word to the wise, if ure running heavy programs like Logic studio, all day round, your mac might eventually die. mine did. too hot for too long will fry the components and turn the thermal paste into sand. but, take it a part, bake!! the logic board in the oven for 7 minutes at 380f. add some new thermal paste and take out all the dust. mine hasnt worked this well, and this fast, since it was brand new. it really works!
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How i killed and revived my 2008 2.4ghz
- Thread starter robgoblin
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sadly not, only pics for reference before i unscrewed the logic board to see where everything was. but thats just the mac opened up, nothing exciting im afraid. but it so crazy that this method actually works. ive thought about it some more, and i think the missing thermal paste might have been a big issue, cuz without it the heatsink doesnt work, and as precaution the mac shuts down to not overheat. and thats what mine did. it started and died after a couple of seconds. and the screen was also dead, but got fixed when i baked the logic board. reflowed all the connections. but it wouldnt work without paste. now its running at new speeds, ive got some BIG logic arrangements, that used almost 100 channels of audio and tons of plugins, that now run smoother than ever. not only did i fix my mac i also sped it up. who knew..
Apple have been long criticised for using way too much thermal paste, and many people on this forum have demonstrated significant temperature drops by re-applying it.
It's something I probably should do, especially as mine is well out of warranty, and I'm presently idling at 50˚C CPU and 60˚C GPU.
Your CPU may have been throttling down due to the heat before.
It's something I probably should do, especially as mine is well out of warranty, and I'm presently idling at 50˚C CPU and 60˚C GPU.
Your CPU may have been throttling down due to the heat before.
i dont remember what temperature it was running at before the crash. but now its between 40 and 60. but i saw it go up to 100 for e breaf moment when running Logic studio, however the fans seem quicker to respond so it cooled off fast. i hope this remedy will last though, people whos dunnit seem to have to reflow every other week or so... anyway, yeah new paste would prob be a good idea, but if you´re not experiencing any problems id wait. cuz its quite tricky removing the logic board, and its very easy to harm components, break cables etc. on the other hand if you´re use to poking around in the computer id say go for it. applying the paste is real easy and there are great videos on youtube. i bought a top of the line paste from a computer store.
I admire your bravery
Not sure I`d have the guts to try this.
thx! didnt think i had it too, but it was quite simple ( allthough scary, that seven min in the oven i think held my breath.. ), but very satisfying when that lovely chime sounded!
but im getting a new one when they refresh, so i thought, what the heck, it cant get more broken than this. so here goes nothin. and you actually learn alot how the mechanics work. so i guess win win!
380 is 200 celsius. and i just googled it. theres a great site where i guy take you step by step, so i just followed it! and several others here on macrumors have done the same thing. so no trolling. check my initial thread, user puttputt really helped me!
I've been reflowing mine with a heat gun to keep it alive. I've had to redo it every 1-3 weeks for the past 2 months or so (I've lost track).
Be prepared, you might have to bake it again.
Congrats on prolonging the life of your well-used mbp!
Be prepared, you might have to bake it again.
Congrats on prolonging the life of your well-used mbp!
this is just insane, but i could see how it might work, i should have known this before as this happened to my 2008 model too.
so an update, my lap went silent again, about six months after the first reflow of the logic board. but i think ive found the reason, if u run a video app, like vlc, then shuts the lap going in to sleep mode, the gpu is still operating and eventually cooks in the heat. so DONT do that if u wanna save ure laptop.. i remember now, thats exactly what happended last time, but i just thought it was due to overuse. ive read somewhere someone having the exact same issue with sleep mode. so i baked the logic board again, applied some thermal paste and ta dah!, workin..
You probably have the 8600gt which Apple would repair for free if you'd be bothered to bring it in.
Reflowing the motherboard is great until you have to do it all over again. I've had to do it about 4 times this summer alone to fix my playstation so I don't have much hope for the technique without really knowing what you're doing. If i was in your position and it couldn't get more broken and I didn't have AppleCare/ they wouldn't cover it, I would probably try it once, but if it failed again, I think my best bet would be to just go and buy a new logic board. Lucky for me my specific model AND processor is sold by iFixit.
i've been running my own late-2008 2.4c2d 13" SINCE late-2008; sometimes 12-15 hours a day. a lot of Logic, plus the usual suspects (web, mail, iTunes)..
all good. i just had the trackpad replaced (thank you, applecare!), and apple threw in a new battery.
this is, overall, the best mac experience i've had so far (and i started with the 2400c..!)
and yes, in Lion, it gets pretty hot
all good. i just had the trackpad replaced (thank you, applecare!), and apple threw in a new battery.
this is, overall, the best mac experience i've had so far (and i started with the 2400c..!)
and yes, in Lion, it gets pretty hot
ye, i know, but the yellow "do not remove" warranty tape is loooong gone...
My MBP has been taken apart, fans removed and cleaned, multiple hard drives put it, dvd drive taken out and replaced with an optibay hard drive. The yellow stickers don't stick anymore. 2 weeks ago, my 8600GT finally went out on me, 2 months after my warranty expired on my 2008 Penryn. Luckily, Hong Kong authorized repair center installed a new logicboard for me without question. Of course, I put the original hard drive, and DVD bay back into the computer before sending it in. I'd suggest you try and bring it in.
The 2008 model, isn't that the one notorious for the GPU coming unstuck from the logic board, or something akin to that, due to prolonged exposure to high heat? If so then as some people have said, it could be fixed for free, although I will agree that there is far too much thermal paste in these machines, eve the new ones. Mine is from 2010 and runs fairly hot. Not too hot but it has definitely gotten hotter since I bought it and run it at 100% nearly all the time. I fully expect to have to do something like this at some point, but it's under warranty for a while yet.
Can't wait to have a computer whose exhaust fans smell mildly of burnt...whatever's on the bottom of my oven!
Can't wait to have a computer whose exhaust fans smell mildly of burnt...whatever's on the bottom of my oven!
well, thought i just give an update on this wonderful mac of mine. luckily ive got a brand new 2,2 mbp, so its all good, but i kept my baked old one hooked up to the tv to stream video. however, today i found out the battery had exploded. it wouldnt start, and i noticed it looked a little bent, so i turned it round and the battery must have overheated or something, cuz the whole thing had opened up and bent the battery casing sideways. and several parts had come loose. it wasnt connected to a power outlet eather. so, goodbye my long trusted MBP, class of 2008.
well, thought i just give an update on this wonderful mac of mine. luckily ive got a brand new 2,2 mbp, so its all good, but i kept my baked old one hooked up to the tv to stream video. however, today i found out the battery had exploded. it wouldnt start, and i noticed it looked a little bent, so i turned it round and the battery must have overheated or something, cuz the whole thing had opened up and bent the battery casing sideways. and several parts had come loose. it wasnt connected to a power outlet eather. so, goodbye my long trusted MBP, class of 2008.
Can't you just replace the battery? Or did it do more damage while expanding?
Well it is not apple who puts the thermal paste, its the assembly personnel in China at the Foxconn factory. You can't blame apple for that.
Yes you can, the amount still has to pass Apple quality control. They dictate how much to apply.
ye it damaged the pins thats connects the battery.. anyway, my new mbp kick ass so im not too bothered, but im puzzled by the low quality build. all other apple stuff i have is great. about the thermal paste, applying that logic is saying its the bob the builders fault when the building collapses due to faulty blueprints. of course its apples fault.
anyway, my new mbp kick ass so im not too bothered, but im puzzled by the low quality build. all other apple stuff i have is great. about the thermal paste, applying that logic is saying its the bob the builders fault when the building collapses due to faulty blueprints. of course its apples fault.