People got the tutorial for various problems, even problems not related to the Maxim chip, and once they realize this, they ask for help and sure enough, they get it. Just a few days ago I had a customer that had a problem with the graphics card chip on his laptop...but I guided him through the repair and now he's got his laptop back to life. I do offer Service Coupons on my blog, but I guess people find it more convenient (ie cheaper) to just get a repair tutorial and use the free support. :)

Jim Horn said...

Hello, Igor - Thanks for the repair guide! I resoldered the Maxim chip when this problem first arose and got my laptop back (Toshiba M35X-S161). Hooray! Unfortunately, a few months later it failed again. Resoldering didn't help.

After getting the motherboard schematics I found that the CPU_B+ and several related signals are shorted to ground, even with the Maxim chip removed. Now to hunt down the failure...

More news when I find the fault.

Oh, the Dell D400s I mentioned earlier *don't* use the Maxim part and have an apparently unrelated fault. More bugs to hunt...

Igor Mateski said...

Hi Jim. Sorry to hear that. I'm curious in this new problem. Please forward me the schematics and I'll try to help you with the troubleshooting. I still have a spare motherboard that I can play with and I'd gladly do so. Hopefuly we'll get to the solution faster.

Jim Horn said...

Found the problem with my M35X: The CPU power supply power FETs have failed (PQ35,36,39 and 40 on the schematic). While they're obsolete parts, the manufacturer, Alpha and Omega Semi, have better parts that should drop in to replace them - and DigiKey sells them. No other shorts or problems found yet.

More news when I receive and install the FETs.

Many thanks again!

Igor Mateski said...

great work Jim. I ran into several HP laptops that had FETs failure. Your Toshiba however is the first one I've heard of with both the Maxim problem and FET shorting. If you have an osciloscope at hand I suggest that you take a look at the power supply as well, especially if you noticed some slowdowns of your laptop that weren't software related. Just had a HP that was acting up a month after purchase, and after some tests it turned out that the power supply was faulty. The owner didn't want me to repair the power supply so she just bought a new one, but my guess is that some ceramic capacitors issue.
Hope this helps.

Unknown said...

Hey Igor

I ve a toshiba Satellite A50. the problem as much as i can gather is the same you mentioned. when i swithch on the LED on the front signifying power comes on but nothing else happens. i don't think the fan works for even a second (is there a fan on A50 i think there is just a heat sink)but vent opened it for a long time. i wanted to know in your opinion is this the same problem as u mentioned.

cheers

Igor Mateski said...

Assuming you checked if your power cord is OK and the battery is fine, you may be facing a detached power plug issue. The tutorial teaches you how to do a good resolder of the power plug.
Next guess would be the Maxim issue which is explained in detail in the tutorial.
I can't say for sure, but based on what you're experiencing, I think the tutorial may help you.

Unknown said...

Igor, I have lenovo G430 Model Laptop and my laptop is not showing any image or display when i on my laptop it got on very fast but no display andthing only blank or black display it shows. please help me i am in very much trouble. i am a student and i my study is suffering very much. I am from poor background so i don't have the capability to buy another laptop. I am persuing MBA with the loan money , sir please help me. I will be very thankful to you.
Thanks

Igor Mateski said...

Vipul, Im sorry for your situation and I hope the MBA will help you to create a better future for yourself. From what you're describing, it seems that your laptop suffers from an LCD problem. I had a similar issue a few years back. Take a look at this post for a possible solution http://imateski.blogspot.com/2008/01/lcd-suddenly-died.html

Unknown said...

Hey There.
I've got a Toshiba Satellite X200 - and am also having the black screen of death. No video to internal or external monitor, Fans Spin, Have power and battery lights, it beeps 1 long, 2 short, but no picture - were the X200 series prone to the same problem?

Igor Mateski said...

@Jason, your laptop does not suffer from this Maxim issue. Having the beep codes points out that the laptop pre-boot procedure is initiated and from what you're telling me you may have a problem with the RAM or maybe the graphics chip. You'll need to troubleshoot the RAM (remove one stick or replace it with a known working RAM) and if this doesnt change anything then you're probably facing a graphics chip issue. If you have an nVidia graphics Im almost certain that is the issue. I'm working on a tutorial that deals with the graphics card failure so if youre interested please let me know via email and I'll finish it today.

Gaurav said...

Hi, I have a Lenovo 3000-G430 series thinkpad which is around 13 months old, I am not able to start it . On pressing the start button all the other buttons like HDD, wireless, sound controls etc keep glowing except the battery power button, can some body help me out and guide me.

These are the things i tried but was not successful

i tried using direct AC after removing the battery but nothing worked,I tried using a new memory chip but no success.

I even tried to boot after removing HDD but still no success

the present status is when i press the power on button whether with battery or directly theu ac on, the battery led remains off, the fan starts, bluetooth and all the sound control buttons on the top glows continuously, HDD turns on and after few secs goes off.

One of my friend who had faced similar problem says that this is due to moisture problem, how to rectify this pls help

Igor Mateski said...

@Gaurav, your problem seems quite similar to the Toshiba issue. You may want to consider the repair tutorial. This power-related Maxim issue is known to pop up in all kinds of laptops and your Lenovo may not be any different.

Anonymous said...

Hi Igor, I have toshiba Equium when i plug in charger this lights up orange when i press power button this lights up green i hear one litle sound which i think is the cd drive which works ok when power is on, then that it no beeps no fan nothing sounds dead apart from green power light on and cd dvive working, do you know what this could be and if this manuel will hope solve my laptop?
Thank you

Igor Mateski said...

well, it's hard to say. the way you're describing the problem it sounds about the same as the m35 problem. It may be the maxim issue, it may be the power plug issue, and the tutorial teaches how to deal with both problems. Im not familiar with your model so I cant guarantee that it's the same issue, but looking back over the past few years this tutorial seems to work for most about any model that has the same symptoms.
To get the tutorial just head over to my website http://www.ebooksandtutorials.com/toshiba-m35-hp-nc6000-laptop-repair-manual

Anonymous said...

Satellite A215-S4747 Max 8774 Chip. Does this fall into your tutorial? Similar problems. Lights come on, fan comes on, sounds like dvd and HD are trying to spin. No screen, internal or external.

Igor Mateski said...

yes, from what I know the Maxim 19xx were replaced with the 8xxx and 9xxx chips, so since your laptop has the same symptoms most probably this tutorial will work for your laptop too.

Anonymous said...

Hey, bought your manual, makes alot of sense, I need to attempt a repair on a an Acer Aspire 4935G but I can't seem to locate the maxim chip on the board.
The laptop is dissasembled but I can't see a chip with Max on it.
Can you point me in the right direction please?

Igor Mateski said...

Hi Irving, just emailed you some guidelines, hope it helps. If not, you're welcomed to email the MB pics and we'll take it from there

Managing this product thread on two fronts is a bit hectic, so for everybody else reading this post, please post any questions you have on my website http://www.ebooksandtutorials.com/it/laptop-repairs/toshiba-m35-hp-nc6000-laptop-repair-manual.html

Anonymous said...

I need a good photo of Pins 2,3 (board layout) on the motherboard (Toshiba M30x-148)for MX1987.

Can somebody help me?

morris said...

hi thank you so much for your help it’ s really helpful but i have a question plz is that working also for Toshiba L505D-6947D? cause it make the same problem it’s just dead and when i ask one guy he say it’s a chip inside and he say it’s called power chip is that right?what’s the real name for it?thank you so much for ur help

Igor Mateski said...

Hi Moris. Yes, the repair manual will help you repair your dead Toshiba L505. There are several people who wrote back to report that they did fix their non booting Toshiba L505 laptops.

morris said...

thank you so much Igor for your attention and your care.i would like to ask you plz is Toshiba satellite L505D-S6947 using also the Maxim power ic or chip?and if yes which kind of "max power chip"it using?i mean the serial number from that or how i know it's exactly what i need ?

again thank you so much yor your help

Igor Mateski said...

From what my customers reported, the L505 uses the Max 1987. But I wouldn't be surprised if it uses the Maxim 1532ETL. They're interchangable. Would you mind posting your question over on my site please?

http://www.ebooksandtutorials.com/it/laptop-repairs/toshiba-m35-hp-nc6000-laptop-repair-manual.html

There are more people visiting the site and more people can benefit from our discussion.
Just copy your questions there so I can post the reply.
Thanks.

morris said...

i already post it by ur web site.did i make it by the right way?just let me know

another question plz what do u think how much it will cost Max 1987 or Maxim 1532ETL ?
thank you so much igor

Igor Mateski said...

Yes, you've done it correctly. I approved your email, so you can now freely post comments on the site without moderation.
Let's continue the conversation there.
Thanks

morris said...

i post it by the website ,thank you for all your help

Anonymous said...

Hi igor.. I have toshiba m35x and the screen goes blank but the laptop seems to be on.. Iv tried it on external monitor and it worked fine.. But now it has stopped working on that also.. I think there mite be loose conection because when using the external monitor if i wiggled the vga lead the screen would go blank. What do you think the problem would be... Thank ryan

Igor Mateski said...

Hi Ryan. It's hard to tell from the limited info you shared. Generally, I'd start with the Maxim chip simply because it's inconveniently placed between the power plug and the monitor plug. So any time you plug/unplug there is some flexing of the motherboard that causes the Maxim chip to come loose. Some have reported that wiggling the power plug or monitor plug can revive the laptop, but only temporarily... so I'd throw a wild guess that the Maxim MIGHT be the problem, but I just cant say for sure.
To be on the pessimist side, who knows, maybe there's a problem in the circuitry that takes the image to the LCD and/or monitor.
It may be an issue of a BIOS bug, or maybe just a simple driver issue.
Sorry I cant give you an exact solution. Hope these ideas might help.

Customer Care Contact Number said...

Nice post! Glad that you like their service. I believe that treating the customer so politely makes them so comfortable with your services. Anyway, thanks for sharing. Keep posting.

Unknown said...

:-we are happy to read your post; it’s a very nice and more informative...
Laptop repair Omaha

Anonymous said...

It was an astounding knowledge to visit this site and read the articles and substance.

Samsung Laptop repairs & Samsung tablet repairs&Hp Notebook repairs


Anonymous said...

I agree with you. Thank you for sharing the update. It is interesting to have it discussed widely so that we can gain more objective opinions.
Apple IPAD Repairs &Apple Laptop repairs