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HunterCupp

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 13, 2014
140
8
Columbus, OH
Hello, all!

I found an iPod Classic 3rd Generation at a garage sale the other day.

It doesn't seem to turn on or recognize that it is receiving power.

I'd like to get this working, if there is a simple fix.

Thanks,
-Hunter
 

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Also, what I've noticed with older iPods that don't have the best charges because of being so old is that the first time you charge it when it's completely dead it's best to charge it with a wall charger until it has enough power to reliably stay connected to the computer.

Hope you get it working!
 
Yeah, just went through this. You need a 30 pin to firewire and a firewire plug to charge it, and then a 30 pin to USB to transfer music to the iPod. It will not charge off USB, but otherwise it will work fine.
 
I have a 3rd gen iPod that had the same issue. It had sat for years (probably) dead, so i ordered a Firewire charger, and sure enough, when i plugged it in, it came on and worked 100% ! Now, after i loaded some music on it, i couldnt exactly use it quite yet (Broken Headphone Jack) So, i left it in my backpack for about 5 or so days. Well, in that time period, it died, so when i went to charge it again, it booted up, but would not turn on all the way. It would just stay at the Apple logo, and the hard drive just keeps spinning and spinning, and spinning, and well you know where this is going...

I just dont know WHAT the issue is. Ive tried resetting it multiple times. But no luck. It really disappoints me...
 
I have a 3rd gen iPod that had the same issue. It had sat for years (probably) dead, so i ordered a Firewire charger, and sure enough, when i plugged it in, it came on and worked 100% ! Now, after i loaded some music on it, i couldnt exactly use it quite yet (Broken Headphone Jack) So, i left it in my backpack for about 5 or so days. Well, in that time period, it died, so when i went to charge it again, it booted up, but would not turn on all the way. It would just stay at the Apple logo, and the hard drive just keeps spinning and spinning, and spinning, and well you know where this is going...

I just dont know WHAT the issue is. Ive tried resetting it multiple times. But no luck. It really disappoints me...

Sounds like a dead hard drive. They are tiny 1.8" mechanical drives in the older iPods. There are lots of alternatives, google around.
 
I don't know if you're talking to the OP or me so i'll just address both issues.

Regardless if the OP needs to change the battery or not, he still would never know without the FireWire charge cable.

As for my issue, I know for a fact that its not the battery. It's the HDD.

Yeah, he might need to replace the battery and definitely connect it to Firewire.
 
For some unknown reason, My iPod just turned itself back on! I thought the HDD was junk, but i guess not! :D True :apple: reliability

34irfk2.jpg
 
The third-generation iPod is my absolute favorite in terms of sheer coolness. It's why one still lives in my bag, pumping out the tunes to this day!
 
I did a fun mod on a 3rd gen, adding a high-pass filter (20Hz), audiophile capacitors, two batteries, and a 128GB SD card. It sounds phenomenal!

iPod 3G Hack Mod Upgrade - 1.jpg
iPod 3G Hack Mod Upgrade - 2.jpg
iPod 3G Hack Mod Upgrade - 3.jpg
iPod 3G Hack Mod Upgrade - 4.jpg
 
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Why did you choose to put a second battery? Without the HD you won't need much power, and I supposed the circuit you added doesn't draw out much current as well.
I'm just curious because I'm thinking about upgrading one of my iPods with an SSD or a memory card. But before that, I need to fix at least one of the defective boards...
 
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