Airport Express 802.11n - no hard reset or factory default

[UncleJay]

AE doesn't pass drop test!!

I have had the exact same issue with my AE for a while and it eventually just went on and off... Before throwing it out, I decided to crack it open and have a look at its guts...
After a broken screw driver and a few cuts and scrapes, I split it open! It basically has 2 modules connected by a tiny cable. I disconnected them from each other and put them back together, a reseat. Using a wooded spoon and safety glasses I stuck in some power and let her rip...

It works like a charm!

It looked horrible so I dressed her up little... Jobs would do flick-flacks if he ever saw it!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4443455/photo.jpg

My AE quit working because of this little micro-connector. After several months of trying off & on to reset the unit, I finally broke down and bought a new one. I thought what the heck let's see what is inside, so I pried the case open only to discover the loose connector issue. With connector reinstalled it is now working fine. I'll tape it together and continue to use it.

 

[couto27]

My AE quit working because of this little micro-connector. After several months of trying off & on to reset the unit, I finally broke down and bought a new one. I thought what the heck let's see what is inside, so I pried the case open only to discover the loose connector issue. With connector reinstalled it is now working fine. I'll tape it together and continue to use it.

if you take your old aebs to some pc repair shop, they will able to soldered the connector.

i payed 15€ ($20) for the job. perfectly working, every reset now,is made with extreme caution.

 

[Medium Rare]

Got a pop up message this morning that said an update was available for Airport express. Did it and now my AE does not work,all I get is a flashing amber light. I have unplugged and plugged in,as well as numerous scans. NOTHING !!!!

Forget it,problem solved

 

[creagme]

Cannot believe this is such a wide-spread issue

thanks a lot for sharing your experience.

my hard reset was not working... until i read your post .

1- remove the rubber from aebs
2- take the 5 screws out
3- i notice that the tiny little reset was not soldered
4- i put in the right place (hold with one finger)
5- plug the power
6- press black reset button with a screwdriver
7- volia aebs reset
8-plug the ethernet cable and the aebs appears in airport utility
9- works like a charm-
9- but i send to a repair to try to soldered that tiny reset.

by the way i love your picture

This solution worked--I suppose that if Apple were to "post" this as a potential solution on its forum it would be admitting to a product defect-but SERIOUSLY!!! $$out the window$$ Its stupid not to invite a fix either way.

Thank you for posting the solution that worked for my defective product.

 

[creagme]

Also, my tattoo artist had to replace the rubberband on his gun, but this should be the antithesis of what Apple stands for...

Thank you, that fix worked...my finger did just fine after removing the casing.

 

[James BD]

Airport Express 802.11n - no hard reset or factory default

Hi,
I had the same problems and are now solved- You have actually done a factory reset but your airport utility is not finding the device even if you use an ethernet, as was in my case with MacBook Pro mountain lion airport utility 6.3.1. So I was fortunate enough to have a 2007 imac lying around with airport utility 5.6.1 and it picked up my express only through ethernet though- I made the necassary configurations and ta daaa its working! Hope this helps!

 

[anambra11]

thanks a lot for sharing your experience.

my hard reset was not working... until i read your post .

1- remove the rubber from aebs
2- take the 5 screws out
3- i notice that the tiny little reset was not soldered
4- i put in the right place (hold with one finger)
5- plug the power
6- press black reset button with a screwdriver
7- volia aebs reset
8-plug the ethernet cable and the aebs appears in airport utility
9- works like a charm-
9- but i send to a repair to try to soldered that tiny reset.

by the way i love your picture

Couto27
Thanks a million. I bought airport extreme off of ebay and spent 3-4 hours trying to figure out why it wasn't working. Your solution saved me shipping costs and frustration of finding another one. Thanks for posting this.