Page 1 of 1

LF: working T470/940MX motherboard + broken 8th gen / i7-8550U motherboard

Posted: Fri Nov 08, 2024 12:23 pm
by dr_st
I want to see what happens if I take a T470 motherboard, desolder the CPU and solder an i7-8550U to it.
Assuming I have access to the BGA soldering equipment and a person who can do the job, I need the donor hardware.

I want the T470 board to have a 940MX, if possible. Such boards are not common, but they exist.
I want an i7-8550U. Some folks are selling loose BGA CPUs on AliExpress, but I have doubts these are legit/working.

Grabbing an existing board with a CPU and removing it - might be safer. If it's a defective motherboard - even better, since I assume the CPU is not likely to be defective, and I wouldn't have to feel guilty destroying a working board.
I want just the i7-8550U, but it can come from any 8th gen laptop, I guess.

This is a really ludicrous idea, I know. But if I don't try now, it's unlikely I ever will. :lol:

Gonna look for the stuff on eBay, but if anyone here has parts they would like off their hands, feel free to send offers (possibly via PM).

Re: LF: working T470/940MX motherboard + broken 8th gen / i7-8550U motherboard

Posted: Fri Nov 08, 2024 12:46 pm
by RealBlackStuff
After looking at this: https://versus.com/en/nvidia-geforce-94 ... orce-mx150
wouldn't a T480 mobo with MX150 and i7-8550U or i7-8650U do a better trick?
And what about an A485 mobo?

Re: LF: working T470/940MX motherboard + broken 8th gen / i7-8550U motherboard

Posted: Fri Nov 08, 2024 1:51 pm
by SAIYAN48
Wouldn't bootguard cause a problem?

Re: LF: working T470/940MX motherboard + broken 8th gen / i7-8550U motherboard

Posted: Sat Nov 09, 2024 5:20 am
by dr_st
RealBlackStuff wrote:
Fri Nov 08, 2024 12:46 pm
After looking at this: https://versus.com/en/nvidia-geforce-94 ... orce-mx150
wouldn't a T480 mobo with MX150 and i7-8550U or i7-8650U do a better trick?
For sure, it would be best to just have a T480, but where's the fun in that? :)

I think the 940MX and MX150 use the same package, and their RAM chips do as well. They were designed to be drop-in replacements, weren't they? I bet that given the equipment, they can be put on a T470 board and just work, unless there is BIOS whitelisting going on.

Re: LF: working T470/940MX motherboard + broken 8th gen / i7-8550U motherboard

Posted: Sat Nov 09, 2024 7:54 am
by axur-delmeria
dr_st wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2024 5:20 am
I think the 940MX and MX150 use the same package, and their RAM chips do as well. They were designed to be drop-in replacements, weren't they? I bet that given the equipment, they can be put on a T470 board and just work, unless there is BIOS whitelisting going on.
You'd probably run into BIOS issues, esp. with regards to CPU support. I dunno if anyone has managed to add CPU microcodes to newer BIOSes/UEFI firmware.