Mid-2010 Unibody Mac Mini 4,1 fan at maximum speed
After enduring two years of the drive bottleneck of 1.5GB negotiated link speed and nearing max capacity, I decided to replace the original SATA-I Seagate Momentus 5400 drive with a SATA-II Western Digital Scorpio Blue 5400 WD7500BPVT. I've done a fair number of hard drive swaps to earlier Mac Minis, PowerBooks, and MBPs, so I was aware of the care this process requires. Following the procedure in the otherworldcomputing video http://eshop.macsales.com/installvideos/mac_mini2010_hd_l/, I carefully detached the SATA connectors and the heat sensor connectors. Using no more force than was necessary and proceeding with care, I nevertheless broke the optical drive heat sensor socket from the logic board at four tiny solder points. I attempted to use non-permanent glue to bring the socket into contact with the raised solder bumps on the logic board, but that didn't work. So I removed the glue and put a small piece of electrical tape around the optical drive SATA connector (so that the cowling would not seat the SATA connecter when reassembled) and I reassembled the Mini with the new drive in place. When I completed the installation and started the Mini, the fan immediately came on at full speed.
Third party smcFanControl indicates 5500 rpm and a temp of 31 degrees C. System Profiler indicates that the system recognizes that there is NO optical drive. I reopened the Mini and checked that all of the remaining connectors were properly seated. Third party iStat Pro indicates that the heat sensors for all other components are operating correctly and reporting temps between 23C (ambient) and 32C (CPU) including a reported temp of 26C for each of the Western Digital hard drive volumes (indicating that the heat sensor for the hard drive is connected correctly). Apple Hardware Test reports error code 4SNS/1/c0000008: T00P--124, which I interpret as an error related to the optical drive heat sensor.
The Mac Mini functions perfectly in all respects except the constant fan at 5500 rpm and I have no optical drive (no great loss, there). The Scorpio Blue is much more responsive, and the spinning beach ball has been reduced noticeably. Third party fan controllers are useless, as they will not lower the speed. Putting the computer to sleep from the Apple menu shuts the fan down completely. Wakeup restarts the fan immediately.
I've performed the correct sequence for SMC reset, which did not help (SMC Version system is 1.65f2). I've booted into SAFE mode, then restarted normally, which did not help. I've performed a PRAM reset through five startup chimes and repaired permissions, no luck. The Mac Mini firmware is up-to-date. I do not have sufficient surgical soldering skill to reattach the heat sensor connector to the motherboard. Is there any way to get the fan from spinning at 5500 rpm? Is my only option a new logic board? Is there any way to get the system to adapt to the absence of the optical drive? Does anyone have experience with conductive glue, and would that work to reattach the optical drive heat sensor socket to the logic board?
I used to be a big fan of Apple products, but I'm angry with Apple for (1) selling the 2010 Mini with a hard drive that cripples the negotiated link speed by half, and (2) manufacturing the logic board with connector sockets that pop off at the slightest pressure, making it impossible to upgrade the computer without running the risk of causing severe damage. Planned obsolescence at it's worst. I've seen many reports of the heat sensor sockets being popped off the motherboard, and many reports of the fan running at maximum speed, but I have yet to find a solution. I would have thought that disconnecting the optical drive SATA connector would take the optical drive heat sensor out of the loop. iStat Pro shows no optical drive and reports no optical drive heat reading. System profiler shows no optical drive installed.
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: Mac mini
Model Identifier: Macmini4,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MM41.0042.B00
SMC Version (system): 1.65f2
Disc Burning:
No disc burning device was found. If the device is external, make sure its connected and turned on.
NVidia MCP89 AHCI:
Vendor: NVidia
Product: MCP89 AHCI
Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Description: AHCI Version 1.30 Supported
WDC WD7500BPVT-00HXZT3:
Capacity: 750.16 GB (750,156,374,016 bytes)
Model: WDC WD7500BPVT-00HXZT3
Revision: 01.01A01
Serial Number: WD-WXU1CA181923
Native Command Queuing: Yes
Queue Depth: 32
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk0
Rotational Rate: 5400
Medium Type: Rotational
Bay Name: Lower
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified
I've done an SMC reset in the right order (sequence is critical):
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Unplug the computer's power cord and all other cables.
3. Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
4. Release the power button.
5. Attach the computer's power cable and all other cables.
6. Press the power button to turn on the computer.
(If you don't release the power button in step 4 before attaching the power in step 5, then you are doing a PMU reset procedure rather than an SMC reset. But since Intel Minis don't have PMUs, you end up with a high-speed fan as a consequence.)
Any suggestions/insight would be appreciated!
After enduring two years of the drive bottleneck of 1.5GB negotiated link speed and nearing max capacity, I decided to replace the original SATA-I Seagate Momentus 5400 drive with a SATA-II Western Digital Scorpio Blue 5400 WD7500BPVT. I've done a fair number of hard drive swaps to earlier Mac Minis, PowerBooks, and MBPs, so I was aware of the care this process requires. Following the procedure in the otherworldcomputing video http://eshop.macsales.com/installvideos/mac_mini2010_hd_l/, I carefully detached the SATA connectors and the heat sensor connectors. Using no more force than was necessary and proceeding with care, I nevertheless broke the optical drive heat sensor socket from the logic board at four tiny solder points. I attempted to use non-permanent glue to bring the socket into contact with the raised solder bumps on the logic board, but that didn't work. So I removed the glue and put a small piece of electrical tape around the optical drive SATA connector (so that the cowling would not seat the SATA connecter when reassembled) and I reassembled the Mini with the new drive in place. When I completed the installation and started the Mini, the fan immediately came on at full speed.
Third party smcFanControl indicates 5500 rpm and a temp of 31 degrees C. System Profiler indicates that the system recognizes that there is NO optical drive. I reopened the Mini and checked that all of the remaining connectors were properly seated. Third party iStat Pro indicates that the heat sensors for all other components are operating correctly and reporting temps between 23C (ambient) and 32C (CPU) including a reported temp of 26C for each of the Western Digital hard drive volumes (indicating that the heat sensor for the hard drive is connected correctly). Apple Hardware Test reports error code 4SNS/1/c0000008: T00P--124, which I interpret as an error related to the optical drive heat sensor.
The Mac Mini functions perfectly in all respects except the constant fan at 5500 rpm and I have no optical drive (no great loss, there). The Scorpio Blue is much more responsive, and the spinning beach ball has been reduced noticeably. Third party fan controllers are useless, as they will not lower the speed. Putting the computer to sleep from the Apple menu shuts the fan down completely. Wakeup restarts the fan immediately.
I've performed the correct sequence for SMC reset, which did not help (SMC Version system is 1.65f2). I've booted into SAFE mode, then restarted normally, which did not help. I've performed a PRAM reset through five startup chimes and repaired permissions, no luck. The Mac Mini firmware is up-to-date. I do not have sufficient surgical soldering skill to reattach the heat sensor connector to the motherboard. Is there any way to get the fan from spinning at 5500 rpm? Is my only option a new logic board? Is there any way to get the system to adapt to the absence of the optical drive? Does anyone have experience with conductive glue, and would that work to reattach the optical drive heat sensor socket to the logic board?
I used to be a big fan of Apple products, but I'm angry with Apple for (1) selling the 2010 Mini with a hard drive that cripples the negotiated link speed by half, and (2) manufacturing the logic board with connector sockets that pop off at the slightest pressure, making it impossible to upgrade the computer without running the risk of causing severe damage. Planned obsolescence at it's worst. I've seen many reports of the heat sensor sockets being popped off the motherboard, and many reports of the fan running at maximum speed, but I have yet to find a solution. I would have thought that disconnecting the optical drive SATA connector would take the optical drive heat sensor out of the loop. iStat Pro shows no optical drive and reports no optical drive heat reading. System profiler shows no optical drive installed.
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: Mac mini
Model Identifier: Macmini4,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MM41.0042.B00
SMC Version (system): 1.65f2
Disc Burning:
No disc burning device was found. If the device is external, make sure its connected and turned on.
NVidia MCP89 AHCI:
Vendor: NVidia
Product: MCP89 AHCI
Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Description: AHCI Version 1.30 Supported
WDC WD7500BPVT-00HXZT3:
Capacity: 750.16 GB (750,156,374,016 bytes)
Model: WDC WD7500BPVT-00HXZT3
Revision: 01.01A01
Serial Number: WD-WXU1CA181923
Native Command Queuing: Yes
Queue Depth: 32
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk0
Rotational Rate: 5400
Medium Type: Rotational
Bay Name: Lower
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified
I've done an SMC reset in the right order (sequence is critical):
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Unplug the computer's power cord and all other cables.
3. Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
4. Release the power button.
5. Attach the computer's power cable and all other cables.
6. Press the power button to turn on the computer.
(If you don't release the power button in step 4 before attaching the power in step 5, then you are doing a PMU reset procedure rather than an SMC reset. But since Intel Minis don't have PMUs, you end up with a high-speed fan as a consequence.)
Any suggestions/insight would be appreciated!
