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Most reliable 15 inch early Intel MBP?

LordeOurMother

LordeOurMother

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 10, 2014
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I want to get a MBP from between '06-early '08 as a secondary device to have around for fun. For years in HS I used a PBG4 as my main word processing etc. machine and I miss the keyboard. The Intel MBPs are however infinitely more usable than the PBG4 in the modern era.

However I've heard that most models have issues. I understand that the early '06es can only be used on SL because of the Core Duo processor and that's fine if it's the most reliable. Ideally something with a proper Core 2 Duo is preferred for obvious reasons. Allows me to go to much more recent OSes.

I just want one of these that I can put an SSD in, upgrade the RAM, and call it a day!
 
My picks, in order of GPU-related painlessness.

1a. Late 2006 Core 2 Duo. Maxes out at 3 GB RAM. Can run patched Mavericks. Matte screen coating is perceived as way over the top by some.

1b. Early 2006 Core Duo. Maxes out at Snow Leopard (it can run patched Lion but that isn't worth it IMO) and 2 GB RAM. Same matte screen issue.

2a. Early 2008. Maxes out at 6 GB RAM, can run patched Catalina. Huge GPU reliability issues unless GPU/logic board has been replaced by a revised model.

2b. Mid 2007. Maxes out at 6 GB RAM, can run El Capitan. Same GPU lottery.
 
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All early intel 15/17" MBP (silver keyboard) have a faulty GPU, that will fail sooner or later (unless you find a refurbished unit with a green dot sticking on the RAM-bench, or get the GPU replaced by e.g. @dosdude1)
You may take care for the GPU's temperature levels, but even then, a GPU-failure is not predictable (only can be foreseen by watching the "PCIe Lane Width" decrease below the normal x16)

I you want a reliable device, then start with the late-2008 models: the late-2008 15"/17" MBP or the late-2008 13" Aluminum Macbook. They both have the big battery door for easy access to battery and Harddrive and RAM can be maxed out to 8GB.
The only drawback of the late-2008 MBPs is the draining of the battery while in standby mode.
Early-2009 15" MBP vs. Late-2009 15" MBP: the first one still sports the big battery-door and a PCExpress-Card-Slot (e.g. for a USB3-Card or a CardReader), the second one has no battery-door but the full-scale aluminum bottom plate (like all later models), no PCExpressCard-Slot - but both models have nearly similar specs for RAM, Clockspeed and performance.
 
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I‘m in the same boat. Are X1600 models more reliable than the ill-fated Nvidia 8600 models?
 
bobesch said:
All early intel 15/17" MBP (silver keyboard) have a faulty GPU, that will fail sooner or later (unless you find a refurbished unit with a greet dot sticking at the RAM-bench, or get the GPU replaced by e.g. @dosdude1)
You may take care for the GPU's temperature levels, but even then, a GPU-failure is not predictable (only can be foreseen by watching the "PCIe Lane Width" decrease below the normal x16)

I you want a reliable device, then start with the late-2008 models: the late-2008 15"/17" MBP or the late-2008 13" Aluminum Macbook. They both have the big battery door for easy access to battery and Harddrive and RAM can be maxed out to 8GB.
The only drawback of the late-2008 MBPs is the draining of the battery while in standby mode.
Early-2009 15" MBP vs. Late-2009 15" MBP: the first one still sports the big battery-door and a PCExpress-Card-Slot (e.g. for a USB3-Card or a CardReader), the second one has no battery-door but the full-scale aluminum bottom plate (like all later models), no PCExpressCard-Slot - but both models have nearly similar specs for RAM, Clockspeed and performance.
Click to expand...
I appreciate the information: unfortunately the late 2008s do not resemble the PBG4. :( I already have a serious reliable computer.
 
There is some controversy on replacement GPUs. Some claim the replacement GPUs did not really solve the issues; just somewhat mitigated it. There are some Macbooks out there up for grabs at this point - I am hesitant though because of the GPU issues
 
LordeOurMother said:
I appreciate the information: unfortunately the late 2008s do not resemble the PBG4. :( I already have a serious reliable computer.
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Fully agree! I like the PB-G4 style of the early intels too - especially because of the bright matte screen. My main driver is an early-2007 17" MBP with HighRes-screen, 1GB SSD and MojavePatch.

But after maintaining* a few early-2008 15" from relatives and co-workers I appreciate the later Core2Duo models with black keyboard and large battery door for easy access to battery and hard drive and because one can fit an ultra-thin TPU-keyboard cover to keep the keyboard clean (especially when in a working environment).

*) In the meantime opening the 17 screws to get access to the mainboard is kind of a snap now. So is the removal of all components to get access to the logicboard. But the whole process of dis- and reassembling, removing the thermal-paste and cleaning logicboard & heatsink, applying 140°C for 10min and repasting of the logic board becomes a bit pesky if it happens to often. And if a MacBookPro fails, while co-workers are in home-office and in critical need for the VPN/RDP-connection the silverkey-models became a no-go ...

Two anecdotes: my niece happend to kill the GPU with the MBP sitting in a bunch of cushions while watching streaming-video.
A co-worker used the iLap-stand upside down with the MBP-rear-bottom's sensitive thermal area placed on the thick velvet upholstery of the bottom of the iLapStand. 😱

OT: @LordeOurMother BTW, how do you connect you iPad with the 11"MBA?
 
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Amethyst1 said:
Those have probably received another defective GPU as replacement. The only sure-fire way to solve these issues is to solder in a revised GPU.
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I am aware; I just don‘t know if those revised GPUs proved reliable. I followed a thread in a german forum years ago and believe there was no consensus on that.
Not really sure though.
You seem pretty knowledgeable on the issue - can you confirm the revised GPUs didn‘t fail?
 
09872738 said:
You seem pretty knowledgeable on the issue - can you confirm the revised GPUs didn‘t fail?
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I'm the wrong person - @dosdude1 is the one to consult with regards to the issue :) My 2007 MBP has the revised GPU and has been fine. That's all I can offer as data points.
 
Amethyst1 said:
I'm the wrong person - @dosdude1 is the one to consult with regards to the issue :) My 2007 MBP has the revised GPU and has been fine. That's all I can offer as data points.
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Thx. The offers on ebay state nothing on the GPU status, unfortunately. Too bad its not safe to assume those still operational won‘t fail. Damn predicament
 
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Amethyst1 said:
I'm the wrong person - @dosdude1 is the one to consult with regards to the issue :) My 2007 MBP has the revised GPU and has been fine. That's all I can offer as data points.
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I actually just finished doing three of these today for people who sent them in to me for revised GPU chipset installation. These machines are rock solid reliable once the revised G84-603-A2 chipset is installed. If you want to perform the upgrade yourself, this is the listing I use to purchase my 100% brand new revised chipsets. Please be aware that this upgrade requires a bit of skill and decent BGA soldering equipment. I also have a video showing the process.

image.jpegimage.jpegimage.jpegimage.jpegimage.jpeg
 
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Does this work on 17“ Models too? Assuming its the same chip. I didn‘t realize those chips are still available. A couple of years ago word had it those chips are increasingly difficult to come by. @dosdude1 i neither have skill nor equipment to do this myself. Are you open for doing this? What‘s your fee?
 
09872738 said:
Does this work on 17“ Models too? Assuming its the same chip. I didn‘t realize those chips are still available. A couple of years ago word had it those chips are increasingly difficult to come by. @dosdude1 i neither have skill nor equipment to do this myself. Are you open for doing this? What‘s your fee?
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Yes, the 15" and 17" use the same chip. I normally do this repair for $150, plus the cost of return shipping.
 
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Sounds fair. I‘ll check the ususal suspects (ebay) if I can find a good macbook 17 and get back to you eventually. Thx man!

Edit: not located in the US. Problem?

Sorry for O/T
 
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09872738 said:
Sounds fair. I‘ll check the ususal suspects (ebay) if I can find a good macbook 17 and get back to you eventually. Thx man!

Edit: mot located in the US. Problem?

Sorry for O/T
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Not a problem, shipping may just be a bit expensive.
 
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bobesch said:
All early intel 15/17" MBP (silver keyboard) have a faulty GPU, that will fail sooner or later (unless you find a refurbished unit with a greet dot sticking at the RAM-bench, or get the GPU replaced by e.g. @dosdude1)
You may take care for the GPU's temperature levels, but even then, a GPU-failure is not predictable (only can be foreseen by watching the "PCIe Lane Width" decrease below the normal x16)
Click to expand...

The original (2 Ghz) logic board in my 2006 15" MBP has an affected GPU but it was only triggered after I spent a while living in the tropics and presumably the temperatures were too much for its already fragile composition to withstand. :D

When I looked for a replacement logic board, I read that the boards with a 2.16 Ghz CPU did not suffer from this problem. This seems to have been borne out by my experiences because more than seven years later, it continues to work without any issues.
 
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I'd go for the Late 2006 15". It's still relatively fast and can run Mavericks with a patch tool (NexPostFacto). Doesn't suffer from the 8600MGT issues that plagued the 2007 and 2008 models. I know you can get 2008's with fixed/replaced GPU's which don't suffer from the issue and those can run Mojave at a good speed plus have newer CPU's. Most sellers don't say whether it's a fixed 8600MGT or not so I wouldn't place my bets on it.
 
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