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Macbook Pro 15,4 (mid2010) MC372d/a does not boot

E

eki84

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 18, 2014
22
0
Hello all,

i have a big problem with my MBP A1286 mid2010 Intel i5. It does not boot. No water damage or crash. When i plugged the Magsafe, the green LED turns on and then change to orange, so the batterie is charging. But without pushing the Power button, the macbook turns on but no screen. The white LED glows continuously. When i try SMC reset, i can see that the Mac registered it (Magsafe LED goes from orange to green), but no effects. Still not boot. Does anyone have an idea?? Please help...

thanks and regards from germany
 
It's possible that the logic board has died. It's bit of an older laptop now, is there any extended warranty left on it?
 
no warranty... i can not imagine, that the board is dead. There must be a reason, why it does not boot. Other ideas?
 
eki84 said:
no warranty... i can not imagine, that the board is dead. There must be a reason, why it does not boot. Other ideas?
Click to expand...

Can you try using a different power cord adapter? It could also be that the battery is totally used up too.

Try bringing it to an Apple Store, if you can, and have them evaluate it. They should be able to look at it without a charging you for that - but ask first.
 
Already changed the DC Board and the batterie. Apple store? Are you serious? I thought that i get professional information here. Apple wants to sell new one and is not interested in a repair.
 
eki84 said:
Already changed the DC Board and the batterie. Apple store? Are you serious? I thought that i get professional information here. Apple wants to sell new one and is not interested in a repair.
Click to expand...

We're all volunteers here, not a professional organization, so I don't understand what you were expecting.
 
Some of the threads in macrumors are very professional! For example the 13" macbook pro thread.. I thought anyone knows the problem i have..
 
eki84 said:
Some of the threads in macrumors are very professional! For example the 13" macbook pro thread.. I thought anyone knows the problem i have..
Click to expand...

There are lots of members here and I'm sure your problem isn't unique. I've offered advice to the extent of my knowledge. :)
 
I've worked on a few of those 2010 MBPros.
If the sleep light comes on, and does not go off, then usually means that the screen is not recognized. (and the screen remains dark)

PRAM/SMC resets are a good first step.

Try reseating the RAM sticks.
I would remove BOTH, so you get a memory error for no memory installed. That can tell you that the logic board is not totally gone. When no memory is installed, you should get the sleep LED blinking once per second, not steady.
Reinsert the memory sticks, and try the boot again. That will sometimes fix your issue.

Do you get a boot chime sound when you first try to boot?
Try a PRAM reset, and let the MBPro reset 2 or 3 times before you release the keys to try for a boot.
If you CAN'T perform a PRAM reset, and the sleep LED is always on, then the expert advice that you have already received is pretty good.
Apple can offer a repair, and be sure to ask about the flat-rate repair program. Apple can fix issues that would be fixed under warranty, but the warranty has expired. Flat-rate to fix anything is something like $300 total, but you can ask about that, too, which is most anything except accidental damage or cosmetic issues.

One more thing - Your issue DOES sound like a result of a liquid spill. Have you opened up your MBPro to _verify_ that you have no visible liquid damage/corrosion?
 
Thank you for your reply. I already removed the ram and get the error code and blinking led, so i know that the board is not totally dead. I measured some points and they are ok! Pram reset does not work, no restart when i press command+alt+r+p. And no boot chime. I wouldnt ask, if i get boot chime. I can not see any liquid on it. The keyboard is also clean.
 
Just a double-check...
Shut your MBPro off: disconnect Magsafe, then press and hold power button for 5 seconds.

Try to reset the SMC.
Best way to do this is if the battery is at least partly discharged - so the magsafe LED will show a change in response for charging.
So, plug in Magsafe, then press (left-side) Shift-Control-Option along with power button just once. Important: Use Shift-Control-Option keys on left side of keyboard.
Note: When the LED on the MagSafe connector is orange/amber (indicating charging), resetting the SMC will change it to green for a few seconds, indicating that SMC was correctly reset. It should revert to amber after that few seconds.

The PRAM reset does not reset your MBPro when it is already powered on. You have to do the PRAM reset during initial boot.
So, try another PRAM reset - do it with these steps:
Shut power off. disconnect the magsafe, then press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
Plug in the Magsafe. If power either still comes on without you touching the power button, or if you are able to press power button and release to turn on power - immediately press and hold Opt-Command-P-R. Continue to hold the same 4 keys for a minimum of 30 seconds to 1 minute, even if you detect no response.
Release keys, and let it sit for 5 minutes or so (just leave it)

OK - is there ever ANY other response - screen bright - anything at all?

If you have access to OTHER known-good memory, you should try that.
One more - try an external display, if you have that available.

If you get nothing on external, then the problem should be a bad display cable (internal), or could be the display assembly itself, or maybe the logic board.
 
SMC works fine, i already post it in post 1.

PRAM reset: no way! pram does not work! Because, if you power on the mac, the system will check the main components in a loop (Ram, CPU, GPU, SMC..).. if anything is bad, then the system get stuck, and no pram is possible!

i already changed the RAMs.. the same. the RAMs works fine in a 13" 2011.

i do not need to check with external. Even if you have a bad cable, you should get a boot chime and you are able to do a PRAM reset! My Mac is like freezing during this boot check, because anything is wrong with the logicboard.

What i want to know is, which component is affected. I can replace it! I know, that the problem is with the logicboard!

Other ideas?
 
I know. I will change the gpu today, but i guess it is not the gpu
 
The GPU is not separately replaced, so you now have a different logic board...

The display assembly (LCD panel) is your next goal.

I suggest that you _try_ an external display now, even if you think that it won't work. The booting is interrupted now, because the video won't turn on. Attaching a working display may work (and still should work with the different logic board), allowing you to reset, and to work with the MBPro. Leaving the lid closed (to enable clamshell mode), with an external display, plus keyboard and mouse, leaves your internal display OFF, so that's why I suggested that.
 
I already try it with external display. It is not a display problem! It must be another reason. When i start the mac, it will restart in 30 seconds loops, until i unplug the magsafe. Is this normal for display issues? I dont think so..
 
Is there any change if you try booting on only battery (no Magsafe connected)

Did you try a different Magsafe adapter?

Have you tried disconnecting the internal hard drive, just to check if it will boot far enough to turn on the video, without the hard drive?

Did you try clamshell mode (lid closed, external mouse and keyboard, external display?) You have to turn power on with the lid open, then immediately shut the lid - and the next step, with the power on, and the lid closed, wait for a minute or two for any video on the external display.
If you still get nothing, try the same clamshell mode, but with the hard drive disconnected, as a test.
 
Before we continue.. Ive tried all the simple things. Without Harddisk, webcam or keyboard (jump start). I have tested with many magsafe's. So it must be a bad component on the logic board
 
eki84 said:
I know. I will change the gpu today, but i guess it is not the gpu
Click to expand...

But you did say that you had tried changing the GPU - which is soldered to the logic board. So, I assumed that you have already replaced the complete logic board - which would be much simpler than replacing just the GPU chip.
 
??????

Replacing the logic board!???? What????
Why should i ask for help by replacing the logic board??

Of course, logic board replacement is easy, but much more expensive! I wants to repair the logic board, not just replace with another one!

So ive replaced the GPU Chip, not the logic board.
 
eki84 said:
??????

Replacing the logic board!???? What????
Why should i ask for help by replacing the logic board??

Of course, logic board replacement is easy, but much more expensive! I wants to repair the logic board, not just replace with another one!

So ive replaced the GPU Chip, not the logic board.
Click to expand...

I apologize - I was assuming that you swapped out the logic board, as most folks who post here do not have the specialized equipment, or the skills, to replace an individual chip on a logic board.
And, you would know how to reflow that logic board as another repair attempt, which is what I would suggest.

Just curious - where did you get a replacement GPU? from another logic board?
 
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