Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Repairing 2011 MBP Logic Board by yourself

I

ilian92

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 7, 2012
163
106
My Late 2011 15'' MBP recently failed for the second time with the infamous GPU issue. The first time was in February 2015 so Apple repaired it for free, but I'm out of luck this time as the repair program is now over. The price I was quoted was close to 500 EUR for the replacement, which I don't feel like investing in a machine this old.

Question is, has anyone been able to repair the logic board themselves? Or maybe buying a board only from somewhere and replacing the old one? Ifixit has a guide but was wondering if people had their own experiences with this already. :)
 
The board itself isn't that difficult to take out and put back if you're careful.

There isn't really a "fix" for those boards. I've had success in the past re-flowing, but it's generally considered a temporary measure.
 
Brian Y said:
The board itself isn't that difficult to take out and put back if you're careful.

There isn't really a "fix" for those boards. I've had success in the past re-flowing, but it's generally considered a temporary measure.
Click to expand...

Yeah this is what I'm gathering as well.

On a slightly different note, are boards that you can buy on Ebay or other places "reliable"? As in, you can find something that's not someone else's failed board somehow patched up to work, rather normal replacement parts that should do the job?
 
My opinion only, but no longer worth the repair costs.
Time to move on…
 
Fishrrman said:
My opinion only, but no longer worth the repair costs.
Time to move on…
Click to expand...

Sure, mine too, but if I can get the machine working again within 200 EUR or so would be nice to have as a hand down or backup machine.
 
ilian92 said:
Yeah this is what I'm gathering as well.

On a slightly different note, are boards that you can buy on Ebay or other places "reliable"? As in, you can find something that's not someone else's failed board somehow patched up to work, rather normal replacement parts that should do the job?
Click to expand...

Not really.

They should have a sticker with the original mac's serial number on it, but that'll probably have been removed.

It's a pot-shot. Even the boards you get from apple aren't really "fixed".
 
  • Like
Reactions: jerryk
Intell said:
You can always try this: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ntel-integrated-gpu-efi-variable-fix.2037591/
Click to expand...

Oh snap! :D I'll have a read through, might as well at this stage (buying a new machine anyway).

Brian Y said:
Not really.

They should have a sticker with the original mac's serial number on it, but that'll probably have been removed.

It's a pot-shot. Even the boards you get from apple aren't really "fixed".
Click to expand...

Yeah that's true. Which is another thing pushing towards not doing the Apple repair, knowing it will eventually fail again sooner or later.
 
Try an industrial heat gun directly on the dGPU. Just mind the temperature does not get excessive. What you want to so is melt the solder so it will reflow, not cook off the chip.

Others have had a level of success by baking the logic board. Personally I would go with the heat gun and protect the rest of the board. Trial and error, starting with 100C and moving upwards.

Q-6
 
There's a seller on eBay called "CODE2424." You send them your computer and they fix it for you. They usually have it back to your door step within 3 days after they receive it. I had an MBP repaired by them and they do good work.
 
Thanks for all your suggestions guys. The heat gun/cooking techniques are something I'm generally reluctant to do, I'll probably try to just disable the dGPU using the guide from above and see if this gets it to at least function. I might repair it for cheaper at a 3rd party.

Merkava_4 said:
There's a seller on eBay called "CODE2424." You send them your computer and they fix it for you. They usually have it back to your door step within 3 days after they receive it. I had an MBP repaired by them and they do good work.
Click to expand...

Not in the US so can't send it over to these guys, but I might find a local place where they do it cheaper than Apple.

Overall I'm pretty set on buying a new machine now, just a matter of what's best value for money right now and I'll keep you posted if I managed to successfully get my 2011 working again. ;)
 
Merkava_4 said:
So does that mean you're still on Earth somewhere, or are you hanging out with the Mars Rover? :)
Click to expand...

I have to say the Mars Rover is a very competent little thing but repairing a Macbook Pro is not its strength. So I need to keep looking. ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back