Relationship between CCFL and Inverter

[Skater]

As I mentioned in another thread, the status lights on my T60p aren't working, and replacing the inverter with a brand new one didn't solve the problem. Consequently, I was planning to replace the CCFL or the entire screen, based on the assumption that the inverter wasn't getting any current from the CCFL.

However, after watching the youtube video on replacing the CCFL referenced in the previous thread, I realized that the CCFL is getting its current from the inverter, rather than visa versa, because there's no wire running from the screen to the CCFL.

So I'm now wondering whether replacing the CCFL would solve the problem with my status lights, or whether the leds on the new inverter I installed also weren't working right.

I was therefore hoping that someone here could answer that for question for me.

Thanks very much in advance.

Steve

[Neil]

If the CCFL lights up the display, replacing a functioning lamp is pointless. If the lights on the inverter are the issue, and the inverter board is not faulty, then the fault must lie upstream from the inverter with the ribbon cable that connects the inverter to the main system board or some circuitry on the system board itself.

[Skater]

If the CCFL lights up the display, replacing a functioning lamp is pointless. If the lights on the inverter are the issue, and the inverter board is not faulty, then the fault must lie upstream from the inverter with the ribbon cable that connects the inverter to the main system board or some circuitry on the system board itself.

Thanks for the quick response, Neil. However, if the CCFL is getting its current from the inverter, as it seem to be, the inverter is evidently getting current from the system board, and the status lights on the new inverter I installed should be illuminated. Correct?

[Neil]

Not necessarily. While the high voltage output from the inverter to the lamp is delivered over two wires, the input cable coming into the inverter board connects with something like a 30 pin connector. So there is much more than just simple low voltage power coming in.

[RealBlackStuff]

Hate to spoil your fun, but it is actually an 80-pin LCD-connector on the motherboard!
Get the T60/T60p schematics here: https://www.alisaler.com/ibm-thinkpad-t60-schematic/

[Skater]

Hate to spoil your fun, but it is actually an 80-pin LCD-connector on the motherboard!
Get the T60/T60p schematics here: https://www.alisaler.com/ibm-thinkpad-t60-schematic/

Thanks for explaining these things to me, guys, as it prevented me from wasting a lot of time and money replacing my CCFL.

Now that I've narrowed my problem down quite a bit, I'm wondering (1) what are the chances the problem is in the LED cable, rather than on the motherboard, and (2) how difficult is it to replace that cable.

After reading the manual and watching a couple of Youtube videos, replacing the cable doesn't seem too difficult. However, I came across this thread which suggested that replacing the cable is more difficult than it seems to be: https://lnv.gy/3SlfBK5