hp compaq nc6000 problems

FreeEnterprise · January 8th, 2009, 09:16 PM

Here are the pics I took of the motherboard.

see the chrome plate that covers the main chip. The maxim 1987 chip is right between that and the mounting screw plate where the heat sink attaches.

Here is a close up of the problem chip. Yes, it has a gazillion posts that are the size of dust... So file down your soldering iron down to a pin point if you want to try this.

See the chip, right above the half hole ^^

That half hole is where the heatsink screws into the motherboard, which is flexed by the LCD screen opening and closing. So make sure you put some oil in the hinges and get them moving better or else it will just do the same thing again...

I would bet you could just do the pins next to the mounting chip instead of all the pins, but since it is such a pain to get in there, I just went ahead and resoldered every pin...

MrGoat · January 12th, 2009, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjd

My NC6000 just did the same thing, however I have to press
real hard on the keyboard in the area of the lower left of the
fan assembly and as soon as I relieve pressure it loses its mind.

I guess it is new MB time or ?

Its not new motherboard time guys. Please just refit the CPU and make sure the retaining screw is nice and tight, simple.

Thanks

DavidMP · February 16th, 2009, 09:41 AM

In addition to the blue-amber lights (which I can bypass sometimes by pressing over the F10 key) I have another issue (it show up at the same time that the blue-amber lights issue): the power charger feel like don't work (with and without the battery plugged). Are both issues related?

Thanks.

gimmepizza · February 24th, 2009, 12:50 AM

Hi all,

Wow, I sure appreciate many of you spending time not only trying the suggestions here, but posting them so others can benefit -- you are the type of folks that make the internet indispensible! My hat is off (head getting cold)... My friend's NC6000 had the same problem: power on, fan comes on, amber light, then shuts down after a few seconds. I tried pressing down on the fan, no joy. Then tried lifting up on the fan's lower left, and it booted! I decided to try to place some washers under the fan housing where it screws down, at the edge of the motherboard. While I had it unscrewed, tried lifting up as before -- it did not boot! I then thought that maybe my lifting up before had caused some contact to occur that had not without the lift, but that would have had an effect when screwed in, so I tried screwing it back together -- and it booted, without any extra pressure anywhere! I would guess that the whatever-1987 chip that folks are saying needs re-soldering is my problem, but re-screwing down the fan housing flexed the board enough at that point to re-establish contact. I don't know how long it will last, of course; I may get brave and file down a soldering tip and give it a try.

Well, that's my story; thanks again to all who posted their findings; I thought I'd post mine as well. If I think of it later, and if I find out anything more that may be beneficial, I'll post it.

FreeEnterprise · February 25th, 2009, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreeEnterprise

Mine had the same problem, It would boot but only one light would come on and the fan would speed up and then the system would shut down...

Pressure on the fan assembly would cause it to boot up ok, for a few minutes then it would lock up.

So, I stripped the computer all the way down (the Maxim 1987 chip is UNDERNEATH the motherboard, in the corner where the heatsink screws to the board.

Also, my hinge on that side was really tight... So I used some tri-flow on it and moved it around for a while (did both hinges at the same time) they are still stiff, but better than they were.

Finally I found the chip, (my youngest daughter helped me find it.) I then got my trusty soldering iron... Tip was WAY too big... Borrowed a friends... His was too big too...

Went to the garage for my "old" iron. It had a smaller tip, and was adjustable down to 15 watts. (better for board repair, less heat is good). I then filed down the tip with my dremel tool until it was very sharp. Then touched each prong with the iron, (you can see the solder move almost instantly when you touch it) Make sure you let it cool between as you don't want to fry the chip. I also took off the metal bracket around the main chip as it was so close to the Maxim 1987 chip that my iron couldn't get in there without removing that...

Before I started I looked and looked, and couldn't see any not connected... But, figured since I was in there might as well try it... Laptop was dead anyway...

After soldering I put it all back together. (tip, the little ribbon holders are easy to remove with a small flathead on each side, the clip stays on the thin cable just pulls out when the brackets move up about 1/16th...)

After it was all together, I fired it up, and it worked perfect. I have started and restarted about 20 times, since yesterday when I did it. It seems to be working fine!

Thanks for the tips guys. I took a picture of the chip on the board if anyone wants to see it. (its at home, but I can upload later if anyones interested)...

update, Its been two months since I did this "fix". Laptop works great, and has become a standard at our house, we use it everyday. Has not crashed once since I did this.

marti85cr · February 25th, 2009, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreeEnterprise

Here are the pics I took of the motherboard.

see the chrome plate that covers the main chip. The maxim 1987 chip is right between that and the mounting screw plate where the heat sink attaches.

Here is a close up of the problem chip. Yes, it has a gazillion posts that are the size of dust... So file down your soldering iron down to a pin point if you want to try this.

See the chip, right above the half hole ^^

That half hole is where the heatsink screws into the motherboard, which is flexed by the LCD screen opening and closing. So make sure you put some oil in the hinges and get them moving better or else it will just do the same thing again...

I would bet you could just do the pins next to the mounting chip instead of all the pins, but since it is such a pain to get in there, I just went ahead and resoldered every pin...

hi, thanks for the pics, I'll go for it

darkmn82 · March 11th, 2009, 02:34 AM

I performed the nc6000 max1987 chip re-solder, and the PC boots ok now, but the
keyboard and touchpad is not working. During the boot, I receive a Windows pop-up message:

"The time and date on your system is invalid. Please use the date/time applet in the Control Panel to properly set your system time and date."

I know that the message above is only because i had the power removed from the laptop for a few days so this is not an issue. The problem is that when i try to click "OK" to confirm this message, my touchpad or keyboard does not respond.

I re-verified the 2 ZIF connections underneath the keyboard. I re-inserted them just to be sure, but this did not help.

Has anyone seen this problem? Please help?

darkmn82 · March 11th, 2009, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darkmn82

I performed the nc6000 max1987 chip re-solder, and the PC boots ok now, but the
keyboard and touchpad is not working. During the boot, I receive a Windows pop-up message:

"The time and date on your system is invalid. Please use the date/time applet in the Control Panel to properly set your system time and date."

I know that the message above is only because i had the power removed from the laptop for a few days so this is not an issue. The problem is that when i try to click "OK" to confirm this message, my touchpad or keyboard does not respond.

I re-verified the 2 ZIF connections underneath the keyboard. I re-inserted them just to be sure, but this did not help.

Has anyone seen this problem? Please help?

Update: I resolved the Keyboard/Touchpad issue. Connector was not seated properly. However, I still have the boot problem with the laptop. Can anyone suggest another fix for this. I'm ready to trash this laptop if I cannot get help for a fix.

FreeEnterprise · March 12th, 2009, 08:37 AM

I'm confused... You said you resoldered it, and it fixed it, but then you said it still has the problems... If it is still having the boot problem, then you need to resolder the max 1987 chip. If it worked for a few minutes, then it was fixed, and then broke again...

did you oil your hinges?

Your best bet is to remove the monitor, and oil the hinges, and then move them around a ton until they start moving easier.

Then resolder the chip. You have to make sure the tip of your soldering iron is super small, if it is too big, you run the risk of connecting pins to each other, effectively ruining your work, and causing the same problem...

I used a magnifying glass when I did mine, and you only have to touch the pin for a second for the solder to flow. If you touch it too long, you can fry the chip, or cause more issues, (connecting surrounding pins, ect).

You also want a low wattage iron. Like a 15 watt.

Resoldering the max 1987 chip is the fix for the boot problems on these laptops. It is caused by the hinge on the screen that gets tight, and flexes the board until it starts to break the chip free...

bobban · March 14th, 2009, 11:20 AM

FreeEnterprise, I also have this problem and am in a similar situation to you where the laptop is a throwaway anyway, so I want to attempt the re-solder even though I am a novice. I have my board disassembled and have examined the max 1987 chip, and am quite chocked at how small it is, to be having 48 connections. I am going out tomorrow to buy the tiniest soldering pencil (less than 20w) I can get as my soldering station is 60w and the tip far too big.

Even looking at the chip with my magnifying glass it still looks like brain surgery. From what I understand about your posts you said no additional solder is required, just to re-heat the existing solder. Each connection looks so tiny, how can I be sure I have 're-flowed' the joint?