Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

[Wizard]

No burn or shorts, and voltages measures OK on everything. This is mysterious failure. The seller tested used motherboards and I bought one to rebuild a R31. Dead. Send it back for another. Got second board in. Still dead.

Anyone have figured out why high mortality of R30/R31 series is happening all over?

Notes what I have done:
No memory error beeps (this is a trick used to confirm CPU and chipsets are fine). Even the status LEDs on the LCD did not blink for a second every time power button is pressed.

Tell me if anyone who is using Dell C400, C510 and C610 all are same 830MG, 133FSB and up to 1GB ram are still alive and long life? This chips features are also found in R30/R31 as well. only difference is northbridge is not cooled at all in that thinkpad, while Dell used big pressed heatsink plate with deep dimples and thermal pads on all major chipsets.

Cheers, Wizard

[Fluval]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

Hi Wizard

Is the standby voltage present at the power switch - I assume you checked this but just need to know.
Have you tried another CPU lower spec just in case the Bios revision of the new MB might not support your current processor. Also some makes of laptops wont power on without the CPU.
Have you removed the Cmos Battery?
Try Disconnecting everything except CPU & Ram.
I know the above are fairly basic checks but you never know

Hope this helps
Fluval

[Wizard]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

Fluval,

I have. The power button responds is nature of this southbridge along with power management chipset.

I have 2 CPU, celeron 1.2GHz (came in one of them) and two PIII-M 1.13GHz that is supported by mainboard. Did not beep at all without memory. The
LED status *should* had been blink about 1 second then running. This did not, all I get is very short flash. That's not right.

Recall that I checked all voltages, all are there for chipset as I was famillar with stuff of the time: 5V, 16V, 3.3V, 2.5V, 1.5V, and CPU different voltage (usually two voltages) etc.

Cheers, Wizard

[Fluval]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

What's your MB Part number ?

[Fluval]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

See attached - check this Cap

[Wizard]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

I did google searches and I did find that one as well. This does not match the symptoms. That little cap prevents turn on. The two boards does turn on.

Even I did mention that I used scope to look at signals, it is not running on memory bus that proves something major failed in northbridge or southbridge. I also did looked at bios chip for signal. Not there either.

I also looked at the IBM service manual and carefully checked and these boards supports the configuration I desired.

Cheers, Wizard

[12ax7a]

Re: Dead Thinkpad R30 and R31 series.

i have an acer aspire 4530 with very similar symptoms.. hmmm. wonder what these mobos may have in common. like perhaps the embedded power controller? ... WPCE775C? this thing is only 2.5 years old.. very strange.. 5v & 3v standbys are there .. still checking other test points. i wonder why they singled out that cap.. is it under-rated for that spot?